How and how often to watch your videos

Last semester, we talked about how important self-evaluation can be, especially by watching yourself on video. Here, we'll talk more specifically about how to do that effectively. 

When watching your videos (whether clips of your practicing, self-tapes for auditions, or Dem Lab performances), you should ask the same questions you would consider whenever evaluating anyone else's singing performance. What works about this performance? What do I like? What is making this effective? What is not working? What is getting in the way of more authentic communication? What could be done differently to make it more successful? Any amateur observer can say "I like this," or "I don't like this." But, as theatre artists, we should be curious as to the why. 

When evaluating your practice clips, I'd recommend watching the videos soon (if not immediately) after you record them. That way you can see and hear what you are doing while you still have a tactile memory of how you created the sounds. If you liked what you saw on the video, try the same thing a few more times to solidify what you did. You can even use this tactic to record yourself singing a phrase of music two or three times in a row but in different ways. Then you can watch to see which version you prefer and, once again, recreate that sound while it's still fresh in your mental and physical memory. If you watch these videos for the first time even a day later, you won't have the same visceral memory and it will be more difficult to recreate those sounds in the same way. 

For performances, like Dem Lab videos, I'd recommend the opposite and instead allow more time to elapse before watching the videos (days, if not weeks). That way, you won't have such strong memory of the feelings and sensations you were experiencing in the moment. This will allow you to evaluate the video more as an outside observer. When you aren't watching with the same physical memory from having just sung, you're better able to give yourself an overview of your performance instead of being more focused on a single element of your singing, like with the practice videos. 

Notice that I'm using the words "evaluate" or"criticize" when it comes to watching yourself. And I absolutely didn't use the words "tear down" or "obsess over" either. You can observe and evaluate by asking the questions above with a true sense of curiosity in order to identify what you are doing well and to strategize about how to improve upon the less effective elements. As I've said previously, feel free to tell your inner critic to shut the hell up!

Remember, the flip side of being your own worst critic is that you can also be our own best evaluator. No one will be able to watch your own performances with as much insight as you. You know what you were thinking at the time. You know what it feels like inside to make those sounds. You have the best idea of how you might recreate or tweak those sounds. The rest of us can guess or make assumptions, but you're the only one who knows. Use that information to your advantage. 

Now go practice. 

Nothing but time

Time stops when suddenly you see her

Time stops and what you thought you knew changes

And life beyond this moment is better, bigger... 

    -"Time Stops" from Tuck Everlasting 

I've always found it fascinating how differently we can perceive time. When I was a kid, sitting through an hour of church seemed to take forever, but one hour of watching cartoons was over in no time. As an adult, I've noticed that Saturday and Sunday seem to move faster than any other days of the week, for some reason. 

One of the most common phrases I hear from seniors in their first voice lesson of the school year is, "I can't believe I'm a senior already!" Despite taking classes for three years, it always comes as a bit of a surprise looking back and realizing how quickly that time has passed. But many of those same students have also expressed that time feels like it's crawling by when they're in the thick of a semester with long days of classes and rehearsals. 

I sometimes hear ads on the radio for a company called 3 Day Kitchen & Bath. Their pledge to customers is that they can do an entire renovation of a kitchen or bathroom in three days or less—a job that can typically take weeks. I'm no contractor, but that seems really fast. I wonder if those workers feel like time is moving more quickly as their deadlines approach than it does when they're at the start of a project. 

The beginning of the semester presents a good opportunity to reflect on how we use our time. In a previous blog, we talked about how time can be viewed as a commodity, evidenced by the phrase "spending time." Regardless of whether we invest our time or waste our time, we all experience the same number of hours in the day. 

I decided to do a bit of math when it comes to our time together. Each of you receive 12 voice lessons per semester at 45 minutes each, adding up to 540 minutes of lesson time per semester. This means there are 1,080 minutes of lessons in each two-semester school year and 4,320 minutes over the eight semesters of a four-year degree. Divide that by 60 minutes per hour and it adds up to exactly 72 hours, or the equivalent of three days. All of our weekly lessons in all the semesters of an entire degree, when all is said and done, only amount to three days of time. 

How are we spending that time? Three days is apparently enough time to completely demolish, renovate, and rebuild an entire kitchen. Is it enough time to build the vocal skills and artistry you want for yourself? Are we both doing all we can to maximize our time together? 

As we get going in the new semester, let's consider how we're using our lesson time. If we make the most of our time together, you will be better able to make the most of your practice time when we're apart. Review this blog from 2019 about establishing effective goals. Then let's decide how we can best prioritize our three days of time to get you where you want to be. 

Now go practice.