Learning how to learn

I'm reading a book called Finding Your Voice by Barbara Houseman. It's for actors, but as a singer it is completely relevant, as a learner of anything from art to medicine..it seems pretty relevant.

Lyric learning - I'm there

Aguas De Marco... all 89 lines, I'm there. Not because I don't fluff a syllable here and there, but because it's now very enjoyable. The images tumble forward and the kinetic triggers pop into action moments before the deadline. I still have the enormous leap of singing accompanied by a guitar. Bring it on!

Lyric learning ...

Stumbling over one or two syllables only in the 89 line song Aguas De Marco. Also a new thought has arisen of how to cope with wrong words during the song performance and being able to carry on in a calm and 'that doesn't matter' way. The rhymes push the song along and a wrong word can have a jenga effect. I'm going to try some drawing exercises and pull the song apart to put it together again. Also I'm thinking about longevity....learnt lyrics quite often fall away...is the only way of keeping it there to do it daily? I'm thinking yes. Note to self, research longterm memorising techniques. I do find writing out lyrics helps me and I am a bit of a kinetic learner..a hand movement or head turn attached to a phrase helps lock words in place.

seemingly stuck

Firstly why am I doing this? I don't have to... I have now sung Aguas De Marco maybe 50 times and I still haven't sung it through without stumbling over a word or three.....and there is the great question of what is the point of art/creating stuff/gaining skills/climbing the mountain. With this lyric learning, I'm trying to work a way around myself, I DO know what the words are but other thoughts pop into my head or I just believe I am going to mess up. I am trying lots of different ways to nail this song... in a gentle way, ha ha. I've slowed the metronome to 111bpm. I do feel stuck, but I reckon I will get it, singing with the music should help...keep going...keep climbing the mountain, make the rubber meet the road, humph.grrrrrrr. This picture makes me laugh because it's me in a rage....determination!Just read a good quote from Peter Gabriel, 'creativity comes from the freedom to fail'.

Learning Lyrics ...nearly done it!

I started to relearn the lyrics of Aguas De Marco on August 9th, today is September 9th and I'm pretty much there. I still have to sing it through without a stumble, I have not managed that yet...though I am soooo nearly there. I have used several different methods. One from the great Alexander Technique teacher Suzanne Duncanson..holding a pencil between your teeth whilst you sing, gives renewed focus, for fairly obvious reasons of it being hard to sing! I keep trying to tell my brain that the lyrics are easy and enjoyable, that allows the words to flow, but then I sabotage it by thinking, I'm gonna muck up soon...and I do. Running out of breath plays another part in not flowing with the lyrics. I have been using a metronome at 107bpm...really slow for this song... it's painfully slow but I'm trying to summon the lyrics ahead whilst singing the current line. Trying to do that in an easy story of images and not panicing... doubt and panic and it all goes to crap!I'm speeding up the metronome and aiming for a complete unfluffed version later tonight! Now there's a challenge!