In addition to our composition project, we are holding a Christmas showcase. One of the songs we’re performing is Band Aid’s ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’. When rehearsing it, we went over the chords and the lyrics of the chorus before adding singers for the rest of the song. I was playing the chords, while Phoenix played the root note, and a lead part for the chorus.
Something I need to work on is making sure that I get the dynamics right, as I should be playing quieter on the introduction, and louder throughout the chorus. If I played at the same velocity throughout then it could begin to sound quite boring pretty quickly.
I also need to learn and remember the chords, as during this rehearsal I was using a sheet which had them written on alongside the lyrics. At times I forgot to play with both hands which is something I should continue to work on. I did struggle with the middle 8 part too, as I wasn’t familiar with the chords and couldn’t get the rhythm right. To improve all of these I will make sure to practice often at home, and play along to the song.
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This was our first time rehearsing Jingle Bell Rock. It was difficult to learn without a singer there to help with cues, but I think as a band we managed to pick it up quite quickly. There is a lot to improve on to get it perfect (or close to) but after a few rehearsals we should be ready for the mock/final performances.
There were several points where I forgot the chords I was meant to be playing, which is something I can improve on by rehearsing the song at home as much as possible to prepare for the final performance. I was also heavily reliant on the chord sheet written on the board, so practising the song will help me memorise the structure, and therefore mean that I don’t have to keep referring back to the chord sheet.
At the beginning, I had the wrong sound on the keyboard. In future rehearsals, I need to make sure that I have the correct sound on before starting the song.
I think that we need to improve on the bridge/buildup part of the song, as at the moment all of the sections sound very blended together, and we seem to be playing at one dynamic throughout the entire song. This makes it sound quite boring, so to improve this we should make sure we keep the dynamics quieter for the chorus and louder for the verse, and also ensure that the bridge does actually build up.
Aside from this, I believe the song is coming together quite well. We managed to keep in time for the most part, and most of us knew the structure.
Personally, I need to continue to learn the song at home, as I still forgot to play some chords. Once I learn the song inside out and become more comfortable with it, I shouldn’t forget chords and I also shouldn’t need the chord sheet to refer to.
This was our first rehearsal as a band with a singer, which did ease a little bit of pressure as it made it slightly less difficult to remember the structure of the song, and what parts we were meant to be playing and when.
Despite a few technical issues, I think this rehearsal went very well considering it was the first rehearsal with all of the students. We all played our parts correctly and sound very tight as a group. I think once we’ve rehearsed it more, and are all comfortable with the song, it will sound great.
Within these rehearsals, I was still struggling to play Jingle Bell Rock. I was relying on the chord sheet too often, and couldn’t quite work out the structure of the song. Towards the end of the rehearsal, I was beginning to become more comfortable with playing the song, and the timing of it. I know now that I need to go home and practise it a lot in preparation for the final performance, as I don’t want to be using chord sheets and messing up timings when it comes to it.
I think that collectively as a band, we have done quite well to learn the three songs in such a short space of time.