If you wanted to go somewhere, and you didn’t know how to get there, you wouldn’t look up directions once you arrived, right?
You’d look up the directions before you left, check that the route looked correct, and then set out. Along the way, you’d be aware of obstacles and potential problems. You’d assess those as you came upon them, adjusting as necessary.
If there was a catastrophic problem, you might have to change your course.
Looking at it this way, getting from point A to point B is comprised of many small incremental steps, each one a decision and intention, in order to get you to your destination.
What if the ‘High Note’ is the destination?
We can apply this same manner of thinking to our singing, in order to get better ‘high note’ response.
Knowing our destination is first. Once we know that, we can plan our route through the music that we’re singing.
We’ll navigate where to take our breaths, where vocal tension may occur, and how we’ll plan to arrive at the ‘high note’ effectively.
Along the way we’ll take notice of whether or not our vowels are in alignment, suitable for good ‘high note’ response. We’ll assess our engagement, and whether or not it's remaining dynamic enough to allow for increased engagement as we come to the higher parts of our phrases and ultimately the ‘high note’.
If we run into trouble, we can detect it before we get to our destination, and make adjustments in order to be able to sing effectively.
If we have a cold, but we just had to perform that day, we may have to adjust our melody or the key of the song so that the ‘high note’ isn't’ objectively in the upper register of our voice or even the high point of the phrase. It may be something entirely different.
Most of all, we’re not going to ‘hit’ the ‘high note’. Because we’re singers, not boxers, we sing notes and phrases of which the top-most note is but one of many.
If we change our practice, and change our thinking, the ‘high note’ is just a note at the end of the day. One of many that we’ll sing.
RVC Members check out the podcast for practical explanations and examples of this practice.
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