Singing Guide: Mary Black
Vocal technique, exercises, tips and relevant resources
Mary Black's signature singing style is a blend of traditional Irish, celtic folk and contemporary folk music. She has a honeyed, mellifluous voice that seems to float with an ethereal quality.
To sing like Mary Black, you need to master the art of storytelling and make use of your facial expressions and body movements. You need to also convey the song's emotion with your voice and deliver it with an almost whispered intimacy.
One of Mary Black's most significant songs is "Song for Ireland," a ballad that perfectly captures the sorrow and wistful melancholy of the Irish soul. She beautifully executes the song's vocal melody and adds subtle trills and vibratos and other vocal ornaments.
To sing like Mary Black, you need to pay attention to your vocal range. You can make use of Singing Carrot's vocal range test to determine your range and find songs that fit your voice. You should also consider taking the course Singing Carrot provides, 'vocal training for beginners,' which covers singing theory and practical tips.
Another thing you can do is to practice breathing techniques, which can help you improve your vocal control. Singing Carrot's article on breathing basics provides comprehensive information on breathing techniques, so you should read it. Also, You can add the Farinelli Breathing video to your warm-up routine to improve your breathing technique further.
The song's articulation is essential to Mary Black's singing. You can make use of the article on articulation provided by Singing Carrots to learn how you can articulate the words in your songs without sounding strained. Finger Bite video also provides insight on articulation.
Mary Black sings with her chest voice, a technique that produces a lower and fuller voice than the head voice. You can check the chest voice/voice register videos for information on the chest voice.
Lastly, singing like Mary Black involves a lot of practice and patience. You can utilize Singing Carrots' song search to find songs that fit your voice, compare the artist's vocal range with your voice, and practice improving your pitch accuracy using the pitch accuracy test.