Singing Secrets: A Practical Guide to Interpretations

By Jackson Caesar

SINGING SECRETS
A Practical Guide to Interpretations

Have you ever met someone who was simply amazing (for example, a sports icon)? Where everything about them intrigued you? It's as if they had a secret and left us with FAQs. "How did they do that?" "Where did they come from?" or "What is their 'IT' factor?" To these ends, this innovative, attention-grabbing guidebook is packed with information to answer the most common questions: What are the singing secrets? What are those things singers do privately before their public demonstrations? What are the recipes or solutions to vocal challenges and stage performances?

The author uses a specialized approach to singing and winning audiences, focused on seven interpretations. All of these interpretations are expressions used as a way of explaining something stylistically, creatively, or dramatically. They offer distinct and enlightening ways of seeing and understanding the differences between a performer and an entertainer. The singing secrets are designed to train and equip students not only to sing well, but also to understand how to communicate and how to leave strong impressions on their audiences. Uniquely, the information found in this book is not limited to singers, but it's also valuable to Public Speaker's and Actors as well.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Aug 15, 2023
• ISBN: 9798890748263

Book preview

PREFACE

MY GENESIS ROUTE TO SINGING AND TEACHING

First, let’s be clear, this book is not intended to be an instructional manual on how to sing. Nor is it presumed to match any academic or scholastic works on the subject. Rather, if anything, it is a practical and informative guide. But let’s start from the beginning so that you can have a sense of how this idea all came to be.

This book developed during my experience as a private teacher from home. Unquestionably, I knew it had to be music-related. I decided to teach what I knew best, voice and piano. At first, I had no desire to teach, and resisted this path for years, especially because my singing career was going fairly well, and of course, as with anyone, who wouldn’t enjoy stardom or fame? Moreover, I began working from home as a coach/instructor, and fortunately for me, by word of mouth, my teaching business picked up. But the only thing I could do through my teaching was to pass along the insights I had gained in my childhood, middle, and high school years, from my church and religious experiences, and from college and stage performances.

Singing: My Genesis

I was born Benjamin Jackson Caesar, and raised in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (my parents called me Ben). As with many African Americans, church was the community that kept us grounded and together. Our denomination was Pentecostal. Pentecostalism is a religious faith that believes in direct accession to God by the way of being spiritually baptized by God’s Holy Spirit. The Pentecostal environment fosters belief in freedom of expression that sparks infectious energy throughout the congregation. When I was growing up in the church, it was a requirement to have the youth involved in as many church activities as possible, like singing in the youth choir, participating in Vacation Bible School, and attending Sunday school and Friday night youth services. These activities were designed to keep the youth off the streets and out of trouble.

Singing in the youth choir was my greatest desire! At my church, we had great mentorship and some of the best singers and musicians in the area. I began singing in the church at age six. But not everyone thought I had a good singing voice. As a boy, I didn’t really fit in with the crowd, nor did I follow trends. I had always listened to my own heartbeats and rhythms, and this was what made me different. Like many young people, I wanted to fit in and be accepted. As you can imagine, because I didn’t follow the trends, I was teased and talked about by my peers for being unique, different, or in their words, weird. They would say hateful and mean things such as: You sound like a girl! You can’t sing! You talk and sing white! You’re not Black (or Black enough). You just need to get out of the way. I became discouraged and eventually lost my first desire, to sing. I spent the next six years focusing on other church activities. I became an avid reader. It was my understanding at an early age that I didn’t want anyone to go through what I went through, and I committed myself to becoming more like my mentors in the church. I desired to learn as much about God and the Bible as I could. I wanted to help and lead in the right direction, according to the teachings of the Bible.

My parents had been divorced since I was three years old, and although I was raised by and lived with my mother, my father was present throughout my childhood. He would come over often to take me out. However, there was no musical support from my parents other than participating in church music activities. Moreover, when I was living with my mother, she worked often and was rarely at home. My mother, who knew I enjoyed music, didn’t really encourage or discourage it, but did say that it wouldn’t pay the bills. My father pretty much felt the same way, and he also wanted me to toughen up and participate in more manly things such as sports. During my adolescent years of being bullied, teased, and beaten up (because I chose not to fight), my parents felt that my life would be in danger if I didn’t learn to defend myself. My father got me involved in boxing and martial arts. Ironically, I approached those activities as art forms, as opposed to defense classes. I was often told that I was too delicate and graceful with my attacks. Music was still a part of my heart: I wanted to sing.

When I was in the seventh grade, I attended Webster Middle School. The school choir was in concert at one of our assemblies, under the direction of Mr. William Calvin. I was blown away by their amazing harmonies, song selections, talented singing, and professionalism.

I had never heard singing like this in the church. One of my favorite memories was when the guys in the choir sang an ensemble piece called Viva La More! (a favorite): they put the KOOL into singing in a choir. I thought to myself, Man, I would love to be a part of that group, I know I can do it! Later, the school put on a talent show. I decided to enter it to check out my skills. Mr. Calvin heard me and asked me to consider joining the choir and the boy’s ensemble. It was in the tender year of 1987 when I officially returned to music.

