Under Cover Of Darkness - The Strokes
In my opinion the cover of Under Cover Of Darkness that I performed in the record shop could have gone better. The playing was slightly sloppy and at one point I did go out of time with the backing track for a bit. I think that the timing issue could have been easily solved if I had the backing track a bit louder, the only reason I didn't have it so loud was because I wanted to be heard clearly, overall it is me doing the performing! I think the playing being sloppy is down to nerves really. I'm not much of a solo performer and I tend to get quite nervous when playing on my own because I like to have a band supporting me.
If I were to do this performance again I would rather do the song with a band but the main be on me so then it still counts as a solo performance. The issue with using a full scale band is the volume and the use space. The venue we were performing in would be too small for a band to play, therefore we would need to find somewhere else to play.
All in all, I believe that my performance of this song was mediocre and I would probably do it better with a little more practice and more time setting up backing tracks and amp levels.
If You Were There Beware - The Arctic Monkeys
I believe that my performance of this song was actually quite good. The audience enjoyed it and I don't I made any noticeable mistakes other than a timing issue when the time signature changes towards the end of the song. In this section the time signature changes to 3/2, the tempo also speeds up to 180 bpm which also threw me off a little. Due to the increase of tempo and change of timing I ended up playing one of the leading licks a bit earlier than intended.
If I were to do this performance again I would find a backing track without the lead guitar part that I am playing on it. This proved to be a problem because when made the timing mistake it was more noticeable.
Overall I think that my performance of this song was the best performance in my repertoire that night.
You've Got A Friend In Me - Randy Newman
This performance was the more versatile from my music programme, being the only acoustic song in my set. This song was very enjoyable to play but would have been better if I had used my own guitar and got the tempo at the correct pace. throughout the whole song I think that I was moving in and out of tempo which really effected my performance, it would have been better if I had kept timing by tapping my foot. Towards the end the camera also cut out which really didn't help so unfortunately the ending of the piece was caught on camera.
If I were to do the performance of this song again I would definitely change a few things. First of all I would without a doubt bring my own acoustic guitar because it was a lot harder to play on a guitar that I was not used to playing at all. I would also work a lot more on my timing because I did tend to drift in and out a lot of the time. Another thing I would do is check the camera's battery life before taking it to the performance evening so that I know if it needs to be charged or not.
The overall performance of this song in my opinion was quite good, other than the camera cutting out and the timing issue it all sounded how I wanted it to.
Big Big Big - Simon Troup
Because the performance of this song was not recorded I have decided to assess the home recorded performance I did to prove that I could perform the song to a good standard.
I was very proud with the performance of this song. I managed to play it accurately without any mistakes. This performance also shows off my ability to improvise when I improvised a guitar solo towards end. It was also the perfect opportunity to use different effects such as the Wah-Wah pedal I use in the guitar solo. Not only did this song show off my ability improvise but it also managed to demonstrate my ability to adapt my playing style to suit different genres of music, for example this song was more Latin based.
If I were to perform this song again I would make sure that I caught the performance on film because unfortunately the camera ran out of battery before I played the song.
Wednesday, 3 July 2013
Tuesday, 19 February 2013
Audition CD (Draft) - 16/11/2012
Task 1: Audition CD
Individual activity supported by Instrumental Tutor where appropriate.
Know how to choose appropriate pieces for an extended programme of music – individual activity supported by Instrumental Tutor where appropriate.
You have been invited to submit an audition CD (MP3 online) to take part in a Music for Youth festival. The CD should include between 30 and 60 seconds from each piece you will perform.
Assessment
An audition CD, (MP3 online) concert programme with notes on each piece. A written or oral justification of your choices eg a project report.
Individual activity supported by Instrumental Tutor where appropriate.
Know how to choose appropriate pieces for an extended programme of music – individual activity supported by Instrumental Tutor where appropriate.
You have been invited to submit an audition CD (MP3 online) to take part in a Music for Youth festival. The CD should include between 30 and 60 seconds from each piece you will perform.
Assessment
An audition CD, (MP3 online) concert programme with notes on each piece. A written or oral justification of your choices eg a project report.
Friday, 16 November 2012
Learning Outcome 3 - The Process Required in Preparation of the Performance
Technical preparations: ‘warm-up’ techniques, scales, arpeggios,
other technical exercises to improve
tone and technique relevant to the instrument or voice; formulate effective practise routines; pieces for
performance thoroughly rehearsed and learnt
Physical preparation: eg relaxation and/or breathing exercises as appropriate, concentration techniques, exercises to control nerves, preparatory performances at the venue and in front of an audience
Other preparations: instrument (where applicable) is in working order and in-tune eg new strings, serviceable reeds/mouth pieces, correct beaters, voice is warmed up; rehearsal with accompanist if one is being used.
