Dr. Marc Reynolds Performing Arts Studio

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A More Effective Way to Learn Music

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Acting for Singers: Day 1, Topic 2

In my experience, young singers go about learning music completely backward. Really! Read the following steps, and you will not only get the correct learning process, but also see how musicians should spend their time in the practice room. An incorrect process leads to mistakes, vocal technique issues, inefficient practicing, unengaged acting, and in general, not-so-great performances. The following method may seem more time-consuming and tedious at the start, but in the long run, it will save you time and yield a much better final product. Give it a try!

Here is How!

1. Translate the language. Mark in breathing cues. Identify natural accents in the text. 

2. Gather dramatic information that is in the printed music (musical form, expressive markings, dynamics, context indicators in language, action and mood music, and other primary sources that give insight into the piece).

3. Decide on the context for your piece (the who, what, where, when, why). Not all pieces have a given context. If the context is not dictated, then you get to choose one that you think fits the text, music, and you as an artist. Note: make a decision, but do it knowing that you can change any part of it later on if you come up with something better. The more vivid, imaginative, and emotionally charged, the easier it will be. 

4. Storyboard your piece. Start with the big structural moments (beginning, end, new musical sections, climax, etc.), and then work down to individual phrases. Memorize the pattern of actions (“I go here, then I do this, then I see that, and I show this feeling on my face, etc.”). Be specific and talk in the first person when you are thinking about this character. Example: “At m. 25 beat 3, I see a candle in the distance and that gives me hope. I take a step towards the candle to try to see it better at the end of the next phrase, etc.”

5. Monologue your song!

6. Learn the diction correctly the first time by speaking it through until you can speak it like you MEAN it. It should feel fluid and natural on your tongue. GET HELP! IPA is great but a good coach or native speaker is even better. 

7. Add in natural accents, dynamics, and phrasing required by the music while speaking.

8. Learn correct rhythms the first time. Take time to count it out with a metronome. Do it alone, then add in previous steps.

9. Learn correct notes on a vowel, or on all the vowels if you feel ambitious. Then add previous steps.

10. By this time you should have it pretty much memorized, so singing it over and over to learn it isn’t needed. You should sing through it while deliberately choosing one or two things you need to fix. Video yourself, review, and then choose new issues to focus on and adjust. 

11. Listen to recordings of other artists performing it. By this point, you have already made all of your decisions. You are now listening not to learn the song, but to understand what other artists have done with it and learn from what they do well and what they don’t do well. 

“Is this the only right way to learn a song?”

Nope. It is a great starting place though. Find the way that works best for you, but be deliberate about it. Work smarter AND harder. My suggestion would be to follow this method step by step for at least a few songs, and then when you’ve got it down, start to alter it to best suit you.

Assignments:

Writing Assignment 0: Choose your performance projects

Writing Assignment 1: Marked Up Score 1.0

Writing Assignment 3: The “Who am I” Paper 1.0

Topic 3: How to learn a role

Topic 4: The #1 asset a performer has is ______?

Topic 5: Where am I? Who am I?

Topic 6: Boxes – What does the Music Have to Say About Dramatic Change?

Topic 7: Lines – It’s about stress!

Topic 8: Arrows – Pinning Down Where Ideas Shift

Topic 9: Circles – Finding the music that we have to move to

Topic 10: Where does imagination come from?

Exercise: Truth or Lie

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Group Exercise for Day 1 Topic 1

The Basic Premise

This is essentially the game “two truths and a lie.” However, here the goal isn’t just to identify the lie, but what their body did that made you think it was a lie. Whether or not you guess the right answer doesn’t matter here. What matters is that we identify what communicates a lie and what communicates truth.

The Rules

Step 1: Choose an option and follow the instructions

Option 1: Choose one player to be “it.” That person should think of and memorize three phrases that they can repeat exactly in their mind. One phrase should be untrue and the other two should be true.

Option 2: Choose one player to be “it.” That person should think of and memorize three phrases that they can repeat exactly in their mind. All three phrases should be false. The person that is “it” will choose two of the phrases they want to communicate as “true” and one as “false”.

Option 3: Choose one player to be “it.” That person should think of and memorize three phrases that they can repeat exactly in their mind. All three phrases should be true. The person that is “it” will choose two of the phrases they want to communicate as “true” and one as “false”.

Step 2: Go through Rounds 1-3 (either with the same person and same set of statements or three different people)

Round 1: Silent Movie Version – The person who is “it” says each statement in their mind as if they are telling a single person or the whole group. They aren’t allowed to speak or mouth the words. They aren’t allowed to mime. They are just supposed to do everything they would do if they were communicating each statement minus making sounds with their mouth.

Round 2: Monologue Version : Repeat Round 1, but add the actual statements being spoken by the person who is “it.” Did their body language change? What is more or less convincing? If so, why?

Round 3: Sung to a popular song of choice Version : Now the person who is “it” must sing the statements to the tune of a melody they know well. For example: it might be “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.” The objective isn’t to make it fit well with the melody so much as it is to introduce the challenge of having the pitch and timing pre-determined. Did their body language change? What is more or less convincing? If so, why? Were they more or less successful in communicating truth and lies? What made their delivery believable or not believable?

Step 3: Each person observing should record their answers and identify specific actions that led them to believe or disbelieve the person delivering the statements.

Example: “Round 1: with each phrase their eyes were darting all over the place. This made it so I didn’t believe any of the phrases she thought were true.”

Step 4: Discuss amongst the group and come to a consensus of which phrases were supposed to be true and false. Discuss how you arrived at those conclusions based on body language.

Step 5: The person who was “it” reveals their actual intent that they chose at the start of the exercise and discusses the insights and challenges they experienced as they tried to perform the task assigned to them.

Moral of the Story:

When we are on stage we are usually trying to convince the audience that something is truth or a lie. Introducing music into the equation adds a new level of challenge in this effort of convincing the audience that we are being authentic and genuine with what we intend to communicate.

Acting 101 for Singers Introduction

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Whether you want to be the next Opera Diva, Rock Star, Pop Sensation, or Musical Theater Idol, you need to understand the basic concepts and skills to make your performance come alive for the audience. This article is the start of a course-style series designed to teach singers how to act on stage.

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Get Caught Monologuing

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The Best Thing You Can Do To Improve Your Performance Immediately!

Have you ever struggled with figuring out where to start with acting, especially when you start working on a new role, aria, art song, pop song, etc. that will be performed for an audience? You know you can’t just stand there and sing pretty whilst looking like a deer in headlights. But how do you go from notes and words on a page to an engaging performance? It is especially hard when you are learning something in a different language because you don’t have an immediate connection to the character or the music. Let’s figure it out!

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START WITH THE STORY – Part I (Imagination Introduction & Overview)

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Acting 101 for Singing Performers: Day 1, Topic 1

CONTEXT IS EVERYTHING!!! Great performances start with WWWWW before even deciding the H. But WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN?

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