The Singers Thread

[Voronwen]

Originally Posted by Tessar

I'm in a bit of trouble... maybe not actually trouble, we'll have to see how my voice holds up.

They tell us to mark when we're rehearsing, but the second we get in with a coach all they want is MORE MORE MORE MORE. So far I'm okay, but of course this is only day two (three if you count the sing-in). I'm just trying to keep everything SUPER open and not push for the volume...

Support, Support, Support (i know i'm just telling you something you already know ).

I have to figure out NOW how to sing with all of the energy they want without actually using my full voice.

Something that works is to make sure you have really crisp diction. It adds a bit more energy and 'bite' to the sound without using more voice. Oh, and, support (did i say that already..? ).

I am really treating this more like an acting camp though, because that's the main focus. Of course we're singing, and they're teaching us how to phrase... but the thing is that my voice teacher can fix my voice. I mean I KNOW he can. So that's for when I get back home... my bad habits will eventually pass, I'm not trying to fix anything at the moment. I'm working entirely on the interpretations, singing through the phrases, and the physical acting.

Yes, there's a time and a place for everything, of course - get whatever you can out of this experience and work with the technique you do have, which you can always keep building upon later.

It's just INCREDIBLE. When you get with someone else who's as into it as you are the chemistry is just breathtaking. I had one girl jokingly suggest she should shove me (as Papageno) when she told me "do not lie any more!" and then chase me across the room. So I told her to actually do it, and we got SO into it! She just shoved me backwards across the room, then I was backing up again after that because she kept jabbing me in the chest as I sang, and I really had something to work with.

Haha! It sounds like you've had a lot of fun. I love the Magic Flute!

Two things I never really realized that one particular coach is just busting my chops for is that when I sing I back off the note slightly in the middle of phrases, and also sometimes right after an attack. ESPECIALLY when I speak a line, I tend to let my inflections and my energy go down, so I was having to just restructure EVERYTHING about the way I speak to read the lines believably.

Sometimes no matter what you do, some people are just hard to please. Do the best you can, but something about the way you're explaining this (ie. "restructuring everything about the way you speak") sounds disconcerting.

It's only a beginning, but at least I know which direction to try to head in now. The coaches are all fantastic... I am getting so many little ideas of how to be truly musical instead of just standing and throwing out my aria. I hope I can do this camp again because I know now that I was not prepared enough for it... because I didn't know -how- to prepare properly. Next time I'll be able to get more out of it because I can leap in feet first with some idea of what to expect.

This is like blunt force trauma opera style, and I freaking LOVE it!

Heheh I've been in workshops like this for musical theater, but not for opera. Enjoy it, learn lots!