Here are some girl songs that are great for singing along with. They give you encouragement as to what you can really do with your voice. You may be surprised how easy they are to sing with. All are extremely feminine, but usually do not go above a high tenor.
"Six Underground" -- Sneaker Pimps
"Malibu" -- Hole
"High on Sunday" -- Aimee Mann
"Slow Down" -- Morcheeba
"Save Me" -- Aimee Mann
"Stolen Car" -- Beth Orton
"Duvet" -- BOA
Singing is probably one of the best ways to train your voice and another that you can try is Joan Baez. Especially the Blessed Are album.
Avoid Kate Bush unless you want to shatter your glassware ;)
Dennis
Quote from: Ell on May 23, 2007, 11:59:23 PM
Here are some girl songs that are great for singing along with. They give you encouragement as to what you can really do with your voice. You may be surprised how easy they are to sing with. All are extremely feminine, but usually do not go above a high tenor.
"Six Underground" -- Sneaker Pimps
"Malibu" -- Hole
"High on Sunday" -- Aimee Mann
"Slow Down" -- Morcheeba
"Save Me" -- Aimee Mann
"Stolen Car" -- Beth Orton
"Duvet" -- BOA
I managed to track some of those songs down do you know any other girl songs that are great for singing along with?
many thanks
tammy
I am at the point now where I can sing along to Amy Lee (Evanescence), and was in a cover band for them for about 6 months....
hmmmmmmmmmm, I started out singing stuff like Patsy Cline and Janis Joplin to train my voice, but found out by accident I could sing along to most guys if I pushed my voice an octave higher... weird, lol
thanks for the song suggestions though, i haven't heard the Sneaker Pimps in a while, or Aimee Mann for that matter (yeah I have weird, eclectic taste in music... I listen to everything)...
I don't know how well this is for the voice, but anything by The Waitresses certainly gets me in the right mood.
How about Kelly Clarkson? She has a decent range- though maybe a little too high for starting out.
If you've ever listened to garbage (not some of your style, perhaps, but one of my favourites) the lead singer has a relatively low voice that should be easier for working your way up.
Quote"Six Underground" -- Sneaker Pimps
"Malibu" -- Hole
"High on Sunday" -- Aimee Mann
"Slow Down" -- Morcheeba
"Save Me" -- Aimee Mann
"Stolen Car" -- Beth Orton
"Duvet" -- BOA
May I congradulate you on your taste in music! Six Underground is one of my faves. That chick is sex-y! Do you know how the Sneaker Pimps got their name?
I suggest that the women sing along with something that won't force them into a falsetto all of the time. Try some Melissa Etheridge or another performer with a natural, beautiful melodic alto voice. I had a GF that was always trying to force herself too high too soon. Many women can't sing first, or even second soprano well, but have wonderful alto voices. It's not so much the notes you can hit, but where you bring them from. Think nasal.
try to mimic renata tebaldi's voice. no, i'm not joking.
Also, if you don't mind singing with a guy...try Simon & Garfunkel. They harmonize most of the time and you can pick the upper or lower range to sing along to. For FTMs like moi, working my way down to the lower ranges of the two has worked wonders for my singing voice and I would imagine that the upper range would have similar effects for MTFs. :)
Anything by Evanescence, but that is hard
Quote from: Rachel on May 29, 2007, 10:17:37 PM
Anything by Evanescence, but that is hard
Hehehe yeah it is a bit harder, but I have sang in an Evanescence cover band and people said I sound just like Amy Lee... *shrugs*
By the way, learning to warm up your vocal chords is an important thing too, practicing scales, it allows you more freedom and a wider vocal range. (besides, like any other muscle, you can pull something if you aren't careful and don't warm up. I lost my voice for two weeks once from not doing vocal warmups, but I do them everyday now) Here's a quick example of how to warm up: if you've ever heard this (most people have) Do - Re - Mi - Fa - So - La - Ti - Do... that's sorta what you want to do except you are going to go: Do - Re - Mi - Fa - So - La - Ti - Re - Do, the "So" note being the highest pitched note in the scale then decending back down and ending on the original "Do" note... okay, do this twice and then start a note higher, you can continue to go as high as you are comfortable with (don't force your voice). Then, do the same thing starting from the same scale and work your way back down to the first scale you sang... Ta da! you're vocal chords are now more prepared to be excersized.
You should be able to sing easily and for longer.
Drink lemon water, lemon soothes the throat and vocal chords, and if you ever start to get hoarse, gargle some warm water and take a half tablespoon of honey, straight, it will sooth the vocal chords alot more. (Hooray for honey-Lemon cough drops) Slippery Elm is good for that too... just wanted to pop by and say something...
Much love...
