invictious
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Audition for Javert!The school is doing a musical, and it's going to be LES MIS!
Can't wait.
I really want to audition and be Javert. I know his voice should be as such:
| Quote: | | Javert is the inspector who serves as antagonist to Jean Valjean. Javert is unswerving in his belief that men cannot change for the good. "Once a thief, always a thief" is his mantra. At first glance Javert might appear to be the villain of the story, but on closer examination it is clear that he is not an evil man. He is aware that in society some people achieve control through evil and others through the power of the law. He is a dedicated policeman, with a profound sense of duty. Unlike Valjean he cannot change. His attitudes are rigid and unmoveable. He is stern, forbidding and lacking in compassion. Your Javert should be a talented actor who can convincingly stand up to Jean Valjean. Javert should have a rich baritone voice and be a good singer. Vocal range: A (below Middle C) to F sharp (above Middle C) |
How can I show this and fit all the qualities? What songs would be best to show these?
Some worries include that I might not be able to hit that F sharp and hold it, it's rather inconsistent.
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Aimee
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The best advice I can give you is, if you have time, you can learn a new song from scratch but if the audtion is soon the best thing is to sing a song you know really well that suits your voice. If its close to the character then thats a bonus so think about the songs you know well first.
If you have time, there are loads of songs and I'm sure the rest of the guys here will list many for you.
Good Luck.
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invictious
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Come on people, I need song lists.
and how on earth am I going to hold that F sharp. As in F isn't far enough.
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Brackynn
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It's actually pretty difficult to give you specific song suggestions, as we don't know your voice and your own strengths and weaknesses. I think Aimee said it well -- choose something that really suits your voice. And with it being a school production, I don't think you need to worry as much about picking something that's not overdone.
With that said, however, you could try checking out "Falcon in the Dive" from The Scarlet Pimpernel ... I think it could work well for Javert, if it suits your voice (I'm not exactly sure how high it goes...) Anyway, there's my two cents.
(By the way, the folks in the Audition Songs thread in the Auditions, Auditions, Auditions forum are very good about giving advice, so I'd also suggest posting this over there as well ... you'll probably get a few more replies  )
Break a leg!
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Orestes Fasting
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Re: Audition for Javert! | invictious wrote: | | Some worries include that I might not be able to hit that F sharp and hold it, it's rather inconsistent. |
Worry less about holding it and more about hitting it repeatedly in recitative sections. If you listen to the cast recording (any cast recording will do, though I recommend the 10th anniversary concert recording if you can get it) on the Prologue - Chain Gang track, "Now bring me prisoner 24601," etc, those high notes are F's.
I don't believe Javert has any sustained F#s. His very last note is a sustained F during which he hurls himself into the Seine.
Edit: Agreed with Brackynn--the folks on the audition board would probably be able to help you more. Over here we can give you all the information about the show you need, but if you want to know what to audition with, you're more likely to get an answer over there.
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Pannic
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I think that "on" is an F, and that "reprieved" F sharp. Either that, or the other way around. >_>
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Patrick
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I'm going through a similar issue with Carousel and the G in Soliloquy, so I'm just ging to leach on and take an advice you might get
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Aimee
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Are you forbidden from singing Stars?
If not, go for it.
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Da_Dark_Dude
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Try "If I Can't Love Her" from Beauty and the Beast,
It shows that you have the range required but more importantly, the song is so emotional it shows you have the ability to hold back when you sing as well as belt it out - a useful quality for the suicide scene and something the directors will probably look for.
On Aimee's note, when i auditioned with Stars, I got Valjean lol. How Wierd. But go for it if you like, its a great tune.
Stephen
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invictious
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Sorry for the belated replies, but here is it anyway:
@ Pannic: 'reprieved' is an E and 'ooooonnnn!!!!!!' is an F
@ Aimee: about singing stars, I don't think it's such a good idea..you know..
@ Orestes Fasting: Oh dear for the F's already in the beginning
@ Brackynn: I don't know that many pieces, so I was asking people to recommend pieces to me.
@ Da_Dark_Dude: Thanks for your suggestion, I will look into that.
What I am afraid most is begin assigned to some other roles which aren't appropriate for me. I am still not too sure about singing a song from the musical when auditioning for the same musical.
I actually prefer to sing songs from Disney because I am more familiar with them, and I know a few great songs, but I am not sure which ones are suitable to show to the director 'Hey lady, I AM Javert'
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Fantine
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Disney songs are usually overdone. Since I'm a girl, I can't really advice you on an audition song.
My vocal teacher sang 'If I Can't Love Her' for his professional audition for Les Mis and became the Bishop and Javert u/s.
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invictious
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If I can't love her seems to be a really good chocie, until the repeated F's 
I just can't get my F's so sound more 'baritone-ish' (right now they sound 'head-y' and tenor-ish lightness), but the rest of my range is deep enough.
Well despite the fact that Disney songs are overdone, If I can't love her seems to be the less popular choices.
Any other suggestions?
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Da_Dark_Dude
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| invictious wrote: | | @ Pannic: 'reprieved' is an E and 'ooooonnnn!!!!!!' is an F |
'reprieved' is actually an F, and 'oooonn!' is an F#.
