Be sure to follow the sign-up link below!
Sing Montana! is hosting a free singing workshop in Billings on
Monday 19 June 2023
6:30pm to 8:30 pm
St. Andrew Presbyterian Church
80 24th St W
Billings, MT 59102
(See it on Google Maps.)
(Sing Montana and SAPC are not affiliated.)
For ages 13-103
This workshop is a sampler for those who are:
- generally interested in singing
- interested in registering for our Voice Camp for Teens (July 24-29),
- interested in registering for our Fall Voice Classes (Starting in September), or
- interested in joining Freedom Choir this Fall (Starting in September).
Come learn singing skills the way that millions learn athletic skills—in a class setting! Students learn faster this way as they see other students being coached through the common obstacles to great singing, and they learn quickly to overcome the fear of singing in front of others. (Read an article about the benefits of coaching singers this way.)
DESCRIPTION
Professional vocal coach and Freedom Choir director, Jack Pelham, leads the fun workshop with lots of group activities and solo exercises. Willing* participants will have opportunity to sing solos for the class and to be coached by Mr. Pelham. (“Standards”, ballads, patriotic songs, and hymns tend to make good choices for this.) And he’ll likely have the whole class work on certain parts of those songs that require skill to perform well. We’ll also do some harmony singing, teaching everybody a simple Barbershop “tag” in four parts.
*You will not have to sing solo at this event if you don’t want to, but it’s required in Voice Camp and Voice Class.
Good singing is so much more than just getting the words and the notes right. We will work on fundamental skills, such as:
- How to get a rich tone that audiences want to hear. (Resonant, and not too airy.)
- How to breathe well enough to support that tone, and to make your high notes and low notes sound like they’re coming from the same singer.
- How to adjust the “placement” of your tone in various ways: forward or back, bright or dark, etc.
- How to sing the various vowel sounds accurately–and how much more work that takes than you might think!
What to Bring
Do bring a bottle of water to keep your voice hydrated. And you might want to bring a notebook and something to write with.
How to Register
Admission is free, but we do ask that you sign up in advance. Seating is limited, and also, in the unexpected event that we should need to cancel or reschedule the event, we really need to know how to get in touch with everybody!