I rocked out to Pat Benetar and Joan Jett while training my voice. :)
Quote from: Renae Lupini on June 12, 2007, 09:26:42 PM
I rocked out to Pat Benetar and Joan Jett while training my voice. :)
Pat Benetar rocks so much
so does Janice Joplin, but her voice is hard to do and will ruin your vocal cords
Joplins voice was heading for a meltdown if she had continued. Such abuse!!
I can do it, sorta close, but I can't talk the next day ;-).
I liked to do folksy, spoken style songs, like "You were meant for me" by Jewel.
Its in between singing and speaking, good way to learn both.
Dresden Dolls-Coin Operated Boy
Bikini Kill-Rebel Girl
Julie Ruin-I want to know what love is
The Blow-What Tom Said about Girls
The Blow-Come on Petunia
Mirah-Dreamboat
And then I also listen to various female comedians. Like Sarah Silverman and Jen Kirkman(buy her album self help!).
I went to see Joan Jett live last October. I was singing along to every song and rocking out the whole time. when I left the show i sounded like minnie mouse. lol It was insane how the pitch off my voice was. It was back to normal in the morning but was still funny as hell at the time.
That's strange since Joan Jett doesn't have that high a voice.
Where you were singing with her one octave higher?
I wonder how she still has a voice since she's always belting hard and you
hear the strain on her vocal cords (singing a long time, I've got a god ear for those things).
Her cords are probably made of steel :-).
Quote from: Keira on June 13, 2007, 12:45:51 AM
Joplins voice was heading for a meltdown if she had continued. Such abuse!!
I can do it, sorta close, but I can't talk the next day ;-).
I liked to do folksy, spoken style songs, like "You were meant for me" by Jewel.
Its in between singing and speaking, good way to learn both.
janice joplin had such soul to her singing though
Aimee Mann is like my hero, there are SO few strong songwriters like her any more, and singing with her records is one of my favorite passtimes!
I'm going to check out all the artists you guys mentioned in this thread, I trust you!
Quote from: stephanology on August 11, 2007, 01:51:41 AM
Aimee Mann is like my hero, there are SO few strong songwriters like her any more, and singing with her records is one of my favorite passtimes!
I'm going to check out all the artists you guys mentioned in this thread, I trust you!
One of the reasons that Magnolia is one of my favorite movies.
You look like a perfect fit
For a girl in need of a tourniquet
Aimee's voice is about a step and a half (three notes) higher than I can sing comfortably.
There are a myriad of female artists I can match note for note though, Carole King, Billie Holliday, Tori Amos, Bessie Smith, Ani Di Franco and many more.
Little too high: Carly Simon, Janis Joplin, Aimee Mann...
This is a great idea. It sure brightens up the drive to work. gets al ot of strange looks though.
Quote from: ell on May 23, 2007, 11:59:23 PM
Here are some girl songs that are great for singing along with. They give you encouragement as to what you can really do with your voice. You may be surprised how easy they are to sing with. All are extremely feminine, but usually do not go above a high tenor.
"Six Underground" -- Sneaker Pimps
"Malibu" -- Hole
"High on Sunday" -- Aimee Mann
"Slow Down" -- Morcheeba
"Save Me" -- Aimee Mann
"Stolen Car" -- Beth Orton
"Duvet" -- BOA
Ah yes, Duvet. I have that On my iPod in Cyberia Remix.
Might I also suggest:
Sora, from the Escaflone movie OST,-Lyrics availible online,
and: Ocean Size Love by Leigh Nash. Once again Lyrics available.
Both of these are quite beautiful and are sung at a much higher pitch than say Duvet is.
Anything by Karen Carpenter works for me. She sang alto and had quite a range. I also love her music. She has seen me through many a cold night.
Wing Walker
Here is a few I like to sing too.
KT Tunstall - I Want You Back http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-K4CXvxNcw
KT Tunstall - Suddenly I See
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Maps
Cyndi Lauper - Time after time
Blondie - Heart of Glass
Seether - Veruca Salt
LINDA RONSTADT - Blue Bayou
Madeleine Peyroux - I'm All Right
Norah Jones - Sunrise
Fergie - Big Girls Don't Cry
Amy Winehouse -You Know I'm No Good
I think most of them are on you tube.
Later,
Anna
I concur, Jewel's "You Were Meant for Me" is a favorite and I think relatively easy for the MTF since she doesn't go so high and stays pretty stable throughout.
I go for a lot of Indigo Girls stuff; Amy Ray has a lower-pitched (but still nice and female) voice.
Lia
I like to sing to Taylor Swift and Christoper Cross, yep, I now he's a male, but have you ever heard him sing.
JESSI
The Sound of Music song is realy great for training voice.
it covers all the notes and is therefor easy to raise spectrum an octive.