Javert's vocal range in the score does tend to stay up there, especially in his scenes with Valjean, so u will need those solid Baritone Es and Fs, and really if its a push to sing 3 in one song (If i can't love her) doing the role is going to be mega tough. Look into 'Confession' from Tanz Der Vampire, although it goes up to F# for massive segments, if thats not working. Try Epiphany from Sweeney Todd.
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Eponine93
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As for the F in "I cannot go on" if you're a good actor, you can probably get away with shouting it instead of singing it. You have to be careful with that note- it's one of those important notes that you CAN NOT crack on. If you crack on it, it ruins the entire performance.
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invictious
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I mean I can sing it, but it's just to tenor like and loses the whole Javert thing.
I personally think that the rest of my range from there is pretty baritone-ish and suitable for Javert, but yes, I realize that almost all the scenes where there is Javert and Valjean, Javert tends to go to the top of the baritone range, which is funny because I thought Javert needed a deep voice?
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Da_Dark_Dude
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baritones generally sound baritonish/deep on top of the register too.
are u actually a tenor?
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invictious
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No idea, I'm still young.
My register generally sounds baritonish until middle D, then it goes into head voice.
I think that is the problem.
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Sweeney Hyde
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You need to learn how to get over that break point...which is often one of the first things guys learn and train how to do with a teacher, that's what mine did at least.
Work on trying to get over that break.
In the mean time...often times auditioners focus on the range too much...some people are much better singers in a certain area of their range and work more on trying to strengthen that part of the voice rather than their range. Is there a particular range within your range that you are comfortable with?
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invictious
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Pretty comfortable from F2 - D4
Smoothing over the break point means getting the head voice lower and raising the chest voice higher? I have no problem with the former, but the latter is what I am having problems with. I try not to force my range, but again, heck.
Sing the recitatives an octave lower 
Any other songs for me to try?
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Damn_Badgers
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I don't really have any song suggestions. But I have auditions coming up for Les Mis soon also. I'm a natural tenor, but interested in trying for Javert. Is that a bad idea? Cause my problems are quite different. Pretty much all of it is very comfortable to sing, especially the higher stuff. But I have problem with the low note at the very beginning of Confrontation that goes 'you'll wear a different chain'. And also the bottom note at the start of Stars 'fallen from grace'. Other than that everything else is very comfortable though. What ways can I get around this?
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Fantine
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Practice. Also you could muffle your way through them.
(muffle? that a word?  )
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Mademoiselle Lanoire
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Yes, but this isn't the right context for it. You're thinking of "muddle".
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Gargamel
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| Damn_Badgers wrote: |
I'm a natural tenor, but interested in trying for Javert. Is that a bad idea? |
The "problem" is that being a tenor, a barytone or a bass is not just a question of range, but also (more?) a question of "color". I mean :
Make a group of tenors sing unison (is that english?) with a group of bass, you will clearly hear two different "colors" or "sounds". When you learn to sing in a choir, for the unison parts, the tenors have to "darken" a little their voices, and the bass have to make it brighter. So it will sound the same.
When a composer chooses a voice (soprano, mezzo, alto, tenor, barytone, bass...) for a character, it is not "random" or because he wants that note in a song. It is a choice about the feeling of the character, about his personality, about how the audience should feel him. It is the same kind of choice when you choose a costume or a haircut for a character.
Javert is a barytone, but he could be a bass. I cannot imagine a "Les Mis" opera with a tenor-Javert!!! I couldn't imagine a soprano-Eponine or a Bass-Enjolras!
If you really want to "be" Javert, then you'll have to train your range in order to be able to hit the low notes in a convincing way, but you'll also have to "darken" your voice, so it will sound as a barytone...
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Orestes Fasting
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| Gargamel wrote: | | Javert is a barytone, but he could be a bass. I cannot imagine a "Les Mis" opera with a tenor-Javert!!! I couldn't imagine a soprano-Eponine or a Bass-Enjolras! |
I dunno, Megan McGinnis isn't bad, and I have a soft spot for Alexander Diepold. (Is he a bass though? He sounds more like a baritone.)
Tenor Javerts, however, never really did it for me. Damn_Badgers, PM me if you want to hear what it sounds like when a tenor tries the role.
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Pannic
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| Orestes Fasting wrote: | | Gargamel wrote: | | Javert is a barytone, but he could be a bass. I cannot imagine a "Les Mis" opera with a tenor-Javert!!! I couldn't imagine a soprano-Eponine or a Bass-Enjolras! |
I dunno, Megan McGinnis isn't bad, and I have a soft spot for Alexander Diepold. (Is he a bass though? He sounds more like a baritone.)
Tenor Javerts, however, never really did it for me. Damn_Badgers, PM me if you want to hear what it sounds like when a tenor tries the role. |
When my school did it, we cast the lowest bass in the school for the part of Javert. (And the second-lowest bass for Thenardier.) I liked the bass who played it, and he only cracked once in the whole show, when I saw it.
He goes a bit low for a regular baritone. I would think that a strong bass-baritone or very strong bass could do it. At least, I'm a bass/bass-baritone, and I want to play it.
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The Pirate King
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It's not really that bad at all. Confrontation is cut in the school edition, and he has no note that goes anywhere near that low elsewhere. And an F isn't all that bad anyway, for a decent baritone.
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Pannic
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Screw the school edition. Cutting The Confrontation was a horrible, horrible idea.
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