Okay, since everyone is asking... and thank you for asking... I've posted three ruff mixes on my myspace from the big band project I recorded earlier this year. I hope to have the finished product out soon. thanks again and I hope you enjoy them...
http://ping.fm/rBOUR
Thursday, July 23, 2009
I'm on stage and I'm petrified!!!
I know a lot of performers who struggle with this challenge. I am not willing to call it a problem because I think this is an issue that is mostly generated by the mind and by thinking. By focusing on the anxiety we actually make it worse. I want to go over some of the stages I see people go thru and then I’m going to give you some tips for how to start overcoming these thoughts, or illusions.
Anticipation – this is often the worst stage for people. They believe that actually being on stage is the worst part, but this is the stage where they are tortured for hours and sometimes days before a performance. Thinking of every little thing that could possibly go wrong. I have said this to singers forever and I’m going to say it again now…
WHAT YOU THINK, YOU WILL CREATE!
If you focus on what might go wrong, chances are good you will bring it into reality.
Avoidance – From there, the next thing some performers do is let it stop them from performing all together. This only reinforces the stage fright. The more you get on stage the more you will learn to manage your thoughts, and emotional responses. If you continually avoid the stage, you prolong the period of anticipation.
Anxiety or panic - then the next time you have to get on stage, you can’t breathe, you shake, sweat, feel light headed… and since your are focusing on you and what you’re feeling, it is next to impossible to give… and I want to emphasize this… to perform is to GIVE a great performance. If you are focused on me, me, me…. It’s hard to GIVE a great performance…
This is also the stage when some performers try to manage the stage by altering it with substances. Let me make this clear. I don’t think this is ever a good idea. It is never good for you physically or good for your body because we need the body to be strong in order to help us sing. It also makes you less aware and SOMETIMES you do things you would never normally do, you miss things that you would have been able to handle if you had a straight head on your shoulders… Even if everyone else is doing it, IT’S NOT YOUR PARTY. It’s the audience’s party.
You need to be constantly aware when you are on stage, things happen that aren’t always planned and you will need your wits about you to handle them instantly… If your judgment is impaired, that will likely not happen, and like I said you will do things that you would never normally do.
Appraisal – so then you get off stage, look back and appraise how you did. Oh my God and then I did this and I didn’t do this… I shouldn’t even be up there… sound familiar… If you didn’t feel like you performed up to your best, you start the cycle all over again from the top and start talking yourself into the next bad performance.
Do you see how this cycle works?
There are a few things you can do to help get you thru these stages and help you manage your anxiety.
Breathing:
This is the biggest thing you can learn to do. You’ve no doubt heard me say this a million times, breathing for singers is not the same as breathing for everyday life. You need to learn to breathe abdominally and diaphragmatically if you want to sing really well. You also need to learn deep breathing for relaxation. Not only of your body in order to let the sound come out and to support the sound, but deep breathing will help you over come nerves. Breathing is the first place I notice nerves in singers on stage. When singers are not breathing correctly and not supported, voices waver, notes are tight or flat and they are generally just not confident up there.
If you take a couple of deep breaths now.. go ahead… notice how you feel.. You may put your shoulders back, you may shake your head around, and chances are good you feel pretty confident and relaxed. That’s where good performing comes from. Being able to let the energy flow thru you. You are alive and feeling great. Now you have something to GIVE to your audience.
Be Prepared:
Practice, practice, practice! What you know inside out and backwards you will feel more confident about doing. And practice it like you will be on stage. Practice how you walk out. Practice what you will say. Practice taking the mic out of the stand and please move the stand behind you so you don’t have to try and sing around it. Don’t hang on the mic stand, it only looks like you’re tired. It is not a crutch. When you practice speaking, speak out loud. Say it and sing it like you will do it on stage.
If you make a mistake, KEEP GOING! If you stop every time you make a mistake, you are teaching yourself to stop when something happens, and oh… guess what… when it happens on stage, that’s what you’ll do… then you’ll just have one more thing to pick on yourself about. If you make a mistake, make that a time to practice how you will get yourself out of it without the audience knowing. I can’t tell you how many made up lyrics or mumbles I’ve sung on stage. And I’ll tell you what, as long as I look confident and deliver my mumblings with a smile and a gesture, 99% of the time, NOBODY EVEN NOTICED!
