how to sing and play at the same time.....

Hi I have the sheet music for the corrs 'Runaway'. I want to be able to sing and play at the same time. I am very familiar with the song, and can easily sight read as i go, as its mostly broken chords. I cant seem to get started! Its like getting the left and right hands to work at the same time playing different things (remember that?) I know it will be easy once I have done it a few times, but does anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks

Rab, I don't know if this will help, but lately I've been playing waltzes, and I can play each hand separately, at proper tempo without any problem, but when I go to put it all together, I have to slow it way down so that everything happens when it should. It takes some patience and diligence to get the bass and treble synchronized. I suspect that learning to sing along with what you're playing is similar. If you look at your left hand as one instrument, your right hand as another, and your voice as another, then you may have to fall back and slow it way down so that your voice is synchronized with the other instruments, and then, as you gain proficiency, bring the tempo back up to its original pace.

All The Best,

Darnest thing. I play piano and bass. I can sing when I play piano. When I play bass and try to sing, I start to sing bass lines. It's quite frustrating. I think it takes diligent practice. Perhaps you have to really know the tune well enough that you can play it by rote in your sleep almost. On the other hand, I can read, play on the piano, and sing a tune I've never seen before. Go figure.

(I also play trumpet. Can't sing when I'm doing that, either.)

I slog through a couple of times until I find a phrase that I can sing and play. I then play the crap out of that phrase 50 to 100 times(you may find 5 or 10 works for you. . .me at least 50). I will then find the next phrase that I is 'working' or start at either end of the phrase I have a handle on and start adding notes and words one at a time.

Have Fun,

Ed V.

if that works for you then thats gooood. i was kinda taught the opposite. don't work on the ones you already can do until the rest of the piece has caught up. learn it phrase-by-phrase or bar-by-bar if you have to. I think bar-by-bar is the best way.

I remember when I was younger, and taking piano lessons. If I had problems putting hands together, my teacher would have me sing the right hand part while playing the left hand part, and vice versa, sing the left hand part while playing the right hand part. This was one way of really knowing the parts.

You may try doing this. Good luck.

Most people I've ever seeen do one or the other very well. But not together very well. In other words Strong vocal, plain piano, or very great piano playing, and very little singing. Or they switch the two off. Or the piano vocal is about 50/50 simple.

Hope this helps.

Don't give up that easily. Try taking a ventriloquy course.

Including Nat King Cole ?

My teacher was pleased that I was counting aloud as I played the songs in my lesson yesterday. I've been happy that I've learned to count music. I said, 'I've never counted a piece of music aloud, before. It's one of the things that eluded me and handicapped me through my years of playing trumpet.' She said, 'Well, you can't count out loud and play trumpet at the same time!' I had to resist the urge to say, 'Well, I don't know.... I'm pretty talented....'

Or Mel Torme? TS

Gilbert Becaud, Elton John ?, Randy Newman, George Gershwin