The Secret Singer’s Sauce in Performance: Peak Moments to Wow Your Audience
This post helps you get started, but that’s only the beginning. What would it feel like to sing your heart out with a transformed voice performing to thousands of people by the end of the year? Watch my FREE Vocal Workshop and find out how! Click here to watch now or bookmark for later.
A vocal arrangement is the secret sauce in performance. Vocal arrangements are one of the coveted secrets of the industry. They build the emotional impact of the song in performance and on record. They ensure the emotional delivery of the vocals.
A vocal arranger decides how the artist will sing a song. It might be a line that the arranger thinks sounds better if the singer uses a vibrato in their voice, or a straight tone into vibrato. Maybe the note should be sung an octave higher, or needs a breathy tone on certain words. They may say “Hey, hold out the vowel, or dig into the consonant, or add an ooohh aahhh.”
All big records have vocal arrangers. I started vocal arranging a few decades ago. Vocal arrangers are hired to come in and get the best out of the singer and the song. And the best part? It heightens the emotional impact of the song. Watch this video here about the magic of vocal arranging.
Planning out how you are going to sing the song creates a vocal roadmap to build a vocal arrangement for your performance.
Here's how to map out your vocal arrangement:
- Write out your lyrics on a document. Print it out or make your mark ups online
2. Mark notes on your lyric sheet
- Mark your breaths and circle the big ones *usually 3-4 big breaths in most songs
- Mark any scoops
- High notes
- Notes you hold out
- Words to emphasize, or lean into for emphasis
- Riffs or runs
- Phonetic spelling for easy pronunciation fixes
- And anything else that will help you map out the song
I go into how to mark your Vocal Roadmap in detail in my Free Vocal Workshop.
3. Look for the peak vocal moments.
It’s not uncommon to leave peak vocal moments on the table. You have to look for them! Each song has a dynamic build with high points in the music and lyrics—usually in the chorus. You want to increase the vocal intensity as you move through the song to create an emotional journey for the audience.
The emotional expression of the song should always guide your decisions as well. Putting emphasis on key words in the lyric and not on the unemotional words such as “and”, “but”, “the” etc.
4. Examples of some of the ways you can create peak vocal moments are:
- Dynamic builds in the arc of the song – peaks AND valleys. The valleys also build the peaks. Don’t sing your song all on one volume or belt, you’ll lose the opportunities to create peak moments
- Crescendo: a vocal note that builds more volume as you hold it out. Try increasing the volume on particular words, phrases or sections to create peak moments.
- High notes strategically placed at peak moments.
- Runs + riffs strategically placed at peak moments. Where you place little runs or bigger riffs can add excitement and peaks in the song. Look for places where it is natural to add embellishments.
- Held notes strategically placed – Holding your voice out after a stop in the music (this wows audiences when done right). Holding out notes in general creates more drama and emotion for the audience. Look for where you can hold notes out in your song at peak moments.
- Vibrato: When you hold a note out, try singing with a straight tone first and then more into vibrato. This creates an emotional effect for the audience.
- Scooping into a word can add more emotion vs. singing the note straight on. Good scoops always move into the center of pitch and are barely noticeable but add emotion.
- There are more but those are the main ones! Try them and see what you can bring to your song!
5. Rehearse with your vocal roadmap to help reinforce the movements.
6. Then let go of the roadmap in final rehearsals marking the notes in your memory. Mapping your song this way will help get all of the technical pieces of your performance in the backdrop of your mind where they belong so you can focus on the performance!
I hope this helps you nail your vocal arrangement at your next performance. Watch as the audience responds to those peak moments!!
What would it feel like to sing your heart out with a transformed voice performing to thousands of people by the end of the year? Watch my FREE Vocal Workshop and find out how! Click here to watch now.
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Cari Cole is the CEO / Founder of caricole.com and CCVM: Label Without Walls. She is a Holistic Vocal Coach, Artist Development Expert, A&R Director, and Songwriter based in New York City helping artists for the past 38 years. She is a mentor for Women in Music and The Association of Independent Music Publishers.
Her latest venture, CCVM a label services company, provides artists with a seamless path from creation to completion. After 30+ years of observing the overwhelm and challenges that artists face, Cari pulled together the best top creative professionals and designed a new approach to supporting our artists.
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