Whether you’re a professional singer or just dabble with singing in your spare time, this beginner guide is jam-packed with simple guidelines for arranging vocal harmonies. Ready to upleve your singing? Let’s go!

Implementing vocal harmonies into your song gives a dramatic effect if done correctly. 

But first, we need to understand some basic music theory. 

For instance, a solid grasp of intervals, chords, and musical scales provides you with the foundation for creating an epic vocal harmony.

Music intervals.

Music intervals refer to the spacing between notes. Understanding intervals makes assembling chords much easier. 

The musical alphabet consists of seven letters.

A – B – C – D – E – F – G

And part of playing music is knowing how these notes interact. Intervals have two parts–the interval number and interval quality. Determining the interval number is as simple as counting the distance between each note. For instance, the distance between A and E is five. Therefore the interval is a fifth. 

• The interval numbers: First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, and Octave. 

• The different types of intervals: Perfect, Major, Minor, Diminished and Augmented.

Understanding intervals helps you assemble better-sounding chords with more proficiency. In essence, chords are harmonies, and some notes work better together than others. 

What is musical harmony?

A musical harmony occurs when several notes play together as a singular musical unit. A harmony includes two or more sounds–in different pitches–that add an aggrandizing effect to a song.

Harmony refers to building chords, chord qualities, and chord progressions. Notes in a harmony are a pitch above or below the melody. You can also play both the higher and lower pitch at once. 

We typically see the power of harmony through instruments such as pianos and guitars, and many of our favorite songs also use vocal harmonies. 

Vocal harmonies

Vocal harmony is the same as musical harmony, except it refers to two or more vocal tones reverberating in unison.  Just like chords, there are additional vocal inputs that support the lead vocal. They serve as background vocals to add texture to a song. Because of the unique timbre emanating from vocal harmonies, their effect on a song differs from instrumental harmonies. 

Whether you’re just starting out or not, vocal harmonies are essential for any songwriter–they’re in every kind of music genre known to man, from R&B tracks and folk songs to classical music.

The building blocks of harmony 

When designing a harmony, you need to replace the chord’s name with a roman numeral with the corresponding scale or pitch of the root note.

The three categories of harmony include:

• Tonics Chords–The base or root of the harmony. 
• Dominant chords–Place these on the fifth or seventh degree of the triad.
• Pre-dominant chords–A bridge between the tonic and dominant chords.

Knowing which notes work well together is crucial for assembling chords and harmonies. This template will help you find the correct tension between the tonic and dominant harmonic progressions.

The motion of harmony

There is also the chords’ motion or vocals to consider when it comes to harmony. As a song progresses, so do the notes that people sing and various ways it can happen.

In sheet music, harmonies can move in four different types of motion:

• Parallel—Two voices move in the same direction while maintaining the same interval number.
• Similar—Two voices follow the same melodic contour.
• Oblique—One voice moves while the other stays in place.
• Contrary—Two voices move in opposite directions.

Now that you understand the building blocks of harmony and how they work, it’s time to refine your technique. 

How to use harmonies.

While there is a mechanical element to the music, ultimately, it’s an art form. There’s no universal rule on how to use harmonies. However, some practices produce better effects than others. 

Here are some things to consider when creating your harmonies.

Wrapping up

Understanding and knowing how to use vocal harmony can be tricky. There’s a lot to account for, and assembling a vocal harmony is much easier if you understand intervals, chords, and musical harmony.

And what better way to practice musical harmony and chords than on your piano? With SimplyPiano, you can learn all about chords, intervals, and ultimately musical harmony in small, doable steps.

Once you grasp the various parts that make up harmony and the different ways they can move, you can start to explore the effects they can produce.

Harmonies add a unique texture to your song and add layers of complexity that can drastically impact your music. 

FAQs

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Nailing harmonies requires a trained ear and solid timing. Learn how to skillfully sing them with these helpful tips.

Practically every genre of music harnesses the power of harmonies, from holiday carols and hymns to your favorite pop song. You can recognize harmonies when two or more voices sing in unison. It adds a unique and aggrandizing effect to the music. 

When first listening to harmony, you may find them to be complex, angelic echoes. It can seem like creating your own is out of reach. However, just like learning any new skill, learning and improving is much smoother by taking small purposeful steps.

So let’s dive into the majestic world of harmony and build your skill up with these simple steps.

Learn basic music theory.

While it isn’t essential for singing harmonies, knowing basic music theory is an excellent place to start. 

Understanding the framework and the essential moving parts of anything grants you insights you wouldn’t otherwise have. For instance, knowing how intervals work or putting chords together makes timing easier, and choosing notes that resonate comes naturally. It can help with the cohesiveness of your harmony. 

• Intervals–represent the distance between two notes within a scale.
• Chords–are a series of notes that you play together.

Understanding chords and intervals make creating harmonies much more straightforward. In essence, they’re the same thing.

Sing along to your favorite harmonies.

An easy way to get some practice in is to sing along with your favorite songs! However, we’re not talking about the casual shower singing (although perhaps that could be useful too). Start with simple harmonies to get your bearings. Once you’ve got the hang of it, try writing your own!

Timing.

When it comes to harmony, timing is everything. Part of what makes a harmony create the effect it does is how it is used. You can memorize lyrics by heart and sing pitch-perfect, but none of that matters if your timing is off.

While some music genres implement harmony throughout the song, other styles use harmony at specific times–which means timing your entry is crucial. 

But how exactly can you improve your timing? 

(How about a bit of…)

Practice.

Practice, practice, and then practice some more! Like any skill you’re honing, the more time you spend engaging with it, the more innate it becomes. 

There are many unique ways to practice on your own and with others. If you’re feeling creative and have the tech, record yourself and sing along to your recording. You sharpen your harmony skills, but you’ll also get better at songwriting. 

Another great way to practice is to sing with a group. Find other people who like to sing harmonies and practice together. You may even find singers who have a deeper understanding of harmony, which can quickly help you to improve. Not only can singing in a group helps you learn at a faster rate, but it can make your experience more enjoyable. 

Pro tip: Stay positive. No matter what activity you engage in, overcoming obstacles is part of the journey. Our worst practice sessions also define our best practice sessions. Maybe you aren’t hitting the pitch or you don’t feel like singing–whatever the issue is, you just have to accept that it’s part of the journey. Keep coming back for more and it’ll pay off.

Join a choir.

A sure-fire way to practice and improve your harmony skills is to join a choir. It’s the perfect environment, and it’s literally designed to help people develop their ability to sing in harmony. 

You’ll be able to meet other people who are sharpening their skills, and under your teacher’s guidance, you’re bound to make drastic improvements early on in your lessons. Sharing a space with experts for putting together harmonies is the ideal atmosphere to take your singing to the next level.

Singing and composing vocal harmonies takes time, research, and practice. At times the journey may be frustrating. However, with a dynamic approach, and consistent practice, you’ll get the hang of it. 

Harmony is not just for singing. It’s very similar to the chords you play on the piano, and music is a beautiful form of expression where you can mix and match many arts. Another approach to improving vocal harmony and perfecting chords is playing the piano.

Don’t have time to learn everything at once? Try out Simply Piano and see how easy it is to learn to play piano in your free time.

FAQs

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