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In this post I discuss breathing for singing. Make sure when you breathe the body is relaxed to allow the breath in. Then you can have a focused stream of breath when singing out. Check out the video from James Morrison as well. James is talking about playing a trumpet but the concept is similar.
Fricatives are consonants that are formed by impeding the flow of air somewhere in the vocal apparatus so that a friction-sound is produced.
They are great for warming up the voice and help to develop a legato (smooth and connected sound) in your singing.
The ones used in this exercise are v, z, and th. Audio of exercise below.
Fricatives exercise:
I like to use the tag ‘Dream’ when I end emails and messages.
I have so many dreams about my business and singing and things I want to achieve in life.
My problem at times is that the dream will stay that unless I DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT.
Dreams don’t work unless we do.
The problem with that is we as humans are often fearful of the struggle we will have to face.
We want things to be easy.
We are fearful of failure and the thought is if I fail- then I must be a failure.
But to learn, grow and succeed we have to fail, that is how we learn, grow and succeed.
Below is video of a presentation by Brene Brown. She is an expert on the study of vulnerability.
She speaks about hope.
Brene talks about hope as a function of struggle, through hard work to achievement.
Challenging and difficult experiences when combined with nuturing teaching and encouragement produce hope.
Learning music is a struggle. The struggle of learning, the struggle of practice. The struggle of consistent practice.
I am here to help students through the struggle.
Just remember, dreams don’t work unless we do.
From the movie “Sing”
I hope you have all had an absolutely fabulous 2016 and are excited about 2017. I have been doing a lot of thinking recently and am trying to get planned for next year. I am notorious for just floating along and when I have a great idea I just do it. However this can be a very dangerous way to live as there is always a great rush to get it done, I’m not planned and I often don’t do things as well as I would like. Being prepared and organized helps things to flow better and a lot more can be achieved.
So my first terrific tip is:
Start thinking ahead now. What would you like to achieve vocally in 2017? Analyze what it is (make sure you are specific) that you would like to improve/achieve next year. Write it down, plan it out. Do you need to work on your breathing? Would you like to extend your vocal range? By how much? When? What will you need to do to fulfill your dream?
Part of the reason we don’t have the success we would like is that we fail to practice. There is no getting around this, if you want to succeed you have to put in the work. Work out a time that you able to set aside each day to work on your skills. Then stick to it.
For some more tips and ideas on better singing practice, click on the link below.
click here for tips on singing practice
This is important thing to do. There are many articles and videos on line about how to sing better, but none of these offer something very important. That is feedback. It is vital to have a mentor that can work with you to analyze and then work with you to improve your singing voice. I know when working with students that I am constantly asking questions and guiding them to hear what a good voice should sound like, tweaking and adjusting constantly. If you don’t have any feedback, how do you know if what you are doing is correct? To have lessons one on one with Mary at Singing Strong click here to register.
Make sure you are always listening to good music. Think about the artists you like and listen to them. LOTS! There are plenty of ways to listen to music. You tube, Pandora and spotify are just a couple of examples of places you can listen to your favourite music. Take some time to analyze what your artists are doing that makes them a good singer.
This is my favourite song at the moment and a song I definitely want to learn.
Think about what styles of music you like and then:
Decide the songs you would like to learn in 2017. Think carefully about the style of music and level of difficulty. Aim to find at least 5 songs you could work on. Plan out the year as to which month each song will be learned by. Remember it takes time for the body to get used to how you sing a song. I always say allow 6 months for a song to feel right.
Do these 5 things and you are well on your way to singing success in 2017.
Five days one on one with Mary for an hour each day. You can do this with Mary in her Traralgon Studio or on line.
There are only a few places left.
Mary Mirtschin
Work on vocal technique, performance skills as well as learn a song in 5 days!
1. Animals of you tube sing “Jingle Bells”
Piano Guys: Angels we have heard on high.
Tony Desare: 17 Versions of Jingle Bells
Pentatonix with Tori Kelly: Winter Wonderland/Don’t worry be happy.
Clair Ryann: Silent Night
And this song is my favourite song at the moment.
Not a Christmas song but a great song to enjoy on the summer holidays:
Tori Kelly: Don’t you worry ’bout a thing.
As we come to the end of another successful year at Singing Strong, I would like to thank all the students who have worked so hard this year on developing their musical skills.
There has been excellent progress made and students can be very proud of their achievements.
A big thank you to those students who participated in the concerts at O’Mara House and Yallambie Village in the last couple of weeks. The residents really enjoyed the performances and really appreciated you taking the time to perform for them. I would like to think we could make this more regular. It is a wonderful way to give back to the community as well as work on performance skills.
I have completed a newsletter that covers a lot of the events that Singing Strong has been involved in this year. Please click the link below to read all about what has been going on in 2016.
Singing Strong Newsletter end of year 2016
You can also read more details about what successes students have had this year by going to the achievements page.
Just click here for all the information
Yallambie Dec 2016
Can you believe we have reached the last term for 2016??
Singing Strong studio had a huge Term 3.
Students continued working hard during lessons, working on technique and learning new repertoire. This was quite a challenge for some as there were so many activities on this term.
A large number of students were involved in various Eisteddfods achieving great success.
I held a workshop about preparing for Eisteddfods and performing. This was very well attended and the masterclass that was held was very worthwhile.
We ended the term with a dinner dance held at the Premier Function Centre. This was a terrific end to the term. It was fantastic to see student up on stage performing with a live band. The night was so much fun!
You can read all the details about these events and more by clicking here.
I have been adding some interesting articles on my BLOG. The latest is about organizing a practice space at home and getting into a practice routine. Good revision before starting a new term. You can read it here.
Term 4 will be fast and furious.
1) CD production
I had said last term we would be making a cd. This will be done in term 4.
Last year we made a Christmas cd but this year we will be making a cd of various songs. Students need to choose the song they love to sing and then we will make a recording of it. It can be any song, but would you please let me know what you would like to sing asap so that I can create a list.
2) AMEB Exams
There are a number of students completing AMEB exams at various levels this term and we wish them well with their studies.
3) End of Term Workshop
I will be holding a workshop day on Saturday 10th December. This will be broken up into 3 sessions, each for one hour.
10am: 1st session will be for all primary school students.
11.15am: 2nd session is for any secondary school students.
12.30pm: 3rd session will be for all adults.
This will be an opportunity for any students who have missed a lesson during the term to make up this time. For any students who have attended all lessons, this is a bonus session for you.
4) Performance Opportunity
Our major event for the year was held last term, however I would like to do something for the end of the year. I will be organizing some small concerts that will be held at various nursing homes in the community. I will send out dates and times soon. This will not be a huge commitment. You can choose which one you would like to be part of. It is not a compulsory activity, but I would like to see as many students participate as possible.
You can listen to this blog post here:
Headphones are great for listening to music but not so good for practice.
Mary Mirtschin
A quick message to wish all those who are participating in the Sale Eisteddfod this Saturday. They have all worked very hard, preparing their repertoire and are sounding fantastic.
The main thing I would remind you all is to BREATHE!
Also this weekend is the last performances of The Little Mermaid by the Latrobe Theatre Company.
This is a lovely performance and would highly recommend attending if you are able.
To book tickets click here.
The Latrobe Chorale is also performing this weekend:
Saturday 21st May 2pm Presbyterian Church, Morwell.
Sunday 22nd May 2pm, St Michaels Church, Traralgon.
I will be conducting the program: Rutter’s Gloria and Faure’s Requiem.
Here is a taste: