5 Things to Make Your Practicing More Beneficial:

So since finishing up my senior recital and a few other performances, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on my practice techniques. I thought creating a list of the top 5 things I try to work towards in order to make my practice a beneficial as possible might be helpful for other young musicians like myself. So, here is a list of 5 things I like to keep in mind when practicing:

1. Outline of the Practice Session: When I go into a practice, I find it important to have a goal and outline of what I am doing. I start out by thinking of the amount of time I will be practicing, and then start to think of what I can focus on in the practice session. In my opinion, unless you are practicing just for the sheer enjoyment of an already seasoned piece, you should have a plan for what you want to accomplish from your practice. Having an objective in your practice session will ultimately keep you on task and making your practicing much efficient.
2. Practice as if it Were a Performance: The biggest mistake I have made in the past, is practicing as if I were just going through the motions. It is crucial even when you are learning the notes and rhythms of a piece, that you still give the music the energy and technique that you would use when in a performance. From past experiences, I have found that it is difficult to correct mistakes that become a part of the muscle memory that is developed when learning a piece, and that is why I find it so important to practice with correct technique and energy throughout.
3. Work from the end to the beginning: When learning a piece, it is important to work from the end of the piece to the beginning. This is important because if there is a chance that you are not as comfortable with a piece as you would like to be, then when performing the piece, you will be more familiar with the piece as you work your way through it instead of it falling apart.
4. Work pieces in sections: When learning or even practicing your music, it is important to work through the piece in sections and phrases. What I like to do is section the piece off based on phrasing and work from the last section to the first section, not moving on until the section I am working on is secure. This is a great way to correctly learn your music and also correctly memorize the pieces you are working on.
5. Never leave a practice session upset: Everyone has those days were they are frustrated with the way their practicing goes. When I was a sophomore, one of my favorite professors taught me to never leave a practice session upset with myself. They told me to all think of one thing that I had done well even if it were small or something I had already achieved before. It is so important to do something along these lines, because if you leave frustrated, it is much more difficult to practice after that.

My Professional Opera Debut

So about two weeks ago marked the first time I’ve ever sang in a professional opera production. It was a small start, but I am more than happy to say that I was a member of the chorus for Opera Roanoke’s 20’s themed rendition of Verdi’s La Traviata. The process of learning the music and staging for this production may have been very time consuming, considering I was also finishing up things for my senior recital, but ultimately I’ve never loved performing as much as I did in this production. So below I am going to list a few of my favorite things about my experience in my first professional opera:

-The Music: Obviously this is the most important part of the production, because without it there would be no show. Before I started working on the ensemble parts for this opera, I had never seen it all the way through (which is not something I’m proud of), and once I started to learn my music and hear the parts come together, I was completely blown away. Verdi had never really been a composer that I paid a lot of attention to before this production, but now I constantly find myself listening to various arias and scenes from his operas because his compositions are just that genius. La Traviata has pieces of music that are all over the spectrum, in terms of emotion and style, from upbeat party scenes, to heart wrenching arias, which to me means that it has something to offer every opera fan. Ultimately, the most exciting part of being in this production was getting to sing such incredible music, and share it with the audience.

-The Principles: This opera is infamous for needed immense talent to pull off, and the principle characters had just that. It was an other-worldy experience to walk into rehearsals and hear people with such incredible instruments, knowing that soon you would be singing right along with them. For me personally, the sheer joy and inspiration that these singers provided to everyone around them, made my first professional performance more comfortable than nerve-wracking, and that’s not something that many people are lucky enough to experience.

-The Costumes: When I found out that this version of La Traviata was going to be staged in the 1920’s, I became a bit nervous, just because I am rather curvy and this is a time period notorious for being more flattering for small frames. All of my nerves melted away when I met the costume director for the show. She pulled incredible pieces for everyone in the ensemble and I was completely in love with my beautiful drop-waist dress. On top of how awesome my dress was, the accessories that we were given took the costumes to a whole other level. I was given a few different head pieces to try out over the course of tech week and ultimately ended up with a turban that really tied my whole look together. I think this production showed me just how much fun it can be to play dress up.

-The Staging: Having been in quite a few scenes and arias programs in college, staging was not something new to me. Staging tends to be something that I have loved getting into but being around people that weren’t too familiar made me a bit more apprehensive than normal when we began working. With this new task of warming up to all of the principles and ensemble members, came the realization that we were all in the production together and that there was no reason for me to be scared to interact with these people.

