Singing For Dummies
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Belting is such an exciting sound for a singer. Belting is the high-energy sound that singers make in pop, musical theater, and rock music. It’s similar to yelling on pitch, but with more of a singing tone than yelling.

Many different styles of music use belting. You’ve undoubtedly listened to the sounds of belting — you just may not have known how to define it. Belting (or belt) is a combination of forward resonance and mix. In mix, the sound isn’t totally head voice or chest voice — it’s a combination of the two.

The first step in learning to belt is to discover how to properly use your speaking voice. Belting is such an exciting sound that some people want to jump right in and learn to belt before they develop their singing skills. You will need to work through exercises designed for belting slowly to successfully create your belt sound. Take your time, and you discover that belting uses all the skills you may have explored.

Working the speaking voice helps you to feel the middle ground in your singing voice. Many people, especially women, speak on a low pitch to sound tough. That’s fine, but you can also speak in your middle voice range and command attention. Men usually speak in their chest voice. If you happen to have a high speaking pitch, you may still be in chest voice.

You may be tempted to squeeze your throat to make some of the tones, but that won’t help in the long run; you still have to release that tension later. Keep exploring tones with an open throat, consistent airflow, and an abundance of gusto.

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Pamelia S. Phillips is a professional singer with over 35 years of teaching experience. She has designed curriculum for high school students, college BFA programs, and professional training programs, helping thousands of singers refine their singing technique.

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