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Unit 4 · On your own

On your own

Sing a ballad line over a drone, then as the drone fades, then a whole verse alone, and hear the home note at the end to find out if you stayed in key. Free.

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On your own

Many ballads were sung by one voice with nothing underneath. Your key is only in your ear, so we take the drone away a step at a time.

First with the drone. Barbara Allen's first line

Then it fades. The same line, the drone slipping away

Then the verse. From your first note to the home note: did you stay in key?

What you sing

  1. Listen, then sing the first line back over the drone.
  2. The same line, and this time the drone fades away while you sing it.
  3. Now the verse, all on your own. The guide gives you your first note; after your last, it sings the home note, so you hear where you landed.

Challenge: Encore

Back to the first song you sang here, Drunken Sailor. Then: with a guide and a drone. Now: on your own, with a flick on "morn-".

Listen once. The guide sings the verse with no drone

Then it's yours. From your first note, the bright note bright

Strong, not loud. And keep the key until the home note

What you sing

  1. The verse at your own pace first, with no drone.
  2. The verse on your own. The guide gives you your first note, and the home note after your last.

Singing safely

Sing at an easy volume, in the middle of your range. Stop if anything tightens, scratches or hurts, and rest your voice.

Free tools by Stackapella

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Stackapella teaches you to sing harmony one part at a time, right in your browser.

Stackapella recording the alto part of Amazing Grace: each note is a bar with its name, and the one being sung says A little low, go up. Stackapella recording the alto part of Amazing Grace: each note is a bar with its name, and the one being sung says A little low, go up. Stackapella recording the alto part of Amazing Grace: each note is a bar with its name, and the one being sung says A little low, go up. Stackapella recording the alto part of Amazing Grace: each note is a bar with its name, and the one being sung says A little low, go up.
  • A guide sings your partHear your line over the others, slow it down, then take your turn.
  • Your notes light upEach note shows where you landed, and a hint when to go up or down.
  • Record every part yourselfStack your takes in time until you're the whole choir.
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