PROJECT PROPOSAL (UNIT 12 – PROJECT PROPOSAL)

 

Name

Hannah Holmes

Pathway

UAL Level 3 Extended Diploma in Music Performance and Production

Project title

Performance - Well-being in Industry, Road to Recovery.

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Section 1: Context (approx. 300 words)

Over this course I have learnt a lot of new skills such as performance, songwriting, events management and production. My favourite skill of which I have developed is performance, projects where I have performed are both Christmas and Halloween gigs, the on-road shows, the Philharmonic gig however, a standout project that represents this for me would be, the “skills development” project. This is when we worked on our solo pieces, I sang Grenade by Bruno Mars. This song was personally challenging for me and out of my comfort zone however, with consistency during my singing lessons I managed to do it. I particularly struggled with the note at the end going into the last chorus but with plenty of practice I managed to achieve it. During the actual performance I was very comfortable singing this song, disregarding the challenges of it. My songwriting skills developed during the What a Wonderful world project when we were given the task to create our own song in our bands, the rest of the band worked on the instrumentation of the song meanwhile me and another member of the band worked on the lyrics, I think this assignment helped my songwriting skills develop in a great amount as it helped me realise what my personal method was to writing a song. My events management skills were put into practice during the genres project me and Kacey done the role of stage manager, this gave me more knowledge on what stage managers do in the industry, we auditioned performers, created a setlist, gave performers a running order for the day.  My production skills were put into practice during the genres project as well as what a wonderful world project, during what a wonderful world project we composed original songs and then had to go through the mixing process. During the genres gig we created our own original compositions, we had to do the recording and mixing process independently, at first I struggled with this yet over time and after finding out what works best for me it was easy, mixing is something I would like to continue working on in order for me to improve and achieve my best potential in that skill. For my FMP I will be doing performance due to all the strengths I have listed earlier on, I will also be researching wellbeing in the industry focusing on different singers past experiences, researching struggles as well as best moments and how they got to where they are now. I will be researching what they do to prepare for performances and finding what works best for me out of them so I can do them to prepare for a performance, as performing is what I enjoy the most.

 

 

Section 2: Research (approx. 50 words)

For my research I will be focusing on well-being in the music industry, researching artists that have struggled with the likes of addiction, depression and anxiety and how they overcame their personal problems, as well as what they do in preparation for their performances to avoid going back to old habits and to achieve their best potential. I will also be trying to find statics and data on people in the industry who have struggled with mental health problems. I will be taking into consideration what these artists do in preparation for their concerts and doing these things myself, discovering what is best for me to do to prepare for performances. For my primary research I will be collecting statics off my class mates an example of this would be a rating of how they feel before performing and if it is negative what they do to prevent this feeling. For the secondary research I will be researching interviews where the artists talk about their experiences in the industry focusing on the themes of wellbeing, addiction, anxiety and depression.

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Section 3: Problem Solving (approx. 100 words)

An issue that I could face would be not having the correct facilities available to me when I need to practice my songs for my performance, practice rooms may not always be available, therefore I will need to use my time management skills to make sure that I have enough time to have my songs fully prepared for my performance, I can do this by booking practice rooms, prioritise working on my performance pieces during singing lessons, as well as regular lessons using the practice time well.

 

Another issue I could face would be falling behind when learning my song, not specifically because of my doing, but because other members of the band are more likely to be in more than one band so will have multiple priorities. I would prevent this issue by giving my band mates deadlines on when I would like for them to be complete so we can make regular progress without too much pressure.

 

Another thing I may struggle with would be struggling to find the information I want for my research as I am looking for specific personal experiences. I will prevent this issue by finding videos of the artist speaking about their experiences, so I know that the information I have found is reliable, as it is coming from the artist rather than an article.

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Section 4: Planning and Production (approx. 50 words)

I plan to begin with my research finding out personal experiences from artists, I plan to give myself two weeks to research each artist this will give me plenty of time to gather all information and organise it properly, my aim is to then find songs to perform some by the artists I am researching others that I think will show my best potential when performance. As I have mentioned I will be researching each artist for the duration of two weeks per artist so I can get as much information as possible on each artist. I will also give myself two weeks to learn each song I am doing going over songs I have completed to keep them up to standard.

