So, I joined a choir…
Last night i thought I’d join the local choir, so I’d have extra practice etc.
Thrown in the deep end, I don’t really read music and I didn’t know any of the songs. They have a concert in two weeks so this wasn’t really a night where they are going over each part slowly, I was put with the tenors and only one other tenor showed up so I was being super careful not to mess him up.
So basically I did a lot of faking it and following along. Lol. Generally it was fun.
Anyway to help me get up to speed, one of the organisers gave me access to the practice tracks and I also have the sheet music. But the practice tracks are well… they are singing in a really covered tone. As I don’t know the songs well enough, and I couldn’t tell you what notes I’m actually singing I have concerns on ‘copying’ the way the singer is on the practice track.
Firstly it’s making the notes sound to my ear way lower than they probably are, but I’m also concerned that in copying it to sound the same, I’ll undo the work I’ve been doing on getting that nice bright sound that Ken talks about.
I don’t really know what I’m looking for here. Suggestions, tips? Ugh I’m feeling really lost, I feel like I’m going to start singing flat and that if I try to get a bright sound I’ll end up singing completely the wrong note, I guess I should just have a couple of goes with the practice track and at least get the rhythm and basic relation of the notes to each other.
Any thoughts you have will be appreciated.
Thrown in the deep end, I don’t really read music and I didn’t know any of the songs. They have a concert in two weeks so this wasn’t really a night where they are going over each part slowly, I was put with the tenors and only one other tenor showed up so I was being super careful not to mess him up.
So basically I did a lot of faking it and following along. Lol. Generally it was fun.
Anyway to help me get up to speed, one of the organisers gave me access to the practice tracks and I also have the sheet music. But the practice tracks are well… they are singing in a really covered tone. As I don’t know the songs well enough, and I couldn’t tell you what notes I’m actually singing I have concerns on ‘copying’ the way the singer is on the practice track.
Firstly it’s making the notes sound to my ear way lower than they probably are, but I’m also concerned that in copying it to sound the same, I’ll undo the work I’ve been doing on getting that nice bright sound that Ken talks about.
I don’t really know what I’m looking for here. Suggestions, tips? Ugh I’m feeling really lost, I feel like I’m going to start singing flat and that if I try to get a bright sound I’ll end up singing completely the wrong note, I guess I should just have a couple of goes with the practice track and at least get the rhythm and basic relation of the notes to each other.
Any thoughts you have will be appreciated.
Comments
not 100% here but i think sing along to the tracks with the bright ah when you practice, because that's how you are used to it and where you "get" the pitch and can "tune in" properly, you can then cover it later. just an idea
It does sound like you have been thrown in at the deep end. and not much time to learn the music .What are the songs called ? Are they original songs or ones that every choir could sing? Being in a choir is fun and you learn discipline when singing. You probablly already know this but when you sing - always look at the conducter as they will bring you in etc and that should help a little bit- as for learning the tenor part - maybe you could ask the other tenor to record them singing the part for you and then you could learn it from the other tenor or jsut ask the other tenor to go through the notes with you..I hope that is of some help for you.
Human Robot