Musical Theater Part I: Tips for Rocking Your Audition

The North Main Music Musical Theater crew. 

From l to r: Josh, Trisha, Ella, Riya, and Emmerson.

Photo by Sibvon Marshall.

Are you an aspiring musical theater performer? At North Main Music, many of our students also audition for theater programs at school or in community theater groups, so we thought it would be helpful to share some tips on how to rock you next musical theater audition!

Selecting an Audition Song

Selecting the right song is critical to your audition and it can take time--there’s a lot to consider as you decide! So, if you find yourself Googling “how to pick an audition song,” then look no further.

Even if you’re comfortable in the spotlight and don’t normally get stage fright, there’s often a long, arduous process to prepare for an audition. As you prepare, keep these things in mind:

• Treat each and every audition like a performance. Why? Because it is a performance!
• Approach it like you have the job already.
• Select an audition song that best shows you off and is in the musical style of the show that you’re auditioning for.

So how do you choose the best song for you? Here’s what we recommend thinking about as you look for the best audition song(s).


Connection

Do you have a connection to the song? Another way to ask this question is, “Why do you want to tell this story?” Equally important to ask yourself is, do you love your audition song? No? Then don’t do it. Period. Your audience can always tell if you’re not into it. Since there are so many songs out there, there’s no excuse for doing something you dislike just because it may fit your voice. You have to connect with your song!


Questions to ask yourself:

• What are the primary ideas and themes you want to share in your performance?
• Why is it important to share this song with your audience?
• How is the story you are trying to tell relevant to your present age and life experiences?

Choose a musical topic that is close to your own life experiences. You’ll be able to imagine it more clearly and, therefore, communicate it to the listener more effectively. There is a vast body of quality music out there, so choose songs with messages that you are personally interested in sharing.


Consider Your “Type”

Is your voice soulful and sultry? Or are you more of a soprano? The best way to learn how to sing for your voice is to try out many different tunes. Any strain may mean it’s out of your comfortable vocal range. Your voice teacher can work with you on this, of course!

Equally important in musical theatre is your personality type. Are you a funny girl? A leading man? The femme fatale? Know yourself and be proud to be yourself. There’s room for everyone out there — young, old, funny, sexy, nerdy — you name it. Playing “against a type” will get you nowhere and you’ll find you don’t land the gigs you want! These are all critical factors in deciding on the best audition songs to show off your skills.


Find the source material

Is the song you’ve chosen correct musically and lyrically? Is it in the correct key for your voice? Today most people buy music online, but sometimes music purchased via download-on-demand services contains variations of the melody and lyrics. Find the source material (the original version of the sheet music). That can sometimes be a challenge, but it’s important that you learn the song correctly. Try looking at your local library or university, or contact the Great American Songbook Foundation to see if they have a copy in their archives. If they do, they will be happy to send you a copy.

“The Key is the Key”

You may also find these versions have been arranged in certain keys so they are easier to play on the piano--however, this may not be the best key for you to sing it in. (Be aware that there isn’t a correct key for popular songs.) Your choice of key impacts the technical aspects of your performance, which will ultimately affect your interpretation of the piece. If you are working with a vocal instructor, they can help you choose the key that allows you to sing the song as well as possible.


Is your song choice creative?

Avoid repertoire that’s strongly associated with an individual artist, or has become representative of that artist’s body of work because when you sing these songs, it will be difficult to avoid being compared to that artist. If you like a particularly iconic song, such as Etta James’ well-known version of “At Last,” here are some options:


Listen to other songs recorded by that artist, and then choose something that is less iconic.

Investigate the songwriter/composer’s catalog, and find a similar piece you like. You will often need to dig a little deeper to find a piece that is perfectly suited to you and your skills. The Great American Songbook Foundation has compiled a “Greatest Hits” playlist of some of the most well-known tunes. And don’t automatically write off musicals that didn’t do well at the box office — they often have great music!


Does the piece challenge you *appropriately* as a singer?
The key word here is appropriate. You should not (we repeat, not) seek out the most challenging piece you can find. If the song is right at the edge of your technical abilities, you will be focused on that aspect of the performance and will likely lose the focus of the story you are trying to communicate because the technical demands will overwhelm that. Make sure you are comfortable with the difficulty level of the material you choose.


