jazzygirlsings
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I Love You All, But...PLEASE DON'T FORGET THE AUDITION SONG THREAD THAT IS STICKIED TO THE TOP OF THIS FORUM!!!
There are 30 pages of helpful information and suggestions! These, "What Should I Sing?" threads are getting kinda out of hand...
*steps off soap box*
*Smiles  *
*Goes Back to Loving Everyone*...
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Kaaatrina
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Yeah, I agree that the stickied Audition Song thread is kind of dead nowadays...
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bwaybrunette21
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Well personally, it's just a lot easier for me to post a new topic then keep clicking thirty times. It also depends on the musical because that topic lists a good amount of songs just not for a specific role.
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jazzygirlsings
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^Lazy pants! 
Maybe we could sticky different threads like:
"Songs for Mezzos"
"Songs for Sopranos"
"Songs for Altos"
"Songs for Tenors"
"Songs for Baritones"
"Songs for Basses"
Or, even simpler:
"Songs for Females"
"Songs for Males"
I'm just getting sick of everyone repeating themselves...
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bwaybrunette21
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hah I am.
Well thats just basically what the audition song thread has. For me it's easier to just make smaller topics because then people can see your personal situation. I don't know, it's just my preference, you don't have to agree at all.
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jazzygirlsings
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But people who are doing the same types of shows are all asking the same questions...
It's not that anyone else is that different from everyone else. In most cases, it's like reading a personal ad...and it's usually the same story...
"Hi...my name is so-and-so and I'm 15 and I need a song for South Pacific. I'm 5'0 tall and I'm a dancer. My range is from a low X to a high Q...I'm a SWF, love cats, no smokers please..." LOL! Well, I got carried away, but you know the drill...The point is that we don't know you IRL, so we can't really make good assessments as to what you can sing because we really don't know you...
These questions are easily answered by many books (which MaryMag and others have posted)...I think you all would learn a bit more if you did some of the research yourself. It's so much more rewarding. And you know yourself better than anyone! Also, a good thing to do is to ask knowledgeable people like teachers or friends...
Then ask questions when you've found possible songs...Or if something is/isn't working with a song...
I mean, there's not pages and pages of suggestions for nothing...Though I confess to rarely "spoon-feeding" anyone answers! LOL!
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bwaybrunette21
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You are right, but I guess it just helps to have someone say "absoulutely not" or "that's the perfect audition song" when you decide. I post things like: 42nd street auditions or A Funny Thing...Forum auditions but I usually come up with audition songs but just ask for approvals, to be sure of myself.
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jazzygirlsings
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You should have more confidence in your abilities!
And, if not, I would honestly ask people who know me best...
I think the major things to remember when picking a song are:
1.) If you can't sing it, don't...LOL!
2.) Be familiar with the style of the show you are auditioning for. You would not use "Cabaret" for an audition for Sarah Brown in "Guys and Dolls"...
3.) Make sure to sing a song that you like! If you sing something you're not crazy about, it shows...
4.) Make sure that the music is easy for any pianist to sight-read...(Sondheim/Guettel/JRB are often DISASTERS in audition situations)
There are more, but I think these are the most important...
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pinkstiletto510
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| jazzygirlsings wrote: | You should have more confidence in your abilities!
And, if not, I would honestly ask people who know me best...
I think the major things to remember when picking a song are:
1.) If you can't sing it, don't...LOL!
2.) Be familiar with the style of the show you are auditioning for. You would not use "Cabaret" for an audition for Sarah Brown in "Guys and Dolls"...
3.) Make sure to sing a song that you like! If you sing something you're not crazy about, it shows...
4.) Make sure that the music is easy for any pianist to sight-read...(Sondheim/Guettel/JRB are often DISASTERS in audition situations)
There are more, but I think these are the most important... |
those are my general rules........except I usually dont pay attention to the last one because I just keep going if the accompanist isnt with me (happens a lot when I use Vanilla Ice Cream)
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jazzygirlsings
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Then you may have to pick an easier uptempo or explain the end a bit more to the pianist...
Practice what you say to the pianist...
For instance, set the tempo by singing it a bit and be sure to point out ritards, tenutos, fermatas, breaks, etc...
CIRCLE ANY OF THE THINGS LISTED ABOVE IN YOUR PIANO ACCOMPANIMENT!
It helps a tremendous deal!
