Not sure what to write today.
Had a lovely weekend learning at AIM weekend. We also presented our semi finals and finals package to the region and it seemed they enjoyed it. I definitely enjoyed hearing the quartets who are going to be going to international sing on Saturday evening.
But the best part of the weekend for me was being around the young women in harmony singers. I mentioned in my past blog that I would be taking over for a tenor who is out sick as her quartet leads the young women harmony class on Saturday. I learned the tags (ends of a few songs) on Friday, then we all taught them to the kids (ranging in age from about 11 - 18). It was so fun. I just seem to become all sparkly when I am around kids. I am happy and love being with them. I like talking to them. Especially the middle school age kids.
That is what I miss about teaching. Fred says I miss being loved. But I also miss the giving part. Giving of myself by listening when a kid needs to talk, or giving a hug and comforting when that is necessary. I know kids will love me, because I love them first and who isn't happy when they feel loved?
I had a nice complement as well. One of the singers from another quartet was sitting in on the class. She said in front of everyone that I had an amazing powerful tenor voice. Nice.
I do know that it is powerful, but am almost nervous to join a quartet that is planning on competing since I have had so little experience singing in a quartet in front of people and when I do sing, my voice wobbles a lot. I get progressively more and more nervous when I know people can hear me. I guess quarteting is better than singing solo, which I would just never try at all.
I also have a hard time hearing when I am doing something wrong. Sometimes I will go up a whole step when it should be a half step and when someone corrects me, I can't hear the difference or can't figure out how to make the change. I can feel the person getting a little frustrated as she is trying to teach me and then I feel like I can't be a good singer because I can't fix it, or hear it.
I am thinking about characterization. Peggy Graham (past president of Sweet Adelines) had a class that I enjoyed. It was clips of choruses that were doing great jobs characterizing their songs. You felt the song, the meaning, and that they were inviting you into that song as they sang. It was something easy to see, but I can't figure out how to do it.
I feel that I am still mechanical when I sing. I have practiced in front of a mirror and am getting better at making a good face. But, it does look practiced. This weekend we are getting coached by my favorite coach Betty Clipman. (She has coached all three of the choruses I have been with.) I will try to pay attention and see if I can learn to characterize better.
I am so looking forward to it.
Showing posts with label Singing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Singing. Show all posts
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Focusing (On Singing)
So, today was my first day to lead the focusing segment of our chorus practice. It is a short 5 minute or so time to focus on leaving the past week, the future and the day behind to focus on why we're in chorus and to be great singers.
The chorus was so sweet and clapped for me when I walked up, and then again when I was done. I felt happy, but nervous at first.
I had practiced some of the focusing exercises that Jan Carley had passed along to Julie and to me and came up with a little introduction to why it was important to me to take the few minutes to take a few deep breaths and to purposely put everything else out of my mind to focus on what little time we have together to sing our best. (I should get a medal for my run on sentences. Yet, there is no one correcting here! No editors to my work yet. Plus, I have read books with run ons, and fragments of sentences and apparently if it is part of my style, it is not bad. Which is a relief, because where would I be without run ons and fragments???)
I am also going to be singing tags (fancy barber shop word for the ends of barber shop songs, with lots of growing and resonating) with the young women in harmony singers (from 12 - 25 years old) at this AIM (short for Adventures in Music) weekend in two days. I am excited about that too. It is the first time I will be singing in an instructing kind of way, hope I don't get too wobbly in my voice.
It is on the late side of the evening, so this post will be short.
The chorus was so sweet and clapped for me when I walked up, and then again when I was done. I felt happy, but nervous at first.
I had practiced some of the focusing exercises that Jan Carley had passed along to Julie and to me and came up with a little introduction to why it was important to me to take the few minutes to take a few deep breaths and to purposely put everything else out of my mind to focus on what little time we have together to sing our best. (I should get a medal for my run on sentences. Yet, there is no one correcting here! No editors to my work yet. Plus, I have read books with run ons, and fragments of sentences and apparently if it is part of my style, it is not bad. Which is a relief, because where would I be without run ons and fragments???)
I am also going to be singing tags (fancy barber shop word for the ends of barber shop songs, with lots of growing and resonating) with the young women in harmony singers (from 12 - 25 years old) at this AIM (short for Adventures in Music) weekend in two days. I am excited about that too. It is the first time I will be singing in an instructing kind of way, hope I don't get too wobbly in my voice.