So what I took from this incredible experience, is that trying new things (especially in a professional setting) can be nerve-wracking, but ultimately it’s likely to uncover an incredible experience. I learned so much from being involved in this production and hope to continue performing in opera choruses in the future.

Why Millennials Have a Distaste for Opera

In the past century, the US has seen a growing obsession with celebrities and the entertainment industry. Another thing that has happened in the past century, is a decline in younger generations having an interest in Opera as an art form. In this blog post I want to speak about two large reasons I’ve heard for why people do not think they will have an interest in Opera.

“It seems like it would be boring”: If people would take the time to just watch one Opera, they would realize that the art form is far from boring. In a society in which we are obsessed with Reality TV, we are always looking for the next big scandal. Operas tend to have a large helping of scandal, sometimes with multiple scandals occurring at the same time. In any given opera you can see anything from love triangles, violence, and even death, which seem to be large staples of the modern entertainment industry, but better because it is paired with beautiful music. On top of the incredible plots and music, the settings of operas are becoming more elaborate and ultimately more attention grabbing. Many companies are moving towards more modern stagings of classic shows, for example the Metropolitan Opera had their rendition of Rigoletto by Verdi set in Las Vegas during this past season.

” You have to be sophisticated to enjoy Opera”: Although like many other art forms, Opera is considered to be pleasing to people with more sophisticated palettes, I am here to say this is not true. As someone who just a few short years ago had no interest in classical music at all, I know first hand what it is like to fall in love with opera. I also know that falling in love with this art form does not mean that you have to be sophisticated. Having recently completed my professional opera debut just a week ago, I saw a wide range of audience members who came from all walks of life. Yes, in media opera may be portrayed as something that you were ball gowns and use binoculars to watch, but this is not the impression I get when I see the attendees of these shows. Although ball gowns are not the norm for these performances, I must admit that it is fun to get a little more dressed up than usual. The way I like to think of going to an opera is that you are getting ready to go out on the town, but instead you’re going to bare witness to incredible story lines and some of the most earth-shattering music ever written.

As I have said in other posts, the only way to truly find out what you think of this and any other art form, is to give it a go. Go onto Youtube and look up popular operas with translations and take the same time that you would to watch an Episode of something on Netflix to really figure out your feelings for these incredible works, you might just love it.

Singers Fitness Challenge Update for Week 1 and a half

So this past week and a half has been the busiest week of my college career. Why I chose to start a fitness challenge the week of my senior recital, and with the start of tech week for my first professional opera is beyond me. Needless to say, I have yet to start the actual physical part of the challenge, due to 6-10 hour rehearsals on top of going to school full time.

So with that being said, here is my exercise for the past week or so:

I have done a lot of walking, about 5-6 miles a day just between going to classes and walk throughs of my recital and the opera I am a part of. I have also been learning how to walk in both heels and character shoes for the first time in my life, so that has been a pretty big part of my physical activity as well. From all of the walking I have been doing, I’ve noticed a small difference in the tone of my thighs and my calve muscles also feel like they are gaining a bit of definition.

Now here is the vocal part of my challenge:

Since I have been singing on average about 4 hours a day, most days, for about a week and a half, I have noticed a difference in my vocal health. First off, I have noticed an overall increase in my use of my diaphragm and lifting of my soft palette. This is a result of both lack of energy in the beginning of these rehearsals, thus making me support better out of necessity, and also from some directions that the opera chorus received from the director. After running my recital once a day leading up to the actual recital, and then doing staging and tech rehearsals at the same time, it’s safe to say that my stamina has also improved since starting this journey.

I’m hoping to start the actual exercise portion of this challenge next week and do an update on how that has helped my vocal and overall health.

My Focus

So over the course of the past two months, I have been posting about opera as a passion project for a social media marketing class that I am currently taking. Although this is one of my biggest passions, it can sometimes be hard to sit down and write a post as in depth as I would like to. From here on out, the focus of my blog will be more centered on singing as a general passion of mine, and ways that I will incorporate singing into the other passions I have found. So here are a few themes of blogs I will be posting in the coming weeks:

-Beauty: With my Senior Recital fast approaching, I will be trying out some makeup styles to match my dress and may post a few ideas to the page. I am also thinking of doing a jury or performance look post to show how I dress for more casual performances. I will also be doing a test to see which lipsticks withstand singing the best.

-Performances: I will be performing in my first recital ever, and my first professional opera within the next three weeks, so I will be blogging about my experiences with those two big milestones in my musical career.

