19 November 2012:
About Campus Superstar and its songs.
Well it has finally returned after two (or three?) years. Then there were people like Teresa Tseng and Cai Aijia. Somehow, the winner would always be cute, cute guys. I'm not saying their singing sucks, but somehow it seems to be the case.
Anyway, this year there's a rule that people can only sing songs either originally sung by Singaporeans, or its composer or lyricist must be Singaporean. And for the preliminary rounds, students auditioning must choose from 20 songs.
I can't say that I'm an expert at this, but I shall try to analyse them songs, those that I know. (song title | original artist | lyricist | composer)
1. 孤獨患者 | 陳奕迅 | 小寒 | 方大同
This song isn't as hard as other songs in the list. Yet, people who try to copy Eason Chan's natural hoarse voice would be disadvantaged. It's up to them to create their own interpretation of 孤獨患者. Oh but the starting may trap people cos it can be a little to start with such a tone. In terms of lyrics, I don't think there are any phrases that would cause 咬字 problems.
2. We Together | 林俊傑 | 天天 | 林俊傑
This song isn't very hard as well. Those attempting it would have to make sure they do portary the joyous mood of the song. The lyrics shouldn't pose any problem either. I am not sure how people would treat the autotune parts though, in my opinion they should not try too hard on that. This song is an 舞曲, so if someone sends in a video of them standing still singing, then that isn't very good.
3. 狂想曲 | 蕭敬騰 | 天天 | 李偲菘
This song ... I have a feeling not many people would choose it. Not that it's not good okay, but cos it is the rock kind. Rock songs are hard cos not everyone has the hoarse voice needed, and not everyone can do well without getting a sore throat at the end. Chances are many would be screaming and shouting, but actually 蕭敬騰 doesn't need to do that even for the chorus. This song is quite fast-paced, so some may not be used to it as well and get 咬字 problems.
4. 她說 | 林俊傑 | 孫燕姿 | 林俊傑
This song ... I have a feeling that many people would choose it, especially guys. However, this makes it difficult to stand out amongst the people who do use this song. Also, the pitch of the song is slightly high, so I'm not sure if many guys can handle it. If they choose to use 假音 then it would be risky. The pace should be alright lah, cos it's a 慢歌 so it shouldn't be a problem.
5. 當我知道你們相愛 | 何維健 | 小美 / 何維健 | 小美 / 何維健 / 唐達
This song is a tribute to 何維健's idol, 郭富城. By right this is an 舞曲 too, so I'm curious to see if anyone would actually dance while sing. If done properly, it's certainly a +1. However, it is a 慢歌, so there isn't much of a problem here. Of course, people need to take care of the pitch, cos for guys 何維健's pitch is a little high as well, but lower than 林俊傑.
6. 假動作 | 房祖名 | 小寒 | 黃韻仁
This song ... I used to like it a lot
7. 我的媽 | 黃靖倫 | 阿弟仔 | 阿弟仔
This song is the fun kind with a little rocker side to it. It is a fast one, so people may stumble over the 咬字. It would be obvious cos 黃靖倫 personally sings it very 字正腔圓-ly. People who use shouting during the chorus would be disadvatanged, cos it shouldn't be the case. There are certain little details here and there which people need to catch. The bridge ends with a 拉音 (is there such a phrase ...) so again 中氣要足.
8. 王妃 | 蕭敬騰 | 陳鎮川 | 李偲菘
This song ... the Facebook page of Campus Superstar was asking if anyone dared to try this. I really don't think so, unless the person is super confident. Even LJ from choir also doesn't dare. To perform the song well, you can't shout but yet sound loud. Also, you need the 'rocker element' which includes the hoarse voice. The 音域 of the song is quite wide, so not many can hit all the notes from highest to lowest. Especially in the chorus, it would not be good if you're failing at the chorus yeah. Finally, you do not want to end off with a 破音 when you sing '你的……美～'.
9. 搞笑 | 羅志祥 | 陳鎮川 | 李偲菘
This song isn't as difficult. One part to take note would be how to sing the song without sounding too soft, cos it needs a 溫柔 treatment. The starting may be a little difficult as well if it's 清唱. The 音域 shouldn't be a problem for this song; most should be able to do well. 羅志祥 is able to sound cry-ish but yet understandable and coherent. So those who sing it may wanna take note as well.
10. Everything | 王力宏 | 王力宏 / 小寒 | 王力宏
This song is a little high on pitch as well. At the same time, there are some 拉音s to be handled well. I wouldn't say it's very difficult lah but it isn't that easy either. The pitch changes after the first chorus so I wonder if people would bother about that detail. (I don't know why but I don't have much to say about the song.)
