Ben Shaw combined practice of 10/03/2013

During this practice, Sarah and I worked on a song each. With my song, we talked mostly about dynamics. With hers, we checked mostly for memorization, pausing to fix a subtle musical error. With this practice, I've developed the opinion that these practices would be more effective if we were coupled with people that were working on roughly the same things technically, and, if possible, with more similar voice types. I certainly wasn't focusing on dynamics, and, although Sarah's suggestions were useful, I found myself more interested in adding musical elements to these songs such as dynamics only after I was more comfortable with applying good technique. In addition, I certainly had a hard time making suggestions to Sarah. Her voice is virtually nothing like mine; less imposing, much higher, and much brighter. As such, a sound that is ideal for me certainly wouldn't be for her, just as an ideal sound for her certainly wouldn't be for me. Partnered practice is a good idea, I think, but I find it hard to improve myself as well as Sarah with such discrepancies between us.