Self-Check: Compare With Your Baseline

How to practise it

1. 1.Use the practice material

   Open the practice material on this page and choose Soft sustain. Hear the reference, choose a comfortable key, then stop it before singing. The reading When the numbers lie to you is listed there too.

   Look:

   The exercise, song or chapter is open. Your chosen range remains comfortable.

   Listen:

   Synthesized pitches supply the notes; they are not recordings of a singer demonstrating a technique.

2. 2.Set a safe baseline

   Choose a short, comfortable phrase at moderate volume. Record the relaxed baseline and one changed example in one take, with a quiet breath between them. Make only one deliberate change; record your takes in the recorder.

   Look:

   Posture, room, device, and the planned stop rule are settled before the first attempt.

   Listen:

   Begin from an easy, repeatable sound; silence playback before judging your own voice.

3. 3.Name the target: Breathiness, nasality, tension

   Use the same short phrase for the relaxed baseline and the changed example, then compare both in the same recording. Say what will count as complete in this lesson before practising, and keep the attempt inside the range and duration you can repeat comfortably.

   Look:

   The pitch and words remain the same across comparisons; no version requires a raised chin, locked jaw, or sustained pressure.

   Listen:

   Name the audible difference without diagnosing its cause. Breathy, nasal, and tight are perceptions that can overlap.

4. 4.Make one evidence take

   State the checkpoint target, record one uninterrupted attempt, and keep the result even when it does not pass. Compare an easy baseline with a deliberately airier, brighter-nasal, or firmer version only as a listening demonstration. Return to the easy baseline after each contrast.

   Look:

   The pitch and words remain the same across comparisons; no version requires a raised chin, locked jaw, or sustained pressure.

   Listen:

   Name the audible difference without diagnosing its cause. Breathy, nasal, and tight are perceptions that can overlap.

5. 5.Review your own attempt

   I compared a relaxed baseline with a later example in the same recording and described one audible change without forcing a rough sound. Compare your attempt with the supplied material and choose one smaller adjustment for next time.

   Look:

   Note the pitch, key, or setup you used so that your next comparison is useful.

   Listen:

   Listen for the specific change taught in this lesson. A self-check is your own reflection, not an automatic vocal score.

Practice blocks

A guide to the 5 minutes, rests and review included. Pause or repeat any block.

1. 45 sOpen the practice material. Prepare the room, body, and safe baseline for “Self-Check: Compare With Your Baseline.”
2. 75 sIsolate the breathiness, nasality, tension target in short, comfortable examples.
3. 120 sPractise or record the complete “Self-Check: Compare With Your Baseline” task, resetting between attempts.
4. 60 sReview one take against the stated listening goal and write the next smaller correction.

If it goes wrong

• The target disappears when the range, volume, speed, or duration increases.

  If a contrast causes discomfort, hoarseness, loss of range, or effort that remains after the attempt, stop the exercise and rest your voice.

• The reference and your own sound seem different, or you cannot judge the result.

  Treat the reading as missing, not as a pass or failure. Stop reference audio, restore a quiet setup, make one easier fresh attempt, and keep the human listening judgment separate from the measurement.

Self-check

• I compared a relaxed baseline with a later example in the same recording and described one audible change without forcing a rough sound.
• Name the audible difference without diagnosing its cause. Breathy, nasal, and tight are perceptions that can overlap.
• I kept missing or uncertain evidence as missing instead of awarding myself a measured pass.

Ready when

You can describe the result of the stated task and choose one useful next attempt. Completion is your own practice reflection.

If you're not ready

If a contrast causes discomfort, hoarseness, loss of range, or effort that remains after the attempt, stop the exercise and rest your voice. Repeat a smaller version on another fresh attempt rather than forcing the checkpoint.

What this shows

I compared a relaxed baseline with a later example in the same recording and described one audible change without forcing a rough sound. This is a self-report, not an automatic assessment.

What this does not show

An automatic pitch, rhythm, register, tone, or safety result. Strain, pressed phonation, injury, nasality, breathiness, or a clinical voice condition; the app measures none of those.