New Space = New Instrument

There is a very steep learning curve to setting up a sound system in a new space. If you’re a sound-intensive group, like a vocal jazz ensemble or an a cappella group, it’s very likely that you’re going to sing out of tune when the system first goes on in a new space. Slowly, with sufficient sound check time, you will learn how to hear in the new room, and adjust accordingly.

I told my students tonight that it’s a little like a violist being handed a new instrument on a concert night. Sure, it’s still a viola. But there will be substantial learning needed for the player to really know the instrument and play as well as they play on a familiar instrument.

This can be a little scary at first–all that hard work in rehearsal, and then you get into the performance hall and can’t sing in tune. Knowing that the process will allow you to learn the space and sing into it can go a long way toward reassuring yourself that any challenges are temporary.