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Section 5: Practical Skills (approx. 100 words)

The practical skill I will need is performance skills. I need these practical skills to give an entertaining performance this is because, I plan on for my final piece to perform in front of an audience. I plan on selecting songs by artists that I have completed research on using methods the artists do to prepare for a gig, I will also take into consideration how they present themselves on stage to reach their target audience. The practical outcome of my research will be that I will being doing vocal warmups and what the artists do to prepare for a performance two weeks prior to the gig to find what works best for me.

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Section 6: Evaluation and Reflection (approx. 100 words)

Throughout my project I will be logging my weekly progress. Noting down what I do each week and how that will help me with my final project. I will note what I do during my singing lessons as well as practical sessions for band rehearsals. I will assess issues I face during these sessions and how I can or have already overcome them. I will also upload videos from my sessions as well as at home rehearsals as a visual representation of what I have rehearsed. I would like to set personal targets and deadlines on when I would like to complete the songs to know myself as well as setting targets for when I would like for my band mates to learn them by, making sure we do not fall behind schedule throughout the project or if we are ahead of schedule that we still thoroughly use out rehearsal time. After my project I will evaluate what went well and not so well, looking at my strengths and areas for personal improvement.

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Section 7: Presentation (approx. 100 words)

The work I will be doing will be presented in a performance which I plan to do in a band, doing songs by artists I have chosen for my research. I will be presenting my research in an essay exploring themes, such as addiction, anxiety, depression and many underlying struggles artists have. I will focus on artists that have been open about their experiences with these struggles and how they overcame it, as well as what they do to prepare for concerts, so their best version of themselves is performing on that stage. I will be presenting my weekly progress on a project diary which will show where I am up to with my work what problems I have faced and how I have prevented them, at the end of the project I will be completing and evaluation to fully assess how it went.

 

 

Anon (2019). Rocketman, Elton John, on Surviving Addiction and Living Sober. [online] Available at: https://www.addictionhelper.com/addiction/rocketman-elton-john-on-surviving-addiction-and-living-sober/

Anon (n.d.). How Do Music Artists Prepare For Live Performances? | Record. [online] Available at: https://unionrecstudios.com/blog/how-do-music-artists-prepare-for-live-performances/.

Anon (2025). 15+ Stage Performance Techniques + Ideas. [online] Available at: https://www.gemtracks.com/resources/guides/view.php?title=stage-performance-techniques&id=1077

Anon (n.d.). 5 steps to prepare for a successful live show. [online] Available at: https://artists.bandsintown.com/support/blog/5-steps-to-prepare-for-a-successful-live-show.

Bertram, C. (2020). Elton John’s Past Struggles With Drugs and Alcohol. [online] Biography. Available at: https://www.biography.com/musicians/elton-john-drugs-alcohol-addiction.

Eells, J. (2019). Billie Eilish and the Triumph of the Weird. [online] Rolling Stone. Available at: https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/billie-eilish-cover-story-triumph-weird-863603/.

Eilish, B. (2024). Billie Eilish - BIRDS OF A FEATHER (Live from The LA28 Olympic Handover). [online] YouTube. Available at: https://youtu.be/m_uBbDkiAIA?si=tZJ2IKpgtEkR2sbU

Elish, B. (2024). Billie Eilish, FINNEAS- What was I made for? (Live from the Oscars 2024). [online] YouTube. Available at: https://youtu.be/1rL1EHELPAk?si=BWKRIQ4t4ghHnrdD

Hamilton, S. (2017). Robbie Williams opens up about his journey with addiction. [online] news. Available at: https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity-life/robbie-williams-opens-up-about-what-saved-his-life-from-addiction/news-story/e15daa1c6dcfc45112e523f408799ce9

Jobson, L. (2023). Robbie Williams tells how his life ‘spiralled out of control so severely’ after drinking a bottle of... [online] Mail Online. Available at: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-12724429/Robbie-Williams-life-spiralled-control-severely-drinking-bottle-vodka-night-new-Netflix-documentary.html

Prerna Mittra (2024). Billie Eilish On Her Mental Health Struggles: ‘My Whole Life I’ve Never Been A Happy Person’ |. [online] TheHealthSite. Available at: https://www.thehealthsite.com/diseases-conditions/billie-eilish-on-her-mental-health-struggles-my-whole-life-ive-never-been-a-happy-person-1086118/. 

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Project Proposal Presentation.