Just thinking today as I was telling someone about my singing lessons last week and they said, 'when did you start singing?' and I found it hard to answer. I think I have always sung in some way (not always that well, haha!) and I remember loving choir practise as a very little child. I can't pin-point when I started to want to do it properly, if that makes sense? I know that I now spend a huge amount of time thinking and reading about singing as well as actually singing!

So I'm just being nosy! When and why did you start singing and, for the teachers/professionals when did you decide to make it your career?

This most recent spell of singing for me was sparked by forumite meerkat saying I had a nice voice. Meerkat has an exceptional voice, and I was very by her comments. And I thought, OK, let's have a few lessons.

So I hired katyjay, and the rest is history

I started having singing lessons because I discovered quite late that music is amazing and I wanted to be more 'musical' I guess and at the time my voice was the most accessible instrument for me. Actually, I desperately wanted to learn the violin instead! But singing is something that we can all do to some extent already so that's why I started to do it.

I'm not professional yet but I hope to be and this is what I'm working towards at the moment. Again, I decided this because I just love music, and now I've begun to love singing too whereas before it just felt like the best option open to me. I'm thinking if I just hang in there and keep learning, I'll be good enough to sing professionally one day.

I was in singing club at school with two (soprano) friends who used to be kind of mean because I couldn't hit the top notes in the soprano section. Also, I didn't like the way my voice sounded when I tried to sing certain things, I thought it was really ugly. There was a girl who was about five years older than me, who was the singing star of the school, and I totally revered her, and wanted to have her voice... So I got the number of her singing teacher and my mum got me some lessons. Best decision ever though as an alto, I'm still not hitting the top soprano notes.

Not meaning to confuse anyone, but are you sure? Wait a few years and give your voice time to develop, and then compare your sound to that of a true contralto - you might be up for a surprise

What got me singing? School plays, and it all just happened from there, although my mum used to say that I was always singing, even as a small child.

Oh well, I guess I'm not sure. Actually I'm a mezzo at the moment, I have a mezzo range, probably timbre too but my voice keeps getting lower and lower. Both my singing teachers have been pretty sure I'll end up as an alto one day. We'll see, I'm not sure it matters in the grand scheme of things, as long as I like the way I sound. I'll probably always sing alto in choirs anyway.

Thanks for replying guys. It's interesting to hear how everyone got into singing.

Mezzo I think that, like you, I got into singing more when we started doing school musicals and and through youth theatre stuff. Musical theatre is still by far my favourite thing to sing.

Urm I suppose my Mum got me started on singing - she had group lessons when I was little and so I was always singing Jazz and Musical Theatre songs when I was young. My Aunty's a singer but we haven't had contact for many years so I honestly don't know if she influenced me when I was little.

In my chav era I wanted to do pop LOL

Then I grew out of it (TG) and got into musical theatre again.

Then I went into opera "coz I could".

Now I find opera so much more challenging and exciting... I always like to push myself.

So yeah, brief history of me lol.

Maybe it was in your genes, skipped your parents but came to you?

My dad is a musician, a pianist and a composer, and my brother plays the guitar and the drums so I guess we both got an interest in music from him. I have played violin and the clarinet for very short periods of time and the piano for a bit longer. I think I only really wanted to learn the piano so I could accompany myself singing in the days before youtube and downloadable backing tracks, haha!

So do you only sing opera now E Stowe? It's interesting that you say you find it more challenging. Surely there are challenges in every type of singing?

yeah I suppose.

I just like the interesting keys and melodic patterns and I think they can be more unpredictable in 19th/20th Century opera (and art songs). My teacher is getting me to do some coloratura stuff and I find that challenging.

it must have been really inspiring growing up with such a musical family! Like I said we haven't spoken to my aunty in years (I have a very dysfunctional family) and so I think in some ways I might have missed out on more early inspiration. I would have loved to have been better at piano at an earlier age but never mind

so what got u onto singing?

Yeah I guess it was great in lots of ways but, as you say, families are never quite that straight forward! My brother has only really got into music in the last 3 or 4 years to be honest.

I always loved singing at primary school like everyone, I suppose. I think it was seeing musicals as a teenager and performing in shows that got me into it really. Lots of youth theatre! Like Lucky, I was massively envious of the girls above me at school who could sing! I used to like singing pop music as well around that time but I'm not that into it now (and I'm not very good at it!!) and much prefer musical theatre. I had a couple of teachers in my late teens but I always sang classical and it wasn't really what I was after.