Perform in front of friends or family:
When you have practiced your song or whatever performance your doing and you feel confident. Gather some friends and family together and sing it in front of them. They will love it and it will help you by having some people in front of you to perform to. If you can go to other safe places to perform great. Maybe it’s at a family picnic, or in a choir. What ever you do, start putting yourself in front of people a little at a time. That way when the crowd is larger, it’s the same for you, just a few more people.
Expect to feel some nerves:
Don’t think you shouldn’t feel nervous. If you can learn to turn nerves in excitement, it can help drive your performance… I always get butterfly’s right up to the point where I step out of the wings. I have learned to manage it so it doesn’t get the best of me and turn that energy into great performances. What I’m saying is that if you feel nerves, it’s perfectly normal. You just have to learn how to handle them. And you can learn how!
Cut yourself some slack:
If you are learning to perform, and believe me, it is something most people need to learn to do, you have to start somewhere. If you were learning to fly a plane, you wouldn’t start by jumping into the cockpit of a 747… if you were in the Tour de France, you wouldn’t jump on your Huffy and get in next to Lance Armstrong would you? … you have to start somewhere and that’s the beauty about learning, your not expected to be perfect. Performing is a skill you learn over time. You learn by having great coaches and mentors helping you. You learn by watching other great artists. Get concert videos of your favorite performers and watch what they do. Incorporate some of what they do into what you do. Get your hair brush and start practicing!
The bottom line is this:
KEEP SHOWING UP! What you intend in your thoughts with passion, you will act upon and ultimately create. You have the choice.
Anticipation – this is often the worst stage for people. They believe that actually being on stage is the worst part, but this is the stage where they are tortured for hours and sometimes days before a performance. Thinking of every little thing that could possibly go wrong. I have said this to singers forever and I’m going to say it again now…
WHAT YOU THINK, YOU WILL CREATE!
If you focus on what might go wrong, chances are good you will bring it into reality.
Avoidance – From there, the next thing some performers do is let it stop them from performing all together. This only reinforces the stage fright. The more you get on stage the more you will learn to manage your thoughts, and emotional responses. If you continually avoid the stage, you prolong the period of anticipation.
Anxiety or panic - then the next time you have to get on stage, you can’t breathe, you shake, sweat, feel light headed… and since your are focusing on you and what you’re feeling, it is next to impossible to give… and I want to emphasize this… to perform is to GIVE a great performance. If you are focused on me, me, me…. It’s hard to GIVE a great performance…
This is also the stage when some performers try to manage the stage by altering it with substances. Let me make this clear. I don’t think this is ever a good idea. It is never good for you physically or good for your body because we need the body to be strong in order to help us sing. It also makes you less aware and SOMETIMES you do things you would never normally do, you miss things that you would have been able to handle if you had a straight head on your shoulders… Even if everyone else is doing it, IT’S NOT YOUR PARTY. It’s the audience’s party.
You need to be constantly aware when you are on stage, things happen that aren’t always planned and you will need your wits about you to handle them instantly… If your judgment is impaired, that will likely not happen, and like I said you will do things that you would never normally do.
Appraisal – so then you get off stage, look back and appraise how you did. Oh my God and then I did this and I didn’t do this… I shouldn’t even be up there… sound familiar… If you didn’t feel like you performed up to your best, you start the cycle all over again from the top and start talking yourself into the next bad performance.
Do you see how this cycle works?
There are a few things you can do to help get you thru these stages and help you manage your anxiety.
Breathing:
This is the biggest thing you can learn to do. You’ve no doubt heard me say this a million times, breathing for singers is not the same as breathing for everyday life. You need to learn to breathe abdominally and diaphragmatically if you want to sing really well. You also need to learn deep breathing for relaxation. Not only of your body in order to let the sound come out and to support the sound, but deep breathing will help you over come nerves. Breathing is the first place I notice nerves in singers on stage. When singers are not breathing correctly and not supported, voices waver, notes are tight or flat and they are generally just not confident up there.
If you take a couple of deep breaths now.. go ahead… notice how you feel.. You may put your shoulders back, you may shake your head around, and chances are good you feel pretty confident and relaxed. That’s where good performing comes from. Being able to let the energy flow thru you. You are alive and feeling great. Now you have something to GIVE to your audience.