Consider edits & attention spans

Musical theater auditions usually require a singer or actor prepare 16 or 32 bars of a song, or two contrasting excerpts. Some songs are much more awkward to cut than others. Choose songs that are fairly simple in structure (verse-chorus-verse, for example), rather than a song that rambles like a long musical monologue (think of many of the songs from “Wicked,” for example). Simpler is always better, if you have the option!

Also, keep your audience in mind. Your audition panel has been listening to singers all day long and doesn’t really want to have to cut you off. Singing a shorter song is fine, as long as it shows off what you’ve got! Less is sometimes more. The judges often know all they need to about a singer in a surprisingly short amount of time.


Consider Your Age

These days, kids have great repertoire to choose from. The problem is that kids often go into competitions or auditions with songs that are inappropriate; either the song’s subject matter is too mature or the song is beyond their capabilities.

When you’re looking at popular music, it gets especially difficult as most songs deal with romantic relationships. However, there are plenty of pop songs with positive messages. Look at the repertoire of Taylor Swift, Bruno Mars, or Rachel Platten.

Kids can also do well by going “old school.” Young girls can look at the music of Connie Francis, and both boys and girls can sing a lot from the Lennon/McCartney songbook.

If you’re looking at musical theater audition songs for kids, be aware of what’s overdone. No “Annie” — ever — unless they specifically ask for it. Get a good musical theater anthology and explore the songs that you may be unfamiliar with. For kids, the main idea should be about confidence, personality, and fun!

Preparation Time
Frantically learning a new song before an audition doesn’t always work. If you have already found audition songs that show you off, by all means use one of them if it fits the audition requirements! Otherwise, there is more room for error (lyric flubs, weak high notes, etc.). It can be helpful to maintain a book of the best audition songs you’ve worked on, ready to go at any time.


Benefits of Working with a Vocal Instructor

If you are an aspiring musical theater performer, you need to be working on improving and mastering your voice every step of the way. That’s why you see many musical theater singers working regularly with vocal coaches even after they’ve “made it.”

Of course, vocal training will help you with the technical side of singing, but there are a lot of other benefits that you’ve probably never considered.


Better posture

One of the first things any good voice instructor will notice is your posture. That’s because a hunched posture really limits your breath capacity and can obstruct your vocal chords. It’s just harder to sing with bad posture.

After you’ve had your posture corrected for the umpteenth time, it starts becoming a habit, and that habit will carry over to the rest of your life. You’ll find yourself sitting up straight in your chair at work, you’ll stand tall onstage, and you won’t be hunched over on the bus or train. And that all adds up to less back pain and aches.


More confidence

Building off the previous point, simply having a good, tall posture can instantly make you feel more confident. Which is good, because singing in front of an audience can be scary. Even the most outgoing and confident people get a little anxious before getting on stage. A big reason we get so anxious is because we fear people judging us badly. This is especially true for singers who are being judged on something so personal as their voice. Vocal training can help you get past that fear and build confidence.


Less stress and increased mental alertness

Another thing a good voice instructor will notice is your breathing. As a singer, you will get better tone, power, and sustain if you breathe deeply and fully from your diaphragm. You’ll learn breathing exercises, and just like posture, those techniques will become habit and you’ll find yourself breathing deeper even when you’re not singing.

Deep breathing is scientifically proven to improve your mood, relieve stress, and increases mental alertness, concentration, and memory as the brain and other organs get more oxygen. And all of this can help your performance, your music career, and your life.


Better connection with your audience

Think about all your favorite musical theater performances. What drew you to them? At first we think it’s just the music or the story line, but there are plenty of great musicals out there. Often what we really fall in love with is the actor’s performance and the uniqueness and personality they convey with their voice.

If you know how to properly control your voice, you don’t need to spend as much time and effort worrying about getting your tone right, hitting that high note, or controlling your dynamics. All of that will flow much more naturally so you can focus on your performance. You can work on developing your sound, conveying the emotion of the song through your voice, and adding in little nuances that are uniquely you.

At North Main Music, we offer a Musical Theater group program for budding young thespians. This program offers students an excellent opportunity to fine tune their musical theater skills under the guidance of a professional instructor. Best part: they can take what they learn in our Musical Theater program and use it to bring their auditioning skills to a whole new level!

For more information about our Musical Theater program, email us at NorthMainMusic@gmail.com or call us at 603-505-4282.




