Practicing: Take It Easy

We've all had those days...even after warming up, the voice just doesn't feel great. Can't find the groove. Or you're sick, but you still want to get some things done! Here's a list (in random order) of ways you can practice without taxing your voice:


LYRICS

• Write out the lyrics on a notecard. Carry in your pocket to look at during downtime, on the train, waiting at the doctor's office. Tear up and repeat. 
• Email the lyrics to yourself. The act of typing will enter the info in your brain another way, and you'll always have them with you for a day when you don't have your music with you. Or your notecard. 
• If you're working in another language, translate the lyrics word for word. If you're working in your native language, look up and define any words you don't know or recognize. 
• Write out the words with the translation below it if you're working with another language. 

MUSICAL PRACTICE

• "Mark" through the music. Sing lightly or down an octave, but not full-out. 
• Play the melody on the piano without singing along. Maybe you'll find a note you've been missing. 
• Write out the rhythm in a straight line on a notecard or sheet of paper. Write the lyrics beneath the rhythm. 
• Listen to a recording. Listen to a recording by a different singer. Compare and contrast.
• Speak in rhythm along with the recording. 
• Speak in rhythm with a metronome. Start slowly, way below tempo, and increase tempo with each repetition. 
• Divide the song into 6-10 parts and number them. Speak in rhythm starting with the end and adding a new section after each 5 repetitions. (Section 10, then 9 & 10, then 8, 9, 10, etc.) Soon you'll know the end of the song better than the beginning, the opposite of how we usually approach a song.
• Speak through the score looking at Dynamics. Where do I sing p? Where do I crescendo? Where do I sing f? Highlight them in different colors. 
• Lip-Sync the song, giving a realistic performance. Studies show you can activate your brain this way!

SONG ANALYSIS

• Research the show. Who is the composer? What is the period? What might this tell us about the piece? What is the plot? How is my character a part of the plot?
• Answer questions about your Character and Situation: Who Am I? What happened right before this song?
• Answer questions about your Other (the person you're singing to): Who is he/she? What is our relationship? What is our history?
• Answer questions about your Problem: What is my state of discombobulation/discomfort? Why is it so serious that I must take action to resolve it?
• Answer questions about your Objective: What ACTION do you want your Other to take? (Kiss me, run away, forgive me, etc.) 
• Speak the lyrics as a monologue. Not in rhythm, but how you'd say them to a real person.