Avery Lemon – Suitcases in the Hall
Initial Observations:
Initially,
Avery’s song is very well memorized. She has implemented minimalistic but effective gestures and knows all her notes and rhythms. Her transition to the higher notes within her phrases seems forced rather than smooth and legato. The clarity within the voice is beautiful. Avery has not yet achieved a deep enough emotional attachment to the song to produce a believable character.
Rehearsal Session:
During
rehearsal Avery was told to watch the ‘L’s on certain phrases throughout her song which she used right away. This suggestion greatly improved her diction. Mrs. McMath also worked with Avery on singing through each phrase with ease. Once this suggestion was mastered it made the song easier to listen and evidently improved Avery’s confidence while singing. The final aspect the Mrs. McMath worked on with Avery was developing more volume and intensity on the line “So what happens now?” which Avery repeats multiple times during a particular section of the piece. When Avery used this suggestion the song was more enchanting, powerful, and touching.
Final Performance:
On
Avery’s performance day she implemented all of the aspects that were touched on in her master class with Mrs. McMath. Her performance was seamless. Each and every part of the song was flawlessly sung. Her vocal intensity was fantastic. Her diction was amazing, especially on the end of her phrases. One of the main things that improved from her master class to her final performance was the intense emotion that she brought to her song. I also think that the suitcase she brought in as a prop greatly improved the intensity of her performance. Suggestions:
I think
that Avery did the best that she could on all aspects of her performance which made for a
brilliant performance so I have only one suggestion for her. I wish that she would have sung through the high notes in her phrases instead of reaching for them.
Marley Sullivan – Good Morning Baltimore
Initial Observations:
Initially, Marley appears to be well memorized. She has all her notes and rhythms down. The
“Oh, oh, oh” at the very beginning of the song sounds very ‘attacking’. This song requires a great amount of energy and life which is something Marley has already mastered. She is always in character; constantly smiling. Marley has not included any large, profound gestures which she may want to add to give even more energy to the piece.
Rehearsal Session:
During the master class Mrs. McMath worked with Marley on making the beginning lyrics
“Oh, oh, oh” sound less ‘attacking’ by suggesting Marley change her vowel shape. This suggestion completely changed the sound of this part of the song. This suggestion was very effective and made Marley’s performance all the better. Mrs. McMath also worked with
Marley to develop her diction and suggested that she dance during the interlude to get more into character.
Final Performance:
Marley’s final performance was very good. It was evident that her performance had been well rehearsed and thought out. Marley was constantly ‘on’ and never broke character. In this performance she used more gestures and movement which added to the energy necessary to perform this song. She also utilized Mrs. McMath’s suggestion to change her vowel shape on the beginning lyric of the piece. Marley completely took on the role of the character in the song and was believable.
Suggestions:
One suggestion I would give to Marley based on her performance is to continue to practice changing her vowel shape on that first set of lyrics. Another suggestion I would give to
Marley on this particular performance is to reduce the amount of pacing she does during
the song as it was distracting at times. The final suggestion I would give to Marley is to continue to give the same energy that she gave in this song to each and every performance that she does.
Abby Peach - There are Worse Things I Could