-Practice: I would like to make a post or two talking about the way that I practice and prepare for performances. This could involve memorization methods, warm ups, characterization exercises, etc.

-Fitness: I have been looking to get in better shape lately, and will be starting a challenge within the next few days to begin exercising and eating healthily on a regular basis, and I will be tracking to see if this has any effect on my overall ability to sing.

These are just a few ideas I have up my sleeve for the upcoming weeks, but I would love to hear what you would be interested in seeing me blog about!

 

 

If Pop Stars Were Opera Singers

A few weeks ago, a friend and I were listening to the radio when “Hello” by Adele came on. We both started to wonder what Adele’s fach would be if she sang classically. So for this blog post I thought I would write about what I think different popular vocalists’ voice types are. As a disclaimer, this is not something that is easily determined, especially by someone like me, who has only been studying voice for four years; so I’m not saying by any means that these classifications are accurate.

So to classify the voice types I was listening for vocal range, tessitura, weight of voice, color of voice, and agility. So here is what I think these four Pop Stars’ fachs would be:

Adele:  Her vocal range is around C3-G#5, and her tessitura tends to be in the middle of that range, while still utilizing the upper and lower limits of this often. Her tone is dark throughout the middle and lower part of her voice, but her head voice tends to have more of a lyric quality. Adele also tends to have an average level of agility to her voice. If I were to take a stab at what I think her fach is, I would say that Adele is a dramatic mezzo-soprano.

Brendon Urie: This man’s voice may be virtuosic, even in the eyes and ears of the biggest classical fan. With a staggering vocal range of D2-C7, he has almost five octaves of range, including his falsetto. As for the tone of his voice, if tends to have warmer quality but his voice is fairly light in weight. Pairing his interesting tone with his nimble agility, I would hands down say Urie is a Tenor Leggiero.

Justin Bieber: His vocal range spans A2-F#5, and his tessitura tends to be towards the lower-middle part of his range, but he has falsetto that he uses fairly often as well. Justin’s voice is light in both weight and in color, but he is only 22, so it is very likely that his voice has a lot of growing to do before it can be classified completely. If I were to determine his fach for his age, I would say that he is a lyric tenor.

Beyonce:  With a pretty extensive range of F#2-F6, I thought I might have a hard time defining Yonce’s fach. She has a pretty consistent tone through out, but I would still say that the majority of her music sits in the middle part of her voice. Beyonce’s tone is on the warmer side, but does not have a ton of weight to it. As can be seen in songs like Love on Top, Bey seems to have a good handle on her high notes as well, which makes this classification that much harder. Eventually I came to the conclusion that I believe Beyonce is a lyric coloratura mezzo-soprano with an upper extension.

Recitals: A Wedding Between You and Your Instrument

Over the past few months I have been preparing for my Undergraduate Senior Recital. I was talking with a friend who had a recital last year and they compared their preparation to something like a wedding. I found their comparison to be interesting but eventually came to the realization that they were right. So here are some ways in which I see a recital as the bonding of you and your instrument/musicianship:

-Repertoire: In the grand scheme of recitals, I would see my repertoire as the vows that a couple professes for one another at a wedding. The pieces of music that you choose to perform on a recital should be a direct representation of you as a musician; this can be expressed through the era of music, the words, or even things that you have performed in the past that you feel made you a stronger performer. In my recital I’ve made the decision to sing mostly Romantic and 20th century pieces because I feel as though that is the music that best represents my voice and my growth as a musician while studying voice in my Undergraduate Program.

-Planning: There may not seem to be as much planning that goes into a recital, but in all reality a lot of the planned events come in the weeks leading up to the recital. Accompanist rehearsals, recital hearings, lessons, dress rehearsals, and finally the big event all take a lot of planning and preparation so that the performer can get on stage and do what they love.

-Participants: The people you ask to be a part of your recital would be similar to bridesmaids or groomsmen. Participants are the people you entrust to help you put on the best possible performance through things like duets and guest accompaniment. For my recital, I made the decision to include a duet with one of my closest friends, as well two pieces including my fraternity’s choir because these people have played such a large part of my college career and I wanted to share part of my special day with them.

-Dress/Tux Shopping: Just like in a wedding, dresses and tuxes play a large part in the preparation for recitals. Ultimately you must find an outfit the best represents the image you want to portray on your big day; For some people this may mean wearing a ball gown, for others it may mean doing a dress change halfway through the recital, and for most people it is mostly about what makes them feel most comfortable when performing.

