Things To Consider In Finding The Right Key To Sing In

Perhaps you have wanted to perform a favorite song, but you simply couldn’t get your voice high or low enough? Every song is written in a particular key. If your vocal scale doesn’t complement that key, you’ll need to transpose the song into a key you can simply sing.

But the song itself isn’t the only consideration when you’re figuring out which key to sing in. Here is a guideline to find the right key for several song, despite of your vocal range:

Step 1: Discover Your Vocal Scale

The first step to find the right key to sing in is to find your natural vocal scale. With the help of a piano or guitar, pick out notes on the C chromatic scale, beginning with middle C.

Go up the range, matching your voice to every note as you play. Find the highest note you can easily sing. That is the top of your natural scale. Then go back to middle C and drop to the lowest note you can comfortably sing. That is the bottom of your natural range.

When you get near the top of your range, you will naturally switch from your chest voice (which is deep and strong, like a speaking voice) to your head voice (which is light and airy, but still engages the vocal chords).

With practice, you can deliver your head voice better control and quality. Don’t go overly far up the scale after you turn to your head voice; you are searching for the notes you can easily sing, not the highest note you can screech out.

Most women tend to be altos or tenors, with a smaller number being sopranos. Nearly all men tend to be tenors or baritones, with a smaller number being basses.

Step 2: Find the Song’s Range

The next step is to analyze the scale of your chosen song. Concentrate to the highest notes that the song, as written, entails you to sing. Then find the lowest notes. If these notes fall within your range, or very close, you might sing the song in its original key.

If the song has a far broader scale than your natural one, you might need to try it in a different key. You can sing a high song in a lower key to make sure you hit all the notes, or you can merely drop the high notes down an octave to make them easier to sing.

Step 3: Contemplate the Genre, Volume, and Venue

A few keys are more suitable to specific musical genres because of the musical style and the volume of the supporting instruments.

For example, a song sung in a lower key might work well for a jazz gig in a restaurant setting. The soft music would present a smooth backdrop that did not compete with the singer’s vocals.

But if you’re intending to play rock music backed by screaming guitars and crashing drums, you might not be heard if you sing in a lower key. Higher notes are naturally louder and very easy to hear over loud music.

Essentially, if you’re going to compete with the music for audience’s attention, sing higher and louder. If you’re in a more peaceful, more relaxed venue, you can sing in a lower key and continue to be heard.

Selecting the right key to sing in requires you to know your voice, your song, and your venue. You can bring any song into your range by transposing it; it’s just an issue of practicing the song to get it sound good in a different key.

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