The end of the semester and DG9005 has arrived so soon and I can’t believe I’ll be bidding this module goodbye very soon! The past few weeks have been really fun and eye-opening and I have no regrets signing up for this module at the start of the sem.
When it came down to picking a song I wanted to do for Presentation 2, I decided to do one of my all-time favourites, At Last, a slow and jazzy ballad by Etta James. I first fell in love with this song when it was covered by Beyoncé when she sang it at Barack Obama’s inauguration. The song has also been covered by many other artistes including Christina Aguilera and Jessie J.
I practiced the song many times leading up to Presentation Day, mostly with my close friends recording me so I could firstly play it back and hear what I was doing right or wrong and also get their feedback on my vocal arrangement.
Unfortunately, about 4 days prior to the performance, I fell really ill and had a horrible cough and throat. I loaded up on Four Legs cooling water, grass jelly drinks and refrained from spicy or oily food and recovered just enough to make it through the song (thank God!) on the day itself.
Not my best (and I’ll explain why later) but here goes:
Self-evaluation:
First off, I felt that there was an overall shortness of breath in some parts (including the opening note) and my voice was a little shaky. Not gonna make excuses and blame the phlegm but I guess a learning point here would really to ensure to take in a sufficient amount of air and really control that diaphragm to ensure a steady release.
I also felt that although I had spent a significant amount of time warming up prior to the performance, it wasn’t enough and my high notes got a little ‘shouty‘ especially at 1:34 and 1:52.
What I did like about my performance were the falsetto notes at the end and I guess the biggest positive point was that I genuinely had fun performing on that stage.
It’s a pity that DG9005 has come to an end but the lessons and tips / techniques that have been taught to us by Leona will always come in handy whenever I get to perform again. Super proud of everyone in Dulce for excelling and improving greatly!
Hey Duane! What a way to start the class last week! You completely owned the stage and set the bar so high for the rest of us! I really admire your awesome stage presence and the way you commanded the stage. Your performance did not betray your being sick at all.
I really enjoy the tone of your voice, especially at the final run of notes in your falsetto. It really brings out and complements the light and playful feel of the instruments. You’ve also yet again successfully emphasised the emotions in the song by playing with your voice and the way you inflect. Also your pitch accuracy during your vocal runs is to die for.
Fantastic job!
Let me just start off by saying that I loved it and still love your performance. Etta James would be proud cause honestly it was good. The runs were on point, your transition from chest to head voice, vibrato and all was good! You managed to incorporate a varying contrast of strength and lightness to your notes, which I feel requires a lot of control over your voice. Stage presence wise, you owed it. It felt natural and suited for the song you sang. Overall I don’t have much to say, except that I really enjoy it and that you have a wonderful voice 🙂
Duane, every time I hear you voice, I have goosebumps. I like that you picked this jazzy number, there was so much of groove in your tone! I know that you were a little under the weather, but I saw you at rehearsal. I thought to myself, “Damn, that guy has pipes”. It has been a pleasure to see you grow, as a performer. <3
Hi Duane!
I really enjoyed your performance. Your voice is really versatile and you pulled off the vibrato and runs really well. Your vocal control is on point too! As you transition from gentle tones to a more powerful projection. You didn’t seem to go off pitch and the emotion was delivered well too! you have great stage presence too!
Great job!
Hi Duane!! Your performance was an awesome kick start to the day itself! Really love your powerful and strong voice, as well as falsetto and how you really enjoy singing on the stage!!! Really wanted to move along as you sung but I was holding on to the cam HAHA. Will really love to hear you sing more! 😀
Hello Duane,
First to start and you made everyone speechless. You had great stage presence and I love the way you place certain emphasis on the lyrics. No one could tell that you are sick and I think you did well. The riffs and vocal runs were well controlled.
Hey Duane! Awesome performance! Your gestures and facial expressions really brought out the mood of the song ? Your riffs and high notes were stunning and strong, it shows off your vocal ability well. Good arrangement of the song, it was varied and allowed you to emote each sentence uniquely. I think when compared to the rehearsal, your voice here was not as smooth, but probably because of the cold. I think another thing you could try is to walk around the stage and have more audience engagement or make your gestures bigger. You’re definitely capable of making the performance more dramatic :p
Hey Duane!
You have a really powerful and strong vocal as always!! I really love how you portray the classical image through your stage presence and body gestures keeping the whole stage chill and relax! Really hope to hear you sing more even after DG9005 ended!!
Cheers,
Joseph
Hey Duane!
You’re a big inspiration to me, you’ve got such a powerful yet sincere voice. The breath control was on point and emotions were all there. It came together very well. Nothing really to fault about your performance but yea, like you mentioned the first note does feel a little shaky but man, with a voice like that, i don’t think anyone noticed it anyway haha. Looking forward to seeing you perform again!
Hey Duane! Really amazing presentation! Writing comments for you is always difficult if we’re required to write ways you can improve on haha!! Your technique, voice, pitch control and emphasis were all really on point! It’s like this song is meant for you to sing! Your singing and stage presence felt very natural too. I saw in the previous comments that you were sick but you didn’t sound like you were sick during your performance! Really amazing job!
From,
Wen Zuo
Hey Duane!
Great job on the performance! As always, you nailed it in your expression, stage performance and in your vocals even though you weren’t feeling well! You really set the bar REAL HIGH as the first person to perform for Presentation 2 HAHAHA but it was amazing :-)))))) HOPE TO HEAR YOU SING AGAINNNNNN
Hi Duane! Lovely vocals. I always can’t help but smile when I see you performing on stage because I feel so happy to hear you sing! Your vocal runs are super sick, the way you hover over a low note to bring about emphasis to that particular word, or when you hit the falsettos so smoothly, in that instant I can’t help but feel so shocked that you just did that with your voice. Really glad that I had the chance to hear you sing and perform, so thank you so much for that! I’ll be keeping up with the performances you put out! 🙂