Take your time! Being unable to learn songs quickly doesn’t define your singing talent

One of the many reasons why people say that they can’t sing is that it takes them ages to learn a song.

photo by Takashi Hososhima

But that’s OK. Even professionals take time to get a song under their belt.

Is it OK to sing a ‘foreign’ song in English?

Somebody recently bought my arrangement of the Welsh national anthem, but wanted the lyrics in English.

I put a call out to see if anybody had an English translation which would fit the music and got quite a lot of flak!

Always remember to bring a spare: song, set of lyrics, pen …

No matter how well-prepared we are, there’s always a chance we’ll forget something. 

photo by Kurt Nordstrom

That’s why it’s important to always remember to bring a spare.

What is a ‘popular’ song?

When does a song have ‘popular’ appeal? When is it entertainment?

Does ‘popular’ simply mean ‘well known’?

The difference between foreign song lyrics and made-up sounds

How important is it that the words in songs mean something, or can they be meaningless sounds?

Many choirs sing songs in languages they don’t understand, so does it matter whether lyrics are in a real language?

Honouring the song 1: where does the song come from?

When honouring the origins of any song, you need to be as precise as you can about where the song came from.

 

It might be hard to find out, but there is no excuse for being lazy and saying something like “This song is from Africa.” Here are some things to consider when tracing a song’s origins.

How slow can you sing? – using speed as a rehearsal tool

Doing anything too fast can result in errors and inaccuracies.



By slowing a naturally fast song down, you can reveal all kinds of mistakes and problems.

Why ‘learning by rote’ can be an insult

Somebody asked on Facebook the other day for suitable songs to ‘learn by rote’.



I imagine they meant songs to ‘learn by ear’ rather than by reading sheet music. I must admit, I was insulted. Here’s why.

Why are some ‘easy’ songs hard (and vice versa)?

Sometimes I start a singing session off with what I consider to be an easy song.

photo from Wellcome Images

But the group end up struggling and it turns out to be really hard! What’s going on here.

Don’t be too quick to dismiss songs that aren’t in English

Some people are put off when they come across a song with foreign words. They prefer to sing songs in English.

photo by Chell Hill

Not only are they missing out on so much great music, but it also widens your cultural horizons. Here’s why you should consider songs that aren’t in English.

Before you use songs from other cultures check your sources!

Just because a song is in a foreign language, you still need to respect its origins.

Sami family by Morten Oddvik

There is a huge amount of misinformation out there when it comes to songs from other cultures. Before you pass a song along, make sure you know as much about it as you can – and make sure the information is accurate.

Sing the intention, not the meaning

We’re always told to focus on the meaning of the lyrics when singing a song in order to communicate it properly and to give some emotion to our delivery.



But what if the lyrics are “lully lullay” or “fa la la” or what if the context seems to contradict the meaning or what if any ‘meaning’ is ambiguous? Then you need to sing your intention. I’ll explain more below.