Practicing for a Performance with Distractions

         How is it possible to prepare for a performance EMOTIONALLY?  All the voice lessons, breathing practice, articulation exercises, WHATEVER, will NOT prepare a performer ENTIRELY for any performance.  The Brain is THE most powerful and essential organ in our bodies.  We tend to believe the Brain is only for THINKING but, not true; it tells your Lungs they need air, your Circulatory System to circulate blood, whatever commands you need for moving muscles or swallowing food or anything else.  It ALSO controls your emotions BUT you can learn to control, re-direct, or, at least, temper the effects of those psychological conditions.  Our minds tell us we should be nervous or frightened in front of an audience.  Our throats seize up; our legs won’t work; sometimes, we can’t remember lyrics or think to even breathe.  Therefore, you need to make a plan for PROACTIVELY dealing with your EMOTIONAL state as well as prepping your voice.  One of my favorite “preparations” is what I call “Distractions”.

         You NEED to “PRACTICE”, yes I mean PRACTICE FOR YOUR NERVES!  The bottom line is that once you begin to get VOCALLY ready to perform, you need to start PERFORMING.  Now, before you freak out, I don’t mean throw yourself up on random stages; I mean, BITE THE BULLET and practice in front of SOMEONE:  your parents; your siblings; cousins; your best friend; a couple of classmates; or ANYONE or ones.  When I teach a voice CLASS, I always have classes on “distractions”.  What this means is that I would have a student perform his or her song while the other students TRIED TO DISTRACT AND DISRUPT their performance.  The other students would do things like:  use cell phones and make certain the sound is ON; whisper loudly to each other; get up in the middle of the performance, go out, and slam the exit door; even scrunch up paper.  In other words, the other students are asked to do things that regular audience members routinely do anyway, but this way, singers get an opportunity to ready themselves for any and all circumstances that might prevent potential challenges to a performance.  Practicing in front of different small “audiences”, such as relatives or friends, also helps you to realize that singing in front of people won’t kill you or even hurt you; in fact, you might grow to actually enjoy it!

         As a performer, you need to recognize that your VOCAL performance as only a PART of your overall presentation.  As you stand in front of your audience, you will experience MANY emotions but you MUST pull yourself together enough, PRACTICE ENOUGH that you can understand that this is, not merely, for your audience but A JOB FOR YOU.  Yes, it is your JOB!  When you get in front of your audience, they want you; they TRUST you to take them on a “journey”.  They’ve spent the day at work or in traffic or with screaming kids.  When they listen to you sing, they’re trusting that you will help them forget their terrible day, remember some past memory, or be inspired to stay on a positive course toward something.  You are in a wonderfully powerful position as a singer/performer.  This should NOT be a pressure but it should help you to take your “role” as a performer more seriously, not from an emotional standpoint but from a place of responsibility.  Again, this is NOT to make you feel burdened but to present you with an opportunity to view your “job”, your singing performance from a new and unique perspective.

         As a vocal entertainer, you have a chance to CREATE, to sculpt, and to shape what you are imparting to your listeners.  They WANT you to TRIUMPH because they CAN’T deal with their own situation; THEY NEED YOU to do that!  If you’ve ever wanted to be a painter or the President or even a parent, this is your chance!  I know I’m being overly dramatic BUT I have seen this with my own eyes and my own voice.  The power you have as a singer is immense and extraordinary but only if you put yourself out there, work hard, and BE WILLING TO LOOK FOOLISH!  Believe me when I say this, there are probably people out there that will love you all the more for SHOWING THEM it is possible to stand against your fears, to persevere, and still to be able to continue.

         I realize performing can be a little intimidating but I promise you, you have succeeded at other tasks you thought impossible, and now, those activities come as naturally as breathing.  I promise, when you tried to learn to walk, you had NO prior experience to draw from; you had no strength in your untried muscles.  You fell; you stumbled and looked foolish a number of times.  However, you kept trying, you kept getting back up, and eventually, you walked.  So it must be with singing in front of an audience.  Hopefully, you won’t fall and feel absurd before those watching but EVEN IF YOU DO, you HAVE to get back up and try again, and again, and again.  IF you do, you will, not only, become a stronger performer and, probably, a better singer, but also a tougher, more secure, stalwart person, capable of MUCH more than you could have imagined.

         Try practicing songs in front of your relatives and/or friends, and see if it doesn’t help you overcome some of the “horrors” you’ve let your brain conjure up.  Honestly, if you can make yourself sing for your own parents, you can sing for ANYONE and EVERYONE.  For me, my parents have always been my most challenging, critical, BUT amazingly supportive audience.  For all the performing I’ve done throughout my life, they were the audience I still longed to please and yet, also the audience I feared most.  You may feel similarly.  However, THIS is the kind of “practice audience” you desperately need to pursue.  Draw a deep breath; take the leap! 

         For those of you who study with me, I provide a resource called “25 Things”.  This sheet allows you to spend time meditating and focusing on the GOOD things about yourself.  Again, this may sound ridiculous or, worse, pointless.  However, to the contrary, this is how you can start to counteract all the negativity that the jitters bring.  When “nerves” hit, we begin to BELIEVE all that negativity and THAT’s when resources such as “25 Things” come in handy; you need to focus on things that are REALLY true, not imagined to be.  NO ONE is perfect; NO singer or performer is ALWAYS confident or flawlessly, musically incredible; EVERYONE NEEDS ENCOURAGEMENT AND NEEDS TO KNOW THEY HAVE VALUE!  Do yourself the favor of building a positive base of true, supportive information you can then use to strengthen your own spirit and self-esteem for singing, as well as for your general life.

         Use your brain for building yourself up, for creating a better presentation, and for calming yourself down rather than allowing it to only depress or discourage you.  Just as you used wisdom by taking voice lessons, be smart and create an affirming mental foundation, from which you can then, launch many a successful venture.  Discover the excitement and joy of performing, and celebrate your abilities to master trying tasks and move forward with determination and grace.

         Thank you, as usual, for reading this blog post.  I hope it was eye opening and beneficial.  If you have any questions about my lessons or about me, please go to my website at www.SingitForward.net.   Please send me any and all questions, comments, and ideas or suggestions for future blog topics.  I greatly appreciate your patronage AND your needs.  I look forward to hearing from each of you.  Sing it Forward!