Quote Of The Day:
Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room
Kurt Vonnegut
How many times have you grabbed a hairbrush, broom stick, or spatula and broken into song complete with Motown moves just because it feels good!!! Well, maybe it’s my age and love of antics, but we do it a lot in our house. Even my nine year old son break-dances on the kitchen floor on a whim. Movement is such a big part of music, singing and entertaining. The question is, how do you gauge movement if you are not the main focus on stage?
I love doing back-up singing gigs. I always get to sing with other killer singers and it’s a powerful feeling to lock in to the parts and achieve a fabulous blend which supports the lead singer, creating an amazing dynamic to the overall sound of the song. But what about dancing or moving on stage in a background singer role?
Of course when you think of movements of back-up singers you probably immediately think of Diana Ross and The Supremes or other Motown acts that seemed to have all the moves. Well, you don’t have to be that well choreographed to be an effective, entertaining back-up singer (unless you are working with Madonna or Gaga.) Remember that your role is to support the lead singer and not distract from what they are doing. (If you are working with a Diva, you gotta let them be the focus or you’ll find yourself out of a gig! LOL). Most often if your movement is distracting to what they are doing someone will (hopefully) let you know in a gentle way that it’s not working.
Simple movements from the quintessential side to side “step touch” bg singer move to full on arm movements like The Supremes in “Stop In The Name Of Love” are all great. Determining “what to do where” is something you will want to work out with the lead singer and other bg singers to make sure that what you choose to do is visually enhancing, not distracting, or out of anyone’s comfort or ability zone. Whatever you choose to do should be suitable for the vibe of the song as well, meaning you won’t be doing big over the top arm gestures a la a drag queen show if the song is a slow understated ballad or, conversely, standing still to a funky groove “shake your booty” kind of song. It’s fun to work out occasional moves or footwork to add to the entertainment value of the overall performance. Often, one person will do a spontaneous move mid-show that works and the other singers will fall into step and it ends up staying in the show. Be aware that not every song in the set list has to be choreographed. Simple swaying or step touching, as mentioned earlier, looks cohesive and adds to the energy flow of the overall show creating peaks and valleys and visual interest. Check out Adele’s bg singers on her Grammy performance this past Spring. It’s perfect. http://youtu.be/0ckIulg1DfQ
Keep in mind that the main purpose of a bg section is to add colour and texture vocally. Be sure that the vocals don’t get sacrificed for the sake of a cool move. Most importantly, have fun. The audience often takes its cue on how to respond to your music by your attitude on stage.
Until Next Time… Breathe And Happy Singing!
Angela
www.5pointsingingsystem.com/live/manual
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