Dear all,
Singing is an all encompassing area of study. It involves Music, Art, History, Text, Poetry, Prose, Philosophy, Language study and even maths!It is also highly practical and requires application of the body and mind in order to succeed at it.
PRACTICE IS ALL. Below are some tips:
Remember:
1) Practice is a chance to get even better at something you love to do. It is 20 minutes a day to yourself to spend on wonderful music and be able to express it your own way. It is not just about technique but feeling.
2) Prepare yourself to practice. Make sure you warm up your voice with some Brrrs and breathing exercises and ensure your body is not tense.
2) 10 minutes a day is better than 30 minutes 2 days a week. Get those 2 bars perfect. Next session add on another few bars and so on. Aim for 5 practice sessions a week and ideally 20 minutes a day.
3) Singing is a physical activity and relies on muscular memory. You need to keep doing it and improving the quality of the sound at each practice. You will be amazed at the results of regular practice.
4) Set Goals, know what you need to achieve at each practice and make sure you understand what has been asked of you and why you are doing something.
5)Practice is not just about singing but also includes thinking about words and sometimes even learning a new language. Practice saying the words in different ways, thinking about character and feelings and make notes of these on your music. Try reading poetry or play extracts out loud to help you learn about setting the mood of the piece through text.
6) Motivation. Write down your singing goals and review them regularly. You may have something specific or more general but try to remember why you wanted lessons and what you want from them now. I am a facilitator to help you achieve this.
7) Get involved. Plan to put on informal concerts for friends in your living room, join a group or choir. Have a go.
8) Be curious about music. Music is amazing, use YOUTUBE or SPOTIFY to listen to a wide variety of music. Listen to lots of interpretations of your songs to give you ideas for your own performance.Read about the songs your are learning and the composers who wrote them.
9) Be prepared for ups and downs. Singing is an amazing journey but to sing well doesn’t just happen. There will be all sorts of fences to jump and rivers to cross and the journey never really ends so make friends with it. Singing can be deeply personal but try to stay positive. Leave the ‘I Can’t’ outside the door. Remember success is about PRACTICE.
10) Enjoy yourself. Have fun with it. Change rhythms, start at the end and go backwards, try things out and be creative.
Happy Singing
Charlotte