Soul: Practice

What Practical Preparation Did I Do

To prepare for the brief, I familiarised myself with some of the songs that had been suggested for use, ensuring that I had a wide range of knowledge on the genre. I didn't print any sheets this week, as before the first meeting I was unsure which song we would be performing, and also didn't know if I would be singing or not. 

What Musical Preparation Did I Do

After the first meeting, I was put as a shaker to enrich the percussion of the song, so I spent my time trying different rhythms, ultimately deciding on a simple and consistent straight rhythm. 

How Did My Band Develop The Song

We kept a lot of the song the same as the original, helping all 20+ band members coordinate accurately. We did, however, use different synth voices for instrumental parts such as the strings and harmonica, as those instruments were not readily available to us. 

What Role Did I Take In The Band

This week I took initiative, as we had too many vocalists compared to the actual vocal parts of the song, so I volunteered to be a percussionist. This involved lots of independent working to ensure my part was solidified, but I also took direction in the recording session as other students were left in charge of the recording process. 

What Kind Of Performance Was This?

This weeks performance was a studio recording. All parts were recorded separately and synced together to form a full track. 

What Were The Stylistic Traits For My Other Band Members?

How Did We Decide Our Aims And Objectives

After deciding on our song choice, we listened to the song multiple times, deciphering which instruments were needed. We then used this list of instruments to choose our parts, each picking a part that suited our previous skills. We also created a schedule for the recording process. Each person/part had a time slot for their part to be recorded. Other than that, we each split into rehearsal, rehearsing solo as well as in relevant groups.

Two Examples Of How I Listened To The Opinions Of Others

I listened to my fellow band mates in their choice of part, which lead me to choosing a percussion part instead of my usual vocal part because a lot of the other vocalists stated they were more comfortable with a vocal part. I also coordinated with a fellow percussionist, we each listened to each others ideas to ensure our parts were different to each other. 

How Was The Order Of The Arrangement Decided?

We followed the structure of the original recorded version of the song, ensuring that we used the same version each time so our parts remained consistent, but also ensuring that each member of our large band could coordinate without much fuss.