Brighton Pop Choir - Pep Talk!
9 Top Tips For Sticking To Your Part
Today's pep talk went like this.....
I was so impressed with your commitment and dedication last night! We really got somewhere in the end. I’m sorry it took so long, but these things often do take a bit of repetition. As a result, I thought I’d write down some strategies for learning your parts and sticking to them! Remember, harmonising looks and sounds easy but in reality, it’s a challenge… lets face it anything worth having is always a bit tricky to achieve (apart from an ice cream maybe!). Practice is the key, but practising in the correct way is more important. Here are my tips! (Ignore them at your peril grrrrrrrrrrr.)
1. When learning your part, think of it as a separate song. Don’t get distracted by the ‘tune’ (unless of course THAT is your part!). Do everything in your power to stick to where you’re supposed to be.
2. Create a visual contour of the melody either in your minds eye or draw it out on paper using dots or dashes that go up and down in the same way that the pitch does.
3. When contouring the melody, set reference points. On what word does the note change? Does it stay on the same note? How much does it go up or down by? Does it go up or down by a little or a lot? REMEMBER TO REMEMBER those reference points either by simply, well, remembering or by using the brightest coloured highlighter you can find coupled with a symbol of some kind. (This is why it’s important to keep your lyrics week by week)
4. If you’re struggling to find your entry note, see if it appears in the backing track or if any of the other parts that precede your entry. If so, it helps if you sing along with them in your head, grab the note, latch on to it, hum quietly, then open your mouth and sing when it’s time.
5. Once you think you’ve learnt your part avoid singing it over and over again with the demo tracks that I gave you, this will not encourage your independence. You need to know it AGAINST the other parts. For example if you have a harmony, practice it against the lead or the male part. If you have the lead part, practice it against the harmony. If you find yourself floundering on one specific bit, don’t skim over it and hope for the best, go back to the demo and work it out slowly. Usually a whole passage can go wrong just because ONE NOTE is incorrect not the whole thing. Go over the passage really SLOWLY and SPECIFICALLY to find out which note you are not getting and anchoring somehow into your brain.
6. Sometimes harmonies come unstuck when linking one section of the song to another, so make sure you know your links like the back of your hand! This is where learning your part as it’s own tune comes into play.
7. Stick your finger in your ear and stick to your guns when singing your part against everyone else’s. If everyone else is going down and you’re supposed to be going up it’s gonna feel like you’re going against the grain. In this sense, be a leader not a sheep, go UP even though it feels wrong and every fibre of your being wants you to go along with everyone else. Eventually it becomes second nature, like tightropewalking.
8. Remember, you’re probably better at your part than you think so try not to get disheartened. You’re close to getting it. Also if you flake off to another ‘easier’ part, you’re leaving your mates in the lurch who are also probably struggling a bit too.
9. Practice, make a cuppa, practice, have a biscuit, practice, go for a walk. Intermittent practice lets it sink into the sub-conscious, plus you don’t get bogged down and annoyed with yourself! (PS. Never get annoyed with yourself, no matter how you think you’re doing, you’re always doing better than you think!)
Any queries on concerns, email me. mwah, mwah! xxxx
www.singinglessonsbrighton.co.uk
I was so impressed with your commitment and dedication last night! We really got somewhere in the end. I’m sorry it took so long, but these things often do take a bit of repetition. As a result, I thought I’d write down some strategies for learning your parts and sticking to them! Remember, harmonising looks and sounds easy but in reality, it’s a challenge… lets face it anything worth having is always a bit tricky to achieve (apart from an ice cream maybe!). Practice is the key, but practising in the correct way is more important. Here are my tips! (Ignore them at your peril grrrrrrrrrrr.)
1. When learning your part, think of it as a separate song. Don’t get distracted by the ‘tune’ (unless of course THAT is your part!). Do everything in your power to stick to where you’re supposed to be.
2. Create a visual contour of the melody either in your minds eye or draw it out on paper using dots or dashes that go up and down in the same way that the pitch does.
3. When contouring the melody, set reference points. On what word does the note change? Does it stay on the same note? How much does it go up or down by? Does it go up or down by a little or a lot? REMEMBER TO REMEMBER those reference points either by simply, well, remembering or by using the brightest coloured highlighter you can find coupled with a symbol of some kind. (This is why it’s important to keep your lyrics week by week)
4. If you’re struggling to find your entry note, see if it appears in the backing track or if any of the other parts that precede your entry. If so, it helps if you sing along with them in your head, grab the note, latch on to it, hum quietly, then open your mouth and sing when it’s time.
5. Once you think you’ve learnt your part avoid singing it over and over again with the demo tracks that I gave you, this will not encourage your independence. You need to know it AGAINST the other parts. For example if you have a harmony, practice it against the lead or the male part. If you have the lead part, practice it against the harmony. If you find yourself floundering on one specific bit, don’t skim over it and hope for the best, go back to the demo and work it out slowly. Usually a whole passage can go wrong just because ONE NOTE is incorrect not the whole thing. Go over the passage really SLOWLY and SPECIFICALLY to find out which note you are not getting and anchoring somehow into your brain.
6. Sometimes harmonies come unstuck when linking one section of the song to another, so make sure you know your links like the back of your hand! This is where learning your part as it’s own tune comes into play.
7. Stick your finger in your ear and stick to your guns when singing your part against everyone else’s. If everyone else is going down and you’re supposed to be going up it’s gonna feel like you’re going against the grain. In this sense, be a leader not a sheep, go UP even though it feels wrong and every fibre of your being wants you to go along with everyone else. Eventually it becomes second nature, like tightropewalking.
8. Remember, you’re probably better at your part than you think so try not to get disheartened. You’re close to getting it. Also if you flake off to another ‘easier’ part, you’re leaving your mates in the lurch who are also probably struggling a bit too.
9. Practice, make a cuppa, practice, have a biscuit, practice, go for a walk. Intermittent practice lets it sink into the sub-conscious, plus you don’t get bogged down and annoyed with yourself! (PS. Never get annoyed with yourself, no matter how you think you’re doing, you’re always doing better than you think!)
Any queries on concerns, email me. mwah, mwah! xxxx
www.singinglessonsbrighton.co.uk
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