Musicianship training can supplement your voice lessons by helping you learn how to read music. As you become more familiar with music notation, you can increase your ability to sight-read music. The lessons are taught with an emphasis on music theory for singers, so you can feel more confident when you open a new piece of sheet music.
Why spend time on the fundamentals?
When you understand the fundamentals of music more deeply, you will be amazed at how much faster you can learn music. You will be able to tackle more complicated pieces, and you will be able to enhance your music-making. You will be impressed at how quickly you can add new songs to your repertoire.
Possible topics to talk about include writing lead sheets, reading charts, song form, and identifying musical patterns and cliches. Lessons can also be tailored to what each student needs and wants to explore.
What are some ways that I can apply what I learned?
Singers are encouraged to put their knowledge to the test with creative projects. Some of these projects can include writing lead sheets, learning how to read charts, and writing compositional work.
Lead sheets are pages of music with the melody and chord names, without anything else. Writing lead sheets can help you prepare the music for gigs where you want to have a lot of music available. Knowing how to write and read lead sheets can help you maximize the number of songs you can quickly and easily add to your portfolio.
Knowing how to read charts can also help you accompany yourself on instruments like guitar and ukulele. As you grow more comfortable reading charts, you will be able to play all of your favorite songs quickly and easily.
Song form is helpful to understand for all singers. Knowing the theory behind song structure can make it easier to memorize your music. Also, it can help you write songs better if you are more familiar with the standard song forms.
It is helpful to understand musical patterns and cliches because as you start to recognize repetitions and forms in music, you will be able to play and sing more and more pieces. You will realize that you do not have to learn each piece from scratch because many chord progressions and melodic themes are shared between popular songs.
What if I know how to sing, but have never studied music theory?
Musicianship classes can help singers at any level improve their knowledge of music theory. If you do not know how to read music, these classes can help you quickly learn the basics. If you already play an instrument, these classes will help you enhance what you already know. Classes are designed so each student can progress at a level appropriate for and comfortable to them.
Many singers choose to split their credits between voice lessons and musicianship training. Singers are encouraged to form a plan that best supports their creative projects. If you are not sure how to make that plan, reach out to Arabella’s Voice Studio for a consultation. Arabella will listen to your creative goals and help you make a plan that will help you excel in your artistic goals.