A struggling pianist DOES affect your performance...Unless, of course, you KNOW they are crap to begin with, but even THEN you should try to have a foolproof song...
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pinkstiletto510
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I always talk over the piece with them before, I also have a special "accompanist" copy that I use of that piece specifically because it has finger markings and certain notes cut out to make it more simple (a pianist that I worked with for a competition made the markings) I also usually tell them to skip all the ending chords and end it right after I come back down from the B
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jazzygirlsings
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Then perhaps you need a more foolproof song...
Strangely enough, a lot of pianists love it when they have chord charts at the top of the musical pieces because they can "fudge" their way through it...
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shadowdancer
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I think it is fine if people need help finding a song for a specific show. the list at the top of the page is a bit long, and although it has a lot of songs, a lot of them are redundant. Atleast this way you can get help on one focus for one character or show. You can fidn o9ut if something worked for someone or not before.
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jazzygirlsings
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^A lot of these threads are redundant...
I would rather look at a list of songs in one place that may have a couple of repeats in it than look at a bunch of people asking for song help for the same songs for a bunch of the same shows or shows that are very close in type.
All I ask is that if you see a thread for a Sondheim show, for instance, look at that thread for ideas...or if you see a thread for a R&H show and you are auditioning for a L&L show, take a look there...
Partly, I really think it's that each person thinks their audition is so much more important than anyone else's and partly, I think it's that people just don't listen to each other's suggestions, which gets kind of frustrating for those of us who like to help and feel like we're repeating ourselves a lot...(HOLY RUN-ON SENTENCE, BATMAN! LOL!)
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MsDivaKate
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| jazzygirlsings wrote: | Then perhaps you need a more foolproof song...
Strangely enough, a lot of pianists love it when they have chord charts at the top of the musical pieces because they can "fudge" their way through it... |
I agree completely. As both a performer and a pianist I want to kill anyone who walks in to an audition and hands me Sondheim or Jason Robert Brown especially. Both are insanely difficult composers to sight read for any accompanist and I sight read well! Lucky for a lot of people due to my own experience I actually know for the most part all of the accompaniments to Songs For A New World
However accompanists do reserve the right to refuse to sight read a piece that is too difficult and some will. Others will be nice and do exactly what jazzygirl mentioned and just read it as though it were a fake sheet...playing the chords and then improvising on the melody. The accompanist is there to assist you, so treat them with kindness or they can be just a little bit evil to you. 
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jazzygirlsings
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| MsDivaKate wrote: |
However accompanists do reserve the right to refuse to sight read a piece that is too difficult and some will. Others will be nice and do exactly what jazzygirl mentioned and just read it as though it were a fake sheet...playing the chords and then improvising on the melody. The accompanist is there to assist you, so treat them with kindness or they can be just a little bit evil to you. |
They do reserve the right to refuse to sight read a piece, but the problem is that in most cases, they have been hired by the producers to play the audition (or MD the show in a lot of cases!) and they don't want to admit in front of their employers that they can't play something.
Songs with difficulty like that put them in a really bad position and that's the last thing you want to do to a pianist, as they are assisting you in your audition. In a sense, you are a team for the duration of your audition!
And the last line of what MsDivaKate said is SO TRUE! They can be evil if you give them trouble! SO BE NICE! 
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MaryMag
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| jazzygirlsings wrote: |
Partly, I really think it's that each person thinks their audition is so much more important than anyone else's and partly, I think it's that people just don't listen to each other's suggestions, which gets kind of frustrating for those of us who like to help and feel like we're repeating ourselves a lot..
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I feel that way as well. You can learn a lot from reading the pre-existing threads. If you can read the other threads and take nothing from them, then you won't learn much from us, either.
that said... may i plug my 'so you want help with an audition?' thread? i think i'll go over there now and put in some basic tips on song selection.
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jazzygirlsings
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| MaryMag wrote: | | jazzygirlsings wrote: |
Partly, I really think it's that each person thinks their audition is so much more important than anyone else's and partly, I think it's that people just don't listen to each other's suggestions, which gets kind of frustrating for those of us who like to help and feel like we're repeating ourselves a lot..
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I feel that way as well. You can learn a lot from reading the pre-existing threads. If you can read the other threads and take nothing from them, then you won't learn much from us, either.
that said... may i plug my 'so you want help with an audition?' thread? i think i'll go over there now and put in some basic tips on song selection. |
I missed you!
Hope all is going well!
And yes, that would be a splendid idea!
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