Acting in Plays, Singing/What to do with my voice?

Advertisement

Expert: - 6/2/2008


Question
I am a Bass/Baritone with a range from E3-G5 (chest range) located in Provo, UT. I have had minimal formal training, and not much experience in the performing arts, but I've been gradually working on my voice to be able to sing Broadway songs I love. I also like to sing Michael Buble songs, and have gotten to be quite good at singing his stuff too.

The only experience I have in the performing arts is 3 years in a musical performance troupe (as lead male performer), and the lead in "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" my Junior year of high school. I am 21, and have had one full year of collegiate vocal coaching (classical) from Brigham Young University. I have a friend who has signed on with a label just recently and I asked him if he could refer me to a vocal trainer who would improve my voice to be more Broadway, and he said I don't need training... Now, I am good, but I don't think I'm THAT good. I guess I do have talent, but anyway... I really think I would do best just on Broadway.

I guess I'm asking how to put my voice out there. I have a unique tone that everyone seems to say is marketable, but I have no idea where to even start! Could you tell me the different paths I could take to start getting paid for doing what I do best?

Answer
Hi, Jordan –

Thank you for all the information.  It will help me to better answer your basic question.

No matter how well-equipped your friends think you are or how much worthwhile training you may have had – YOU must first be able to describe the business in which you hope to succeed.

Success in the Performing Arts is a total crap shoot.  On the street known as Broadway and in the world of the Broadway Musical – Friday's paycheck is at the bottom of the totem.  And getting one cannot happen until you have earned – or some anxious Producer has purchased for you – the Actors Equity Card.  Until then, you will be maintaining your day job while building your resumé of performance credits in local productions that cannot even offer you bus fare.

It starts with the Audition.  It ends with the Audition.  First, there has to be an audition – as in, for a specific show or a general audition held by a specific company in Provo or anywhere else you are willing to go.

What are you going to sing?  What songs are in your portfolio?  How much of the bass-baritone repertoire do you know?  How ready are you to dance for the Choreographer?

How many auditions per month are available in Provo, UT?  Of those opportunities since the beginning of this year, how many slots were available for bass-baritones?  In the next two months, how many such roles will become available?  Would the statistics look better if you expanded the radius around Provo about twenty-five miles?  In those outer-lying areas and since January – what auditions did you miss?  How will you keep track of what's going on between now and the end of summer or the end of the year?

How long do plan on staying in Provo?

Answering those questions will keep you busy for a while.  They are the "paths" of your next step.

No matter where it happens, come the next opportunity to display your musical skills, you will want to be better prepared than all the other bass-baritones standing in line behind you.

I am a professional singing teacher and vocal coach in San Francisco.  When you are in the Bay Area, contact me through Craig's List – http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/lss/703346643.html

Take a look at my You Tubes:
Lorena Feijóo - A Look at "Giselle" with Seán Martinfield
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33-a6Oa-0j4

SAMSON & DELILAH – Meet Seán Martinfield
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Sean+Martinfield&search=Search

I am also the fine arts critc for the San Francisco Sentinel.  Below are some links to recent articles and reviews:
DAS RHEINGOLD – Opens Summer Season 2008 at San Francisco Opera
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=13525

JAMES JUDD’S 7 SINS – Devilish Hilarity At the Exit Theatre Until June 21st
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=13478

SAN FRANCISCO OPERA – Summer Season Opens Tuesday, June 3rd
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=13396

BACH'S MASS IN B MINOR, Saturday, May 31st – At Mission Dolores Basilica
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=13335

THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: PRINCE CASPIAN – Just say “NO!”
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=13041

SAN FRANCISCO PHILANTHROPISTS ROCK THE FOUR SEASONS FOR RAPHAEL HOUSE FUNDRAISING GALA
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=12672

IT’S MURDER, MARY! – A Killer World Premiere at The New Conservatory Theatre
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=13133

ERIK BATZ – A Conversation With “The Scarecrow” At The Mountain Play
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=12892

SAN FRANCISCO OPERA SCHEDULES AUDITIONS FOR THE BONESETTER’S DAUGHTER
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=12982

2820 SCOTT STREET – Spectacular 2008 San Francisco Decorator Showcase
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=12974

BLACK & WHITE BALL, 2008 – At Davies Symphony Hall, May 31st
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=12808

SAN FRANCISCO BALLET’S 2009 SEASON – Includes World Premiere of All-New Swan Lake by Helgi Tomasson
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=12715

A CONVERSATION WITH MAESTRO HELMUTH RILLING
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=12494

SAN FRANCISCO CONCERT CHORALE PRESENTS – THE BACH EXPERIENCE
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=12305

ANTIQUE ROADSTERS RACE FROM NOB HILL – THE 2008 SAN FRANCISCO MILLE
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=12210

