Laisen Sigmon

English 11u2
Inquiiy Pioposal
21u14


I am very interested in researching and finding out more information about music,
specifically singing. I want to know the history of it, who made each genre popular, who
the first person was to sing a whistle tone, etc. I am going to focus on the aspects and
preparations to becoming a singer and experimenting with the voice. I have posed some
questions that I am hoping I will be able answer after researching and completing this
project. Some of the questions are: How does someone learn how to sing inflections,
falsetto notes, whistle tones? Who was the first person to sing a whistle tone, inflection,
to sing opera? Who are the most iconic singers that have inspired people to become
singers or have made people interested with the voice? Who made what genres of music
popular? How? What singers are considered legends and why? My main goal is to be
able to give someone information on how to use his/her voice to be able to sing.
I have been singing for my whole life, ever since I was in diapers. I started out
singing nursery rhymes with my sisters. I got my first karaoke machine when I was five
and I started to sing old classics from Patsy Cline with my sisters. We listened to music
all the time by various artists and we all enjoyed it. When we got older to the age of 13
we went to a vocal coach to learn how to sing in harmony. After being taught by a coach
for a year we had mastered how to sing in harmony and went on our own. Ever since
then, I have been singing and using my voice trying to see what I am capable of doing. I
have learned to sing inflections or runs by listening to vocalists and emulating their runs.
I have learned to experiment with my voice by practicing over and over again. Singing is
a huge part of my identity and always will be. So I am very interested in learning as much
Waterhouse 2/14/14 12:51 PM
Comment [1]: You will neeu to uefine
these foi youi auuience.
Waterhouse 2/14/14 12:52 PM
Comment [2]: This seems like a lot. You
may want to naiiow youi focus uown.
Laisen Sigmon
English 11u2
Inquiiy Pioposal
21u14
as I can about it, to not only hopefully educate other people but also educate myself so
that I can become a better singer.
I have found five academic sources to research. I did have a problem finding an
academic source that would tell me the history of singing and the popularity of genres.
However, I think I have enough academic sources to educate a person on singing though.

Harness, K. (September 01, 2011). singing. Canadian Musician, 33, 5.)

This source discusses a persons ability to sing. It talks about how a person can
use different emotions and feelings to dig deep into his/her vocal ability. It talks about
using heart and passion to help the notes and vocal projections come out more clearly and
sound pleasant to the ear.

Lockheart, P. (September 01, 2003). A History of Early Microphone Singing, 1925-1939:
American Mainstream Popular Singing at the Advent of Electronic Microphone
Amplification. Popular Music & Society, 26, 3.)

Another source talks about early history of microphone amplification. This will be
helpful for me because part of being a singer is being able to hear. If you have a high
quality amplified microphone then your voice will sound better when it is projected. I
think this source could educate me on the history of microphones and what they have to
do with the clarity of the voice.

Waterhouse 2/14/14 12:53 PM
Comment [3]: This isn't ieally APA.
Check Puiuue's 0WL oi see a tutoi at the
Wiiting Resouice Centei if you neeu help.
Waterhouse 2/14/14 12:55 PM
Deleted: One of my
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Waterhouse 2/14/14 12:56 PM
Comment [4]: Since aiticles have no
mouths, this woiu choice is awkwaiu.
Waterhouse 2/14/14 1:27 PM
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Deleted: how
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Comment [5]: Avoiu 2
nu
peison.
Waterhouse 2/14/14 1:28 PM
Formatted: Highlight
Laisen Sigmon
English 11u2
Inquiiy Pioposal
21u14
Murbe, D., Zahnert, T., Kuhlisch, E., & Sundberg, J. (November 01, 2007). Effects of
Professional Singing Education on Vocal Vibrato-A Longitudinal Study. Journal
of Voice, 21, 6, 683-688.

This source discusses singing education on vocal vibrato. this source will help me
understand the capabilities of different types of singing with each range of the voice. it
will specifically help me understand the vibrato in an opera singers voice and why it is
always consistent.

Morange, S., Dubois, D., & Fontaine, J. M. (July 01, 2010). Perception of Recorded
Singing Voice Quality and Expertise: Cognitive Linguistics and Acoustic
Approaches. Journal of Voice, 24, 4, 450-457.

This source that I have talks about the perception of recorded singing voice
quality using diversity in an audience. It will help me understand why people react in
different ways when they hear a singers voice.

Welch, G. F., Howard, D. M., Himonides, E., & Brereton, J. (July 01, 2005). Real-Time
Feedback in the Singing Studio: An Innovatory Action-Research Project Using
New Voice Technology. Music Education Research, 7, 2, 225-249.



Waterhouse 2/14/14 1:31 PM
Deleted: I think that
Waterhouse 2/14/14 1:32 PM
Comment [6]: You uon't neeu to say, "I
think" "I believe" oi "I feel."
Waterhouse 2/14/14 1:32 PM
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Formatted: Highlight
Laisen Sigmon
English 11u2
Inquiiy Pioposal
21u14
my last source will really educate me on singing because it focuses on the
psychology of singing and voice education. this source will help me find scientific
information about the singing voice.

For my multimodal project, I plan on creating a website with all the beneficial
information I gained from my research on how to become a singer. I will break my
website up in sections, meaning tabs or hyperlinks, for someone to be able to focus on the
topic they want to be further educated on. I also plan on recording a video with my sisters
of us singing in harmony to educate people on what harmony is supposed to sound like.
The audience for my multimodal project will be basically the whole world, especially
with the YouTube video.
The video will be the most difficult part of the multimodal project. I will have to
figure out and arrange a time that will be convenient for both my sister and myself to sit
down and record the video. I plan on working on a bit of the project every week so that I
wont have to do it all at the last minute. I plan to set due dates at the end of every week
for myself to have specific sections done for my website. My due dates will start
February 17
th
and continue throughout every week until the deadline that our project is
due.
Once I get done with my website I hope it will educate aspiring singers and hope
it will give them enough information about how to use their voice.



Waterhouse 2/14/14 1:32 PM
Deleted: I think
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Waterhouse 2/14/14 1:33 PM
Comment [7]: uieat iuea!
Waterhouse 2/14/14 1:34 PM
Comment [8]: Please naiiow uown youi
auuience. Even though it is possible that
eveiyone will see it, who is it you WANT to
see it. Who is youi taiget auuience.
Waterhouse 2/14/14 1:34 PM
Comment [9]: What aie they. Be specific!
Waterhouse 2/14/14 1:35 PM
Comment [10]: Is this youi auuience.
Laisen Sigmon
English 11u2
Inquiiy Pioposal
21u14