Hello there,
I'm needing some ideas for repertoire for a few students of mine as we head
back into the studio in preparation for the annual High School Solo Ensemble
Contests/Adjudication.
I have all of the "standard" repertoire used, but am wanting to find
something a little more interesting, but still accessible. Unfortunately, I
don't have the time to go spend a few hours at the music store playing
through music, and was hoping I could glean some helpful suggestions from
those on the list. Here's what I need:
2 gentlemen/both seniors in high school. They are both tenors, and can easily
sing in their head voices around A/Bflat/C. However, since their voices are
not mature yet, I would like to find material that is melodious and lyrical
and does not require them to sustain for extended amounts of time in the
upper areas. Interestingly though, both singers have a richer timbre to
their voice that would allow them to convincingly sing songs with a little
heavier lyrical content.
Repertoire we have been working on. Ralph Vaughn Williams, Shubert lieder,
Wolf. Some other ideas I have had, have been R.Quilter (Five Shakespeare
songs), Ned Rorem, Handel, John Jacob Niles, Italian standards,
Cornelius.....but haven't found that magical song yet. I know I'm overlooking
something obvious.
2 ladies: Both sopranos, one very light and high, other high, but darker
color....perhaps leaning more towards the mezzo-ish side as she matures. Both
love to do musical theatre, but are also classically trained musicians and
can handle music that is a little more difficult. For the lighter soprano, I
am looking for something along the lines of "Bel piacere". For the mezzo, I
was thinking something along the lines of Black Swan/Menotti (?), or Must the
Winter come so soon?.......
Last, does anyone know of a comprehensive list that includes the most widely
used songs and who sings them, for many of the major musical theatre
productions past and present. There are many compilation books out there, as
well as individual musical theatre songbooks, but I have had difficulty
finding a resource that lists character roles, and songs by category and
style.
Thank you for any help and input,
Mary Beth Felker
The Voice Project
SLS Associate
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