Lloyd Webber Rice
How To Find The True Rhythm And Pulse Of A Song
You don’t have to sing louder or higher to make the music swing – it’s all in the beat. Here’s a story of a coaching session I gave in Stockholm recently where I used the Rhythm and Pulse exercise to help a singer give a much cooler, stronger performance.
During a musical theatre class, one singer arrived with the piece “What’s the Buzz” from Jesus Christ Superstar, the Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice musical. He was performing it well, but his whole body was involved with the (very fast) pulse inherent in the song. He was bouncing with every eighth note and was displaying a highly tensioned body which was detracting from his performance, both vocally and as an actor.
In the song, the ensemble sings “what’s the buzz, tell me what’s a happenin’” repeatedly, with high energy. The singer then has to cut them off, stop their chant and calm them down very quickly. He starts with three quarter notes (crotchets) beginning on a high F, which should silence them immediately. Because he was using the same frenetic pulse as the ensemble, his entry was having little impact, and the feel of his performance was not strong enough. Rather than getting him to sing stronger or higher, I took him through the following exercise for finding a different pulse.
1. This involves using your body, so standing is best. Sing two or three phrases of an up-tempo piece, like “What’s the Buzz”. Find the fast energy of the piece and move to it, using your foot, leg, body or clicking your fingers. “What’s the Buzz” contains four quarter notes in each bar, but for now I’d like you to indicate the eighth notes (quavers). So for example your foot taps on the beat and your fingers click on the offbeat. The important thing is to have some part of your body moving on every eighth note.
2. Now we’re going to change the pulse while keeping the “speed” the same. Begin to indicate only the quarter notes – you are now moving in “half time”. Keep the energy high, but move only on the quarter notes. Again, you can either move your body to each quarter note, or divide the quarter notes between foot and hand. The speed of the piece stays the same, but the pulse has now changed to a less frantic one.
3. Now begin to show only the half notes (minims). Once again, maintain the speed of the piece, keeping the energy high. Now you are only marking two pulses per measure instead of the four or eight previously. The speed of the piece has stayed the same, but the feel is now different, with a bigger scope, somehow funkier.
Continue with this exercise, by indicating only one pulse per measure, or even extending to one pulse per two measures.
In the case of the singer in the masterclass, the use of a different pulse was electrifying. Using the different, slow pulse (the halfnote or minim beat) he was able to differentiate himself from the ensemble (who were using the eighth note or quaver beat), and stop their singing in its tracks. This easily marked out his character (Jesus) as a man to be listened to, who did not march to the beat of the people around him. By following this exercise, the singer was able to convey that effortlessly.
I have used this exercise in many different genres of music, including opera arias (O Zittre Nicht, Questa O Quella), German lieder (Gretchen am Spinnrade), music by contemporary singers such as Duffy or Christina Aguilera, and of course musical theatre pieces from West Side Story to Spring Awakening. Try it for yourself!
About the Author
Jeremy Fisher trains singers and performers to find and maintain their best. He’s the author of Successful Singing Auditions, and creator of two sellout training DVDs (featured on the BBC and broadcast to an estimated 44,000,000 people). Sign up for Jeremy’s free newsletter containing original interviews, pre-release offers and receive your BONUS free copy of “86 things you never hear a singer say” at http://www.vocalprocess.co.uk
Andrew Lloyd Webber & Tim Rice – I Don’t Know How To Love Him
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Andrew Lloyd Webber $140.19 Andrew Lloyd Webber (born 22 March 1948) is an English composer of musical theatre, the elder son of organist William Lloyd Webber and brother of the cellist Julian Lloyd Webber. Lloyd Webber started composing at the age of six, and published his first piece at the age of nine. Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success, with several musicals that have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of variations, two film scores, and a Latin Requiem Mass. He has also gained a number of honours, including a knighthood in 1992, followed by a peerage from the British Government for services to Music, seven Tony Awards (and 40 nominations), three Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, seven Olivier Awards, a Golden Globe, and the Kennedy Center Honors in 2006. Author: Miller, Frederic P./ Vandome, Agnes F./ McBrewster, John Binding Type: Paperback Number of Pages: 206 Publication Date: 2009/11/24 Language: English Dimensions: 6.00 x 9.00 x 0.47 inches |
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