Technical Preparations
In order for me to play the songs in my music programme to the best of my ability I need to practice various different technical techniques. These techniques could be from scales to improve my soloing and improvisation or finger exercises which help improve my speed when working up and down the neck of the guitar.
For one of the songs that I have to perform I need to use a harmonic minor scale in order to do an improvisational guitar solo towards the end of the track.
Here you can see the shape of a harmonic minor scale. This is what I used as a template in order to practice soloing over one of my songs. All I had to do was transpose this scale into the right key of the song that I was playing.
The various finger exercises that I had to do were designed by myself in order to improve the speed of my playing and my ability as a guitarist to play songs in time with their backing tracks. I designed various different exercises that proved to be effective on both my left and right hands which helped me perform much better one I had implemented them into an effective practice routine.
These scales and finger exercises did noticeably help me improve my playing and performing abilities but I can't help but think that they could have been improved more.
One way I would improve my technical preparations for the future would be to practice longer and harder, maybe at least twenty minutes of the technical preparations before I actually start playing the songs from my music programme.
Another way I could improve my technical preparations for the future would be to include a bigger variety of scales and finger exercises. I could also implement various different types of scales such as major, mixolydian, dorian and pentatonic.
Performance Rehearsals
In order to give myself a realistic insight into what the performance would be like I would regularly perform the music programme with all of the pieces in the correct order, with backing tracks at least five times a day. If I made a mistake in any of the pieces I would usually stop playing and start again from the beginning of the set. This would help me memorize the pieces and get me used to playing along to the backing tracks without making mistakes so I would know what to expect on the night.
This method of rehearsing proved to be quite effective, but I wasn't too happy with the outcome because I still found some flaws in my playing.
Something I would improve for my future performance rehearsals would be to listen to each piece with the original players on it so that I get a better idea of how to play the song and I can interpret their different playing techniques and styles into my own. It is also a good idea to listen to various different live versions of them playing so you can see and listen to how they adapt their playing in each different live environment. This would also help me to give a better performance and to improve myself as a musician, broadening different styles and techniques that I can interpret into every day practice.
Physical Preparation
Something I regularly do to prepare myself for an environment with an audience is to play my music programme but without looking at the guitar or any music in front of me. This helps me to trust myself and control my nerves for when I make a mistake. This exercise also helps me to memorize the songs better and to play them more fluidly.
I believe that this is a good exercise to do because it helps you as a musician interact with the audience a lot more because you aren't focussing too much on your playing. It also helps you to stop concentrating on the song so much which gets rid of your nerves almost instantly.
In order to improve my physical preparation for the future I think something I could would be to play in front of a small scaled audience to give more of a realistic approach into what it would be like playing on the time of the actual performance. I whilst performing to the small scaled audience I could also interpret the other exercise of not looking at what you are playing so that it is an even more realistic approach.
Other Preparations
tone and technique relevant to the instrument or voice; formulate effective practise routines; pieces for
performance thoroughly rehearsed and learnt
Physical preparation: eg relaxation and/or breathing exercises as appropriate, concentration techniques, exercises to control nerves, preparatory performances at the venue and in front of an audience
Other preparations: instrument (where applicable) is in working order and in-tune eg new strings, serviceable reeds/mouth pieces, correct beaters, voice is warmed up; rehearsal with accompanist if one is being used.
Technical Preparations
In order for me to play the songs in my music programme to the best of my ability I need to practice various different technical techniques. These techniques could be from scales to improve my soloing and improvisation or finger exercises which help improve my speed when working up and down the neck of the guitar.
For one of the songs that I have to perform I need to use a harmonic minor scale in order to do an improvisational guitar solo towards the end of the track.
The various finger exercises that I had to do were designed by myself in order to improve the speed of my playing and my ability as a guitarist to play songs in time with their backing tracks. I designed various different exercises that proved to be effective on both my left and right hands which helped me perform much better one I had implemented them into an effective practice routine.
These scales and finger exercises did noticeably help me improve my playing and performing abilities but I can't help but think that they could have been improved more.
One way I would improve my technical preparations for the future would be to practice longer and harder, maybe at least twenty minutes of the technical preparations before I actually start playing the songs from my music programme.
Another way I could improve my technical preparations for the future would be to include a bigger variety of scales and finger exercises. I could also implement various different types of scales such as major, mixolydian, dorian and pentatonic.
Performance RehearsalsIn order to give myself a realistic insight into what the performance would be like I would regularly perform the music programme with all of the pieces in the correct order, with backing tracks at least five times a day. If I made a mistake in any of the pieces I would usually stop playing and start again from the beginning of the set. This would help me memorize the pieces and get me used to playing along to the backing tracks without making mistakes so I would know what to expect on the night.
