Tips, Tricks, and Magic Sprinkles

Sunday morning musings...

So what are the magic tips and tricks for singing?

Lean in...
Closer...

Guess what?

There are none.

There are no tricks or magic sprinkles to immediately fix or find something vocally.

Just like the quick weight loss and quick muscle gain are hoaxes,  so are the snake oil promises in vocal technique.

There is nothing glamorous,  or bright and shiny about the WORK.  And that is what technique and voice building and vocal behavior is.  WORK.

There is nothing glamorous about getting to the gym and sweating it out.

There is nothing glamorous about bleeding feet in a ballet class.

See where I am going with this?

Creating behavior,  creating technique,  creating knowledge, is EXCITING.  It's worth the sweat equity,  it's worth the focus,  it's worth the investment - only if you believe it is.

As a teacher,  I can't believe it for you.  I am there to give you the tools,  to find you where you are,  to figure out what you need and how to get you there.  However,  YOU are the one who has to do the actual WORK.

"Methods" and "quick fixes" are usually a "one size fits all" mentality.  They never last.  It's a patch job in desperation.   Will it work for minute?  Sometimes.  Does it last?  No.

When something new is accessed in the voice studio,  it doesn't make it behavior.  It means you can ACCESS it - which means the possibility now exists to create the full behavior!  Doing it once, hoping it works,  doesn't make it work.

Your WORK and your FOCUS and your COMMITMENT will give you an opportunity to create it fully and allow you to summon it at will.

If you call yourself a singer,  then sing.  That means honing, learning, discovering, re-discovering, creating, focusing,  asking questions,  and working at it every day.

Whatever you ARE,  DO that.  It is action-oriented not hope-oriented.

Whatever you HAVE,  DEVELOP that.  Saying you have it,  isn't enough.

If all you want is glamour,  without the sweat equity,  then I suggest you take a look carefully at Mr. Sondheim's lyric from "Ah, but Underneath":

Sometimes, when the wrappings fall,
There's nothing underneath at all...


Dare to make mistakes.  Dare to ask questions.  Dare to recognize where you are.

Dare to ask for help.

Dare to ask why.

Dare to be more than a trick or a hope or a wish.

Dare to have substance, and clarity,  and focus.

My hope for you is that you find truth through your technique.  That you keep exploring MORE to allow your artistry to have a place to reside fully.  That you can access it,  summon it,  and CREATE magic.

Magic DOES happen.  It happens BECAUSE, not in spite of;  it happens in action,  not in fluke;
it happens when you have done the work,  and it has SO much more power and portent than you would even imagine - because, it's YOU.

So,  as your fairy godmother,  I do not wave a magic wand.  I see you.  I mirror what I see.  Now get sweating and find your truth & your honesty!

  Create your own magic.

Then, OWN IT.

Where, What do I sing?

Sunday musings...

Where do I sing?  What do I sing?

These questions come up regularly.  They aren't black and white.  The answers aren't always easy, and they are often fluid.

There are so many variables and being in the right place at the right time;  being ready;  subjective responses and who is hiring and on and on.

What are you in charge of?

More than you think!

You are responsible for your own craft,  and your development of said craft.

You are responsible to learn about the business,  if you are indeed pursuing a career.  Every angle of the business is a different business.  It's up to you to figure that out and find out what the parameters are, and how you negotiate the landscape (or the land mines as the case may be!)

You are always going to get tons of opinions.  Some people will love what you do;  some will be lukewarm.  It's life.  Opinion is only a sampling and can't be given too much weight in the overall aspect of things.  Let it inform your bullshit detector:  as in, are you clear in your own pursuit?  Can you look at the opinion objectively to inform where you are,  what you are trying to do,  with information that is helpful as opposed to delusional or destructive?

Where should you be?

Obviously I can't answer these questions for you.  Nobody can.  Nobody can guarantee you are going to have a career.  Nobody can dismiss you and tell you that you WON'T have a career.

What does having a career mean to you?  It doesn't mean the same thing to everybody.

What do you want?  Why?

What fulfills you?   What gives you joy?   What makes you happy?

These answers may or may not put you on a career track.

Who is telling you "you should",  or "you shouldn't"?

Not everybody has a world class voice.  Not everybody is a prima donna or leading lady.  It's okay.  Theatre is created for MANY MANY different voices and characters.  If everybody is a leading lady, then nobody is!

Theatre is available at every level.  And, guess what?  It can be absolutely fulfilling at every level.

