Voice and Performance

First of all, it has been way too long since I've written anything on this blog. It's as if I stopped blogging as soon as I let everyone know I had a blog! Agh.

So, about my life.

I started taking a voice class this semester. I'm an English major. I don't really see singing anywhere in my future, but I love to sing. According to my parents, I could sing before I could talk. I started doing musical theatre (just community stuff, nothing major) when I was three, and I've loved it ever since. Even though I haven't been in a musical in probably eight years, I still have a passion for the arts. So, with this level of defense, I decided to take a voice class.

On my first day my professor, Dr. Banks, tested our ranges, and he was surprised to learn that I've always considered myself an alto. If you've ever heard me talk, you would think that too.

He said, "You have a beautiful headvoice. You must always sing soprano."

"Not at all," I answered in my man's voice. "I'm an alto."

"You just sang a high F. You're a soprano." And just like that, my identity was shattered. Okay, that might be a bit over-dramatic, but I am over-dramatic. It might be a good thing, actually. Being a soprano will allow me to sing a wider variety of songs.

I have to pick one classical song to perform in class, and I am learning that I don't really like classical music. I would much rather get up there and sing some Saving Jane or Alanah Myles, but that's not going to happen. Nope, I have to sing opera. Not just any opera, no, a song from a French opera. I don't speak French--I don't even like French--but I'm singing French. I'll stop complaining, though. The song, Plaisir d'Amour, is actually really pretty, and it will be a great learning experience. I just wish I understood the lyrics.

Dr. Banks also told us to find a singer who we thought might have the same voice types as us and who we could "look up to" or something like that. This assignment left me totally confused. You see, there are a lot of female vocalists I wish I could sing like (and in the case of Freddy Mercury, there is also one male vocalist I wish I could sound like). As for whether or not we have the same voice type, I have no idea. I don't know what my voice type is. This is my first professional lesson.

So, for funzies, I have attached the names and links of singers I admire, leaving out the better known singers like Aretha Franklin and Judy Garland. (If you don't know who those two are, you're not my friend. Stop reading my blog!) Here we go:

Sara Ramirez
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TIVnq2kkjY&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMwb3wG2fC8&feature=related

Kate Voegele
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v22NMAG1k18

Marti Dodson
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggj1re60d2I

Kerry Ellis
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVBR-SC3HDU&feature=related

Ruthie Henshall
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyscZQmRc6w

Ethel Merman
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s62MrU8mHx4

Idina Menzel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3g4ekwTd6Ig

There you have it! Please enjoy and feel free to comment. Maybe you can help me decide which singer I should pick? Who knows. I'm going to go do something productive now, like read for my creative writing class. (I'm writing a short story! I might post it.)

Tootles,

Kayla Elise