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We are planning for an ABRSM piano exam for my 8 years old son. He should be OK with the piano part, but the singing requirement for aural test seems to be the most difficult part for him. The fact is he does not like singing, and we've almost never heard him singing anything. He has absolute pitch and very impressive ears, which instead cause him this exact problem. He hates singing because he does not like his voice and think it is not accurate. We were caught by surprise when we found out singing has to be tested.

Can one be trained to have accurate singing pitch in a reasonably short amount of time? Any advices?

Yes, they can be taught, but they will have to be willing to actually make the sound and practice it. Have him play the notes on the piano as he sings them, very slowly, and if a pitch doesn't match have him determine if he was too low or too high and try again.

Be sure that he sings loudly enough because chances are he will want to sing softer in front of people which may affect the pitch further.

Great to know that. Thank you, Morodiene. I will begin to train him at home.

I remember he actually liked singing when he was 3 to 4 years old, but stopped around 5.

That's unusuall, usually kids don't become real self conscience before jr. high. Did anyone say something to him? Something you are not aware of perhaps by a playmate or a playmate's parent and maybe they are not aware it made an impression on him by what they said in casual passing. Just keep encouraging him and singing with him and making it fun and a game, like Morodiene suggested, matching pitches and singing out, it should help.

If taking the exam becomes so traumatic because of the singing requirement, then don't take it! Don't let one aspect of the exam destroy your son's love for piano.

Thanks for the kind advice. This has always been our thought, until very recently a friend of us strongly recommended taking a test. We have never given much weight to the exams, that's why we did not let him take any in the past.

Maybe we should forget about the exam thing totally, but it might not be a bad idea to encourage him singing more. Piano has become a big part of his daily life and he really enjoys playing, we do not want him discouraged by an exam.

Then be sure that you sing with him. Make singing fun. I agree with AZN that if it is causing anxiety then you shouldn't worry about exams for now. Singing is such as asset for a pianist (while also being enjoyable in itself), that you don't want him to develop a fear of it from being pressured into doing exams.

Also, make sure he knows that he's not being tested on the quality of his singing voice. Any old sound will do if it shows he's perceiving the notes correctly aurally. That's what most of these singing tests in piano exams are all about. In the AMEB exams here in Australia you have the option of whistling or humming, if you don't want to sing. They just want to know that you've got the pitch, and hearing you sing it, however unpleasant you think your tone is, is the way they find out.

Humming is an excellent option! Whistling, though, takes a special set of skills. Whistling in tune...that's even harder.

It's suggested for a boy whose voice is at the breaking stage and who's embarrassed by singing. I'm not sure anyone much whistles any more. My Dad was terrific at it. (all that listening to Bing Crosby)

Morodiene! What you just said! Make singing fun?? Singing is fun!

There must be something lacking in your son's piano curriculum if he isn't asked to sing most lessons.

Just borrowing the 'Cruel but Fair' tag, for a moment....

Cruel:
In my day, if I was told to sing, I had to sing, like it or not!

Fair:
Maybe he would be motivated by a video game, such as 'Singstar'
Family fun with a competitive element.

</sig theft>

What about those who physically cannot sing? I have a student who I know can hear pitch reasonably well, but their voice is so damaged that they can only produce a range of about four notes.

I've never heard of someone with a damaged voice, must be quite rare.

I agree wholeheartedly that singing is fun, but young voices can often get very serious about singing if pressure is put on them to "do well" at it, rather than just enjoy it. That is what I meant by "make singing fun."

Thanks again for all the discussions.

He has probably the most accurate hearing pitch. With his eyes covered, he can tell the names of the notes up to any 5 keys played on the piano simultaneously.

He can sing a single note accurately. If I name a note, he can sing it without any reference thanks to his absolute pitch. He can not keep it up however if singing a longer phrase. I tried to get him singing with me, but he did not want to. He said he want to sing alone when we are not home.

Cinstance, I have a now-adult child whose hearing is very acute. They hear things that we don't hear and it bothers them, and they will also hear us as off pitch when we and most people will hear us as being on.

To Morodiene - I imagine that someone can have the hearing but not control of the voice to match? If this boy is like my son, then he would hear not only pitch, but where the partials are going and not going. He would basically need a voice coach. (?) Isn't that sort of overdoing it for the question of an exam portion that has the purpose of checking the ability to hear (not sing)?

In the RCM violin exams we were given a choice of reproducing an example by singing or playback on the instrument. Our backs were turned to the piano. Why can't they do that for piano too?

Cinstance, what was your friend's reasoning for thinking an exam was a good idea?

I have absolute pitch, and a (bachelor of arts) voice degree. I still, during those years when I have let my singing lapse, find that bits of tension keep me from being spot-on in pitch. So your son, without significant background in voice but with some kind of negative input from somewhere, is likely to have trouble being as accurate as a piano. If he happened to have been on a wind or string instrument, he might take the gradual learning of pitch accuracy as OK and apply it to voice, but in this case, to go any farther than a simple pitch matching/note recognition test, you'll have to address these issues. It will be worth the trouble, as a pianist/accompanist who understands vocalists, their thought processes and their approaches to music will find more and better paying work than someone who does not.

Oh, and another problem with voice students with absolute pitch is that we always know exactly how high the note is. We can't be fooled. http://www.pianoworld.com/forum/images/icons/default/eek.gif

I do not do RCM exams, so I have no idea what we're actually talking about having a student do. I would think his teacher should be working on this with him at his lesson to get him accustomed to what is required. My guess is some close proximity to the note is all that is needed. While some people do not match pitch well, it is a skill that can be learned, but only if you practice doing it.

I understand that. But the student seems to be uncomfortable with close proximity, even if it is good enough fo a teacher or examiner. Having seen this with my own child, who has very accurate hearing, what the OP wrote makes sense to me. A piano teacher might not be able to give that kind of voice training.