LEAVE HER TO HEAVEN – Restored Film Noir Classic at SF International Film Festival
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=12196

HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL – At the Orpheum, San Francisco
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=11906

CHERYL BURKE DANCE – Dancing with Gavin and Jennifer
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=11873

DALE CHIHULY – Lighting-Up At The de Young
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=11432

SAN FRANCISCO SYMPHONY – 14th Season with Michael Tilson Thomas
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=11074

MELISSA MANCHESTER – A Conversation with Seán Martinfield
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=10419

ANNIE LEIBOVITZ – On her show at the Legion of Honor
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=10764

LORENA FEIJÓO – A Conversation with Seán Martinfield
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/index.php?s=Lorena

SWEENEY TODD – PRIME CUTS FROM DIRECTOR TIM BURTON
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=8434

ANITA COCKTAIL and LEANNE BORGHESI – A 3-Way Dialogue
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=8007

NORMA SHEARER in “MARIE ANTOINETTE” – At the Legion of Honor
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=8783

JENNIFER SIEBEL – A Conversation with Seán Martinfield
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=6361

Best regards,
Seán Martinfield

Acting in Plays, Singing

All Answers

Answers by Expert:

Ask Experts

Volunteer

Sean Martinfield

Expertise

I am a professional vocal coach in San Francisco. In addition to answers from a previous web site (Askme.com - where my "tag" was "VocalCoach") I have published over 2000 responses related to vocal training - particularly as it relates to Musical Theatre and Opera. I have 24 years of experience as Personal Trainer to singers and actors in the San Francisco Bay Area. I sang professionally for 20 years and know what it means to live the life of a musician. I can determine your voice category, i.e., Tenor, Baritone, Bass, Soprano, Mezzo-Soprano, Alto, Alto Belter, etc., and how to broaden and strengthen your range. Need an audition song for a Broadway Musical? I will give you suggestions that are appropriate to your vocal category and to requirements specified in the audition notice. I have also created a vocal methodology, "The Belter`s Method". It will enable those in Musical Theatre to practice more efficiently because it focuses on the demands of professional performers as well as to those auditioning for school and community productions, and as University and Conservatory performing arts majors. If what you want is a better voice and more control over your career moves and choices, contact me. Also, as the Editor of SanFranciscoSentinel.com, it is my privilege to review productions at the San Francisco Opera, Ballet and Symphony, as well as Broadway National Tours booked into San Francisco's Orpheum, Golden Gate and Curran Theatres. I also review works by A.C.T (the American Conservatory Theatre) and Magic Theatre. I cover select films, tributes and retrospects, and various international film festivals – particulary those booked into The City's opulent Castro Theatre – including the LGBT Frameline Festival, International Film Festival, Silent Film Festival, Jewish Film Festival, etc. For private vocal instruction, I can be contacted through SanFranciscoSentinel.com. Look under: Seán Martinfield, Sentinel Editor and Publisher.

Experience

As a vocal coach, I work primarily with singers and actors throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. My students range from absolute beginners to working professionals, from pre-schoolers to senior citizens. The vast majority of my clients come to me through recommendation. I know how to identify any singer's vocal category, i.e., soprano, tenor, alto, baritone, etc. I know how to muscle-up every singer's vocal range and to expand it beyond conventional definitions. I have developed a vocal methodology for those who want to know how to belt, THE BELTER'S METHOD. As a singer who spent half of his career doing Bel Canto, I know that classical or Italian methodologies do not work in Standard American music. Bel Canto cannot be "adapted" to meet the needs of contemporary American music, including the demands of the Musical Theatre. There are a number of major components to my work as a vocal coach. The first is to identify the client's vocal category and to strengthen and maximize the vocal range accordingly. Then it's about teaching a reliable vocal workout that will enable the client to gain better control of their musicianship. That includes scale work to expand the vocal range and to improve placement, breath control, and diction. Then we work on material for the audition portfolio, the immediate job or assignment, a recording session, etc. My task to is to better equip singers and actors who are hoping to or relying upon their performance skills and vocal endurance to maintain a career in the Performing Arts. My clients regularly appear in cabarets and musical productions throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Some have worked in New York and gone on National Tours. For more information, Contact me at: Broadwaybelters@yahoo.com

Education/Credentials
San Francisco State University – BA in Theatre Arts; graduate work in Theatre, Philosophy, and Comparative Reiligion. Pacific School of Religion, Berkeley – Graduate work in Ethics

©2012 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company. All rights reserved.