PHOTO : MATT BRADEN PHOTO
VOCALS
The Karpinka Brothers are two bothers , Aaron and Shawn , from Saskatoon , SK . They released their new album , You Can Count On Me , on Sept . 4 , 2015 and are currently supporting it on the road in Canada and the U . S . For more information , visit www . k-bros . ca .
By Aaron & Shawn Karpinka
The Karpinka Brothers ’ Vocal Advice
To offer a different perspective from the technical side of singing , which is certainly important , here are some lessons we ’ ve learned that we hope are of some help .
Listen To Others For Harmony We love singing harmony together like our heroes , The Everly Brothers . Listening is the key to any harmony , musical and otherwise . The trick is to listen carefully to what the other person is singing and adjust your intensity and volume accordingly . It ’ s also important to match each other ’ s phrasing and pronunciation , which comes naturally with listening . It can take a lot of practice to listen , but there is nothing like the beauty of hearing two or more people singing in perfect harmony .
Eye Contact When we first started singing , we would often sing with our eyes shut tight , which is natural when you ’ re just starting out . It wasn ’ t until we first started volunteering to sing in care homes that we started to make eye contact with everyone in the room , where the rooms were bright and you could see everyone . But seeing the look of happiness as someone is singing back to you brings more out of your performance , which brings us to the next lesson we ’ ve learned …
Give Back We spent years practicing in our bedrooms , but singing in care homes , or in libraries playing free shows for families where there is no microphone , had the biggest impact on our development as vocalists . It is good for the soul to play and sing your heart out for those who may not be able to afford to see music . The smiling faces are reward enough .
Be Game For Anything Because we were willing to play for anyone , no matter the venue or sound system , when the time came for us to play at a VIP party Gordon Lightfoot was throwing before his show , we were ready and thrilled to do it , even with just two acoustic guitars and no microphones . As the party grew , so did the volume of our voices , but we were ready from years of experience , singing for over 90 minutes .
Have Fun As important as it is to practice and have vocal technique , in our opinion , it doesn ’ t come close to simply allowing yourself to feel the joy of singing and expressing yourself . That joy is contagious and whoever is listening will feel it , too . On our new album , we actually left vocal mistakes in because you could hear how much fun we were having , and when we hear them now , we smile . It ’ s an honour and privilege to play music for people , and when you relax and embrace that , everything else falls into place .
Let Go Don ’ t be afraid to improvise vocally and change the way you sing lines in songs that you play over and over . Sometimes it ’ s easy to feel like you have to sing a song the same way every time . Over time , we ’ ve learned to sing and phrase things how we ’ re feeling in that moment rather than trying to duplicate our recordings .
Be Yourself We learned to write and sing by playing songs by the artists we love , which is really important . The trick is to find your own voice and style within the framework of learning from those voices . If you have songs that you love to play over and over , it ’ s easy to try to imitate your favourite singer ’ s voice , even on a subconscious level . But every voice is unique and beautiful in its own way , and ultimately , that ’ s what people want to hear from you – your own voice as you naturally sing .
Accept Your Range Part of finding your own voice is realizing that everyone has their own unique vocal range , and that just because someone can sing higher doesn ’ t mean that you ’ re not a good singer . Even as brothers , we have different vocal ranges . Someone who can hit notes higher than you might not be able to hit your low notes . That ’ s not to say you can ’ t try to reach beyond your limits , but it ’ s good to accept and work with the gifts we ’ re given .
Nobody ’ s Perfect Some of our vocal heroes are singers who might not be considered “ technically perfect ,” like Tom Waits or Bob Dylan or Lou Reed . But they are undeniably unique and original and that ’ s why we love them . “ I ’ m just as good a singer as Caruso ,” Dylan once said . “ You have to listen closely , but I hit all those notes . And I can hold my breath three times as long as I want to .” To us , everything those artists sing is perfection , and we applaud anyone else who is finding their own voice .
32 • CANADIAN MUSICIAN