You can find committed, talented,  professional and fantastic theatre from community theatre to fringe theatre to pop up theatre, to small regional houses,  to larger regional theatre to A houses and Broadway.

You can also find absolute shit in all those places too.

There are no absolutes.  If you look hard enough,  you'll find the gems everywhere there is theatre!

Sometimes you'll hear an exceptional voice or see a brilliant actor in a place you wouldn't expect.  Sometimes they are there because they simply want to be;  sometimes they are there because the business has just found them there, or they have found a place there.


Whether you are a leading lady,  a leading man,  a side-kick, a secondary or tertiary character,  a "character" character,  right through to a strong chorus member:  YOU MATTER.

Figuring out where you fit will allow you to thrive in that environment - from genre, to level, to character type & fach and more.

If you realize that no,  you aren't a leading man but you make a great character actor - then figure out what you have to have and have to do to create the best character actor you possibly can!   What does that demand of you in craft and knowledge?  Where are you best seen and how you do you get infant of those people?

You go where your talent takes you.  If you keep hitting walls,  perhaps it's time to simply sit down and have an honest discussion with yourself to review your goals and your dreams.  Adjusting the focus of those goals and dreams doesn't mean you give up!  It means you adjust the realization of where you actually are,  and what you can do to truly inhabit that reality.

Dream big, big for YOU.  Then, breathe in the present. Where are you?  Why are you there? What brings you there?  How do you inhabit that?   Surround yourself with a FEW trusted professionals (professionals - not friends, not family) that will give you a firm anchor and will help you understand where you are now,  what you have to offer,  how you could be seen,  and where.  Nobody knows where that leads.  Only you,  taking the reins,  committing to your passion and your craft,  learning how things are structured and what the business does,  can discover that.

If you find out that you are over the moon and happy creating theatre in small spaces,  and that you play the "second banana" and can NAIL it and it gives you a sense of accomplishment - then that is a WIN!

It isn't always all or nothing.  It is finding out WHO you are,  WHAT you have,  and WHERE it can be realized.  It is claiming the truth of what you DO,  not just what you say you want to do.

If you lead with the truth and authenticity of what you are truly about and what you honestly can do,  then you have a clearer understanding of where you could be, as you pursue where you can play!

Take a few seconds with that one.  It's gotta stay present,  and the honesty of that within you will morph as you and your craft continue to evolve!

Keep asking questions.
Keep your peripheral vision open.
Keep seeing the spectrum of the rainbow,  not right or wrong;  not black and white.
Stay present.
Pursue.
Find joy.
Know the difference between making music,  and making a living making music.
Breathe your passion.
Know the business you are in.
Trust few,  and nod at the rest.
Look at a closed door or a "no" or a "don't" as an opportunity to find another door that opens, a "yes" or a "do it!"

There is no failure if you pursue.

There is no failure if there is passion.

There is no failure if you are content.

There is no failure in falling down,  tripping or trying again!

What you DO with it gives you momentum or stops you.  How you respond will give you more answers than you realize!

Be where you are.  Inhabit it.  Stretch into it.  Enjoy every second so it gives you opportunity to grow!

Don't make excuses.  Just do the work.  Hone the craft.  Gather knowledge and be as informed as you can be.

Where you sing and how you sing and when you sing and what you sing, will then continue to reveal what you want to be bothered with,  and what you can release without angst.

Your success is knowledge.  Be bold to find it, and live it!

#liveyourvoice
#authenticvoice

Another year...

It's just another New Year's Eve...

Another night like all the rest...

(if you know those lyrics,  I will fist bump you!!)

I still refuse to accept "resolutions" on New Year's Eve.  It is the Pathway to Fail.

The entire holiday season for me,  gives me a chance to reflect,  to make decisions,  and to begin to focus and and nurture where I am,  where I have been, where I want to be next.

Learning to leave what is where it is,  is crucial to us as artists.  We are never completely satisfied: always wanting to change, to tweak,  to adjust.  This is a wonderful and maddening trait.

I am learning to let go of language that gets stuck in a loop in my mind.  Language that does not serve me.

"If only..."

"If I could do that again, I would..."

"Why did I let..."

"What was I thinking..."

"I can't..."

"It won't..."

And that's just a few...you can add yours to that list! You know you have them!

Language we use on ourselves,  does not need to be black or white.  As you continue to live on this planet,  you begin to realize that much has to do with the hues of gray as people and experiences and decisions and choice are thrown into the mix! However, we tend to be 'all or nothing' and it doesn't serve us well.

