Over the past few days I’ve had a myriad of people come to sing for me in the hope of being able to join Dolce. The standard of those singers was very high, and unfortunately I had to turn away some superb singers, such is the demand for places in Dolce. We now have 81 members, an incredible growth from the 16 we started with in 2005!
Auditioning, as an adult, is much more difficult than one might imagine. As children we’re used to standing up in front of a teacher, parent or person in authority, and we expect to be corrected and told what we’re doing wrong. As adults we’re used to being that person in authority, we’ve become accustomed to being the corrector, not the corrected, the one in the know, the expert in our own field. Suddenly we have to gather our courage and enter a place where we fear we may be made feel like a child again. We’re nervous, sweating, shaking and wondering if it’s worth it. Then we open our mouths, and our voice shakes as we try to sing. Our worst nightmare, and this all for a hobby!
I understand those fears. I remember as a child bemoaning the fact that I’d got my favourite chord wrong in a long piece in a competition and my teacher got me to focus on the number of notes I got right! I’ve auditioned for choirs myself, and gone through pleasant and not so pleasant experiences. In Dolce auditions I try to make the auditions as painless as possible, listen to the voice behind the shakes, give positive feedback.
For those who will be auditioning in the future: I can’t take away your fears, all I can do is hear the good, tell you what’s good, and applaud your courage for taking this step.
