How To Sing With Vibrato

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Don’t be intimidated by the word “vibrato”

It’s more of a technique than anything else.

All you have to do is shake your voice and it’ll sound like you’re singing on key!

Vibrato is also great for when you can’t hit that high note, because it helps make the pitch seem higher.

The first step in mastering vibrato is to figure out how much pressure should go into shaking your voice.

If you want a lot of vibrato, push harder with your diaphragm (the muscle right under our stomach) or chest muscles (beneath our lungs).

If you don’t want as much vibrato, only use your vocal cords without pushing too hard on any body part.

Table of Contents

What is vibrato

Vibrato is a technique used in singing that involves shaking your voice.

Vibrato is a big part of what makes singers like Mariah Carey and Christina Aguilera sound so amazing.

Even if you don’t consider yourself a singer, vibrato is something that can be used in everyday life.

For example, someone could use vibrato to make the sound of their voice seem more interesting when speaking.

If you’ve ever heard someone talk or sing with no vibrato, it sounds very robotic.

However, when we hear people sing with vibrato, it sounds more like real singing.

It’s a very small wavering of pitch that is relatively quick and smooth (not harsh).

If you think of notes on a piano, vibrato would be the difference in how Enya’s music sounds versus Metallica

How can you sing with vibrato

There are many ways to sing with vibrato, however the easiest way is just by shaking your voice.

Don’t be confused by the word “vibrato” though.

It’s not a healthy shake like we do when we get really nervous or flustered.

It’s more of a very quick waver in pitch that results in a smooth sounding note.

To try and make sense of it, practice ooooohhh’s.

There are two versions of vibrato, up and down.

I tend to use both types depending on what I’m singing.

If I’m playing a blues piece, I will use upward vibrato because it sounds more relaxing and natural for that piece.

If I’m singing something like “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen, it’s more likely for me to use downward vibrato because of how the tune is orchestrated.

However, no matter what you are singing, try experimenting with both types and see which one you prefer using.

When trying to sing with vibrato, make sure that your breathing technique is correct as well.

Pushing too hard on your diaphragm when you breathe will result in bad sounding notes that do not sound melodic at all.

I suggest taking a big breath into your lungs and then releasing some air while only pushing out from your vocal cords (like normal).

Once you start getting used to singing with vibrato, you’ll find that it sounds better when used on the background notes of a song.

This is because the melody (important stuff) should be sung straight and not waver so much.

Once you get comfortable with that, try using vibrato on your highest notes as well! You can even use it to slur words together if you’re looking for an effect.

Tips for singing with vibrato

1. Practice singing with vibrato on ooooohh’s, especially both up and down.

2. Keep your body relaxed while singing with vibrato. Don’t have a rigid posture or push too hard with any muscles.

3. Experiment with vibrato from your chest as well as your vocal cords to see what works best for you.

4. Have fun with it. You’re a singer, not a robot!

5. Make sure your breathing technique is correct. If it’s not, you won’t sound good no matter how much vibrato you add on top of that bad technique.

6. Always remember to take breaths while singing with vibrato since it can be easy to forget while shaking your voice so much!

7. Lessen the amount of vibrato on your highest notes and only use it sparingly for background notes.

The benefits of singing with vibrato

1. Using vibrato correctly makes your singing sound more interesting and less robotic which draws people in better.

2. It will help you with notes that are higher and lower than your normal range.

It forces you to stretch out your voice and learn new ways of singing which is good for your voice and tone.

3. It will make you more flexible (literally) in the long run because it’s an exercise that has to be practiced.

4. When you play your guitar and sing, it forces you to use both hands together in a way that is comfortable for you which makes playing easier.

5. If you’re playing an instrument along with someone else who sings without vibrato, the song will sound uneven because of how different notes are sung when compared to each other.

Remember that sometimes there can be a stark contrast between singing and talking, but the same person can also sing with vibrato at times as well!

6. It’s fun! Why not try something new today?

The first step to improvement of any kind is acknowledging what needs work – so stop reading this and go out into the world and start singing today!

Examples of songs that use a lot of vibrato (and what they’re about).

1. Bohemian Rhapsody – Queen.

This song is very orchestrated and uses a lot of vibrato because of that.

