Acting in Plays, Singing/audition songs

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Expert: - 8/16/2008


Question
Hi! I am 16 years old and I go to a school that has a magnet program for performing arts. As you can imagine, we have auditions all the time. I have the hardest time finding audition songs within my range. I can belt from an A below middle C to an A above middle C, and most songs go higher than that. Can you give me some suggestions on upbeat musical theater songs that I can use for auditions? This years musicals are going to ones like Fame and Footloose - so music that sounds a little bit like music from those shows would be the best. Thank you!

Answer
Hello, Samantha –

Thank you for the question.

Let me help you, OK?  Your job as a potential cast member of any Broadway musical – whether in New York City or at any school or community playhouse – is to know your vocal category and to develop the standard and expected range within that category, i.e., at least a 2-octave span.  My job as a professional vocal coach is to show you how.  No matter whether it's period light rock musicals such as FAME and FOOTLOOSE, or original works where no one knows the composer's sound or style, or even another revival of SOUTH PACIFIC – you must first know your true vocal category and expand your range way beyond its current limits of an octave and a minor third.

I want you to get this series of anthologies:

Singer's Musical Theatre Anthology, Alto, Alto Belter, Mezzo Soprano
Volume 1
Volume 2
Volume 3

Assuming you may be a mezzo-soprano "with a belt", this series contains a wide array of material for characters that are in this category.  Every song is in the same key as the original score.  For more current rock or light rock shows such as AÏDA, RENT, BAT BOY, etc. – that may contain 16-measures of material you can handle for this up-coming audition – go to the "Vocal Selections" of that show or try to find an on-line (transposable) digital download of the single song.

Many rock-type musical auditions are now asking for a rock song NOT from a Broadway show.  Does this audition notice specify you must sing from a show?  If not, then choose one of your favorite rock songs.

Choosing pop music is a highly subjective thing.  Only you know what works for you as a potential "pop singer".  Guaranteed, your competition is ready to show exactly that to the audition panel.

I am a professional singing teacher and vocal coach in San Francisco.  To book an appointment, contact me through Craig's List – http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/lss/800277192.html I am also the fine arts critc for SanFranciscoSentinel.com.  All my articles and interviews provide a link to my personal e-mail.

Take a look at my You Tubes:
Lorena Feijóo - A Look at "Giselle" with Seán Martinfield
SAMSON & DELILAH – Meet Seán Martinfield

Below are links to recent articles and reviews:

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Best regards,
Seán Martinfield

Acting in Plays, Singing

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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

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