Be Prepared:
Practice, practice, practice! What you know inside out and backwards you will feel more confident about doing. And practice it like you will be on stage. Practice how you walk out. Practice what you will say. Practice taking the mic out of the stand and please move the stand behind you so you don’t have to try and sing around it. Don’t hang on the mic stand, it only looks like you’re tired. It is not a crutch. When you practice speaking, speak out loud. Say it and sing it like you will do it on stage.
If you make a mistake, KEEP GOING! If you stop every time you make a mistake, you are teaching yourself to stop when something happens, and oh… guess what… when it happens on stage, that’s what you’ll do… then you’ll just have one more thing to pick on yourself about. If you make a mistake, make that a time to practice how you will get yourself out of it without the audience knowing. I can’t tell you how many made up lyrics or mumbles I’ve sung on stage. And I’ll tell you what, as long as I look confident and deliver my mumblings with a smile and a gesture, 99% of the time, NOBODY EVEN NOTICED!
Perform in front of friends or family:
When you have practiced your song or whatever performance your doing and you feel confident. Gather some friends and family together and sing it in front of them. They will love it and it will help you by having some people in front of you to perform to. If you can go to other safe places to perform great. Maybe it’s at a family picnic, or in a choir. What ever you do, start putting yourself in front of people a little at a time. That way when the crowd is larger, it’s the same for you, just a few more people.
Expect to feel some nerves:
Don’t think you shouldn’t feel nervous. If you can learn to turn nerves in excitement, it can help drive your performance… I always get butterfly’s right up to the point where I step out of the wings. I have learned to manage it so it doesn’t get the best of me and turn that energy into great performances. What I’m saying is that if you feel nerves, it’s perfectly normal. You just have to learn how to handle them. And you can learn how!
Cut yourself some slack:
If you are learning to perform, and believe me, it is something most people need to learn to do, you have to start somewhere. If you were learning to fly a plane, you wouldn’t start by jumping into the cockpit of a 747… if you were in the Tour de France, you wouldn’t jump on your Huffy and get in next to Lance Armstrong would you? … you have to start somewhere and that’s the beauty about learning, your not expected to be perfect. Performing is a skill you learn over time. You learn by having great coaches and mentors helping you. You learn by watching other great artists. Get concert videos of your favorite performers and watch what they do. Incorporate some of what they do into what you do. Get your hair brush and start practicing!
The bottom line is this:
KEEP SHOWING UP! What you intend in your thoughts with passion, you will act upon and ultimately create. You have the choice.
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Mic Techniques.. Do’s and Don’ts….
I’m writing this as a shout out to the great gal who helped me set up my on line hosting… Thanks for all your help… and when you see the show next time, go thru the line and say hi to all the dancers for me! …. And yes, I talk singing with everyone…
She had some great questions regarding microphone technique and the dreaded stage fright issues that many of us experience. I’ll cover mic technique now and next time have some tips for you about how to over come stage fright.
As a general rule get as close to the mic with your mouth as you can… you’ll hear the term “eat the mic” used a lot. This simply means getting the sound source (you) as close to the mic as possible. Also sing directly into the top of the microphone, don’t sing over it, off to the side or feet away from it. Put your lips right on it for lead singing or any time your singing soft.
As a side note:
If you are doing shows where lots of people you don’t know are singing on the mic before you… you may want to carry a disinfectant wipe with you and run it across the screen of the mic before you sing.
You should pull the mic away from your mouth when you sing louder and when you sing back up and are not the lead voice. Use the three-inch rule as a guide. Pull away just under three inches or just over three inches, as long as you can still hear your voice being amplified. As a general rule when I am singing background vocals, I am just over three inches away, unless the soundman directs me otherwise.
One “don’t” with a microphone is to cover the ball of the mic with your hand. Many rappers do this but it changes the sound of the mic and therefore the sound of your voice. If you must do this, let the soundman know up front. You’re very likely to get feedback from your monitors.
Never: put your hand right over the top of the mic, you will get feed back if you do this!
Never: point the microphone into the monitors, you will get feed back if you do this!
Also, when there are two people singing on one mic… you’ll both have to get as in front of the mic as you can, hopefully you like the other person. And a mint might be nice… ☺ if you sing off to one side, it won’t pick you up very well.
