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Acting in Plays, Singing/Vocal Problems
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Question
1. I have a bad habit of sing with a covered voice sometimes - how do I sing through the mask of my face instead of singing towards the back of my face (if that makes any sense). Because of this, it's hard to stay in tune because it causes me to sing under pitch at times.
2. I tend to use my throat to create vibrato, and this is another bad habit of mine. How can I develop a more natural sounding vibrato by using airflow?
3. I have a vocal audition coming up. How can I improve my sight reading and my tonal memory (these are two components involved in the audition).
I am alright at sight reading (done with solfege), but I still want to improve, and as for my tonal memory, that could use some work - especially for the 4-bar phrases involved in the tonal memory component of the audition.
The audition is this Friday, so I need any help I can get.
Thanks!
Hello, Mariah –
Thank you for the questions.
I regret that your audition came up faster than I was able to respond. The problems you describe can’t be healed with last minute on-line helpful hints.
You need both professional and academic help. Sight reading skills are best acquired in the music department of a college. Check your community colleges for available classes.
You don’t mention your vocal category, i.e., soprano, mezzo soprano, contralto, etc. My job is to determine your true category and then train you accordingly. Training is all about placement. Proper placement means that the tone is never muffled or “covered”. You are constricting the position of your tone and preventing it from moving to the frontal areas of your skull. Likewise, the constriction of your tone is preventing a natural connection to the chest. Manufacturing a vibrato in your throat is contributing to your singing under pitch.
My job is to balance your entire range. That happens with a reliable vocal workout that includes a complex series of scales. The exercises will brighten up your tone and increase your vocal agility. You will also learn that the sensation of the vibrato is not confined to just one area.
It all points to one thing: you need better training. Improving your technique goes hand-in-hand with whatever you are performing. Auditions are about demonstrating technique and musicianship through your chosen material and then applying those same skills to whatever the conductor may ask you to do. Scary, yes?
When is your next audition?
I am a professional singing teacher and vocal coach in San Francisco. When you want to book an appointment, contact me through Craig's List. This week’s connection is: http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/lss/1646265517.html
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Seán Martinfield
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Answers by Expert:
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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