I love singing. :laugh:
Sara
Joan Jett can do that because she is a total pro. She doesn't smoke, drink, or any of that. Her backstage is like any opera singers - tea, honey, lemon, throat stuff - and she warms up, and cools down.
It is good to find this thread, though I'm WAY out of tune with regards to most of the singers mentioned. (I gave up listening to radio years ago, because the commercials gave me headaches.)
It was nice to see such people as Joan Baez and Simon & Garfunkel mentioned though. They've done some of my favorite songs.
I also found the scale warmup and voice soothing concoction mentioned in one post to be right in line with what I had been thinking about doing. (Well, I hadn't thought about the voice soothers, but as a fan of lemon and cherry drops, any strain on the voice would have me reaching for those or the equivalent.)
Another possible source of music featuring female singers would be folk music from Peter, Paul and Mary. Very singable and you can usually find the lyrics in lots of places.
If you do an octave shift like one person mentioned, groups like the Kingston Trio open up dozens of songs to your singing pleasure.
If you are into science fiction and fantasy, or Ren Faires, you might look up Heather Alexander. A great vocal range and lots of songs in a variety of styles.
She retired not long ago and has become a FtM singer calling himself the Heir.
Joan Baez when she was young had a voice that is nothing less than a gift from god. Hard to use that as a model.
Quote from: tekla on February 25, 2008, 01:48:39 PM
Joan Baez when she was young had a voice that is nothing less than a gift from god. Hard to use that as a model.
Call it wishful thinking. There is always the possibility of singing harmony. Or just trying to match the notes in your natural range.
I remember the SF movie, Silent Running, where she sang "Rejoice in the Sun." It still brings tears to my eyes thinking about it, though I haven't seen the movie in decades.
(Yeah! I can order the soundtrack on DVD!)
Her voice was so clear, so near perfect (and for those on another thread we have around here) so dead on pitch, that it is chilling. But even now, without the range, without quite as much Crystal Clear as she had when she was young, she still can sell a song, and sing it well, and strong. More than that, she has never changed her politics to fit the current trend. I admire her for that above all else.
I thought of another possible source of female singers.
Disney feature length cartoons.
Ah, singing - a topic dear to my heart!
I can't believe nobody mentioned Joni Mitchell!!11 (sorry, just couldn't resist the ll!!11!!) ;D
Seriously -- I think way she traverses a broad range and inserts all sorts of ornamentation is great practice for the sing-song quality of female speaking voices. I really love singing along with her. Even if I usually can't hold phrases nearly as long as she can.
Also, how about Bobby McFerrin? I've heard him (in person) sing the Flight of the Bumblebee, which goes up pretty darn high. He's got a ridiculously large vocal range (something like 6 octaves, I think?) and some advice on how to gain such a range and smooth over the break between chest voice and head voice (falsetto). I got that either from a master class I attended with him, or his web site. Anyway, a bit geeky I guess, but some of his methods are, shall we say, transferrable (I think).
Ah. I forgot McFerrin. A whole orchestra in a single person.
I have at least one of his albums. Should pick up more.
Loudon Wainwright's little sister Sloan has a unique style. Not a high pitch voice, easy lyrics, and I like the way it makes me breathe correctly. She has 4 CDs out, I think. And believe it or not, there is a gentleman who sings tenor in his own Bluegrass band that will make you hit some high notes following him, a little nasally though. His name is Del McCoury. (I lose track of following him, though, because the band is so awesome, I just want to listen.)
Quote from: annajasmine on January 08, 2008, 09:53:01 PM
Here is a few I like to sing too.
KT Tunstall - I Want You Back http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-K4CXvxNcw
KT Tunstall - Suddenly I See
Later,
Anna
I love KT Tungstall and that is a great vidio
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-K4CXvxNcw
I've been singing some evanesence to work on my voice, and its not too bad, sounds a little fake though and not sure how to fix this. I still have time to work on it though, and I will be in my car where it wont be embarrasing as I drive to work.
I usually sing along with Cher and Carly Simon. I have also noticed that I can sing along with some guys, but at a higher octave.
A friend of mine at work said that she noticed that my voice if much higher and a lot more feminine than when she first met me. And I do get strange looks when I speak in boy mode.
lol, awesome
LOL! I usually just keep my mouth shut. I am thinking about learning sign language and just jumping into the role of no voice at all!!! I friggen hate my voice and. I HATE the phone. Good luck to you all I really mean that.
I've been singing "The Bramble and the Rose" lately. Such a sweet song and the only high part is the chorus, the verse is sung pretty low.
Pat Benetar rocks so much
[/quote]
I love her voice. I've often wished I could sound like her.
Well, its a pretty well trained voice, for sure, she was accepted to The Juilliard School and went for a year or two, sang with an opera and did musical theater before becoming a rock diva. Odd note, she travels with a washer and dryer - in big roadcases, because she has to have clean clothes every night. Strange, but true.