I found this place on a hunt for a teacher who'd teach me musical theatre and how to belt! I now just have to conquer the fear of singing in front of real people again!! (Teacher, husband and cat don't count!!)

Haha my cat doesn't like me singing... it makes me sad

I was so arrogant as a kid - I heard the older girls sing and I was like "I'm so much better than that!"

So what are ur goals in singing? For pleasure or career...?

I remember singing with my mum to nursery rhyme type songs when I was about 3-4, but then apparently I suddenly stopped and was embarrassed and wouldn't do it. I never remember singing at all from then on.

Then from about the age of 12, I started singing again but only in the privacy of my bedroom. I sang along with Kylie Minoque and Madonna (Like a Prayer on tape, lol) and tried to sound like them...

Then I sort of just sang along with whatever I felt like on the radio. I also liked pseudo-musical type things like Phantom of the Opera and other Andrew Lloyd Webber songs and also tried to sound like them (Sarah Brightman usually)...

From the time I was about 14 until I was 22 or so, I sang every single day for 2 hours approximately. Just for fun. I had various obsessions...Olivia Newton John at age 13 *GAG, lol*, Mariah Carey at age 14-15 or so *also GAG*, and I'd try and sound like those people too and learn how they did their specific things...I then went through a rather lame Spice Girls phase, which taught me nothing...also a Billy Joel phase which I guess at least stretched my range down lower I suppose...

Then Kate Bush when I was 20-ish. I sang along with her songs every day for HOURS!! I tried to sound like her more and more each time.

After her came Stevie Nicks (Fleetwood Mac) and then Grace Slick (Jefferson Airplane). I try as always to imitate Stevie, but won't tend to go near Grace too much. I just don't have that type of super powerful and rich voice, sadly.

Anyway...there you go!! I still sing whenever I can. It relaxes me. I get very tense when I can't do it.

PS. I haven't sung in front of anyone since I was 4 though...I've been recently recording clips and stuff, and posting them on this forum for instance, but that's it. Not even my partner has really heard me sing and we've been together for 8 years. My best friend hasn't either, and we've been best friends for 15 years!! *major mental block happening there*

What Made You Start Singing?

Well, this morning it was stepping into the shower that did it.

Often the act of climbing into a bath has the same effect.

(Shower is kinder to other occupants of the house, as the splashing of water muffles the sound of the "singing")

ive always "sung"

But it was cos of my standard grade exams

How very strange, I'm a bit younger than that but I went through the Kate Bush stage for about six months last year, and now I'm very into Stevie Nicks! She's just inimitable unfortunately though! (Not that it'll EVER stop me from trying!)

Well, I have always "sung". My parents have a video of me singing nursery rhymes aged two, I sang in the school choirs and a local choir as a child and used voice as my second instrument for Standard Grade music.

I was always desperate to get proper lessons though, so when I started working two years ago one of the first things I did was look up singing teachers in the locality and gave the most suitable sounding one a phone. However, she said that she couldn't teach me as she came to people's houses and I didn't have a piano, so I put the idea to one side and picked up the violin again instead.

A year later I was still wanting lessons, so I looked up teachers again, and again, gave the most suitable sounding one a ring. However, she didn't answer the phone and took a fortnight to reply to my voicemail. I just missed that call, phoned her back five minutes later and again got no answer, I kept trying, but after about a week gave up, and once again put the idea to one side.

However this year I attended the forum concert in Leeds and Skylark asked me if I should like to sing a duet with Cheshire Kate. I was a bit apprehensive about the idea, but agreed to give it a shot on the condition that I could pull out if I felt it was too much on the day. However, it went okay-ish, I thought, but afterwards several people asked me if violin or voice was my first instrument. When I said I had never had a singing lesson (I have been playing the violin since I was a child), I was encouraged to get some. So after about six weeks of swithering and not being sure if I was brave enough, I looked up singing teachers again and gave (again) the most suitable sounding one a ring. We arranged a trial lesson and it's been going very well for the past few months! And yes, singing teacher (who is also a string player) has heard my violin playing and says I am far more talented at singing than playing the violin!

You were definitely determined then False Harmonic! Do you still keep up your violin or are you being swayed??

I'm not getting lessons on violin anymore - can't afford both, but I play in an amateur orchestra.

LOL! That IS strange. (if you start to like Grace Slick next, that'll really freak me out, ok!? lol)

Anyway, I try to imitate Stevie...but yes, it is quite hard. Have you had a listen to my Stevie bits and pieces clips? www.soundclick.com/funnysteviebits