This method of rehearsing proved to be quite effective, but I wasn't too happy with the outcome because I still found some flaws in my playing.
Something I would improve for my future performance rehearsals would be to listen to each piece with the original players on it so that I get a better idea of how to play the song and I can interpret their different playing techniques and styles into my own. It is also a good idea to listen to various different live versions of them playing so you can see and listen to how they adapt their playing in each different live environment. This would also help me to give a better performance and to improve myself as a musician, broadening different styles and techniques that I can interpret into every day practice.
Physical Preparation
Something I regularly do to prepare myself for an environment with an audience is to play my music programme but without looking at the guitar or any music in front of me. This helps me to trust myself and control my nerves for when I make a mistake. This exercise also helps me to memorize the songs better and to play them more fluidly.
I believe that this is a good exercise to do because it helps you as a musician interact with the audience a lot more because you aren't focussing too much on your playing. It also helps you to stop concentrating on the song so much which gets rid of your nerves almost instantly.
In order to improve my physical preparation for the future I think something I could would be to play in front of a small scaled audience to give more of a realistic approach into what it would be like playing on the time of the actual performance. I whilst performing to the small scaled audience I could also interpret the other exercise of not looking at what you are playing so that it is an even more realistic approach.
Other Preparations
Something I like to do in preparation for a performance is to access my equipment so that I don't have to worry about a string breaking or an effects pedal battery running out. The things that I usually test are as follows:
- The First thing I usually do in preparation for the gig is to change my guitar strings because a guitarist is always at risk of breaking one.
- The second thing I usually do is check to see that my guitar wiring is all in order, (pickups, pickup switch, jack socket, volume and tone controls)
- The third thing I usually check is all of my leads that I plan on using. I usually make sure that none of them are crackly or temperamental because I don't want my guitars tone to be effect whilst giving a performance.
- The fourth thing I check is usually the battery life and reliability of my effects pedals. I cant have them cutting out or giving only a half-hearted tone when I'm on stage.
- And the fifth and final thing I usually check before I perform is usually my guitar amp. A lot of the time I don't actually use my own amp, I would just use one provided but in this case I needed to make sure that the inputs and outputs were working, the volume and EQ controls were fully functional and that the fuse in the plug wasn't about to blow.
Learning Outcome 2 - Being Able to Perform a Programme of Music to an Audience
Elements of musicianship: accuracy of rhythm, pitch and intonation;
expression; interpretation appropriate to the genre/style of the music;
confidence
Communication: musical communication with accompanist/band if appropriate; musical communication with audience.
Song 1 - Under Cover Of Darkness By the Strokes
Song 2 - If You Were There Beware By the Arctic Monkeys
Communication: musical communication with accompanist/band if appropriate; musical communication with audience.
Song 1 - Under Cover Of Darkness By the Strokes
Song 2 - If You Were There Beware By the Arctic Monkeys
Song 3 - You've Got A Friend In Me By Randy Newman
Unfortunately the camera ran out of battery towards the end of the third song, being told that the camera had low battery life gave me the idea to play the most technically demanding song of my set instead. The two songs that weren't caught on film I chose to record at home to prove my ability to play the songs.
Song 4 - Big Big Big By Simon Troup
Learning Outcome 1 - Choosing Appropriate Pieces for My Music Programme
Factors to be considered: balancing the programme; choosing pieces
appropriate for: the venue, the audience, performer stamina levels;
technical/musical difficulty of pieces; amount of preparation time needed before
concert; availability of printed music and/or recordings; type of accompaniment
required; availability of suitable equipment and personnel to operate it eg
sound system, technical crew/operator.
My Chosen Pieces:
Track 1: Under Cover Of Darkness - The Strokes
I have chosen this piece to perform because it challenges both my playing technique and style. This song contains fast complex riffs and a wide range of notes throughout the neck of the guitar which makes the piece a lot more demanding to play. I have also chosen to play this piece because it helps demonstrate my main focus style in playing the electric guitar.
Track 2: If You Were There Beware - Arctic Monkeys
I chose this piece because for me it is one of the most fun songs to play. Its not as challenging as the others but I decided to include it because it helps the audience understand what style of playing I usually do.
Track 3: You've Got A Friend In Me - Randy Newman
I have chosen to play this piece because it is a completely different genre of guitar to what i usually play. This particular version I will be playing is a lot harder than most and requires me to play the bass, chords and melody of the song all at once on the guitar. This is a particularly difficult piece to play and should show off my ability to play the guitar.
Track 4: The Stray Cat Strut - The Stray Cats
This song helps add a varied variety of genres to my repertoire. it also helps challenge my standard of playing due to it being a fairly hard piece to play.
