The title for this year’s upcoming studio concert, To Fancy, is inspired by the John Keats poem, Fancy, and the song ‘To Fancy’, by Australian composer Colin Brumby – which will be sung by Alex Malubag. With ten singers and 19 songs, our program this year is a diverse mix of classical works, contemporary standards, music theatre and originals. Singer-songwriter Gemma will perform two self-composed songs, and Aleks Tolkacz is making her performance debut.

Our singers have been working hard in their lessons with me, and with our accompanist, Alison Cameron, to bring their chosen songs to life, through their unique expression and interpretation.

Why take the challenge to perform?

Tina has returned to singing after a long break and is feeling both excitement and dread ahead of the concert. “I love the journey of learning a song and there’s no greater way for that to culminate than to share it with a live audience,” she says.

Performing in front of an audience is out of Alex’s comfort zone – the very reason she’s doing it! “On the day, I hope my training overtakes my nerves and I’m able to get a consistent resonance throughout the song.”

Joanna loves a challenge, and has chosen two challenging Benjamin Britten songs. “Part of choosing them was to help me prepare for when I perform four of them in 2025. The more I perform, the more I embed them.”

For Nick, performances push him to prepare songs differently, taking time to “find more expressive ways of bringing out the character and meaning of the song, while giving me the opportunity to develop techniques specific to live performance.”

Aleks rehearsing for her upcoming performance debut in our 2024 “To Fancy” studio concert

Anne sees the concert as a way to road-test some songs for her upcoming solo recital at St Stephen’s Church in July. Read how she created the opportunity to make this dream happen. Anne says she wants to “become comfortable with being on stage and to build confidence.”

Goals for owning your song

Tina aims to conquer nerves early so she can focus on her song and hone all she’s learned and practised, to perform with enjoyment and skill.

“I chose the song ‘Into the Unknown’, from the film Frozen, without considering performing it. I felt it would be a challenge to learn in its own right – the storytelling, the wide range and vocal mix throughout the song,” she says. “None of these things I felt confident about. I’m glad I persevered because it’s been a catalyst for me to practise in a more focused way and work hard on putting new techniques into practice.”

Joanna is focusing on bringing to life the characters in her songs, communicating their spirit to the audience. “They are brilliant pieces of music, diabolically difficult, and few people will ever hear them, so this is a chance to let others hear them.”

Anne’s goals for our concert are related to songs for her upcoming recital. “Kathleen and I chose songs suited to my voice. We’ve worked on vocal range, breathing exercises, French language, and expressions. I’ve learned the songs well and aim to give them my own feeling, rendition or style. I want to feel the joy, pride and satisfaction in working hard to get to where I am.”

Nick has chosen two songs that are quite wordy and contain clever lyrics. “I’ll be focusing on my phrasing, pronunciation and breathing to ensure the intention of both songs is clearly conveyed to the audience,” he says. “Both deal with love as an emotion, but from different perspectives: one is about a rejection of it, the other is about a seemingly unexpected acceptance of it. Both are jazzy, so I’ll be playing a little with the melody and rhythm – within reason!”

Is practising for a concert different to regular practice?

Celeste rehearsing for her upcoming performance in our 2024 “To Fancy” studio concert

Both Nick and Joanna say they practise more when they have an upcoming performance, and this would be true of most singers, regardless of experience.

For Alex, working towards a performance means making a conscious effort to learn the lyrics of the songs, so during practice, “I’m focusing more on aspects that affect how it sounds to the listener, such as resonance and pronunciation.”

Anne divided her eight recital songs in half, practising four songs at a time over two weeks, before performing all eight as she’ll sing them on the day. “I practise focusing my thoughts, familiarising the melody, tempo, dynamics, hand movements and expressions,” she says.

Go-to warm-ups for performance day

On performance day, nerves may surface so you’ll need to manage that, while making time to warm up your voice.

Joanna aims for a good night’s sleep and healthy breakfast before warming up for 45 minutes at home, then at the venue.

Nick warms up with breathing, and exercises to loosen the jaw muscles, to help his pronunciation of consonants in those wordy songs.

Anne and Alex both use lip buzzes, tongue trills and humming. Anne also incorporates some scales and register transition exercises.

The more experience you gain in preparing to perform, the easier it is to find techniques that work for you. Hopefully some of our singers’ tips will also help.

Please join us for our Studio Concert on 30 June, from 2pm to 4pm at The Flute Tree, 1/111 Moore Street, Leichhardt. The 19^th Century venue is easy to find, and boasts ideal acoustics for voice, with a magnificent grand piano to accompany our singers.

You’re also invited to enjoy Anne’s selection of elegant and sumptuous Belle Epoch French songs in her recital on 5 July, from 1.10pm at St Stephens Uniting Church, Macquarie Street, Sydney.

If singing and performance are goals for you, browse Kathleen Connell’s in-person or online lesson options, or call 0402 409 106.