Rock: Practice

What Practical Preparation Did I Do

I looked through a lot of my own playlists for this brief, as the aim was to perform a solo audition piece, so I wanted to select a song I already knew well. I also sourced lyrics as well as a backing track for my performance. 

What Musical Preparation Did I Do

I picked the song William It Was Really Nothing by the Smiths, which really showed off my lower vocal range, which ultimately needed warming up before my rehearsals/performance as I often can't reach as low in my range without warming up. 

How Did My Band Develop The Song

I changed a few of the lines of the songs just slightly, ending them on slightly higher notes whilst keeping within the key. I did this as some of the notes where very hard to transition between in such sections, so to ensure I sounded my best, I changed a few notes to fit my range better. Other than this the song was pretty much the same, especially structure wise, as I had to perform with a backing track of the original song.

What Role Did I Take In The Band

I performed this task alone, so every part of the task fell on my shoulders, from selecting a song within the rock genre for the audition, to sourcing the backing track, to recording the song and rehearsing my performance. 

What Kind Of Performance Was This?

My goal here was to create an audition video, with just my vocals accompanied by a backing track. 

What Were The Stylistic Traits For My Other Band Members?

I was the only musician for this brief, and my vocals in this song were very emotive, with low and deep vocals being common throughout most of the song, and some sections rising to my head voice. The lyrics of the song are also very melancholy, a common theme throughout the discography of the Smiths. As far as the backing track goes, the guitar was very jangly, with lots of chorus and reverb and a very upbeat rhythm, contrasting the melancholy ton of the vocals. 

How Did We Decide Our Aims And Objectives

My first goal was to select a song, ensuring the song was already familiar to me so that I wouldn't have to learn a completely new song. As soon as my song was decided, I focused on rehearsing, ensuring the vocal parts were tight before recording my audition.

Two Examples Of How I Listened To The Opinions Of Others

I consulted some of my classmates/friends on my performance of the piece before I officially recorded the audition, which was the reason I added some of the changes in the notes, as my friends agreed that some sections were too low for my voice. I also had my friends weigh in on my choice of song, as I was considering performing a heavier song, but I ended up picking the song by the Smiths, which was aided by the opinions of my classmates/friends.

How Was The Order Of The Arrangement Decided?

I kept to the original structure of the song, as I had to perform solo with a backing track and the backing track I used was identical to the original song. 

Videos of Rehearsal