Track 4: Big Big Big - Simon Troup
I have selected this song out of the Rockschool Grade 6 song book. I performed this song to an examiner for my A level music performance. This song shows off various different playing techniques and is a different genre to what I usually play, so it helps challenge and improve my playing ability.
Here is a link to my completed audition CD uploaded to 'www.soundcloud.com'. All of the songs on the CD are played in order of appearance on this blog.
https://soundcloud.com/spencer-farrance/subsidary-diploma-audtion-cd
Why These Pieces are Appropriate
I believe that I have selected a well varied programme of music to perform because all of the songs are so different from each other and challenge my ability as a performer appropriately. All of the various pieces that I am going to perform each appeal to the audience in their own way. I will playing some rag time acoustic guitar, Latin guitar, rockabilly, indie rock and alternative rock, I believe that each one of these genres could be suited for a very broad audience so that my programme is not too recent or too dated that nobody knows and of the pieces.
The majority of the pieces I have chosen to perform in my programme all require backing tracks which I believe is also a very good choice because the venue isn't that big and if I played the songs with a full scale band it would be too much and too loud for the audience. It would also be unnecessary due to the fact that the main focus is supposed to be on my performing anyway. The only song that I am playing without a backing track is the acoustic rag time version of You've Got A Friend In Me by Randy Newman.
The Venue
The venue I am going to be performing these songs is a record shop called in Henley-On-Thames, owned by Graham Sands who was kind enough to agree to hosting various different open mic nights to give a chance for the people in my course to perform to members of the public.
The record shop was a good choice of venue because it was small and you didn't need a huge set up and a PA system to make yourself heard. The only equipment you needed was a guitar, lead and an amplifier and the audience could hear you without any trouble.
My Chosen Pieces:
- Under Cover of Darkness by the Strokes
- If You Were There Beware by the Arctic Monkeys
- You've Got a Friend In Me by Randy Newman
- Stray Cat Strut by the Stray Cats
- Big Big Big by Simon Troup
Track 1: Under Cover Of Darkness - The Strokes
I have chosen this piece to perform because it challenges both my playing technique and style. This song contains fast complex riffs and a wide range of notes throughout the neck of the guitar which makes the piece a lot more demanding to play. I have also chosen to play this piece because it helps demonstrate my main focus style in playing the electric guitar.
Track 2: If You Were There Beware - Arctic Monkeys
I chose this piece because for me it is one of the most fun songs to play. Its not as challenging as the others but I decided to include it because it helps the audience understand what style of playing I usually do.
Track 3: You've Got A Friend In Me - Randy Newman
I have chosen to play this piece because it is a completely different genre of guitar to what i usually play. This particular version I will be playing is a lot harder than most and requires me to play the bass, chords and melody of the song all at once on the guitar. This is a particularly difficult piece to play and should show off my ability to play the guitar.
Track 4: The Stray Cat Strut - The Stray Cats
This song helps add a varied variety of genres to my repertoire. it also helps challenge my standard of playing due to it being a fairly hard piece to play.
Track 4: Big Big Big - Simon Troup
I have selected this song out of the Rockschool Grade 6 song book. I performed this song to an examiner for my A level music performance. This song shows off various different playing techniques and is a different genre to what I usually play, so it helps challenge and improve my playing ability.
Here is a link to my completed audition CD uploaded to 'www.soundcloud.com'. All of the songs on the CD are played in order of appearance on this blog.
https://soundcloud.com/spencer-farrance/subsidary-diploma-audtion-cd
Why These Pieces are Appropriate
I believe that I have selected a well varied programme of music to perform because all of the songs are so different from each other and challenge my ability as a performer appropriately. All of the various pieces that I am going to perform each appeal to the audience in their own way. I will playing some rag time acoustic guitar, Latin guitar, rockabilly, indie rock and alternative rock, I believe that each one of these genres could be suited for a very broad audience so that my programme is not too recent or too dated that nobody knows and of the pieces.
The majority of the pieces I have chosen to perform in my programme all require backing tracks which I believe is also a very good choice because the venue isn't that big and if I played the songs with a full scale band it would be too much and too loud for the audience. It would also be unnecessary due to the fact that the main focus is supposed to be on my performing anyway. The only song that I am playing without a backing track is the acoustic rag time version of You've Got A Friend In Me by Randy Newman.
The Venue
The venue I am going to be performing these songs is a record shop called in Henley-On-Thames, owned by Graham Sands who was kind enough to agree to hosting various different open mic nights to give a chance for the people in my course to perform to members of the public.
The record shop was a good choice of venue because it was small and you didn't need a huge set up and a PA system to make yourself heard. The only equipment you needed was a guitar, lead and an amplifier and the audience could hear you without any trouble.
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