What happens, happens.  We do not control that final outcome.  For those of us who have control freak issues (!!) in portions of our lives,  who are "fixers",  who are little bit Type A...we have a hard time with this.

HOWEVER...how we speak to ourselves,  how we attitude our language in that inner dialogue matters.  THAT we can control.  We have agency over that language.  How we RESPOND to that language is within the grasp of our control and our choice.

So, when you review your year,  as a way of closing that particular book,  acknowledge what you must, but don't dwell on those things you did not do;  did not book;  did not achieve;  We tend to fall into the negative more often than we realize.  Well,  I know I do!  That language can be debilitating and create more anxiety and more confusion.

So, review your year.  Rejoice is what you DID.  What you DISCOVERED.  What you UNCOVERED.  What the roadblocks,  energy blocks RE-CREATED for you.

If you can recognize a barrier,  you can change it.  HOW is up to you.

Then let your authenticity lead you to language that inhabits your NOW;  that gives you power,  that gives you purpose,  that gives you possibility.

Those are the words I am leading with for 2017 starting today:

Power, Purpose, Possibility.

Nobody, and nothing, can take that from you,  unless you relinquish it.

Choose to carry your power, your purpose and your possibility and breathe life into them.

YOUR life.

YOUR choice.

YOUR year.

Let that lead you into your next,  and mingle with the energy of like minds;  find empathy for those minds not like yours; discover how to live the authenticity you are claiming just by DOING LIFE.

You truly have what it takes to claim your authenticity and all that manifests.

It means action.

It means reflection.

It means discovery.

One beautiful resonant sound at a time.

All the feels

happy Canada Day yesterday,  happy 4th of July coming up!

As summer moves into the lazy days - it gives time to reflect and ponder...

One of the ongoing questions I ask myself and my singers is this:

How does your voice make you FEEL?

How do you FEEL about your voice?

Sometimes we are so busy PURSUING,  so focused on DOING,  so caught up in the HAVE TO, that we forget about how it FEELS.

How does it FEEL to sing?

How do I FEEL when I sing?

Does my voice feel like me?  What is that?  Can it inhabit my physical behavior or is it faking?

Is it my voice?  Am I mimicking? Am I pretending?

Can I summon my voice at will or does it just do its own thing under pressure?  Good, bad or indifferent?

So many thoughts,  so many feelings.

Guess what?  No value judgment on feelings.  They ARE.  What you DO with them is then crucial and how you put that energy into motion.

How you feel about your voice,  reveals your psychology.  And the psychology is constantly morphing, so tapping into your feelings is crucial here.

All the stereotypes of voice come from a kernel of truth about a psychology.  Stereotypes are then over-developed and often satirized,  but the reason we laugh is because there is truth in there somewhere.

What IS that truth for you and how do you give it agency in order to develop fully and not become a stereotype or a cartoon character?

How do you feel?

Your voice might give you different feelings depending on the repertoire you are singing;  depending on the area of the voice you are singing in;  depending on the genre you are singing;

ALL ARE LEGITIMATE FEELINGS.

Discover the difference between the FEELING and the description of your voice.  Don't worry about what it is doing,  how it is behaving,  what you want to change,  excuses etc:  how does it make you FEEL?

ALL the feels.

We often forget, or don't develop the honesty and truth about how we FEEL about our voice.

Go slowly...if it's a new concept,  and I really think it's just an underdeveloped one,  you don't want to overwhelm yourself.  Go from the general to the specific.  Notice when you start to describe your voice instead of acknowledging the FEELING it evokes in you.

Feelings then will reveal the psychology that you truly have to inhabit in order to allow the behavior of your voice to become honestly authentic.

Or,  acknowledging the psychology will give your feelings an honest place to reveal themselves in order for you to accept,  relish, explore and get excited about your voice and recognize the feelings it evokes.

There is no right or wrong;  no value judgment;  just your truth - should you seek it out.

Those singers who truly touch us,  are willing and able to access the feeling,  the psychology and the behavior.  They make no excuses.  They just DO.

Start wherever you are.  Be there fully.  Feel it.  It's safe to go there because it's going to reveal YOU to YOU.  That's more important than anything else.

Feeling just has to be real.  Real is what you choose to reveal. TO YOU.

The Great Elizabeth Gilbert & Criticism

Elizabeth Gilbert's Facebook page had this fabulous post on it today.

Thank you Thia Stephan for sending it to me!

