Run-through or Practice?

We, music educators, so often bring up the concept of practicing. One of the reasons we remind our students of it so much is because we know it works - not only have we seen it work for our students, but it has worked for us personally. The interesting thing about being a music educator is that we have also had the experience of taking a very personal form of expression and invested in it to get the best outcome for ourselves. That devotion and investment is part of the reason we feel so inclined to inspire others to do the same. But we often forget to specify what we actually mean when we use the word "practice." So, in this post, I will try to break down the areas that define "practice."

All too often, I find that students assume they already understand HOW to practice, because they have "learned" a song or 2 (or 50) in the past. But let's first define a "run-through." Running through a song is just singing it from start to finish with no real focal points, questionable areas or attempt at change. If you find yourself singing over and over again with no idea what else to do, you are probably just doing a "run-through." I don't want to negate the value of a run-through. Sometimes, it is helpful to run through a song in order to refresh one's memory. But a run-through should not be classified as practice. True practicing involves sight reading, dissection, intentional warm-ups, attacking focal points, adding or modifying dynamics, flow, and sometimes, effects as well as performance technique.

SIGHT READING
Sight reading is when the singer takes a new or relative new piece and reads through the key signature, melodic/pitch movement, rhythm and tempo and lyrical phrasing. Sight reading is critical if you are attempting to practice a song you have never, or just recently heard or sung. Having written music (on staff) is extremely helpful, but even if you don't have that, at least try to write out the lyrics and leave spaces between lines for chords, notes (solfege, numbers or letter names) and personal reminders.

DISSECTION
Dissection is a term I use to refer to the process of breaking the piece down into smaller sections, giving the singer the opportunity to see and appreciate details where issues may lie. Songs can be dissected into verses, choruses and bridges, but they may also be dissected even further into phrases. I find phrases to be more effective when searching out the specific problem areas.

INTENTIONAL WARM-UPS
Of course, every singer should warm up their vocal chords before singing, but intentional warm-ups are those that include exercises which specifically focus on problem areas recognized in dissection. For example, if the singer has a specific issue with a vowel sound, then they should incorporate that specific vowel in their warm-up. They could sing that vowel all the way through their range or specifically on and around the pitch where that vowel is found in the piece.

FOCAL POINTS
Once a piece has been dissected and the singer has warmed up, it is probably helpful to run through the piece at least once to find where and how the problem areas are involved in the piece. Once they are pinpointed, the singer should separate those sections out and practice the actual problem or problem area. Some examples of attacking the focal points are pitch and/or rhythm correction, manipulating the shaping and placement of vowels, enunciation of consonants, and areas of inhalation or contraction while singing. If you are in lessons, your teacher has, no doubt, suggested various focal points. If something has been suggested, don't shrug it off. If it was obvious enough to be heard or seen, it's important enough to be practiced.

DYNAMICS, FLOW, EFFECTS
After the singer has pinpointed specific dissected areas, the song needs to come back together as a solid and moving piece. Some ways to affect the entirety of the musical piece are to add or manipulate the dynamics (volume + intensity). The flow of music is how the separate parts of the song link themselves together to create fluid understanding and musicality. There are many types of effects that can be utilized in singing to draw attention or give specific meaning to certain phrases, lyrics, melodic or harmonic movement, and so on.

PERFORMANCE
Unfortunately, many times audiences judge the singer before they've even heard a note sung. First impressions are important, but so are the impressions and perspectives as the piece moves along. Performance is a generic term I apply to anything having to do with the communication of a piece of music to the audience. Facial and corporal expression, use of stage and props, and emotional reality and commitment are all aspects of performance. Practicing in front of a full-length mirror is a fantastically effective way of perfecting performance techniques.

As you can see, true practice takes time, repetition, dedication and consistency. I usually recommend singers to practice at least 3 times as long as their weekly lesson. If you are not currently in lesson, shoot for 2-3 hours a week. After that is consistent, add 5-10 minutes to each practice and continue to add to them every time you feel confident in the consistency. Dedicated, professional singers practice upwards of 6-8 hrs a day! I hope this has all helped to focus your practice times more and give you some encouragement to continue and have faith in these exercises that have proven to be effective,