Organizing Your Vocal Journey

Sometimes the work we do as a singing artist can get a bit esoteric. It helps to demystify as many of our experiences as possible, so that we can free up space to communicate more clearly. One of the best ways to do this is to write about our experiences. Here are two different worksheets that can help you focus your practice time and make the best of your work.

Part 1: The Practice Journal

Your practice journal is your own personal account of your vocal experience. It is part diary, and part guidebook. The act of keeping a journal is imperative when there is a never-ending list of things that we need to work on. Keeping a practice journal holds your accountable for your practice time.

Some tips for getting started:

Set a goal for yourself about how many times a week you will write about your experiences. Sometimes we just need to sing, and that’s ok. Limit the amount that you are allowed to write – it’s not about recalling every last thing you did (record your practice sessions if you want objective feedback on how that went). A focused paragraph will be more useful to you in the future.

Focus on a couple of short-term goals every week, and channel your writing through the lens of those small goals or experiences. This will become important later on!

Part 2: Repertoire Workbook

I know this is simple, but you should know about your repertoire. Who wrote the music, the lyrics, what greater work is the piece from, and what was happening in the world that inspired the piece. This will only help you develop your character, deepen your understanding of the piece, and help you crystallize the message you are conveying to the audience.

Every piece also has it’s own musical form, interesting compositional devices, and unique vocal demands. It would behoove you to keep track of how you respond to these elements, and how your teacher helps guide your through the technical challenges present in the piece.

I’ve attached my personal song worksheet below. Feel free to use the back of the page to create a collage of images that remind you of the piece, or draw a picture that embodies the work in your brain. Do anything you can to immerse yourself in the complete scene of the work.

Part 3: Technical Toolbox

If you have been keeping a practice journal and a repertoire journal, this third part is pretty simple. The technical toolbox is your personal account of all of the vocal technique you’ve come across in your study. If you’ve been keeping a journal, your teacher should be assigning you exercises to address specific aspects of your vocal development, and you will have written about how you responded to these exercises. Similarly, in the repertoire workbook, there should be a wealth of information about different ways to approach various technical challenges.

All you need to do is create a format in which you can keep track of this work. My own toolbox is fairly extensive, but I tend to organize my thoughts into these categories:

Power: Body

Breath

Source: Phonation (Buzz/Sound/Laryngeal Function)

Filter: Resonance

Articulation

You may find that another format works best for you. The point is to generate a reference document – if you can’t find what you are looking for, it’s time to reorganize!

Best of luck in your own vocal adventure!