A day in the life of singer Dylan Rooney

As his community in Ballinree, Toomevara, prepare to host two fun raising performances in the parish by the superb local baritone Dylan Rooney in the run-up to Christmas to fund his highly expensive studies, the singer himself here reveals what life is like studying for an MA in Music Performance at the prestigious Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London.
Each day at Guildhall offers a completely new experience for me, from the one before. Ideally, I like to begin by warming up my voice for about 20-25 minutes. In a practice room, I begin with slow deep breathing exercises, before gently singing scales and arpeggios. I further like to incorporate body stretches and focus on areas such as the tongue, jaw and back of the neck. This allows me to release any tension in my body before I start singing through songs and arias. What I practise singing day to day, usually depends on what my voice teacher suggests for me. However, it also depends on upcoming concerts, auditions and other engagements, both inside and outside of college.
Throughout the week, we have various performance classes in French, German, Italian and English. I have also had the challenge of singing in Russian and Czech! These performance classes, amongst fellow colleagues and faculty, are designed to give us a platform to showcase what we’ve practised, before singing in public. We also have separate tuition in the above languages. These classes teach clarity of pronunciation through the method of using phonetic symbols. Each symbol represents a specific sound which can be applied to any language; and so, symbols learnt whilst exploring one language can already exist in others. In addition to pronunciation, we are taught some basic grammar so that we can fully understand the structure and meaning of foreign songs and arias.
Another aspect of the course and my daily life at Guildhall is movement and drama. These are among my favourite classes throughout the week as we get to learn all the tips and tricks of the trade. In movement classes, we are taught yoga, dance, combat etc, and how to develop fluidity of these movements on a weekly basis. During drama classes, we explore many different facets of ourselves, learning the tools to create and act out scenes with one another. Each day, I try to apply what I have learnt to my own practice and in rehearsals for upcoming performances.
I am learning that a vital part of being able to communicate with an audience is establishing a character and a story. Therefore, when practising, I explore my facial expressions, gestures and other movements, finding the best way to portray that character in that song.
 My day at Guildhall usually draws to a close in the practice room or the college library, where I find myself most evenings translating songs into English and researching their historical background.

CONCERT DETAILS
Come along and hear the superb Dylan Rooney perform in Ballinree Church on Saturday and Sunday, December 21st and 22nd, 8pm nightly. Tickets: Una’s Flowers, Nenagh and Casey's Service Station, Toomevara, or call Fran at 085-7079171.