Subject: Re: another question and whining
From: Jessica
To: VOCALIST <vocalist>
Send reply to: VOCALIST <vocalist>

Hi Sara, I will address your post bit by bit...

on 1/14/00 4:11 PM, Uranal-at-aol.com wrote:
> they say i wasnt picked bc i am too loud and i
> stick out too much...

Perhaps you are not blending your voice, which is critical for anyone who
wants to sing in a choral, not solo capacity. No one in a choir is a star,
the very nature of choral music is to blend, not stand out.

> but to this day i still cry that i was never
> picked for that and all of these other people who i think i am better than
> made it..

If you plan to make music your life, this will be the story of it. The only
thing you can do is move on and find a new opportunity. Cry, if you must,
for a moment, then get a move on, there are other fish to fry.

> this is my last year in high school and i have no other chances....

There are many other options other than high school choir. If you see this
as your only "chance", then you might be too narrowminded to make music your
career. Think outside the box, you yourself say that when you sing outside
school people love your voice, so... sing outside school. Find a community
theatre group, a volunteer choir, a youth choir, a church choir, sing at
nursing homes, something, anything, Make YOUR OWN opportunities -- it will
be a skill which will come in handy the rest of your musical life.

> ill find out where i stand in the real world i guess..
Yes you will - and you're finding it out now, in the world that you're in
for now. Wherever you are is where your world is. If you don't like it,
only you can change it. You mention time and again it "makes you sick" that
things haven't gone your way - you will only kill yourself with that -
eventually, you're right, it will make you sick. Rather than let it
negatively affect you, why not approach your music teacher and
NON-CONFRONTATIONALLY ask him/her what you need to do to improve. Don't
listen to your peers, ask the one who made the decision. Perhaps there is a
musical or a performance coming up in which you can participate if you ask -
you might not be in the upper choir, but I assume you're singing in the
other choir, and there must be opportunities in that for precial parts,
perhaps even solos? Also, remember, no one looking at a college application
is going to know which is the best choir to have been in at PS 143. The
thing that matters is your skills when you hit the audition stage.

How about private lessons? If you're sure you want to get into college for
music, you will need some help doing that - and all the choir work in the
world won't prepare you for auditions. While your peers are singing choir
music, you might best use that time to focus on your solo skills, which will
be what is tested when the time comes to try and get into a good music
school.

Good luck, keep a good attitude, and keep singing, whenever and wherever you
can.

Best of luck,
Jessica