I wanted to post it here - and I couldn't say it better!

*****

Elizabeth Gilbert

Question of the Day: HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH CRITICISM?

Dear Ones -

The other night at a book event in Kansas, a woman asked me how I deal with criticism about my work and about myself — particularly online criticism. It's a question that comes up a lot, so I thought I would take on the subject today, with the hopes that my words might help some of you — no matter who you are, or what you are doing with your life.

The simplest answer for me, when people ask me how i deal with criticism is to say, "I don't."

I don't look at it, and I don't look for it.

I avoid criticism about myself not because I DON'T care what people say about me, but because I DO care. I am sensitive and easily bruised. I know that critical words can hurt me, and I am not in the business of hurting myself on purpose.

There are major reviews that have been written about my work in serious, important newspapers that I have never even read. For instance: I know that I got a really bad review of COMMITTED in the New York Times several years ago by the legendary critic Janet Maslin, but I have absolutely no idea what she said about me, and I have no intention of ever finding out. (If you want to Google the review, go right ahead — but I sure won't!) People told me that the review was bad (some of my kind friends warned me, and some of my not-so-kind friends just sent me the link — thanks, pals!) In all cases, I said, "Thanks for the info — see ya later!" and I turned my head the other way, the same way I turn my head when I pass a car accident on the road, or when the TV news is showing footage of a grisly murder.

I will not put those words in my head. I will not put those images in my head. To do so is an act of violence against myself, and I do not commit acts of violence against myself anymore.

I think it was the novelist John Updike who said that reading your own reviews is like eating a sandwich that might have some broken glass in it. I have nothing to gain by eating shards of broken glass. It doesn't benefit me or anyone else to digest something that will cause internal bleeding.

If the review is nice and kind, on the other hand (and pre-screened by a loving family member) then I will read it. Because guess what? It's really nice to hear people say nice things about your work! And it's rare! So when it happens: Treat yourself! Enjoy the nice review! Which is to say: when that same Janet Maslin revewied THE SIGNATURE OF ALL THINGS in the New York Times and loved it, I treated myself to her review, because there's nothing wrong with treating yourself to a nice sandwich with no broken glass in it. Because we all need to eat sometimes.

There are people who might say, "But how can you keep yourself honest as an artist, if you only listen to the good stuff, and don't pay attention to your negative critics?"

I say in return: "It is MY own job to stay honest as an artist; it is not the job of the critic to keep me honest."

The critic doesn't work for me; the critic works for the newspaper. The critic has her own responsibility to keep herself honest, but she is not required to help me out, or to be a midwife to my career, or to have my best interests at heart. That is not the nature of our relationship. I do not resent that critics exist; this is a natural part of the creative landscape. But I do not listen to criticism from people who do not have my best interests at heart, because it does not serve me or make me a better person.

I DO listen to negative criticism about my work, however — but only from certain people, and only at a certain time.

The people who I listen to about my work are people who have earned the right to offer me criticism. There aren't many of them, but they are precious. They are a few of my closest and most trusted friends, family members, and colleagues. Here is the test, to see if people are allowed to criticize me:

1) Do I trust your opinion and your taste?

2) Do I trust that you will understand what I am trying to create, and therefore can help me to improve it?

3) Do I trust that you have my best interests at heart — that there is no dark ulterior motive, and no hidden agenda in your criticism?

4) Do I trust that you can offer your criticism with a fundamental spirit of gentleness, so that I can actually hear it without being mortally wounded?

Gentleness is very important.

Because let's talk about "brutally honest". You know that friend of yours who proudly advertises herself as "brutally honest"? Yeah, well I know her, too. We all have a friend like that in our lives. Listen to me, dear ones: NEVER let her see your work; never ask her opinion; never show her your vulnerability. When somebody tells you that she is brutally honest, what she is actually telling you is ,"I am brutal." What she is communicating to you is this: "You can trust that I am waiting for a chance to brutalize you. Now please give me an opportunity to hurt you."

I don't volunteer to be brutalized. Again, I don't hate myself that much. Brutal honesty is no virtue. Honesty without kindness is not worth the price you pay for it. I can listen to honesty, but only when it comes from a whole-hearted person, who is not trying to draw blood.

As for WHEN I listen to criticism? I only listen when there is still a chance to fix or change the work. After the book is published, THERE IS NOTHING MORE I CAN DO ABOUT IT — so why would I go digging for criticism after the book is already printed, and it's too late?

