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Being in the moment…

Woo hoo!!! This is my 100th blog entry!
On Sunday afternoon, I attended an Auditioning Techniques Workshop at The Jazzschool in Berkeley. We were taught by vocalist/songwriter/producer Ledisi.
After about 5-10 minutes, I got over the “Oh my God, it’s Ledisi” thoughts. She taught us about being “in the moment” which had nothing to do with anything technical or even the song. It was all about scanning the room and feeling out your surroundings, no matter where you were performing. We learned about dealing with the disease to please, being unprepared, being scared of rejection and conquering FEAR!!!

What is your purpose in life?

This was the question she asked us and explained that she has only partially answered this question for herself. She told us to think about this every day and when the answers come, write them down and make them golden. She shared her experiences with auditions and performing…the good and the bad. This was invaluable. We learned about being prepared for band, theatre, or studio auditions. She told us to come to the audition with three songs in your key. One up tempo, one slow, and one which you can sing a a cappella. We learned the importance of finding a song that you really feel good about and shows who you are. Also, how to think of something that gives peace and clarity when you are in your moment.
So was I prepared? Yes!!! Thanks to my choir director, I had my three songs ready but when my moment to sing came, I opted to sing an a cappella version of the Coots/Lewis standard “For All We Know.” So how did I do? Well, she told me I had a good voice, don’t be afraid to use accompaniment, and that I needed to focus on one point in the room. I tend to look all over the place. I actually would like to take some voice lessons later this year. I came away with three pages of valuable information on getting into the music business. For now, you will just find me in the choir stand at church but you just never know what the future holds. The Jazzschool is very cool as well and I would definitely like to go back there for additional classes.
Thank you Ledisi for sharing your wisdom and craft with us and much love and blessings to you for continued success!
Vocalist René Marie will be doing a vocal seminar at The Jazzschool this Sunday, May 4 from 12-2pm.

This entry was posted on Monday, April 28th, 2003 at 10:11 pm. It is filed under Special Feature. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.