This article was inspired by and adapted from articles on takelessons.com, getacceptd.com, and sonicbirds.com.

Making the Most of Music Lessons

With fall just around the corner, our phones are ringing and our email box is full of messages from parents and students looking to get back into music lessons after a summer full of vacations and relaxation. As we all get back into the swing of things, are returning music students prepared to make the most of their lessons?

Some are, but some may not be because they are unclear about their roles as students and lack confidence in their communication skills. To help students excel in their lessons and beyond, this post highlights the attributes of successful students and suggest ways in which everyone can enhance their communication with their teachers.

Attributes of Adept Learners
What’s the primary goal of music lessons? Learning, of course! What, then, is the primary responsibility of a music student? To be an adept learner. (Teachers facilitate learning.) So let’s look at what it means to be good at learning. In a nutshell, adept learners are:

• Growth-minded. They recognize that skillfulness arises from steady effort; their growth mindset inspires them to set meaningful goals and practice with enthusiasm.
•  Mastery oriented. Unlike helpless students, intrepid ones take responsibility for their learning. They adhere to high standards, tackle appropriate material, stay within healthy limits, and seek help when needed.
• Independent and collaborative. They’re resourceful when practicing alone and team-minded when working with others.
• Persistent. Their mindset and goals give them the strength to persevere in the face of challenges.
• Professional. Adept learners exhibit professionalism in all of their musical activities – they’re punctual, prepared for lessons, courteous, and honest.
• Open to new ideas. They thrive on fresh perspectives.
• Communicative. In lessons, they listen keenly, speak authentically, and question frequently.

Communicating in Lessons

In order to embody that last trait – being communicative – a student needs both a desire to connect and the skills to do so. Nonetheless, communicating can get tricky, more so with some teachers than others. Words and tone of voice can easily, albeit usually unintentionally, be misconstrued. In the end, though, poor communication equals little or no learning.

Given that learning in lessons hinges on communication, here are 7 ways that students can heighten their communication with teachers:

1.    Record your lessons. By listening back and taking notes, you can retain all of the advice you receive.

2.    Query your teacher when something is unclear. Students sometimes shy away from asking for clarifications because they don’t want to seem clueless or imply that their teacher’s explanations are flawed. Believe us: educators want students to understand and ask questions. Always ask if you’re unsure.

3.    Agree on lesson goals. Before you depart from a lesson, ensure that you and your teacher spell out goals for your next meeting – verbalize your aims so that they’re captured on your recorder. Also, periodically discuss your long-range objectives with your teacher so that lesson goals support your interests.

4.    Document questions during practice. Keep a notebook handy as you practice and then bring your questions to lessons.

5.    Ask for feedback. During and at the close of lessons, inquire how well you’re attaining lesson goals and whether there’s anything more you could do to improve your musical or practice skills.

6.    Listen actively. Communication involves articulating one’s thoughts and hearing the thoughts of others. So listen attentively during lessons and paraphrase complex concepts to help your teacher know that you’ve absorbed them.

7.    Be positive. Bring a positive attitude to lessons so that you contribute to creating a productive learning environment. When miscommunication does happen, and from time to time it will, resolve them promptly, and then let go of any negativity.

What if you can’t establish a communicative rapport with a private teacher? For starters, you could solicit advice  from a mentor. Then, if your attempts to communicate still fall short, it might be time to find a new instructor.

Adapted from this article on musiciansway.com.

Photo: McKenna Chaput and her instructor, Jason Latham, at the North Main Music spring 2015 student concert. Photo by Robyn Neville.

Tips to make music lessons & practice a breeze this summer

As the weather gets nicer and we head into summer, are you having a hard time getting yourself or your child to stick with music lessons and practice? You already know that consistent weekly lessons--and practice in between--are vital to get you to your musical goals. So how do you beat the summertime blues and start making your musical dreams come true? Two of our top instructors, Shea Ellis and Christie Conticchio, were kind enough to share some of their expert advice for students and parents who need a little help getting into the music lesson and practice groove this summer.

Have you ever noticed that sometimes the hardest part of practicing is simply getting yourself to start? Guitar and ukulele instructor Shea Ellis has several great recommendations to help you get started!

· Have fun with your instrument and try being creative. To spice up your practice routine, write a song. Song writing is easy and fun, if you don’t overthink it, and can open many new doors for your playing.