The age of the Internet has made it easier than ever for us to find out horrible things about ourselves. Anything we put online or into the world is subject to attack, derision, insult. But this doesn't make the Internet an evil place. (Look how kind we are to each other on this Facebook page, for instance!) The Internet is also a glorious playground, where you can put yourself out there in ways humans have never been able to enjoy before. So enjoy that playground, and put your work forward. But don't read the COMMENTS, you guys. Just don't.

And don't Google your name, unless you are looking for further self-injury.

(While we're on the subject of avoiding self-injury, let me just throw this out there: Don't Google your ex's name, either. STEP AWAY FROM THE BURNING VEHICLE.)

Sometimes, of course, you can't avoid seeing nasty things. Stuff pops up on Twitter and Facebook that is mean and harsh. Block it, mute it, move on. Don't feed the trolls. Don't engage. And never let the trolls stop you from using the miracle that is Internet. You have a right to speak, and a right to put your work forward, and a right to find your audience. Just keep putting yourself out there, and then — whenever possible — turn your head away from the reaction that may result.

Most of all, I beg you not to do this:

DO NOT put something out there into the world, and then go searching for an evil reaction to yourself or to your work.

DO NOT sit wide awake at 1am (usually with a pint of ice cream in your hand) and start digging until you find a horrible response.

DO NOT sit there all alone in a darkened room with the blue light of the computer shining on your face, scrolling and scrolling and scrolling through all the nice things people have to say about you (and ignoring every single kind and generous and supportive comment) until — VOILA! — you finally find what you were looking for. Don't go excavating until you finally find that one wickedly cruel comment that proves what you have always suspected in the darkest nightmare corner of your mind — that yes, you are a fraud, you have no talent, you are fat and ugly and worthless and pathetic.

DO NOT go digging, as I have seen my friends do so many times. Because if you dig long enough, you will find it. You will find the pain you were looking for.

Scrolling through the COMMENTS about yourself is like reading your roommate's diary: It's so tempting, because it's sitting right there! But if you read long enough, eventually you will find something about yourself that will break your heart. Don't do it. Put it down. Resist the temptation. Show the self-discipline that is necessary for self-care. Walk away.

I've watched creative friends of mine do such harm to themselves and their work, by digging through all the nutritional output about themselves until they finally find the one shard of glass in the sandwich, and then they take that shard of glass and cut themselves deeply with it. Sometimes those wounds last forever. And then they wonder why it's so hard to be creative again.

Meanwhile, the asshole who wrote that nasty comment about you hit "send" on his evil message, then turned his attention back to watching porn and drinking beer and scratching his butt, and he never thought of you again...but you have put his words into your mind forever. And when you sit down to create the NEXT time, those words will still be echoing in your skull. ("You are talentless, you are worthless, you are garbage.")

I refuse to do it. I refuse to hate myself that much. It's hard enough to be creative, but I refuse to fill my creative space (my skull) with cruel and taunting words that will just make it all the worse.

Refusing to read nasty things about myself is not denial; it is AFFIRMATION. This is how I affirm my own life and my own creativity. This is how I protect myself, because I am the only one who can protect myself. This is how I keep the inside of my mind clean and fresh and ready to play again.

I said it the other day, and I will say it again: God gave me a soul to take care of, that soul is my own. I am the only one who can keep that soul safe. I am the only one who can protect my creativity so that my imagination can run and play freely in the world.

I want you all to put yourselves out there in the world — especially all you women! We need your voices, we need your creativity, we need your courage, we need your output. But do understand this: If you put yourself out there in the world, everyone has a right to respond to you however they want to — that's the contract. They can attack you, they can insult you, they can undermine you.

BUT YOU ARE NOT OBLIGED TO LISTEN TO THEM.

Turn your head from the violence. Find people to trust, and listen ONLY to them. Once you put your work out there, your work is finished. Let it go and walk away. Keep doing your work, keep putting yourself forward, and then turn your head from the darkness.

Take care of yourself. Create freely. Share bravely. But never go digging for broken glass.

ONWARD,
LG

 

**posted in its entirety

 

The Path to Where?

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms and nurturers out there today and every day!

I have written about path and journey before, but it has come up in several places over last couple of weeks and I thought it was time to explore it again.

What about that "path" and where are we going?

I am a big "why" person:  when singers come to consult with me, or study with me, when colleagues make statements and their language reveals something to me that is larger than the statement, I ask WHY?  I don't do it to be a pain in the ass.  I query in order to find the truth in the language that is being used,  or the way in which someone is hiding in plain sight.

