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Singers have an extraordinary amount of things to think about: pitch, rhythm, acting, movement, and unlike any other musician, WORDS. Singers are the only musician class that are expected to MEMORIZE their music. It is no wonder that singers often forget words during the stress of performance. Here are some quick ways to memorize your music:
1) Write the song lyrics on flashcards(a musical phrase per flashcard seems to work best) 2) Associate lyrics with different colors, emotions, acting goals etc...Our mind works best when given numerous ways to remember. 3) Try speaking your song as a monologue: No music, just the words as if they were part of a play. 4) Focus on the areas where you forget your lyrics. Do not practice the first two minutes over and over, if it is just a line or two in the middle that you forget. 5) When you feel like you are completely memorized, be sure to test yourself by singing in front of a good friend. Performance stress will bring up any weak links in your memory. DWS Most of the time, I pick a student's music by judging their experience, technical needs, and career goals (auditions, college etc...). However, I want to STRONGLY encourage my own students to feel free to bring their own music, or even say to me - "Mr. Smith, I just don't LIKE this piece..."
First, I always try to pick songs that the student likes, simply because it is very difficult to get excited about practicing if you dislike your song! I have hundreds of songs for each voice type, and as I tell my students, I guarantee I will find something for you. It may take me some research, but that's why I went to school for my music degrees! I am never offended or hurt if I student would like a different piece. Second, a voice lesson is not a traditional class setting. In a typical class, the teacher sets the curriculum. In a voice lesson, teachers LOVE for their students to get excited about a certain piece of music and want to work on it during lessons. Voice lessons can and must be tailored to each student's technical needs, musical preferences, and goals. Nothing makes me happier than to see my students take ownership of their lessons and musical education. DWS As a member of the NFHS Music Association, I get a publication every now and then that has ideas for teaching music and inspirational pieces. The latest issue had a reprint of a speech given by Dr. Karl Paulnack to the freshmen class of Boston Conservatory. I am not the crying type, but after reading his speech, I could barely keep my emotions in check - this welcome address is THAT powerful. Rather than try to sum up his words, I'm including the link below to the full speech...it is so worth a few minutes.
Dr. Karl Paulnack's "Music and How it Works" A question I receive from many young voice students is "What is vibrato, and is it a good thing?"
First, the technical answer: Vibrato is simply the oscillation of pitch in a human voice. Even though you may be singing a certain pitch, all voices make slight pulsations above and below the target pitch. Is vibrato desirable? The answer: most of the time. First, while vibrato is a naturally occurring phenomenon in the human voice, the rate of vibrato determines how 'attractive' we find the vibrato. The desired rate of vibrato is somewhere between 5-7 'beats' per second. Anything slower than that tends to sound like a wobble, with wide variations in pitch that distract from the beauty of the sound. A much rarer form of vibrato is a very fast rate, and has the same undesirable effects. Should vibrato be consciously produced? Not initially. Vibrato begins mostly in high school students, when the voice has matured enough to produce vibrato. Even after that, vibrato should never be the focus, as a well-supported, free voice will naturally produce an even vibrato on its own. Only on occasions will addressing vibrato directly be necessary. Vibrato does vary depending on the musical genre, though all choral, musical, and classical singers should strive for a clean, even vibrato. DWS |
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