During my eighth grade year, I began to experience a voice change. My voice, to my surprise, was no longer in a soprano (higher) range. I actually had a normal/regular voice, just like my peers. I was so excited to see that I was getting taller and that my voice had changed. My parents didn’t pay much attention to me during these times, so they didn’t realize that I had returned to music. It was also during the time that I was introduced to my first Negro Spiritual, Deep River by Harry T. Burleigh. This composition allowed me to discover my vocal range. Mr. Calvin knew that I would struggle on the higher notes, so he allowed me to learn the baritone arrangement. When I graduated from the eighth grade, Mr. Calvin asked where I would attend high school. I told him about Northwest Classen High School. Mr. Calvin knew of the school and its music reputation and referred me to both Mr. Mears, the music teacher at that time, and the former music teacher of that school, Mr. Platt, who had retired but taught private voice lessons near the high school.

Nothing will work unless you do!

– MAYA ANGELOU

Fast forward to 1989, my freshman year at Northwest Classen High School in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. In addition to boxing and martial arts, I was involved in other sports (none of which involved a ball) such as track and field, gymnastics, and wrestling. As you can see, these were all total-body-workout sports, and I still had a graceful approach for all of them. But at least these sports gave the physical appearance that I was a tough guy or that I could defend myself. Eventually, I did build up the courage to defend myself and stand my ground, and all the bullying, teasing, and fights ceased. Now, fourteen years old, active in school sports, clubs, and choir, all of a sudden, I was accepted into social groups and communities. It was a great feeling! I was blending in and normal-ish.

Finally, I was accepted into the high school choir as a baritone singer. I was so excited to finally get to sing low and have a normal and acceptable singing voice. But then something happened that changed my high school experience. The school choir was in a rehearsal working on Battle Hymn of the Republic (Octavo SSATTBB with piano, by William Steffe, arranged by Peter Wilhousky, January 1, 1954). There’s a beautiful section in the music where the male voices break into the most beautiful four-part a cappella harmonies. Unfortunately, the tenor section struggled to get their parts together. I was sitting there listening to the teacher go over their parts repeatedly. Frustrated and impatient, I yelled out, Man, I can do that, come on fellas, get it together! The music teacher, already exasperated, pounded on the piano hitting random distorted chords, then yelled out and said, Oh yeah, well, if you think you’re so smart and talented, then why don’t you come down here and sing it! I obliged and made my way down to the front. There were two tenor lines, Tenor-1 and Tenor-2. I sang the Tenor-1 line flawlessly. The whole choir gasped, and all I could hear was Hey, you’re a tenor! Honestly, I wasn’t happy about being a tenor, especially after being teased for having a higher voice most of my life. Here I am, finally accepted as a normal and acceptable voice only to find out that once again, I have a unique voice. My choir teacher pulled me over to the side and said, I could use you in our tenor section. I literally started crying and said Nooo! He said, Trust me, I’ve got someone I want you to meet.

In 1990, Mr. Mears referred me to Mr. John Platt (founder of the Cry Slurs Choir of Northwest Classen High School and the former music teacher of the school). He eventually became my very first voice teacher. Mr. Platt knew that my parents didn’t have the money, and even with my part-time job at McDonald’s, I couldn’t afford his rates. But he took me in anyway. When I began lessons with him, like many beginners, I would hold back for fear of making mistakes. I tried so hard to sound good, I didn’t want to look bad, or make any mistakes. I was very hard on myself because I really wanted to do well. I would see Mr. Platt twice a week after track and field practice. Mr. Platt was another male figure in my life who believed in me and gave me hope for my dreams. The voice lessons allowed me to understand and appreciate my tenor voice (even though I was in my puberty period) and how the male voice functions.

Mr. Platt helped me to understand that it was okay to sing high as a male as long as it was done comfortably and naturally. Mr. Platt introduced me to the 24 Italian Songs and Arias of the 17th & 18th Centuries from the Schirmer Library of Classics collection book. The word aria is an Italian word that literally means air, but it is used as music terminology to refer to a solo piece.

Mistakes are a fact of life, it’s the response to the error that counts.

– NIKKI GIOVANNI

Important lessons I’ve learned from Mr. Platt, that I pass on, are:

1. There are no high notes, just notes. Don’t be afraid of them, love the all of the notes, even the high notes. (Mr. Platt, helped me to find the courage.)

2. Ninety percent of what you do is by your ear. (Mr. Platt taught me to be aware of what’s going on in the music as well as the melody line.)

3. Sing as though you were in a good mood.

4. Appreciate the voice/instrument that God gave you.

Taking voice lessons helped me to explore the possibilities, return to my love for music, and develop freedom and effortless flexibility.

He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life.