Language can also reveal stagnation,  self-sabotage, or simply just not knowing, no experience, no true discovery yet.  None of that is "bad" on its own:  it simply reveals to the listener where that speaker is. 

Some of these "paths" queries come in question form, and some in statement form.  They are still queries.

As a singer,  no matter the genre,  we do not have the luxury of a one-size-fits-all path.  If you are going to be a doctor, there is a protocol that gets you onto that path, along that path, and when complete it, you are a doctor.  Voila. 

We do not have that clarity. 

What we DO have is the luxury of self-discovery and creating that path that will be uniquely ours.  It is scary, frustrating, annoying and exhilarating and exciting.

So where are you going?  Sometimes that determines where you are, and will allow you to see for yourself what you need to create that path.

Often, we must work backwards from the question, or the statement we reveal.

Here are some examples:  When a singer walks in and says "I wanna sing at the Met" or "I wanna be on Broadway"  guess what my first question is?  Yes, you guessed it:  "why"?

Often the allure of the unknown is bright and shiny and the reality of what that actually MEANS hasn't sunk in.  What does it MEAN to be ready to be there?  What do you have to do?  Do you have enough bread crumbs to weave yourself back to where you actually are right now, in order to build a focus of intention to that particular goal?  Why is it that important to you to be "there"?  What does it represent to you? 

Other examples:

"I don't sound like xyz;  I need to sound more like that so I can get a job."

Again, I ask "why".   Language reveals.  This is a goal to disaster because sounding more like so-and-so isn't going to get you a job.  Sounding more like YOU is going to get you more like YOU, and if they want YOU then YOU get the job.

"I want a career."  And again, I ask "why"? and "doing what?"  What does the word "career" mean to you? 

Often, those "lofty goals" will change as you become more and more clear about who you are, why you are, and how you are.  They become less important because the path becomes clearer in its specificity of NOW.

What inspires you?  Who inspires you?  Why?

Are you aware there is a difference between making music and making a living making music?

Do you have talent, tenacity and training and the eagerness, energy & focus to hone all of it?

Wanting it doesn't make it so.

We often still hear "If you want a career you must do...."  as if there is a holy grail of knowledge that creates a career path. 

That just isn't so.  Not as performers.

You can be talented, go to the "right" schools, sing for the "right" people,  apply for the "right" programs, and still be sitting at home with no career.

There are others that don't "follow the protocol" of "right" - and somehow they develop a career.

Why?

Well, a little bit of luck doesn't hurt.  Being in the right place at the right time doesn't hurt. 

And the big one: being READY in case it's time.   There is nothing worse than missing an opportunity because you weren't ready. 

And what is ready?  Revealing YOU through your craft.  Claiming YOUR authenticity through the medium you wish to be seen in.  That means training, and discovery and self-discovery, and more honing, and more training, and more discovery!

I have been listening carefully to the language used by people in the business - be it opera or music theatre - and it reveals the same:  "That sounds great on you."  "You wear that well."  "As soon as I heard him I knew he would wear this character well."

It's about YOU being ready.  YOU.  YOU to step in and embody that song, that role, that repertoire.

Not you sounding like the other people that wear that;  Not you doing what everybody else does; Not you  pretending;  not you "schmacting";  not you "winging it";  not you "faking it til you make it". 


JUST YOU.  Developing, evolving, emerging, finishing.  YOU and your craft.

So, the path to where exactly?  Are you going to be YOU when you get there or did you forget that THAT path - to the authenticity of YOU - is more important than anything else?

You want a career?  What are YOU doing to make it happen?  Have you developed YOU enough to have one if it arrives?  Do you understand all the components?  Can you do them all?  What are you lacking?  What needs more YOU?

Ah, the questions reveal where the path is - and guess what?  Once you start to answer the questions, and DO the answers...you are ON the path.  The path to YOU. 

Let that guide you to the potency of destination that will keep morphing and growing with you.

The day we "arrive" is the day we quit growing. 

The path is whatever you choose to forge.  It's how you take it on that matters now. 

Do You Know?

It is March.  Thank the Universe.

Spring is now possible, even though as I type, there is light snow falling.

This post is really about the questions you need to ask in your technical and artistic development.

I am always amazed, and yet not surprised at many singers' lack of knowledge of their instrument.  This can be for many many reasons honestly, so this is a general overview.

I was asked last week if I could tell singers and developing artists one thing that could help them,  what would it be.