I only know Bette Midler's "The Rose" which is close to something I can sing... how is some of the rest of her music for appropriate range?
I like singing Patsy Cline songs. She does allot of standard tunes and her voice is in a fairly easy range to match. I also sing Blondie, Siouxsie and the banshees and a few others. I like to mix it up a bit.....Country, R&B, Rock :laugh:
Anything by Neko Case or Shirley Manson of Garbage. I'm really surprised that neither was mentioned in this thread previously. Both are great altos.
I like singing songs by Superchick, Paramore, Flyleaf, and Evanescence. I practice daily, so I've gotten a lot better, but I don't sing Evanescence songs too much because if I did it would put too much strain on my vocal cords. I like the band Within Temptation too, but that's a little above my ability level.
Gwen Stephani is another one of my fav.s to sing along with :laugh:
Linkin Park worked for me, and oddly enough so did Disturbed and Slipknot as well as many other metal songs...
Oddly, enough, I always sing to Digitalism and Daft Punk songs to help my voice. :P
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bQTVN2aAUw# (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bQTVN2aAUw#)
Forward!
Does anyone here know Wicked? Elphaba (the main character) is a mezzosoprano, so it shouldn't be that hard for to reach her notes... this is her lowest song (it's kinda depressing, though):
Wicked - I'm Not That Girl (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3JA_dc0I2o#lq-lq2-hq)
This one is fun, too:
For Good (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQJaZO2nfGg#lq-hq)
Generally: Look at musical theatre songs. There are a lot of mezzo/alto songs. Kim and Ellen in Miss Saigon, Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd etc.
Have fun!
P.S. Check out RENT. It's full of mezzos and altos. Actually, there is no soprano in it at all. It's really cool; I just discovered it today.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rent_(musical) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rent_(musical))
It's about seven people (four of them have AIDS, three or heterosexual, three homosexual, and one bisexual, one is a ->-bleeped-<-) living in Manhattan, and it's actually based on the opera La Bohème, so they live kind of a Bohemian life ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bohemianism (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bohemianism) ).
This song should be a good one for your voices, it's a duet between a mezzosoprano and an alto.
RENT (1996 OBC Recording) - "Take Me Or Leave Me" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8WC9XmPKz0#lq-hq)
Maureen:
Every single day,
I walk down the street
I hear people say: "Baby's so sweet!"
Ever since puberty
Everybody stares at me,
Boys, girls I can't help it, baby.
So be kind, and don't lose your mind
Just remember, that I'm your baby
Take me for what I am!
Who I was meant to be!
And if you give a damn,
Take me baby, or leave me!
Take me baby or leave me!
A tiger in a cage
Can never see the sun.
This diva needs her stage, baby,
Let's have fun!
You are the one I choose,
Folks would kill to fill your shoes!
You love the limelight too now, baby!
So be mine, and don't waste my time
Cryin', "Oh honey bear are you still my, my, my baby?"
Joanne:
Don't you dare!
Maureen:
Take me for what I am!
Who I was meant to be!
And, if you give a damn,
Take me baby, or leave me!
No way, can I be what I'm not!
But hey, don't you want your girl hot?
Don't fight, don't loose your head,
'Cause every night who's in your bed?
Who? Who's in your bed?
(spoken) Kiss Pookie?!
Joanne:
It won't work!
I look before I leap.
I love margins and discipline.
I make lists in my sleep, baby.
What's my sin?
Never quit.
I follow through.
I hate mess but I love you.
What to do with my impromptu baby?
So be wise, 'cause this girl satisfies,
You got a prize, so don't compromise
You're one lucky baby!!!
Joanne: Take me for what I am!
Maureen: A control freak!
Joanne: Who I was meant to be!
Maureen: A snob yet over attentive!
Joanne: And, if you give a damn!
Maureen: A lovable droll, geek!
Joanne: Take me baby or leave me!
Maureen: An anal retentive!
Both: That's it!
Joanne: The straw that breaks my back!
Both: I quit!
Joanne: Unless you take it back!
Both: Women!
Maureen: What is it about them?
Both: Can't live, with them or without them!
Both: Take me for what I am
Joanne: Who I was meant to be
Maureen: Who I was meant to be
And, if you give a damn
Joanne: And if you give a damn you better take me baby
Maureen (spoken): Oh take me baby!
Joanne: Or leave me
Maureen: Take me or leave me
Both: Take me baby, or leave me
Spoken: Guess I'm leaving, I'm gone!
Actually I tried this, but this really does give your voice a work
Gigi D'Agostino - I 'll fly with you - L'amour Toujours (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yey3JWKMlcE#lq-lq2-hq)
fly with you- Gigi D'Agostino