Whether it’s acting in a play or reading at a poetry event, stage fright plagues many performers. Especially for members of UP’s University Singers, Bel Canto and Chamber Choir, singing in front of a crowd poses its own challenges and triumphs.
University Singers, Bel Canto and Chamber Choir will be performing “Music at the Movies!” on Feb. 15 at 5 p.m. in the Buckley Center Auditorium. Tickets are not required, and admission is free and open to the UP community and members of the public.
Ahead of “Music at the Movies!,” members of UP’s three singing groups spoke to The Beacon about overcoming performance anxiety, their musical inspirations and their favorite songs to get any singer out of a funk and into the zone come concert night.
Alto member of University Singers Emma Jeppesen is a jack of all musical trades. In addition to singing, Jeppesen has been a part of the University’s Wind Symphony and plays flute, piano and piccolo. The upcoming Feb. 15 concert makes for the fifteenth UP concert she’s performed in.
Though Jeppesen is no stranger to singing on stage, the singer still experiences nervousness before a concert.
“I've gotten pretty good at feeling the fear but doing it anyway,” Jeppesen said. “And that's honestly a great message of life in general, because there are certain things that are going to be scary, but you have to do [them].”
In addition to breathing exercises, thinking of random numbers and shimmying away the nerves, Jeppesen also listens to music to help motivate her singing and prepare her mind for a performance.
While Jeppesen’s musical inspirations range from classical music to “The Phantom of the Opera” soundtrack, Jeppesen’s favorite concert hype-up songs include “She Believes” by KING & COUNTRY, “Head Over Heels” by Tears for Fears and “Falling Behind” by Laufey.
Like Jeppesen, soprano Natasha Adamson is involved in various music groups on campus. Adamson is a member of University Singers and Chamber Choir and started her journey at UP as a music major, where she learned to sing classical music.
Adamson’s concert preparation begins the night before a concert and includes visualizing success, singing in the shower and learning the chorus music ahead of time.
But Adamson also says going up on stage with her choir community dispels performance anxiety.
“It’s just a really nice thought to know that you're not alone, and if something happens, you've got another 30 people who have your back,” Adamson said.
Importantly, Adamson cites three songs that help her prepare to perform. Her favorite listens include Laufey's “From the Start,” Natasha Bedingfield's “Pocket Full of Sunshine,” and Boney M.'s “Rasputin.”
“Every time I hear [“Rasputin”], I'm like, ‘You know what? I could run a mile right now,’” Adamson said. “It might also be like the physical conditioning of playing Just Dance. I'm like, OK, my lung capacity is full right now.”
Bel Canto singers Lily Wride and Riya Mathew both use intentional breathing to help wind down before a performance.
“When you stop breathing, you stop thinking,” Wride said. “And even if those thoughts are like, ‘What if this happens,’ just keep breathing because you'll breathe through it.”
For Wride, her artists in rotation include Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter and Gracie Abrams. The songs that help her prepare for concerts include “Please Please Please” by Sabrina Carpenter, “In the Stars” by Benson Boone and “Wait For Me” from the Broadway musical Hadestown.
“[“Wait For Me”] is such an ensemble-based piece, you need all of the parts for it to work,” Wride said. “That's kind of like what you do in choir. You need all of the parts to come together, and you need to just lock in and focus for this short piece you know you're singing.”
Mathew, who sings at a higher register as a soprano, also takes inspiration from Broadway singers like “Sound of Music’s” Julie Andrews and “Wicked’s” Kristin Chenoweth.
“[Chenoweth] is very much a coloratura, and I'm really trying to get to like coloratura status, which is like, a very, very high singing, very whistle tone, Mariah Carey type, ringing style,” Mathew said.
The songs which motivate Mathew ahead of a concert include Doechii’s “NISSAN ALTIMA,” Earth, Wind & Fire’s “Boogie Wonderland” and the “Chicago” soundtrack’s “Roxie.”
As for how Mathew handles stage fright, she says after she takes a breath and begins singing, her nerves disappear.
“Once I kind of get going in the song, it all just kind of goes away,” Mathew said. “It's nice being in a big choral group, because I kind of have solidarity with everyone around.”
A list of upcoming music performances, including “Music at the Movies!,” can be found here.
Camille Kuroiwa-Lewis is the Living Editor for The Beacon. She can be reached at kuroiwal26@up.edu.