And here it is, without hesitation: ASK QUESTIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

DO NOT BE AFRAID TO ASK QUESTIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(enough exclamation points for you?)

No one expects  you to have all the answers.
Nobody has all the answers.
Questions lead to answers or exploration or more questions.

That's what this is all about!

Sometimes you have to ask a question to simply find out what question to ask!  That, too, is fantastic.

From a purely technical, behavioral perspective,  do you know what building your physical instrument is going to take?

Do you know when the actual vocal mechanism reaches maturity?

Do you know what "reaching maturity" actually means?  (hint:  you aren't done when you mature!)

Do you know what the process is for YOU as you progress toward vocal maturity?

Do you know HOW you are building the instrument?

Do you know how the support mechanism works for YOUR body?

Do you understand how the basic vocal mechanism functions?

Do you know where your lungs are?

Do you know how to care for your instrument?

Do you recognize the athleticism of your vocal instrument?

Do you care?

Are you afraid to ask questions?

Are you excited to ask questions?
 

As a teacher, my job is to find the singer where she/he is.  Not to start them again.  I have to figure out where you are,  and access what you know, what you don't know, how you learn, how you respond. 

Guess what?  As a teacher, I ask LOTS of questions:  of you; of myself; of my research, of my experience, of my knowledge, of my intuition.

In asking lots of questions to discover MORE,  I expect the same of you.

It is YOUR instrument.  It is YOUR development.  It is YOUR journey.  YOU are responsible.

Development isn't passive, it's active.  It's action-filled.  It's exciting, and frustrating, and annoying, and thrilling and amazing.

Remember that person who never asks direction and thinks they can figure out how to get there and they never do or it takes all day and a tank of gas?  Remember how much EASIER it would have been to simply ask the gas attendant how to get there, cause he lives in the area and would actually know????

ASK QUESTIONS.  If you don't get the answers that help (not always the answers you are comfortable with btw) then go find someone else that can answer them.

You are never beholden to someone but rather, responsible for you.  You are responsible for your development,  and therefore, responsible to ask the questions, to find more questions, to discover more answers, and in more answers, more possibility.

So if you don't know.  ASK.

Ask some more.

Asking questions reveals a desire for truth and understanding. 

If you know WHY you can replicate the behavior.

If you don't know why,  you wander around,  and find yourself back in the same place wondering how you are still there.

So, do you know?

I think it's time to start finding out!

Carbs & Sleep & Stillness

Yes, indeed, it's THAT time of year.

We are mammals after all - and hibernation sounds about right:  a snuggly blanket, a good book, Netflix,  carbs and comfort food,  warmth,  naps, dozing off...

Of course, that's a luxury this time of year, as auditions amp up,  applications are needing to be addressed and filled out,  learning your music, your lines, your role for that show you booked are necessary,  getting papers written for your classes are going to be due...

Or is it a luxury?

This is the time of year where I don't make resolutions, but I actually give myself "still time" to contemplate what's on my plate and what I want to change.

Listen, I like a full plate.  I like having things to do.  I also like crossing things that are done, off the list.  That sense of accomplishment is rather delicious indeed. 

The other "list" I am maintaining is the "I don't need that anymore" list. 

That's the list where I can say I have earned my way out of needing something;  have decided to step away from something;  have decided to clarify my involvement in something;  have decided to simply something.

I am beginning to love this list,  because it really does allow me to slow down,  consider what I DON'T need,  and how I will nurture what I DO need.

So often, we are constantly chasing what we feel we need to DO.  What about sitting back,  taking a breath and saying "what do I need to release?"

It can be simply giving yourself permission to let go of something - even temporarily - to allow a clearer head space;  an opportunity to focus further elsewhere;  a chance just to not only catch your breath, but BREATHE.

You do NOT have to go to EVERY AUDITION.  Pick the ones you are right for,  and the shows that make sense for you. 

You do NOT have to apply for EVERY YAP.  God knows, the application fees themselves could cause heart failure.  Pick the companies that you respond to in their mission statements,  how they build their seasons,  what their reputation is.

You do NOT have to keep your priorities the same every day.  Every week.  Every month.

"Regular" voice lessons might mean weekly for a while,  or bi-weekly for a while,  or monthly for a while.

"Regular"  work on your craft may mean you need to adjust how much time is spent on what aspect of the craft determined by simply what you NEED in that week, and for that commitment.

Give yourself permission to RELEASE a little.  Stretch.  Sigh.  Eat some carbs. 