-The Day of Your Recital: This day may feel like a wedding mostly because it is supposed to be one of the happiest experiences of your life. Recitals are meant to be when your friends and family come together to celebrate your success throughout your musical career. It is most people’s instinct to stress out and fret over things that could have gone differently but don’t do it! Your recital should be the time were you let loose and show everyone what you’re made of, while also declaring your passion for performance.

 

Opera for Beginners (Shows that will turn anyone into an opera fan)

Since my first post was about how exactly I became an opera fan, I thought it might be nice to post about operas that are both incredible and also easy to watch for people who are just getting started.

So here are just a few operas I would recommend to beginners:

Ballad of Baby Doe: This opera is a great place to start because it is in English, so it’s easy to understand. The show is also on the more modern end of opera because it was written in the 20th century, meaning that the plot is a bit more relatable then something from the romantic or classical era. This show pairs the scandal of a cheating husband who is won over by a young woman with a heart of gold, with music that will give you goosebumps from beginning to end.

Candide: This operetta is also in English and from the 20th century, making it fairly easy to understand as well. The story is about two lovers Candide and Cunegonde are torn apart by war on the day of their wedding. This operetta has light hearted and down right funny scenes that will grab your attention, and then more serious pieces to keep your attention focussed on the characters.

La Cenerentola: There are two major reasons to watch this opera if you’re new to this artform. First off, you should watch this opera because it is based off of the story of Cinderella, making it easy for just about everyone to understand and enjoy. Second of all, Rossini uses the human voice to its fullest potential, so if you want to see why opera singers are considered super human, watch this or any other Rossini opera.

Carmen: The main reason why I chose this opera is because it was the first opera I ever saw. This show has it all: love, betrayal, murder, Spanish dancing and some of the most famous melodies ever written. The plot may be a little hard to focus on and the fact that it is in French doesn’t help, but if you sit down and take the time to watch this masterpiece all the way through, you will not be disappointed.

 

The Beginning of My love for Opera

I have always been very active in the performing arts, starting with choir in Elementary School and later playing in a guitar orchestra for three years in High School. Throughout High School I submersed myself in varies groups, including advanced guitar ensembles, various choirs, and small chamber groups within the Music Honor Society I belonged to. So when it came time to think about going to college, I started to consider a career in the music industry. Ultimately, I made the decision to attend Radford University to pursue a Bachelors of Music, with a concentration in Music Business. At this point in my life, I would have never thought that making this choice would eventually fuel my love for Opera.

A big part of why I chose Radford University was that it’s Music Business program was that it included one thing most other Music Industry programs left out: Performance. At Radford, you are required to spend the majority of your college career studying performance through private lessons and ensembles. I had to make the decision whether to study guitar or voice, but ultimately felt a stronger connection with singing.

Upon entering my first voice lesson, I was very apprehensive. I had no interest in singing classical music and it felt like taking lessons would be something I would just tolerate for six semesters; And for my first year of college I did just that.

At the end of my first year of college, I found out that my voice teacher would be leaving to pursue her budding opera career. At first this didn’t bother me, but then I realized that this meant I would have a brand new teacher who might not put up with my lack of interest in classical music; and in making this assumption I was correct.

At the beginning of my sophomore year I began studying with my new voice teacher, who expected me to put my all into singing classically. That semester I was assigned my first opera aria, “Porgi amor” from Le Nozze di Figaro. At first this piece of music meant nothing to me, but once I had watched the opera and began singing the piece, something began to change. I began to connect to this aria and character in a way that I had never experienced in singing anything before.

After that semester, I began singing in the University’s Opera Ensemble where I sang scenes from operas like Carmen, Die Zauberflote, Lakme, and La Cenerentola. This is where I really discovered exactly what made me want to continue growing my relationship with this beautiful art form.

The thing that appealed to me most about singing and eventually being an avid fan of opera was how emotional this art form can be. The aria itself is a reflection of the internal emotions of a character and to me, someone who is incredibly emotional, this gave me a chance to truly let myself be an emotional mess without people thinking any differently of me.

Fast forward two and a half years, I am now a senior at Radford University, still studying voice and preparing for my senior recital as a Spinto Soprano (self classified), singing pieces from operas like Ballad of Baby Doe and Rusalka. In April, I will be singing in my first professional opera as a chorus member in La Traviata.

Needless to say, I am in love with this art form and it has truly changed my life in a way that three years ago I would have never thought to be possible. I will be using this blog to write about various topics to do with operas and my experiences as I begin my journey in singing this incredible music.