Falsetto questions

Good questions.

You might do better to join up at www.themodernvocalist.com to get good qualified answers.  Lost of killer rock singers (and otherwise) there willing to discuss and help.

Not that folks here won't offer advice...but maybe a different sounding board for you to try.

But consider this.  The full voice is supported with the diaphram, and quite often more constricted at the vocal chords and projected more toward the middle to the front of the pallet.

A falsetto is more of a throaty/lungy sort of thing....for most people.  Most often projected more toward the back of the pallet.

A good singer, with a strong full voice AND a strong falsetto is able to sing in a falsetto with extreme support coming from the diaphram, as well as constricting it at the vocal chords while projecting more toward the back of the throat.

When you can do this, it's not too tough to move from one to the other without that "hard shift" that you're associating with a yodel.

Is that what we're hearing with Freddy?

what you're hearing, is pure talent and practice in action.

like anything else, you must practice this kind of vocalizing a lot, and develop the vocal chords to react the way you want.

but technique and study will only get you so far...

you more or less have got to be born with it, for it sound 'good' and natural.

And if I sing it louder, I sound like a cranky grandmother from Monty Python

Actually, I think that would sound like Pink Floyd and back in the day they were pretty successful. 

Actually, I believe that most non singers (most people?) sing with what you are calling half voice.  It's kind of almost a falsetto but not quite.

With practice falsetto to normal and back is easy to do. It does not have to sound like a yodel when you change.  Start slow, then increase the speed.

Listen to the black singers from the 60's.... Smokey Robinson, the Temptations,  and others of that time. They almost always sang in a high falsetto voice, that was strong. Lead and BGV all sang falsetto.......Until Barry White came along and made deep male voices sexy again.

This is great info, gang. After reading your comments I realize what I need is probably the "head voice" or a blended voice like skull mentioned. Basically I need a way to hit those high notes that are just out of my range, but I don't want it to sound like I'm doing anything too different.

The motown greats (Smokey, the Temptations, all the way thru Prince) use a falsetto that's really smooth, but it's instantly recognizable as falsetto. But then there are those classic rock singers like Freddy Mercury or Brad Delp whose falsettos blend perfectly with their normal voice.

At all costs, I want to avoid the Beegee's "Stayin Alive" sound

I'm going to do some more research on that "head voice" thing (great site, skull), and I'll practice the crossover slowly like Hack said. Tech wise, I'm playing with singing off-axis/above the mic, and that definitely helps to cut down the airy quality. Bummer that I don't have the natural ability, but maybe with enough practice & studio magic, I can cheat the listeners

Spaceduck


This is great info, gang. After reading your comments I realize what I need is probably the "head voice" or a blended voice like skull mentioned. Basically I need a way to hit those high notes that are just out of my range, but I don't want it to sound like I'm doing anything too different.

The motown greats (Smokey, the Temptations, all the way thru Prince) use a falsetto that's really smooth, but it's instantly recognizable as falsetto. But then there are those classic rock singers like Freddy Mercury or Brad Delp whose falsettos blend perfectly with their normal voice.

At all costs, I want to avoid the Beegee's "Stayin Alive" sound

I'm going to do some more research on that "head voice" thing (great site, skull), and I'll practice the crossover slowly like Hack said. Tech wise, I'm playing with singing off-axis/above the mic, and that definitely helps to cut down the airy quality. Bummer that I don't have the natural ability, but maybe with enough practice & studio magic, I can cheat the listeners

 
I think everyone has the ability to develop this part of your voice.  It is finding the "trick" in doing it that seems so elusive sometimes.  And you have to be carefull not to harm yourself in the process.  A little bit each day is better than an hour at a time trying to push it.

Go to Youtube and search for Brett Manning videos.  He's got interesting approach to developing the upper end of your voice.