My repertoire/ Preparation for the recital

Songs for my solo set
After much consideration, I have chosen the following songs:

1. I'd Rather Be Me - from the Broadway musical Mean Girls (3:09)
2. What A Wonderful World - Louis Armstrong (2:59)
3. Colours of the Wind - Judy Kuhn's version from the movie Pocahontas (3:41)
4. Burn - from the Broadway musical Hamilton (3:47)
5. This is Me - The Greatest Showman (4:00)
6. Almost There - from the movie the Princess and the Frog (2:28)

This comes to about 20 minutes including the time taken to introduce each song which fits the brief of between 20 and 30 minutes. I will be singing all these songs to a backing track because I think it will sound best that way and will compliment my voice and guide the song.

I have contrasting musical styles with a Jazz song and some Broadway songs.There are also differing moods from very sad and heartbroken in Burn to very determined and happy in Almost There. 

Whilst choosing songs for my recital, I have increased my repertoire memorising the lyrics to songs from some of my favourite pop artists like Ariana Grande and Marina and the Diamonds (now known as MARINA). However, I realised that these songs were quite repetitive and could potentially disengage the audience from my performance so I decided against it.

I found selecting songs for the recital very difficult as I was and still am discovering what suits my voice. I  have changed and reviewed my song list many times and I now have good song choices which fit the brief and will engage the audience on the day of my recital.

I'd Rather Be Me is an empowering feminist song about unapologetically being who you are and standing up to bullies. I sung this song in my own accent to make it my own. I struggled with taking breaths at the right times and sustaining notes so at first it was difficult to sing every word. However, the more I practised the more progress I made and am still making.

Choosing the song What A Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong was a last minute choice since I realised I needed more contrast in musical style and this is a 1960s Jazz song that I like which is different to my other songs. It shares a positive perspective on the world, showing gratitude to nature and to life in general. After practising this song, I realised I could not reach the lower notes and I was really straining my voice so I found a female acoustic version that I could sing.

Colours of the Wind has interesting lyrics which I did not fully understand until I did some research. "Paint with all the colours of the wind" means to open your eyes to the beauty of nature.When practising this song and hearing myself back, I was sounding shaky as I was struggling with my confidence, especially with sustaining the higher notes. It only took about a week of breathing exercises to see improvement and the more I practise, the more progress I make.

Burn from the Broadway musical Hamilton has a more sombre mood than my other songs. It is about Alexander Hamilton's wife, Eliza who feels heartbroken and betrayed by his actions. The original singer (Phillipa Soo) would make the song her own by adding riffs which I thought made the song sound beautiful so without realising I copied her style. I wanted  to try get out of this habit by finding my own style and by really understanding the lyrics, connecting them to me and singing it as if I meant it. So as I continued working on this song, I found ways to make it more my style by adding my own riffs and by using my accent so that I sounded more like myself. I know that sometimes when you change the song to fit your accent it can sound dreadful so I paid extra attention to how I sounded and fortunately, my accent didn't alter the song too much and sounded good.

This is Me from The Greatest Showman is the song that means the most to me. I loved the movie and the message of the song which is about being proud of who you are with all your flaws "for we are glorious". However, it is a very challenging song and uses notes at the top of my range. After singing it in front of my classmates and teacher I received feedback that I should not copy the style of the original singer (Keala Settle) and to try sing the higher notes with more power. These seem to be the main things I need to work on for all my songs. 

Everyone who has heard me sing Almost There from the movie Princess and the Frog has told me it really suits my voice. It's about knowing that you can overcome any obstacle that comes your way because you are "almost there". I realised that I was using the same accent as the original singer (Anika Noni Rose) so I had to change it to my accent but not too much otherwise it would  just not sound right. I struggled sustaining the last note (12 counts) and singing it powerfully and confidently. I am still struggling with my confidence but have improved on my breathing and sustaining that last note.

As you can see, there are contrasting pieces from the sombre Broadway song Burn to the optimistic and determined Almost There. Each song has a different rhythm and pace to it and I feel like that I will create an engaging performance that the audience will hopefully enjoy.

Since the main thing I need to work on is breathing, I will do my breathing exercises twice to make sure I breath properly when singing. I am also going to pay more attention to singing with more power and confidence (especially when singing notes at the top of my range). I have to make sure I know the lyrics to each song by heart and can sing the songs in a row so I am prepared for the recital. I will simulate the conditions of the recital - having all the karaoke songs on an MP3, introducing my songs and singing them exactly how I will to the audience to have a proper rehearsal. If I am lucky, I will be able to perform some songs in front of members of my family to work on stage presence and to get any extra feedback so I can improve as much as possible.

Something really weird happened to my voice about a week before the recital - it sounded off tune as if I had not done any work on it. I realised I was so nervous about doing well, I forgot to concentrate on my breathing! Once I focused on it again, I sounded much better. Doing more breathing exercises really helped me remember how to breath when singing. Focusing on my confidence when singing long or higher notes sometimes made me even more nervous and go off tune but sometimes I sung with more power. I have realised that when I am feeling nervous I have to relax to get a better-sounding note. Simulating the recital process helps me get a better idea of how I will feel and sound on the actual day. At this point, days before the recital, all I can do is practise for an hour everyday so I am as prepared as can be.