· Choose to learn songs that you love, songs that pull you to your lessons and drive you to practice each day because you want to hear them!

· Call it playing, not practicing; playing is fun but practicing sounds like work. You never want to lose the element of fun!

· Remind yourself to practice by scheduling reminders on your phone or putting up post-its, whatever works for you.

· Make a practice schedule or calendar and mark the days that you practice.

· Get inspired to play by looking up information about a favorite musician. Even the greatest musicians are human just like you and none of them turned into famous geniuses overnight.

If you’re having trouble committing time to music this summer, voice and piano teacher Christie Conticchio has more great advice for you or your child to stay on track:

· Get involved with an activity or project that uses your instrument, whether it’s joining a band, entering a competition, or covering a favorite song.

· For singers, vocal technique can be applied when you are silent or talking, pretty much any time! You can work on your technique while you are doing other things such as talking to friends, texting, watching TV, riding in the car, on the computer, walking, standing, on a plane, etc.

· Find a way to add practice to your routine. Make it the first thing you do when you get home from camp or play for a few minutes before heading off to the beach or summer job each morning.

· On any instrument, it’s okay to play in short bits of time. Five minutes here and there can add up and even a little bit of practice is better than none at all.

· Make sure you and your kids see live music! Being exposed to music in the real world will inspire you to play, too. Summer is an awesome time to go see live music, as there are so many outdoor venues, from parks to band stands to stadiums.

Hopefully these tips will help you or your child get more from music lessons this summer. And remember, North Main Music has a bunch of summer activities to help you and your child stay motivated this summer, such as the Sizzlin’ Summer Cover Song Contest, North Main Music Night at the Fisher Cats, and our Rock Camp. So turn practice time into play time and watch as musical challenges become easier and easier!

Do you have any other tips for music students this summer? Share them with us in the comments!

Top left photo: Damon and Shea at the Spring 2015 student concert.

Bottom right photo: Christie and Nora at the Spring 2015 student concert.

Photo credits: Robyn Neville.

Adapted from this article on takelessons.com.

What if I forget the words?

We promise, the show will go on--and you’ll live to tell about it

No matter how much you prepare for your moment in the spotlight, anything can happen on stage! This unpredictability makes performing lots of fun, but it can also be scary. However, if you prepare for your performance the right way, you can even forget the words to the song you’re singing and still deliver a top-notch performance. Professional musicians and North Main Music instructors, Lizz Potter and Sibvon Rose, have experienced their share of performance blunders and lived to tell about it. In this article they share some of their experiences and offer advice to musicians who may be worried about making mistakes while performing live.

Tell us about a past performance during which you made a major blunder.

Lizz: I recently had a gig in Boston. It was a 3-hour solo set and it went well overall, but as I was both singing and playing piano, I was trying to read lyrics and chords at the same time, so I screwed up both a couple of times and panicked. However, I recovered as quickly as I could and as strongly as I could.

Sibvon: I can’t recall a specific performance with a major blunder, but I will say that I’ve learned from past mistakes that you have to learn to cover them really well—don’t let the mistake show on your face and in your body language. The audience won’t have a clue that you’ve screwed up unless you show it in your facial expressions and body language.

How do you recover from mistakes during a performance?

Lizz: Finish strong—people won’t remember a flub in the middle of a song if the rest of the performance is solid.

Sibvon: I always tell students to “own the mistake.” In other words, if you do a part wrong, one great way to cover it up is to purposely mess it up again. It’s a way to stay in control of your performance.

What advice would you offer to budding musicians who may be scared about making mistakes when performing live?

Lizz: Even if you’ve practiced a song 1000 times, mistakes can still happen, and that’s ok. Throughout my career, I’ve found that using breathing exercises as a method of relaxation is very helpful and important. Breathing helps me to be less in my head and more in the song. And, remember, have fun with your performance no matter what happens.

Sibvon: Audition for everything you possibly can. The more your audition, the less scary performing live will be. And use that nervous energy to your advantage; harness it and use it to take your performance to the next level.

Lizz and Sibvon teach piano and voice at North Main Music and both have been studying and performing music since childhood. To learn more about their musical backgrounds and teaching philosophies, click here for Lizz and here for Sibvon.


The above article was inspired by and partly adapted from this article on takelessons.com.