How do I hit that high note in the song Marian the Librarian?

Question:I'm a bass. I want to improve my vocal range and I have an audition with this song coming soon! I have a very low voice for my age (15) and I can sing most of the song well but when I try to sing that part in the song "I love you madly, madly madam librarian Marian (high note) It's a long (higher note) lost cause..." I can't flip into my falsetto for this because it would sound too weird so I would have to belt it. I sound really terrible when I do and my voice cracks a lot when I try to hit it or it sounds like I'm just shouting and not even hitting the note...

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: I'm a bass. I want to improve my vocal range and I have an audition with this song coming soon! I have a very low voice for my age (15) and I can sing most of the song well but when I try to sing that part in the song "I love you madly, madly madam librarian Marian (high note) It's a long (higher note) lost cause..." I can't flip into my falsetto for this because it would sound too weird so I would have to belt it. I sound really terrible when I do and my voice cracks a lot when I try to hit it or it sounds like I'm just shouting and not even hitting the note...

Hmmmm... you've got your hands full. I am going to give you a few tricks, but the bottom line is still a lot of hard work. Eat fresh onions and carrots. Incorporate them in a salad, whatever. Onions stretch your vocal chords somehow, I should know it, I am a soprano! Juicing carrots works even better, but don't lay the onions down they's got layers, and that means potential, haha! Use vinegar, whatever your favorite dressing is, but stay away from dairy. Some people recommend no coffee, but for me coffee works wonders, so it's up to you.
If you dare, eat a raw egg every morning until the day of performance. These tricks are authentic, I have a cousin who's an opera singer, and pop-opera, and worked for a while with our late Pavarotti, may he rest in peace.
Then do your scales, vocalize, making sure you don't jump high in the first try but work up to it, little by little. Find your best time a day when your voice is a lot more flexible, so to speak. You can do wonders when your voice has warmed up a little rather than to give it a power "workout" early in the morning when the vocal chords are too tight. Talk less. No kidding! Preserve your voice, as much as you can. Wear a silk scarf around your neck. Very important. The property of the silk scarf is that it forms a very good insulating belt around the vocal chords, since it's your instrument and differences in temperature affects your performance. (I learned this trick when I started working with a very famous pop star, I am not going to reveal names) - trust me, it's the best thing you can do for your 'instrument'.
Anyway, a lot of it stays in the nutrition. Avoid any fried or bagged stuff (chips... pretzels...etc... even the baked ones, pretty much anything that has some kind of preservative in it). NO MSG!!! ++ Don't shake that salt shaker too much, eat a lemon every morning, to stay healthy (vit C load) and only use Olive oil for any grease. No breads, unless it's wheat germ or cracked wheat, but be very careful with it. Meats you eat should be generally white meats or fish. Don't go for the bacon, and stay away from any fried stuff, I mean it! GO for fruits, or fruit juices - no sugar added. Juice your own stuff. And no dairy. No seeds, nuts and stuff like that. Eat less, drink more. Herbal teas, very recommended!!
Exercise your diaphragm by taking good walks in the morning and holding a note when you vocalize. Lay flat on your back with your arms up above your head and try holding a note. Your diaphragm will have room to wander, and that's good. Raise the note gradually, but don't force it. When you can't make a note stop and take a break. And mostly when you stop and take a break listen to a recording with your song - a lot of it has to do with how well you can process it in your mind first. Do not sing from your throat, get a good quality sound that comes from the pit of your stomach,as they say, rather... don't bring that sound up to the throat. Hang your head a little lower to achieve the diaphragm sound..Sort of aligning your head with the "Northern Star" no kidding! It's almost like you'd try to make room for another pipe in your throat. It's expanding the capacity of the medium.
I did something similar actually for a recital of my own, except
I had to lower my register. I am a high soprano, and have no trouble with the high notes, but my song required a wider range (in the lower register) and I really wanted to make it.
In two weeks term I had it. But I worked on it every day and incorporated most of the tricks and techniques I told you about. I didn't do the eggs... too yucky for me. The thing that helped me the most was probably listening to my song over and over, and visualize myself making it no problem.
I was about to give up when 2 days before the recital, I got it!
I went all the way down to A below the scale, and considering that I couldn't make sounds below E flat, baby, that was dynamite! People who knew me, were saying that I had double personality disorder, or such, or they met a clone of mine. :) It sounds like a lot of work but it'll be worth it. Get working, and good luck. Let us know how you made it!

Oh! P.S. ... BTW in your practice, you may want to try to top that note, just a little, and that's when it gets into your register, and even if you don't hold it as long, it makes it easier for the real thing to hold for longer.

The song you're thinking of is sung by Harold Hill, definitely a baritone role. If your voice is too low for this song, it won't be appropriate for the role. Sadly, "The Music Man" doesn't have a lead role for a bass (although singing bass in the quartet is very cool!). You may need to reconsider which role you're auditioning for.