Ok a two parter! Let’s start with the basics of the body first before discussing singing with an instrument.
Reducing the tension in your body will keep your body tuned to do your best singing. Your posture and tension affect your muscles and the ability to take in breath. The breath needed to sing those notes!
With this awareness, let’s correct the tension in your body to find alignment for great singing:
- We want to release tension in the chest to allow for a more open sound. We don’t want to relax. We want to align for better more open air and sound. Think of yourself as an instrument and release the obstacles for the best sound to come out.
- Center the shoulders and release tension in the arms, elbows and hands.
- Your heads and eyes can have tension as well believe it or not. If you want to test it, look in the mirror and tense them up as much as you can. Sing a bit. Sing without the tension. That difference you hear is your motivation to unwind even more.
Ok so how do you sing and play a guitar at the same time?
Find that alignment in your body to make it as open as you can. With your guitar, notice how you are standing or sitting. If you can leaning over your guitar, notice the difference in your voice.
Let’s study John Meyer rocking a guitar and singing.
Notice the open body stance and the guitar almost off to the side.
Reduce the tension in your body and build up confidence with some practice!