– MUHAMMAD ALI

Famous people such as Vince Gill and a pop and r&b group called Color Me Badd attended this school. Hence, the pressure was on for me to try to fill those shoes. I figured, it won’t be long, and soon I’ll be famous as well. From time to time, we would have former choir members visit the school and surprise the music teacher and sometimes sing with us. Members of Color Me Badd showed up and joined the choir in rehearsal. We were all star-struck (for obvious reasons) because they were former students and also famous! I had a chance to rehearse with them, and why did they allow that? I had it in my mind that they were going to recruit me, but that didn’t happen. They were just being nice to let me sing and rehearse with them.

We all have dreams. But in order to make dreams come into reality, it takes an awful lot of determination, dedication, self-discipline, and effort.

– JESSE OWENS

Moreover, there was a student by the name of Demetrius Gibson, a super-talented singer who won the talent show my freshman year of school. He was one of my greatest inspirations. In my sophomore year, I decided to compete, and to my surprise, I took first place! The following year, I took first place again, but in my senior year (I was already popular), I took second place. In addition to the talent shows, I was also taking part in the local and state choral and solo competitions through my high school, in which I was also placing first. As you can see, the voice lessons actually helped in building my confidence and joy in singing. It wasn’t long before I was not only singing in the tenor section of the choir, but eventually became so good at singing that I was the section leader of the tenor section. I also joined the smaller ensembles and formed a male quartet and became one of the lead vocalists. By the age of 16, I decided I’d try singing in the church again. Finally, I was accepted, and it wasn’t long before I was singing solos in the church youth choir.

Lunchtime in high school was the meet-up spot for students to compete in sports, poetry, rap, and singing. There were many huddles and groups. We all looked forward to our one-hour lunch periods. I would compete against other students by singing the latest pop and r&b hits. I’ll never forget it. This school had a reputation for great talent. Moreover, I was gaining my own fame around the school. Not only was I a singer in the choir, but I participated in the school talent show competitions and the choral solo competitions. My high school years were tremendously busy. I was an athlete as a track and field runner, a wrestler, a gymnast, and a martial artist. I was also involved in the yearbook club, the Black history club, and the social club. My popularity in school made me feel as if I was finally accepted and loved, so much that I never wanted to return home. I began spending my evenings with friends from high school and church. More than that, I was also now attractive. The girls in school were flocking to me. I never had to pursue them, they came after me. It was a wonderful experience to be a pop star in high school.

My mother and father were so overwhelmed with me because not only was I involved heavily with school activities, but I was also involved in my church. So, as you can imagine, I was hardly home (I didn’t watch much television). My parents weren’t too supportive of the arts unless it involved Jesus and the church. My parents would always say that all of this singing in the school wouldn’t pay the bills and that I needed to focus on other things. I thought it was strange that, when it came to music in school, that was when they had a problem, but when it came to sports and church, there were no issues. I’ll never forget the day my mother said, Ben, I’m so tired of seeing that school… I have other children! I was so hurt. I had to accept the fact that she was right, but I still felt that she no longer wanted to support me.

In my junior and senior years of high school, I was becoming a young man and growing more responsible. There were college and university scouts looking for students to offer scholarships during these competitions. I hadn’t considered college, nor did I know anything about scholarships. Moreover, I was offered two scholarships, one from Langston University (Langston, Oklahoma) and one from the University of Central Oklahoma (formerly Central State University). I enrolled at the University of Central Oklahoma to pursue a music degree. While in school, I was invited to attend a singles service at a megachurch. The name of the church was the Cathedral of Praise World Outreach Center. The church had a dynamic music department, and I later joined the church and was an active member of their music department. I lasted a year and a half in college and later dropped out when I received a high-paying job during the summer working for Sprint. I was a financially independent man and living my singing dream at the megachurch. Once again I was gaining popularity and notoriety, performing regularly for various church services and events. I was heavily involved in the church for about seven or eight years, and I eventually got burned out. I had experienced so much stress from my family and my church that I decided to make a move. I decided that I needed a faster pace of life. I put in for a transfer on my job and came to Washington, DC, in the fall of 2002.

For two years (2002–4) I didn’t sing, I only took private lessons on piano. I needed a break from singing, not music. I wanted to try another instrument. That didn’t last long. In 2004, one of my uncles passed away and I was asked to sing at his funeral service. That experience brought me back into the singing circle. Since that experience, I began receiving invitations to sing for other funerals, weddings, and special events. Throughout all of these invitations, I was often asked: Who are you studying with? Where did you take lessons? None of them asked where I was from. Many assumed that I was a local and that I studied in the area. This was a culture shock and a strange experience, because where I’m from, whenever we met people we didn’t know or would like to know, the first thing we wanted to know was where they were from, not their résumé or credentials. This inspired me to return to school and pursue a degree in music. I felt, wow, these people really do appreciate music and the arts (on an academic level) around here! I was referred to one of my aunt’s friends to take piano lessons. My teacher was a 90-year-old man by the name of Nelson Logan. I took lessons from him for about