It is on the late side of the evening, so this post will be short.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Sweet Adelines (2)
I feel like I made it sound like all we care about is competitions when I wrote about the my wonderful experiences with my various choruses of the Sweet Adelines. It is so not all about competitions, although they are exciting and fun. I feel like I know how those guys on American Idol or So You Think You Can Dance feel when the judges are pausing before giving the results. I am almost amazed that I can't see their hearts fluttering beneath their costumes, with my HD television.
But, the Sweet Adelines is about women coming together who love to sing. But who also love to come together. It is a great community.
I was supported with care and tears as I went through my breast cancer diagnosis and treatments. We have sessions where you get to sing with a quartet and someone else who sings your part is there just listening to you (kind of nerve wracking), who then coaches you on how you can improve in the special dynamics required by your part.
When someone gets sick, we send bountiful cards and e-mails and visits. Once we had a member in the hospital on her birthday and we called her after chorus and sang a special harmonized happy birthday song to her.
We are also encouraged to start our own quartets. We can have "kitchen" quartets, who get together whenever they can and learn a few songs. We can have quartets who learn a repertoire of their own songs and "audition" in front of the chorus. If we are good, we can then accept invitations to sing at events, when these occasions arise. We also have quartets who compete regionally with the hopes of getting to the international stage to receive that coveted title "Queen of Harmony". Then you get a crown to wear whenever you go to regional or international events. It means your quartet won first place.
But I think the best part of being part of a chorus, apart from the improvement in my own singing voice, is the time away from everything else, when I can forget everything in my own life and focus on something I enjoy with other women I respect and love.
But, the Sweet Adelines is about women coming together who love to sing. But who also love to come together. It is a great community.
I was supported with care and tears as I went through my breast cancer diagnosis and treatments. We have sessions where you get to sing with a quartet and someone else who sings your part is there just listening to you (kind of nerve wracking), who then coaches you on how you can improve in the special dynamics required by your part.
When someone gets sick, we send bountiful cards and e-mails and visits. Once we had a member in the hospital on her birthday and we called her after chorus and sang a special harmonized happy birthday song to her.
We are also encouraged to start our own quartets. We can have "kitchen" quartets, who get together whenever they can and learn a few songs. We can have quartets who learn a repertoire of their own songs and "audition" in front of the chorus. If we are good, we can then accept invitations to sing at events, when these occasions arise. We also have quartets who compete regionally with the hopes of getting to the international stage to receive that coveted title "Queen of Harmony". Then you get a crown to wear whenever you go to regional or international events. It means your quartet won first place.
But I think the best part of being part of a chorus, apart from the improvement in my own singing voice, is the time away from everything else, when I can forget everything in my own life and focus on something I enjoy with other women I respect and love.
Friday, September 4, 2009
Sweet Adelines
I have been practicing the new songs I am to learn for the "Daytimers", a smaller version made up of some of the members of the bigger chorus I am in called the Bay Area Showcase Chorus.
Back in 2003, when we had moved back to Columbus from Orlando, I came across a flier at a coffee shop. It advertised an acapella workshop with a chorus in Columbus called the Scioto Valley Chorus. I had not idea what to expect, but had enjoyed singing in high school and college and missed it. It sounded like fun.
We had a nice day of learning songs and eating chili and then everyone who wanted to could perform together at a park for any family etc.. It was enjoyable. I found out that I was a tenor. In the world of barbershop singing, the top part is the tenor, then the lead (which is usually the melody), then the baritone and then the bass. I'd always wanted to learn to harmonize, but since I was a soprano, it never really came up. I was always singing the melody.
I was hooked.
I joined the chorus in Columbus. There were about 60 members. We were considered a mid-size chorus. At the regional competition, we placed first among mid-size choruses and second overall.
The world is split into regions and there is a yearly competition for each region. There is both a quartet competition and a chorus competition at each regional event.
To compete on the international stage, you have to get first place for your region. Which is hard for a mid-size chorus to do when you are competing against choruses that are significantly bigger than you are. It is easier for larger choruses to sustain their sound on the softer notes and it is easier for a tenuous or weaker voice to hide among the other singers. Not that it is impossible to beat a large chorus. Just a lot harder.
