Two great journal examples

Two great journal examples this week follow. They are very different, but I think everyone in the studio can learn from them and model theirs after either Beau's or Kristin's. I'd like to note that both of these journals are written by FRESHMEN...upperclassmen, you can ALL learn from their thoroughness!

Kristin's journal is very task-oriented and useful. Her lesson reflected all of the things she worked on throughout the week.

• still working on releasing the control enough to add some of the vibrancy to the notes and trying not to position the notes so far back in the throat, remembering the sound id for others not me
• trying to keep myself from showing the pulse with my body whether its hand or knees or whatever part want to keep time
• recitative got a lot easier when I stopped worrying so much about the timing of the phrases and got the tricky notes
• feeling much better slowly and will definitely be using this next lesson as a stress relief because i have so much stress this week that I just need a break
• working on the rhythm of the “then shall the lame man” phrase and remembering sing starts on the same note as the shall
• trying to make the consonants sound ridiculous
• still difficult to do everything at once but its getting easier
• working on the breath at the very end to not feel like a break but still give me time to get enough air to finish out the phrase
• again the recording shows how weak some of the consonants are when I’m not overly trying to do them
• worked on breaths being longer in some spaces, still trying to not do the catch breaths in some cases

Beau's is more narrative. I also appreciate his awareness of how alignment not only improves his singing, but his state of mind in everyday life.

Thanks to some dedication and repetition, I’m able to project and enunciate more on All Through The Night. This cold/allergy business certainly has not helped matters (I’m still a bit stuffy and congested), but my condition has definitely improved since last week, thanks to rest and allergy medicine. The only real problem I’ve had with the piece is the fact that I keep forgetting the second verse, though the trusted ‘walking and talking’ technique seems to have corrected that. As for adjusting my posture to a more ‘purposeful’ one, in choir and everyday life, I have noticed some apparent changes. In choir, I’m able to produce a better tone, as well as take in a significantly greater amount of air and use it more efficiently. Outside of music, it has subconsciously benefitted my confidence, as well as making me feel ‘taller’ and ‘bigger’ in general. I definitely think of it as a more purposeful posture, similar to a stance one might assume when playing a sport. As for the third installment in my repertory trilogy, I have admittedly had some difficulty deciding on an Italian piece; I may need some guidance with the search/decision process.