Breathe!

Back to coaching R. and "Love Changes Everything". I asked him to add breath to the opening sounds, making the character seem (ironically) more breathless. Using a lot of breath in the sound means you have to breathe more, and any singer worth his salt will then have to work out where to breathe that makes sense with the words. In R.'s language, this made him come "off the voice" - he couldn't use the central core of tone that he normally has, as using breath interferes with the process. The result from that one instruction was surprising, even by my standards. I had tingles listening to him, and all the hair stood up on the back of my neck. Those of you who know me (or have seen my photograph) know that this is no mean feat. As with many singers, if you give R. a clear instruction, he follows it to the letter. He also said it was much easier to sing, and made the climax easier, bigger and more exciting.