Music workshop in progress at The International School. Picture by Sanjoy Chattopadhyaya

From wannabe bathroom singers to semi-professionals, a group of music lovers were taken through their paces to understand the nuances of singing better at a workshop organised by musicians Joseph Azavedo, Ayan Sanyal and professor Dilip Shah of Bhawanipore Education Society.

Held on The International School premises on Sunday, the meet titled Towards Better Singing, was conceived post the recent fiasco at Science City, where over 15,000 people had turned up for the Fame Gurukul prelims.

?Since we have the technical expertise and knowledge, we thought this exercise may be fun and useful. For, there is obviously a huge interest in singing if you take the Science City incident as a reference point,? said Joseph, an associate of Trinity College, London, who can be heard regularly on violin and piano at the Calcutta School of Music concerts.

Along with one-man-orchestra Ayan Sanyal, who regales audiences at HHI with his prowess on the guitar, mouth organ and keyboards, the day-long workshop sought to acquaint the participants with a basic theory of music ? including notes, scales, key and time signatures, vocal ranges, chords and other techniques of voice modulation ? before culminating in a live recording by each of the participants.

The meet dealt with interesting techniques like trying to sing from the stomach and not the throat, and singing while standing up to utilise the full physical space of one?s body. ?Your diaphragm is suppressed when you are sitting,? coached Joseph.

One also learned that the kind of music one can sing best is not necessarily what one likes best. ?Singing is like a prolonged speech. Continuous practise can help you go high up on the scale,? smiled Joseph at one point.

Lessons into confidence building were also forthcoming. ?When you sing, you should be having fun. Put a few friendly faces in the audience (read friends and well-wishers) to cheer you on if you feel too nervous,? joked Joseph, while egging on a shy Class XIII student.

In contrast was the enthusiasm of 50 something housewife Ambika Devi, who has over 50 self-composed bhajans to her credit, and was here to pick up a few technical tips. Could we have more such workshops please?