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For as long as humans have been communicating with words and sounds, we have had something akin to what we now call "singing". For centuries, putting words to tones or music has been a way of elevating what we have to say; it gives beauty, further meaning, and importance to these words.
With that in mind, we can say that singing is a simple act, assuming no particular physical impediments to making sounds or hearing them. (I should add that these physical challenges are not always insurmountable; where there is a will, there is a way.) If we can speak, and we can hear sounds and tones, then we can "sing" in the most basic sense. As we talk, we don't have to think about the physical process of inhaling and exhaling, consciously pacing our breath, and whether to go up or down in pitch to make our point. Over time, we have trained and conditioned our ears, minds, and vocal mechanism to make these actions happen, without a great deal of conscious thought. Singing is just an amplified and more exaggerated form of the same, often in cooperation with other singers or instruments.
Now, to be clear, just because singing is a "simple" action doesn't mean that it is also an easy one. Much of singing is based upon muscle memory, or creating a healthy and consistently repeatable action in the vocal apparatus. This takes practice, and careful and precise practice, to be specific. Practice does not make perfect, as the old adage says--practice only makes permanent. Only through proper practice based upon the specific physical fundamentals of singing will we be able to achieve a healthy singing technique.
I do believe that we can all find a way to make singing a healthy, fun, and fulfilling way of participating and expressing ourselves artistically. Whether your goal is to have a professional career, to be a successful amateur solo or ensemble participant, to cultivate better public speaking, acting, or communication skills, or simply to achieve your own personal musical enjoyment, I believe we can do good work to help you achieve your goals. I hope this short explanation of my basic philosophy of singing gives you some idea of what we can accomplish together, so let's get started making music soon!
