My Dad is always sending me little snippets of positivity, articles that he reads and thinks may help me to focus on a particular task or perk me up when I have preparation to complete for a concert or recital. Today was no different he knows that I have three important projects on the go at the moment and wanted to give me something to think about.
The article was from a blog (www.sunilbali.com) and dealt with positive attitude and overcoming obstacles placed in our way. I read the article based on the training techniques adopted by swimmer Michael Phelps and how under the guidance of his trainer Bob Bowman he went on to become the most decorated Olympian of all time. During his time competing he won 22 Olympic medals which included 18 gold.
The method used by Phelps and his mentor to achieve his successes was based around the idea that no matter what obstacle you face it is your response to that determines the outcome. (Event + Response = Outcome)
I have entered 100s of competitions, festivals and auditions during my training and although I was successful in many of them it was the ones that I missed out on that sometimes helped me the most. The critique and guidance that I received from the adjudicators and judges gave me things to work on, improvements to aim for.
I actually enjoy finding things that I need to improve and the new challenges that brings. At first it’s hard to swallow but I’m working on something right now with my singing and it’s hard and I know it will take a while but I know that it is going to be worth it in the end and make me a better musician.
When I was studying at the Junior RNCM a conductor, Dane Lam, who taught us as an ensemble recommended the British Youth Opera as a great way to improve our understanding of an Opera Company and get some invaluable training. So back in January I decided to audition for the British Youth Opera when they came to the RCS. I had been working on the performance element of my singing and wanted to see how I held up under the pressure of an audition. Can you imagine my excitement when I received a call back to attend a second audition in London?
That is why I was down in London last weekend staying with my brother 🙂 The audition was a fantastic experience and I enjoyed every minute of it. Last week I received an email to tell me that I had been successful and could I attend a week’s workshop in the summer. This will be a wonderful opportunity I’m very excited.
Update on the Artist Signal Competition:
I would like to say a BIG THANK YOU 🙂 to everyone who supported me in the Artist Signal competition during February. My page went live on the 7th February and I posted five classical tracks on the site and entered the fray at position #1684 .
So what did I learn from the event?
Preparation is key. I entered the competition without fully understanding how it operated and how to get my songs heard by the people who visited the site. I had to learn quickly and think on my feet or face the possibility of getting lost in the crowd. I had no rewards to encourage people to vote multiple times for me and I loaded all of my tracks free to download which I was advised was not a smart thing to do by the winner of the competition.
What was my response?
My response was to communicate with other artists and voters and try and put over my interests and goals in as positive a way as possible. I tried to encourage people to listen to my songs and let me know what they thought of them.
The Outcome
During the competition I received many messages of encouragement from friends both old and new and I was excited to see my position change as I climbed through the chart. By the closing date I managed to make position #25 with over 11,000 votes and over 30,000 individual Facebook likes. In their classical chart my five songs took the top 5 places and in their overall chart they were all in the top 9 ‘Top Songs’ for the month.
