Purple Elephants

Vocally, this has been a very good day.  A very good day indeed.

Everything just went right.  I was having extreme difficulty with fast scales.  That changed today.  Don't misunderstand; they're still a challenge, but one that I can see being conquered sooner than later.

Dr. Singalot explained how I can't think about every note; I'm just supposed to do it.  Like many things he tells me, I grasped the concept immediately, but the application came a bit later.  It is hard not to think about it.

Don't think about a purple elephant.

See?  It's hard not to think about something when all you can think about is how you're not supposed to be thinking about it.  At one point, I was blinking with every note of the scale, which resulted in Dr. Singalot being seized with convulsive laughter.  I was thinking about every single step, and you can only sing as fast as you think.

I don't think this is true for piano.  I've heard it said, but unless thinking in glissando-type scales count, then I don't believe it.

I am really surprised at how far I've come vocally.  I didn't think I would make progress like this.  I know it will slow down eventually, but I'm enjoying it for now.   A few months ago, a simple, slow scale was a near impossibility, today, I can do one without ever despairing of my life.  What's surprised me the most is my break.  It has evened out much faster than I ever hoped.  At first, it didn't seem like the work was doing anything.  It is now.

Choir workshop is in a week.  I am excited, but slightly hesitant.  Will I be able to find my choir voice again?  And if/when I do, will my break still be even?  I have not had a chance to try my choir voice.  Also, and I need to ask Dr. Singalot about this, what part in the music should I try for?  I go for the hardest part, which is usually 2nd soprano.  I need to ask what would be best for my personal improvement.  My guess is that he tells me to pick parts that challenge my break.

I wish Dr. Singalot could come and work with our choir.  Not replace our choir director; that's not what I'm saying.  I'm saying that I wish he could come every now and then and work on technique.  While our choir director is great, no mistake about it, there are some things that she cannot communicate as well as an outsider can.  For instance, she has talked about breathing, and what should happen, but she only went half-way, and that half-way did not do as much as it could have for my breathing. 

Dr. Singalot loaned me a fantastic book filled with scores of interviews with extremely famous singers.  It is fascinating.  What intrigues me the most is the difference in the answers.  Let's take a few of the questions the interviewer almost always asked. 

What do you do the day of the performance?  Many said that they treat it like an ordinary day, and only warm up a little, maybe 10 minutes, if any.   Some said that they warm up for an hour or more.

Do you use the lips in forming vowels?  The almost universal answer was no. 

Do you vocalize every day?  Most of the time, the answer was yes.  In one case, a tenor went mountain climbing for two months and didn't sing at all.  I can't imagine.  He said it took less than a week to bounce back.  Wow.

The most interesting thing, though, was the initial training the singers received.  This varied greatly.  One singer started at 12, and had vocal training twice a day!  One mezzo had vocal training from the age of 5, if I'm not mistaken.  She was taught how to breathe correctly even at that age.  One tenor didn't receive any formal training until he was in the middle of his career and got into trouble vocally.   Another singer was initially not allowed to sing in the school choir, because her voice was too loud.  I can't imagine.  The backgrounds of these singers are so varied.  Most spoke several languages, and nearly all of the played the piano.  I am thoroughly enjoying the book.

Don't think about a purple elephant.