During this time I had my breast cancer. I didn't join any support groups, even though perhaps I should have. But chorus provided me with many women who cared about me and a focus that was not my own situation. I could try to improve my singing and focus on our current repertoire or our preparation for a competition or a show and think about nothing else. It was wonderful.
Two years after joining that chorus, my husband and I moved to Pittsburgh.
I realized how important the chorus was to me by getting online immediately and seeing what my options were to join a chorus in Pennsylvania. I e-mailed a few and as soon as I got to Pittsburgh, joined the Greater Harmony Chorus.
Once again, I loved it. Surprisingly the repertoire of songs were all different, so a lot of new learning had to take place. But I didn't mind. I knew how things were supposed to go and did not stress if I had to wait a while to join into a performance. I gave myself time to learn.
A few years later, we moved here to California. Immediately I began looking for a chorus here and found one. It is different to be in such a large chorus. This chorus has competed internationally many times, about every other year for the last 20 years. I am excited to compete and will be on the stage in Nashville in October.
Nashville is so close to the places I've lived before, I am hoping old friends from my other two choruses will be able to come to see me sing.
I remember sitting in a car, talking to my husband about what it meant to me to be in a chorus for the first time since I was a freshman in college. I almost cried. I thought my singing days were over, that the chorus experience was only for professionals or school days. Not so. What a wonderful organization that can support singing for all ages, at all levels of participation. Some of the members are younger, full time employees, straggling into chorus tired after a long day with work and children. Others are older, retired, or working part time and chorus is a big planned time of their week. Of course potlucks are always fun too!
The chorus meets so many needs for so many people.
Back in 2003, when we had moved back to Columbus from Orlando, I came across a flier at a coffee shop. It advertised an acapella workshop with a chorus in Columbus called the Scioto Valley Chorus. I had not idea what to expect, but had enjoyed singing in high school and college and missed it. It sounded like fun.
We had a nice day of learning songs and eating chili and then everyone who wanted to could perform together at a park for any family etc.. It was enjoyable. I found out that I was a tenor. In the world of barbershop singing, the top part is the tenor, then the lead (which is usually the melody), then the baritone and then the bass. I'd always wanted to learn to harmonize, but since I was a soprano, it never really came up. I was always singing the melody.
I was hooked.
I joined the chorus in Columbus. There were about 60 members. We were considered a mid-size chorus. At the regional competition, we placed first among mid-size choruses and second overall.
The world is split into regions and there is a yearly competition for each region. There is both a quartet competition and a chorus competition at each regional event.
To compete on the international stage, you have to get first place for your region. Which is hard for a mid-size chorus to do when you are competing against choruses that are significantly bigger than you are. It is easier for larger choruses to sustain their sound on the softer notes and it is easier for a tenuous or weaker voice to hide among the other singers. Not that it is impossible to beat a large chorus. Just a lot harder.
During this time I had my breast cancer. I didn't join any support groups, even though perhaps I should have. But chorus provided me with many women who cared about me and a focus that was not my own situation. I could try to improve my singing and focus on our current repertoire or our preparation for a competition or a show and think about nothing else. It was wonderful.
Two years after joining that chorus, my husband and I moved to Pittsburgh.
I realized how important the chorus was to me by getting online immediately and seeing what my options were to join a chorus in Pennsylvania. I e-mailed a few and as soon as I got to Pittsburgh, joined the Greater Harmony Chorus.
Once again, I loved it. Surprisingly the repertoire of songs were all different, so a lot of new learning had to take place. But I didn't mind. I knew how things were supposed to go and did not stress if I had to wait a while to join into a performance. I gave myself time to learn.
A few years later, we moved here to California. Immediately I began looking for a chorus here and found one. It is different to be in such a large chorus. This chorus has competed internationally many times, about every other year for the last 20 years. I am excited to compete and will be on the stage in Nashville in October.
Nashville is so close to the places I've lived before, I am hoping old friends from my other two choruses will be able to come to see me sing.
I remember sitting in a car, talking to my husband about what it meant to me to be in a chorus for the first time since I was a freshman in college. I almost cried. I thought my singing days were over, that the chorus experience was only for professionals or school days. Not so. What a wonderful organization that can support singing for all ages, at all levels of participation. Some of the members are younger, full time employees, straggling into chorus tired after a long day with work and children. Others are older, retired, or working part time and chorus is a big planned time of their week. Of course potlucks are always fun too!
The chorus meets so many needs for so many people.
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