13. Love You | 蔡淳佳 | 張樂聲 | 蔡淳佳 / 柯貴民
This song is typical of 蔡淳佳. It is those relaxing kind that is a mix between 快歌 and 慢歌. Besides the pitch and 音域, it shouldn't be a problem for many. Nevertheless, it wouldn't be easy to do a perfect rendition of it either cos you need the internal feeling. There are also some little details to take note of, but you could claim that you're not following it cos you wanna create your own style.
14. 踮起腳尖愛 | 洪佩瑜 | 小寒 | 蔡健雅
This song is indeed very popular, especially amongst girls. Even 周重慶 said on radio that he liked it a lot. Yet, most people are unable to do a good renditon of it, almost for sure. From the start, the first verse is challenging. You need to sound melancholic but not as if you're rambling. (The verses are mainly do-re-do kind. Meaning, there isn't much change so it may sound boring.) The 音域 is also very wide in the song, so you either can't go low or can't reach high notes. This is especially the case for the chorus, where the tone goes up suddenly. The whole chorus is basically fluctuating between high and low notes. Some may go off-key after this challenging chorus, which is jialat. The 拉音 after the second chorus may also be challenging, especially if you are already tired by the front.
15. 說到愛 | 蔡健雅 | 格大衛 | 蔡健雅
This song has a low pitch. The rhythm is also slightly difficult cos it's a bit non-conventional. You would need to vary your loud and soft singing. The song doesn't really have a distinct chorus feel, so that may be a bane or boon for the singer when he's trying it. The song is low, but yet one has to present the carefree mood. This presents another problem cos the singer may sing it as if he's bored, not carefree.
16. 別找我麻煩 | 蔡健雅 | 蔡健雅 | 蔡健雅
This song isn't very 蔡健雅-ish, she normally does sad, sad romance songs. She has an edgy voice which maybe what makes the song nice in part. Again, one has to be relaxed in this. There are some parts where she pulls her tone up (haiz I don't know what's the phrase for it) so yeah that may be a possible point to achieve. However, it is still easier than others. I don't think it's popular though, so maybe not many would choose it.
17. 當冬夜漸暖 | 孫燕姿| 藤井樹 | 饒善強
This song was the one I tried for the Dragon Voice audition back in January 2012. I was criticised for singing it too soft. So, already that is something to take note of. I was too focused on making it sound 溫柔. This song starts grand but is actually quite 溫柔. The chorus is rather hard to do well. Cos from 溫柔 at the front, you need to sound 'strong' and emboldened. Also, you need it to have the feel of it, which I can't describe now. It's something about the tiredness that the song is expressing, and the kind of solace and resolution it conveys. I have a feeling some (girls) would use their 中氣 to boost during the chorus or after first chorus, but too much would be bad for them. By the second (or third) chorus 孫燕姿 sounds resigned, especially at the end where she proclaims '重要的是／我們如何愛過那一段'.
18. 空口言 | 孫燕姿 | 伍家輝 | 伍家輝
This song is a fun one like 完美的一天. (By the way, 孫燕姿 looks absolutely adorable in the MV.) This song isn't that hard as the previous one but of course one must keep the 'fun-ness'. Cos it's quite fast, there may be 咬字 issue as well. One place of caution would be that she sings it as if she shouting out the happiness, but she's not. So some may go overboard in their 'hapiness singing'. 音域 also shouldn't be a problem, lah.
19. 倔強 | 陳潔儀 | 梁文福 | 梁文福
This song is the 主題曲 of 阿娣. 陳潔儀 sounds very graceful in the song, so this has to be met. She also keeps with the pace very well. A 慢歌 may cause impatient people to speed up for nothing. As for the chorus, she sounds 'strong' and confident. The 音域 isn't that wide, but some may not be able to hit the highest note, hence using 假音 for it. 陳潔儀 uses 抖音 a few times, so again that's either a boon or a bane for people trying it. Another difficult part would be the build-up effect before the last chorus.
20. 愛一直存在 | 梁文音 | 馬嵩惟 / 陳俊達 | 陳俊達
This song is a 溫柔情歌. The 音域 is a little wide though, which is why 梁文音 starts low. The endings of each line must be dealt nicely cos some can sound boring. The chorus is a good place to 發揮 cos it is a smooth-flowing one with not many difficult spots. There are only one or two places which may require 假音, but this shouldn't mar the rest of it even if not well done. There is also another build-up to the second chorus which is again a good chance to prove oneself.
~
There you have it, my personal analysis of 18 of the 20 songs you may use to audition for Campus Superstar. Well I skipped 11 and 12 cos I never heard of 11 and I don't like BY2 which sung 12 so yeah not doing those two.
Like I said earlier I'm not an expert in this so these are just what I feel. I only played the song once and typed whatever came to mind. So yeah you may find some stuff a little weird or the sort.
The Facebook page for Campus Superstar is here and the official site is here. Good luck to anyone taking part. From what I read, much more girls than boys submitted their videos thus far.
TTFN.