CaitSings wrote:
i started out learning technique. i had a voice teacher who encouraged us to merely breathe properly and pitch match in the beginning but rarely spoke of actual tone other than proper vowel placement. tone (or timbre as we call it) and fach developed through additional understanding of technique but for the most part was entirely genetic. similar to guitar, tone will also change with repertoire but that's something that's much more controllable if you have proper technique. as a result, mechanically speaking i sing like most other trained vocalists but i certainly don't sound like anybody but me and that's the way it should be with any musician out there.

just a small glimpse into my teaching philosophy...
I'm not sure, I think that as a vocalist, you pick up stylistic nuances of tone/timbre, phrasing and pitch whenever you listen to other singers - consciously or otherwise. I think it's the same as any other instrument - you listen, you learn, you amalgamate all of your own vocal personality and technique with other influences, whether they be minor or major.

Cait, what I have heard of your singing, whilst obviously very well trained, also has similarities to other singers - intentional or apparently otherwise. I think that most guitarists would be able to tell you who they sound like - rare indeed is the true original!

ben.