*Kindly feel free to provide your feedback.*
Introduction
As a performer / arranger, you are the interpreter of the piece of music that you are going to perform, whether it’s a vocal or instrumental number.
Many musicians tend to cover existing songs for various reasons, some of which being: (i) they like the song; (ii) it’s popular with the crowd; (iii) somebody made a request; (iv) the song inspires them to do something about it.
So, before you pick up that song, why do you want to perform it?
And since you are going to perform it, what do you feel about the song?
Why do I pose such a question? These days we are divided between faithful representations and re-interpretations of existing music, and we do it for various reasons.
Several reasons for faithful representations:
(i) breed familiarity, especially for audiences who really like the original as a package of its own, and are not keen on hearing other interpretations, and for singers who are not able to handle re-interpretations, either because they are unwilling to do so, or they do not have the confidence doing so (which, amongst other reasons, could be due to a lack of rehearsal time, or lack of familiarity or confidence with certain styles);
(ii) certain performers and singers feel that the original arrangement is the best representation of the songwriters’ intentions, regardless if the arrangement was done by the composer or otherwise.
Several reasons for re-interpretations:
(i) Willingness to try something new, to give the song a fresh spin.
(ii) Dissatisfaction with the original arrangement.
(iii) The song is placed in a scenario, e.g. it is part of a theatrical scene.
Whether you are sticking closely to the original, or giving a song a new spin, what matters is that the performance must come from the heart. You need to enjoy what you’re performing. If music ever becomes a mundane activity – and a mundane job especially for us who are in it as a profession and a career – one should stop and reflect. Putting aside the issue of parents forcing us to take music lessons, do we remember the moments when we liked a song and wanted to play it ourselves, or how we thought up of a tune, or riff, that made us excited and made us create a composition? Or a composition and a performance picked on one of our emotions, and it felt like one of the good things we ever had? As an audience, we can feel what’s great about a performance, although sometimes we can’t really pinpoint why. And I feel that as musicians, we should bring such sensations to our audiences. It’s not about being cliched and pandering to audience’s tastes, it’s about bringing the gist of the song through performance (including arrangement) to them.
Starting out
First, think about how you would want to interpret a piece. Let’s put musical techniques aside for the moment. These are several suggested approaches to research.
i. Study the lyrics of the song. Find out what are the important points in the song that you’ll like to bring out.
ii. Study the relation between the melody and the lyrics at that point. Good composers and lyricists skillfully enhance the significance of particular messages by building a good relationship between the music and the words. E.g. most fundamental example: if the song talks about something sad, the tune could be given a minor harmonisation, or go really low (thereby sounding depressing).
iii. A bonus if you have the time: Study the backdrop in which the song was written. E.g. does it reflect a cultural phenomenon? If the song is part of a musical, at what point of the story does this musical number occur, and what is its function in relation the story?
Your interpretation will lead into the approaches that you make with these various musical aspects
***At this juncture, I am just covering the basic approaches.***
- Most of which are co-related, they complement one another in order to give you the effect that you desire.
- With your desired effects in mind, try out various possibilities until you are satisfied.
- However, do ensure that what you have chosen works in context with the larger arrangement – everything that you do has a meaning to it. You can also help your audience understand where you’re coming from.
- Sometimes, less is more! When you cover a song, the tune and lyrics are priorities.
Style: which musical style, and why?
Movement: how busy will your arrangement be. Will it be, e.g. filled with rapidly running notes, or simple, sustained chords?
Harmony
i. What kind of chords are you going to use?
ii. How are you going to voice your chords?
iii. Perhaps you might consider reharmonisation where appropriate, in order to better bring out a message or emotion in a particular point of the piece?
Texture: Full or sparse?
Frequency: Frequencies are divided: (i) low; (ii) low-mid; (iii) mid; (iv) high-mid; (v) high. Check out these frequencies and concoct your responses
Colour
i. Where will you put embellishments without conflicting with the main tune and lyrics that should receive priority?
ii. How can you concoct the desired atmospheric effect in the song?
Expression: how do you express the emotions and messages in the piece? How will you create your expressive arc? (Expressive arc: the direction in a piece containing your swells and diminishes. E.g. Verse 1: really soft; Verse 2: slightly louder; Chorus: much more louder etc.)
Instrumentation (includes the vocals, if any)
i. How do the motley of instruments function in the piece to achieve the desired effect?
ii. How should each musician play, so as to achieve the desired effect?
