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For those of you who have that constant, nagging fear that "someone might hear m
e" whenever you sing in church, keep reading. This article is for you!Steps
1. Be confident! Confidence (along with relaxation) is one of the most import
ant factors in singing, be it in church or somewhere else. Think about it - when
you sing in the shower, the tub, or even in the car on your way to work, you're
relaxed, and even though you may not admit it to anyone, you're confident as we
ll.
2. Sing in tune. Not sure whether you're singing the right notes (pitches)? D
o your best to stand next to (or in the pew in front of) someone who does have a
good sense of pitch (singing on tune).
3. Don't worry about what other people think. Your singing is to praise God!
"Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth." Psalm 100:1
4. Most people in churches aren't particularly good singers anyway - and bein
g in church, they'll all be happy to hear you singing and rejoicing, no matter w
hat your voice sounds like. "To sing once is to pray twice" (Augustine of Hippo)
5. Do your best!
6. If you look at others who DO sing they might sound not so great but they d
o it anyways. So put yourself in their shoes and sing along. Even if you sing te
rribly.
[edit] Tips
* Take voice lessons (singing lessons) from a private instructor (Avg. price
is around $15.00/lesson)
* Join a choir, especially a church choir, where you will be welcome as you
are and be taught.
* Remember, God didn't say to make a beautiful song, he said to make a joyfu
l noise to the Lord!
[edit] Warnings
* Don't hurt your throat doing this. Nobody sings well at every single momen
t in time. Just sing as you have been, as singing can make people feel happy.
* Screaming, talking loudly, and even whispering can strain your throat. Whi
spering strains your voice more than loud talking does!
* Making funny voice also causes strain to your throat.
[edit] Tips
* Drink lots of water. Avoid alcohol, milk, hot chocolate and other thick dr
inks. Also, avoid chocolate before you are going to sing.
* Practice.
* It's best to drink tepid water. This will lessen the 'shock' to your vocal
chords. Sucking on a lemon-honey cough drop will also help.
* Do not eat large 'heavy' meals before singing.
* Stretch your vocal chords before singing. Not warming up or stretching wil
l cause irreparable damage to your vocal chords and your quality of voice will d
ecrease. Even singing at home, make sure that you warm up your chords!
[edit] Warnings
* If your voice is low, Don't strain yourself too much. Eventually you might
reach a higher pitch!
* Singing high notes from scratch is not advisable as you could damage your
vocal chords, it is far wiser and safer to gently sing up the scale as this gent
ly stretches your vocal range.
[edit] Things You'll Need
* A note (from a piano, CD or similar).
* Water.
* Mirror
* Recording device (optional)
[edit] Tips
* If you're having trouble remembering what verse goes where, try making a c
heat sheet with a quick summary of each verse in order. Try to find a pattern, o
r a story line within the song.
* If you're going to sing the song as part of a competition, it may help to
add a step 9: Try to sing the song just part of the way through, starting at ver
se 3 or something like that.
* If you have the time, try to decipher the lyrics yourself. This requires a
player with a pause and rewind button. Play a line or two at a time, write them
out, rewind to double check, and then move onto the next line. Repeat until you
've transcibed the entire song, then check your lyrics against the offical versi
on.
* Get a text-to-speech program like ReadPlease and type the lyrics into it.
Without the music it may be easier to memorize just the lyrics.
* Using a site like YouTube or taping a video or performance may help as wel
l.
[edit] Warnings
* The steps, except the first and last, don't need to be completed in exact
order, nor do you need to finish one step in order to move on to the next.