Practically Perfect Practice (Pt. 1 Taking Risks!)

 During this very strange time, where there is little to no performing opportunities, I’ve been exploring ways to keep honing my craft and remembering that I actually enjoy singing (in addition to it being my livelihood)

 So I’ve spent many an evening hunched over my piano (I mean playing with perfect posture) or locked in my walk in closet with my dog, belting out songs I’ve always had in the back of my mind as “one day, I’d really like to sing that song for something”. 

In the absence of a stream of things to prep for specific gigs, auditions, roles, etc it’s opened up my brain to just sing and discover new ways of using my voice that normally I don’t even try because I’m focused on something I have to sing, the next day or the next week. 

But practicing can be very tedious, boring, unfruitful if we don’t get creative! Plus….

Do you ever feel like you do your best performing in your car, your shower, or a practice room? And then ask yourself, why don’t my amazing Christina Aguilera riffs or Cecilia Bartoli ornaments translate into a performance environment.

Here are some thoughts to spice up your practicing and make the ever present stress of WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE RETURN TO IN PERSON AUDITIONS a little bit easier… 

Risky Practicing! 

I was in a show once with the great Wagernian tenor Jay Hunter Morris - in addition to giving me love life advice, he coined the phrase I have carried with me for years “Be Mighty”. He applied that to many walks of the artistic life, including challenging your own skills. Have a little faith that your voice can do more than you think it can, and just give it whirl. Just SEE if you can sing an aria, belt an F, riff like Beyonce. You’ll never know unless you try. 

You know when the best time to crack that belt, squawk that high note or totally butcher a chest to head flip? Probably not onstage with hundreds of people watching or in an audition room where you’re trying to prove to a room full of people you’ll be consistent in your role 8 times a week. 

Let's avoid doing this in an audition room

But, if we always sang in a way that was comfortable, easy, and safe we would become fairly boring, fairly quickly and significantly slow down our ability to learn new skills, expand repertoire and conquer new genres. I’m not saying go into your closet (where I’ve been doing the vast majority of my practice during covid) and belt out something you have no idea how to approach that causes tension, strain or fatigue to your cords, please don’t. But I am talking about these moments. 

“Hmm, I really want to belt that note instead of flipping into my head voice”. 

“I know that to belt I need to adjust the placement, narrow the cords and modify the vowel. We talked about how to do that in lessons.” 

“Now let’s me just see if I can” - attempt #1 - a disaster. *Slight adjustment, looks at notes from lesson. - Attempt #2 - much better, engages the rest of the body and continues to reinforce what feels good and right for a belt at that note and attempt #3 GO FOR IT and LOOK you learned how to belt. 

But it would have been much easier to just flip it right? But then you would have never figured out that you can indeed belt it instead.

All of that is to say, practice being a little risky - its an exciting way to sing. Of course, only with good technique, knowledge and vocal/body awareness, but pushing yourself in lessons and practicing is the only way to keep growing as a singer and gather the confidence you need to make those same seemingly risky decisions in a high pressure situation. Because heck, when push comes to shove if you’re nervous and attempt a vocal maneuver you haven’t hashed out in a practice room - it is VERY likely that will end in a bottle of wine and a pint of Ben and Jerry’s at home in your apartment. (Or a miraculous feat of nature you never expected and can’t figure out how to repeat!) 

So now - off to your cars, your showers and your practice room to find our what amazing new things you can do with your voice so you can blow their socks off when we're back out there singing uncomfortably loud very close to peoples faces. 

You after your amazing audition.