How to Sing in Tune Beginners Guide: Voice Tuning
Simple, Quick and Effective Ways to Practise Tuning Every Day
Lesson Purpose
Voice Tuning, also known as intonation, refers to the adjustment of pitch in speech or singing to achieve desired melodic patterns and convey meaning. The ability to accurately match pitch and maintain it consistently, aligns with how well a voice is tuned.
The ability to align your voice with the exact frequency of a musical note, contrary to popular belief, is not something you either ‘have’ or ‘don’t have’. It is a trainable coordination between the ear, the breath and the vocal mechanism. The starting point can be a very consistent tuning ability, but most vocalists do not have that ability.
As with all sound made from the voice, to stay in tune, your vocal cords must adjust their length and thickness (depth) to match specific notes. Vocal tuning is a physical skill involving Auditory Pitch Calibration and muscle memory.
This lesson starts from the premise that most pitch issues are mechanical rather than a ‘bad ear’. Expect us to provide you with a structured approach to practising tuning every day in a way that is simple, quick and highly effective. The lesson is designed to dramatically improve pitch accuracy very quickly. The goal is not perfection, but reliability.
Understanding Voice Tuning
Every sung note is guided by two systems working together:
- The ear, which recognises pitch
- The voice, which reproduces it
If either system is unclear, tuning suffers. Most tuning problems come from:
- Poor pitch reference of understanding the required note.
- Inconsistent air placement, thus a poor output.
- Excess vocal tension, due to having no proper technique.
Tuning improves fastest when the voice is warmed up and breathing is proper.
Step 1: Reset the Ear Before Singing: The ‘Listen-Visualise-Align’ Method
Before making sound, take five minutes go through your VSL Harmonic Identity warm up and breathing exercise. Then, play a single note on a piano, keyboard, tuning app, or music track.
Listen carefully for a couple of second
Mentally ‘hear’ the note internally
Do not sing yet
This aligns the brain with the pitch before the voice engages.
Before you sing a note, you must ‘hear’ it in your mind. This is the core of Auditory Pitch
Calibration.
- Listen: Play a reference note (piano, guitar, or app). Focus on the ‘centre’ of the sound.
- Visualise: Imagine the note as a physical point in space. ‘See’ your voice hitting that point.
- Align: Sing the note using short phrases such as ‘Hah’ ‘Hee’ ‘Hoo’. If you hear a different note.
Stop, listen, visualise and align. The process takes only as long as it takes to say it. You are slightly off if you are hearing two notes, or you are clashing with the required note. When the vibrations feel smooth and ‘locked in,’ you are perfectly in tune.
Step 2: Match Pitch Using Humming
Hum the note gently for two seconds.
Keep volume low
Allow vibration in the lips and face
Avoid adjusting after starting
If you miss the note, stop, listen again and retry. Do not slide to the pitch, aim directly for it. Conversely, if you cannot recreate the note, no matter how you try, hum the note that you are able to, then slide from that note to the desired one. That is a secret trick that works.
Humming removes excess air and tension, making tuning easier.
Step 3: The Tuning Song
VSL could give you complicated ways to tune your voice, but we will not. Instead, we encourage you to learn the most perfect tuning song we know.
‘When you know the notes to sing, you can sing most any thing’
So-do-la-fa-mi-do-re-so-do-la-ti-do-re-do.
This is taken from the film The Sound of Music.
What they don’t show in the film however, is the placement of your mouth and the air. Nor do they explain the connection between what you practise and how to achieve the tuning. The synergy is what perfects the exercise. Remember, always air before sound.
Step 4: Sustain and Stabilise
Hold the note for 5-8 seconds.
Maintain a steady airflow
Keep your posture relaxed
Avoid volume changes
If your pitch sounds unsteady, stop and try again.
Step 5: Vowel Accuracy Check
Sing the same note on different vowels:
‘oo’, ‘ee’, ‘ah’.
Notice which vowels pull sharp or flat.
This awareness alone dramatically improves tuning, because certain vowels naturally distort pitch if not managed. The vowel are good for practising higher notes. Always air before sound. Use the letter ‘H’ in front of your vowels to achieve accuracy and better placement of air.
Step 6: Interval Awareness
Sing two notes in sequence (for example: Do-Re).
Hear the distance between the notes
Sing slowly and cleanly
Avoid guessing
Intervals train relative pitch, which is essential when singing real songs.
Step 7: Phrase Tuning
Sing a short phrase slowly.
Begin each note cleanly and for accuracy complete the ‘Singers Alphabet Lesson’.
Hold airflow steady through consonants
Do not drop pitch at the end
Most tuning issues occur at phrase endings, not beginnings.
Daily Practice Structure (5-10 Minutes)
1 minute listening and humming
2 minutes with the Tuning Song
3 minutes sustaining notes
2–3 minutes applying to phrases
Short, consistent practice beats a long session.
Pro Tips for Faster Progress
Record and Review: Your voice sounds different inside your head. Record your practice and listen back to identify where you tend to drift.
Vowel Selection: If you struggle with high notes being flat, when practising, use ‘Ee’ or ‘Ooh’. If low notes are sharp, use ‘Ah’ or ‘Uh’. Place the ‘H’ in front for accuracy.
The ‘Hand-to-Ear’ Trick: Cup your hand behind your ear to hear your ‘true’ external sound more clearly while practising or place your finger in your ear, to hear your ‘true’ internal sound more clearly.
Avoid ‘Scooping’: Many singers slide up to a note. Practice ‘attacking’ the note directly from silence to build better accuracy. (Remember when you can safely and accurately slide, as explained above)
Key Takeaway
Tuning is a sensation. Once you feel the resonance ‘lock’ with the reference note, you will automatically remember that physical state with consistent practise.
Common Tuning Problems and Fixes
Flat singing: Not enough energy or airflow, so refer to your ‘Breathing Techniques Lesson’.
Sharp singing: Too much tension or anticipation, so deep breath using ‘Straw in a Balloon method’
Inconsistent tuning: Poor pitch reference
Closing Insight
Good tuning is not about having a ‘perfect ear’. It’s about placement of air, ear accuracy and consistency. When the ear is focused and the voice is free, accurate tuning becomes natural.
Practise a little every day and tuning stops being something you worry about and starts becoming something you trust.