Lau Frederiksen
....Singer and trainer..Sanger og træner....
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Lau has been fascinated by singing in front of an audience since 4th grade. It started when he volunteered for singing a Christmas carol at the school’s annual service in the nearby church. Two other students were supposed to sing along, but they regretted at the very last minute, and without time to get nervous Lau got his first solo performance and his awareness of audiences got a jumpstart.
“Even as a young kid I was very taken about the communication in the relation audience/performer and how a successful performance can drag the attention into a poetic space in which the song communicates more powerful. Very soon, I aimed for the full attention of the audience, that they would forget anything else but the song I was performing.’’
Since then Lau is still working on refining and expanding his performance technique. When Lau is planning concerts, he thinks through many aspects but the songs themselves. This is to be sure that he can keep the audience’s attention all the way to the very end of the concert. In this part, it is very important to use every available change of color and mood in order to keep the performer’s expression from becoming monotonous. At the same time, the performer should be sure to keep coherence and flow through the concert.
“One of the most exciting things in making a concert is the transition from one song to the next. How can you make coherence? How can you make a variation? In addition, how do you avoid a gap in which the audience will lose attention?’’ In the last case, the audience can actually help you due to the fact that we humans tend to find meaning in most things we spectate on a stage’’
When Lau started as a guide and lecturer, he found that his experience from the stage was essential. In a situation where no music or poetry is helping, it is even more important to know different strategies in order to keep the audience engaged. One should not forget to use the relatively big amount of freedom in the case of a lecture.
’’If a lecture has been a real success, you will find that it really was a conversation. Even though an audience does not speak, the lecturer must still listen to their reactions and keep adjusting his communication accordingly. The case might appear where there is no doubt the audience is getting bored. At that time, you need to analyze the situation quickly and you will find great help in your performance toolbox. I ask myself if my body language or speaking pace might need adjustment if the substance could be too inaccessible. And shortly after continue with a new strategy – I’ll try to say it in this way’’
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Laus facination af at synge foran et publikum startede, da han tilbage i 4. klasse meldte sig til at synge foran hele skolen til juleafslutningen i kirken. Det var egentlig meningen de skulle have været tre elever der sang sammen, men i sidste øjeblik bakkede de to andre ud. Sådan gik det til at Lau fik sin første solooptræden og det fik tankerne i gang:
”Allerede da jeg var lille, var jeg meget optaget af den kommunikation der er mellem publikum og performer, og hvordan en vellykket optræden kan fokusere publikums opmærksomhed ind i poetisk rum som sangen udfylder. Det blev hurtigt mit mål, at forsøge at få publikum til at glemme alt andet end netop den sang jeg opførte.’’
Lau arbejder til stadighed på at forfine og udvide sin performanceteknik inden for flere områder. Når Lau planlægger koncerter gennemtænker han mange elementer ud over selve sangene. Dette gøres med øje for, at den samlede koncert bibeholder publikums opmærksomhed. Her er det vigtigt man spiller på alle de strenge man har til rådighed, for at ens udtryk ikke bliver monotomt. Samtidig er det også vigtigt, at der er sammenhæng og flow i stoffet.
’’ Noget af det mest spændende er overgangene mellem to sange i en koncert, hvordan kan man skabe sammenhæng? Hvordan skaber man variation? Og hvordan undgår man, at der kommer et hul hvor publikum mister interessen? Her er publikum faktisk ens hjælpere, for vi menesker finder ofte helt instinktivt en betydning i det vi ser på en scene. ’’
De tanker Lau gjorde sig over sceneoptræden stoppede ikke da Lau begyndte som foredragsholder og rundviser. Tværtimod oplevede Lau at det var endnu vigtigerere at have strategier klar til at bibeholde opmærksomheden når stoffet var mere tørt og mindre poetisk end ved en koncert. Det er vigtigt at udnytte den relativt store frihed man har som foredragsholder og tilpasse forløbet efter publikums reaktion.
”Når foredraget lykkes bedst er det egentlig en samtale. Selvom publikum ikke siger nogle ord, skal man som foredragholder konstant lytte til sit publikums reaktion og afpasse sin kommunikation derefter. Det kan godt ske, at man står i den situation hvor man mærker publikum virkelig keder sig. Så er det godt at have sin værktøjskasse parat og hurtigt analyserer situationen. Det kan være at mit kropsprog skal tilpasses, måske taler jeg for hurtigt eller mit stof kan være for tungt. -for så hurtigt at fortsætte med en ny strategi; måske lytter de, hvis jeg prøver at sige det på den her måde.’’
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