I hope this helps with how to hold the microphone. The best advise I can give you is if you are going to start performing a lot, spend the money and buy yourself a microphone. You will learn how close and how far you can get without losing sound quality. Then take it to all your gigs. Most of the time, if it is a professional mic, the soundman won’t mind using it.
I have predominately used Shure microphones live. They are workhorses and sound great. If you get a Shure beta 58, I think you’d be very happy.
Now, some will yell and scream that if you have the mic right up to your mouth, you can’t see your face from the audience. You can hold the mic so you are singing into the top of the ball and have the stem of the mic pointed somewhat down so you are not covering as much of your face….
However! WATCH YOUR POSTURE!!!! If you start holding the mic down and your head starts dropping forward… you will make it more difficult on yourself to sing….
The same goes if you have the mic in the stand… bring it up to your mouth, close, so your posture is straight. In my humble opinion, the most important thing is posture so you can sing correctly, and then that the mic picks up the most full-bodied tone your voice has to offer. This will make you feel better about your performance and will help the Appraisal: the period after a performance, when you come to some conclusions about how you did. This has a lot to do with how you feel about going back on stage the next time and is a part of what we have to learn to manage when we are trying to get over stage fright.
Okay, that leaves us off nicely where I can pick up the discussion about stage fright and how to manage it in the next blog…
She had some great questions regarding microphone technique and the dreaded stage fright issues that many of us experience. I’ll cover mic technique now and next time have some tips for you about how to over come stage fright.
As a general rule get as close to the mic with your mouth as you can… you’ll hear the term “eat the mic” used a lot. This simply means getting the sound source (you) as close to the mic as possible. Also sing directly into the top of the microphone, don’t sing over it, off to the side or feet away from it. Put your lips right on it for lead singing or any time your singing soft.
As a side note:
If you are doing shows where lots of people you don’t know are singing on the mic before you… you may want to carry a disinfectant wipe with you and run it across the screen of the mic before you sing.
You should pull the mic away from your mouth when you sing louder and when you sing back up and are not the lead voice. Use the three-inch rule as a guide. Pull away just under three inches or just over three inches, as long as you can still hear your voice being amplified. As a general rule when I am singing background vocals, I am just over three inches away, unless the soundman directs me otherwise.
One “don’t” with a microphone is to cover the ball of the mic with your hand. Many rappers do this but it changes the sound of the mic and therefore the sound of your voice. If you must do this, let the soundman know up front. You’re very likely to get feedback from your monitors.
Never: put your hand right over the top of the mic, you will get feed back if you do this!
Never: point the microphone into the monitors, you will get feed back if you do this!
Also, when there are two people singing on one mic… you’ll both have to get as in front of the mic as you can, hopefully you like the other person. And a mint might be nice… ☺ if you sing off to one side, it won’t pick you up very well.
I hope this helps with how to hold the microphone. The best advise I can give you is if you are going to start performing a lot, spend the money and buy yourself a microphone. You will learn how close and how far you can get without losing sound quality. Then take it to all your gigs. Most of the time, if it is a professional mic, the soundman won’t mind using it.
I have predominately used Shure microphones live. They are workhorses and sound great. If you get a Shure beta 58, I think you’d be very happy.
Now, some will yell and scream that if you have the mic right up to your mouth, you can’t see your face from the audience. You can hold the mic so you are singing into the top of the ball and have the stem of the mic pointed somewhat down so you are not covering as much of your face….
However! WATCH YOUR POSTURE!!!! If you start holding the mic down and your head starts dropping forward… you will make it more difficult on yourself to sing….
The same goes if you have the mic in the stand… bring it up to your mouth, close, so your posture is straight. In my humble opinion, the most important thing is posture so you can sing correctly, and then that the mic picks up the most full-bodied tone your voice has to offer. This will make you feel better about your performance and will help the Appraisal: the period after a performance, when you come to some conclusions about how you did. This has a lot to do with how you feel about going back on stage the next time and is a part of what we have to learn to manage when we are trying to get over stage fright.
Okay, that leaves us off nicely where I can pick up the discussion about stage fright and how to manage it in the next blog…
Thursday, July 16, 2009
What... Still singing too hard????