Also, the artist in this song (Freddie Mercury) had a lot of vibrato in his voice naturally.

2. Smooth Criminal – Michael Jackson.

The title of this song is an example of how the artist used vibrato when singing this song.

It’s not just “smooth” it actually sounds like a smooth criminal!

3. Hallelujah – Jeff Buckley.

A lot of emotion is expressed in this song which makes you feel like he’s really trying to reach out and touch your heart through his voice (which was what the original writer intended).

Vibrato was used to express the emotion that went along with the lyrics of this song as well. 

4. Numb – Linkin Park.

This song uses a lot of effects on top of normal vocals which make it sound robotic in parts, but that’s intentional because it’s about robots and technology taking over human beings and making them seem less important.

5. Crazy love – Van Morrison.

This song is about loving someone who doesn’t love you back and it uses vibrato to express the sadness of this occurrence through the singer’s voice. 

6. I will always love you – Whitney Houston.

This song was a #1 hit in America for over 14 weeks straight and used many advanced techniques such as vocal runs that were not common at the time which made it stand out in pop culture history forever!  

7. Fix you – Coldplay.

The original intention of this song by Coldplay was to help people who had been affected by cancer, but ended up being very popular regardless (which shows how emotional singing with vibrato can be).  

Practice tips for getting better at singing with a lot of vibarto

1. Make sure to warm up your voice if you’re going to be singing for a long time, have recently been sick or just woke up and your voice is extra raw.  Not doing so can end up hurting your voice or making it tired more quickly than you would like.

2. Learn to sing with vibrato on one note first (usually the note C) until you are able to do it fluently, then add another note that uses vibrato along side the first one in order to make a chord.  

Continue this practice until you learn how to sing with vibrato and keep the exact same amount of vibrato all at once!

3. Pay attention to what key you’re going out in when singing because if it’s too high or low for your voice, your tone will fluctuate due to not being able to handle such notes well and will sound uneven.  

4. If a note is too high for you to sing (ie the C above middle-C) slide up into it!

This trick varies per singer, but in my case I have been able to take low notes and slide them upwards until they are almost as tall as me because of how tall voices can be.  

This creates an effect similar to that of being able to hit high notes more easily because it lowers the tension on your muscles and helps relax you more when singing higher notes than without sliding up first.

It’s one of those secrets that only works for some people but doesn’t hurt anyone by trying out – so give it a shot!

5. Don’t worry if you’re not very good at vibrato when you first start out or if it doesn’t sound as smooth as others.  

If anything, most people tend to worry too much about sounding bad when they’re first starting out and will end up fighting with their voices way too much and never learning how to sing without it.  

Just relax your mind and know that a lot of practice is all that is needed in this area!

How To Sing With Vibrato

Vibrato is one of those things that can make or break a performance.

Very good singers will know

1. Find your note.

This is the note that you are going to be singing with vibrato.  

It’s good to start with a low note and then go up to higher notes as your voice gets stronger.  

2. Make sure you’re using the right vocal technique

You’ll want to use a breathier and more relaxed vocal technique for this, so make sure you’re not over-compressing your throat as you sing.  

You’re trying to be subtle here.  

3. Vibrate on your note, going up and down in pitch

While stretching your vocal cords slightly

Start with one note, then add another one next to it.  

Remember that each cord needs to be stretched slightly when vibrating and not held too tense, otherwise you’ll sound weird.  

The higher up the note is on your voice range, the more you’ll have to stretch your cords.

4. Practice singing without vibrato for a few days to get used to it

Once you’re happy with how it sounds to sing without vibrato, practice singing with vibrato back and forth in order to get a feel for it.

5. After practicing for a couple of weeks, try adding the vibrato back into your song!

If you’re having a hard time, take a few days off and come back to it later.  

Most people find this one of the hardest things to master, so don’t get discouraged!  

Just keep practicing and you’ll get it eventually!

Conclusion

You can sing with vibrato!

All you have to do is find your note, use the right vocal technique, and then start singing.

You will want to go up and down in pitch while making sure that you are still on key.

Practice without vibrato for a few days so that it feels natural before adding back into your song.