Name: ____________________________________
Your Song: _________________________________
Learning a Song Check-off List
q Look for music that you are completely satisfied with (text, melody, accompaniment)
q Purchase a copy of the music
q Get a copy of the accompaniment on tape.
q Study the song in terms of mood and expression.
q Find out when it was written, who the writer of the text was, why they wrote it, how they felt, where they were, etc.
q Know the context of the song if it is from an opera or musical theatre
q Figure out what it means.
q Define all the words you don’t know.
q If the song is in a foreign language, get or make a word by word translation. Write the word-for –word translation under each note. (Check out these sites for help: http://www.recmusic.org/lieder/ http://www.foreignword.com/http http://world.altavista.com. Also consider the books Word by Word Translations of Songs and Arias by Sergius Kagen. There are many other books like these that will give you translations.
q Divide the song into large sections.
q Mark where you will breathe.
q Learn the diction of the song- even if it’s in English. Know what sound you will be singing on each note.
q In a foreign language, know what each vowel or consonant sounds like.
q Write in the IPA symbols or some other symbols to help you become consistent.
q Have someone say the words on tape for you, if necessary, to get the right inflection/pronunciation
q Learn the song in phrases.
q Practice the breathing that you marked in #6. Practice for correctness.
q Especially difficult spots in the song.
q Practice it out of context (by itself) and in context (with the notes leading up to it and following it).
q Done
q Perform a number of times for a selected audience to make “dumb” mistakes and get a feeling for the piece when you are under pressure.
q DONE!!!!