Well since I got quite a bit of feedback from the last blog, I thought I’d do one more on the subject…
I’d like to explore the idea of conversational singing… This is an area that I am really working on in my own singing right now… Yes, even though I’ve been singing since dirt was created… I’m still learning…… If you’re reading this it means you want to keep learning too… BRAVO!!!
If you look at a lot of great artists, what you will find is there ability to really tell you the story rather than sing the story at you… This will also help you to not over-sing or sing too hard. If you feel as though you’re “talk-singing” a large portion of the song and then punctuate the song with big notes and lots of dynamics you might get a performance from yourself and a response from your audience that you just didn’t expect.
Talking v. Singing
Remember I’ve always said if you start on 10 … you don’t have anywhere left to go… Learn to back off thinking that you have to “sing” everything. Try saying the line. Notice where your meter is, notice which words you punctuate and which you don’t when you say something. Now sing it the way you just said it. Do it again and again till your singing feels more like your talking.
I read this great quote, which I’ll include at the end if you want to read it in its entirety, but basically is said life was like being a sprinter… lots of hard work punctuated by brief moments where you get to be great.
Try thinking about your songs this way too, lots of “talk-singing” with brief moments, and only certain notes that will you really belt. You know where; yep, it’s on the money note! Try using all kinds of different colors of the voice in every song, it will give your songs character and make them more interesting for your audience and for you.
Hit one high note soft and pretty and the next time it comes around knock it out of the park! Use full tone, use soft tone, use breathy tone (just not too much on this one), use growls, just plain talk a word or two and then occasionally really sing something full out, wide open… It will get the crowds attention.
Keep it interesting for your audience. Keep it interesting for yourself. And quit trying to hold every note right into the other one. Make it swing; go ahead, give it some soul!
From his book “Slaying the Dragon” Olympic sprinter Michael Johnson who set records in the 200 and the 400 meter sprints in 96 wrote:
Success is found in much smaller portions than most people realize. A hundredth of a second here or sometimes a tenth there can determine the fastest man in the world. At times we live our lives on a paper-thin edge that barely separates greatness from mediocrity and success from failure. Life is often compared to a marathon, but I think it’s more like being a sprinter: long stretches of hard work punctuated by brief moments in which we are given the opportunity to perform at our best.
I’d like to explore the idea of conversational singing… This is an area that I am really working on in my own singing right now… Yes, even though I’ve been singing since dirt was created… I’m still learning…… If you’re reading this it means you want to keep learning too… BRAVO!!!
If you look at a lot of great artists, what you will find is there ability to really tell you the story rather than sing the story at you… This will also help you to not over-sing or sing too hard. If you feel as though you’re “talk-singing” a large portion of the song and then punctuate the song with big notes and lots of dynamics you might get a performance from yourself and a response from your audience that you just didn’t expect.
Talking v. Singing
Remember I’ve always said if you start on 10 … you don’t have anywhere left to go… Learn to back off thinking that you have to “sing” everything. Try saying the line. Notice where your meter is, notice which words you punctuate and which you don’t when you say something. Now sing it the way you just said it. Do it again and again till your singing feels more like your talking.
I read this great quote, which I’ll include at the end if you want to read it in its entirety, but basically is said life was like being a sprinter… lots of hard work punctuated by brief moments where you get to be great.
Try thinking about your songs this way too, lots of “talk-singing” with brief moments, and only certain notes that will you really belt. You know where; yep, it’s on the money note! Try using all kinds of different colors of the voice in every song, it will give your songs character and make them more interesting for your audience and for you.
Hit one high note soft and pretty and the next time it comes around knock it out of the park! Use full tone, use soft tone, use breathy tone (just not too much on this one), use growls, just plain talk a word or two and then occasionally really sing something full out, wide open… It will get the crowds attention.
Keep it interesting for your audience. Keep it interesting for yourself. And quit trying to hold every note right into the other one. Make it swing; go ahead, give it some soul!
From his book “Slaying the Dragon” Olympic sprinter Michael Johnson who set records in the 200 and the 400 meter sprints in 96 wrote:
Success is found in much smaller portions than most people realize. A hundredth of a second here or sometimes a tenth there can determine the fastest man in the world. At times we live our lives on a paper-thin edge that barely separates greatness from mediocrity and success from failure. Life is often compared to a marathon, but I think it’s more like being a sprinter: long stretches of hard work punctuated by brief moments in which we are given the opportunity to perform at our best.
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