And some days, it means, just pulling the covers back up and hitting the snooze one more time. 

Life will be there when you get up.  It will greet you fully whenever you are able to look it in the eye and say "okay, let's figure out what I need, and what I can release, TODAY."  And even consider doing that in reverse order: "What can I release today, in order to embrace what is needed?"

Time to enjoy the stillness.  And the fluidity we call an artist's life.

 

It's 2015: MOVE!

Happy 2015!

What will it bring?

Or more importantly,  what do YOU bring to it?

I am not into regrets.  Or woulda-coulda-shouldas.  It keeps me locked into a place that doesn't let me move forward.

So claim NOW and look forward.

Let's play a game.  Try to answer with ONE WORD ONLY - you can always extrapolate later!
*****

What do you want?

What do you need?

Why?

What are you pursuing?

How are you pursuing it?

What does your artistic self crave?

What does your business self need?

What would simply give you contentment each day?

What makes you laugh?

What makes you frustrated?

What gets in your way?

What are the THREE words you are going to claim for 2015?


*******

Resolutions and regrets are not worth your energy.

Resolutions set you up for failure, and regrets keep you locked in place.

Move forward.  Move with purpose.  Move with integrity.  Move with balance.  Move with clarity.  Move with focus. Move with authenticity.

Just get moving!!  Great things happen when you know HOW to move,  WHEN to move,  WHERE to move. 

Trust your gut.  Trust your instinct.  Develop your intuition. 

Create an environment to move into and bring it with you!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to those of you in America!

Happy Thursday to everybody regardless of where you are!

This week begins the holiday season.  It is always one of my favorite times of year - even with all the bustle and busy-ness,  I find it a great time to be still and re-evaluate and re-tool what I want to accomplish.

I was asked recently why I starting writing this blog - and even though it has gained a wonderful readership over the years - YOU - I started it because I just needed to write things down.  I wanted to collect my thoughts as I observed the business, the theatre, the studio, the craft, the spirit of the artist.  I figured writing a blog was less stressful and less expensive than seeing a shrink!

In writing this,  I have discovered more of what I want to accomplish.   I have been able to find more clarity and specificity in my artistic life and how I challenge others to do the same.

Trust me,  every issue I write about,  I have learned about!  I did not come out of the womb knowing how to do things in this business or on my own artistic journey!  If anybody made mistakes or took missteps along the way - it was this girl!  I know because I lived it,  and figured out how to fix it and make it work.

I keep learning.  I keep discovering.  I keep evolving. 

Do I get frustrated?  Do I procrastinate?  Do I get scared?  Of course I do. 

Do I question and wonder if it's worth it?  Yes.

Do I get angry with myself or disappointed with myself when I don't follow through the way I wanted?  Yes.

But every day is a new one.  I have the grand capacity to make things much more complicated than they need to be;  I am learning to release that and truly live in the present and in the moment and breathe through my initial reaction to create more complication.  Some days I succeed.  Some days I need to keep learning!

So today,  as I sit at my computer screen before the day's festivities begin,  I sip my coffee and look out the window at the winter wonderland that has landed gracefully around me and say:

THANK YOU.

Thank you for possibility.

Thank you for hope.

Thank you for not just accepting, but questioning to find the right answers - the right answers for YOU.

Thank you for discovery.

Thank you for strange and unique and odd directions of the path.

Thank you for artistic inquisitiveness.

And Thank YOU - for reading, for emailing me or messaging me or posting.  Thank YOU for inspiring me to write and to question for you, for me, and for all of us as we meander this crazy life of artist and of business of show.

As we all muddle through together,  there is suddenly an "A-HA!" moment - and I live for those! 

Keep living for your "A-HA!" - and when you find it,  savor it.  It belongs to you.  THEN you can give more fully to those who ask of you.

Be wherever you are.  And wherever you are, be there.

Happy Thanks.

Happy Giving.

Why Do You Sing?

Musings this Sunday morning...

It's a simple, yet highly personal and highly complex question.

Why do you sing?

Don't try to answer too quickly.  We are always looking for "sound bites" and pat answers.  This is not that type of question.  At least, not to me.

Why do you sing?

YOU.

Not, why do you THINK you sing.

Not, why did you START singing.

Not, who do you sing for?

Why?
You?
Sing?

Often these are the questions, or this is the question we forget to remind ourselves of as we journey through the development of the craft of voice,  of being a performer, of developing our artistry, of juggling and struggling to make ends meet as we pursue the business of show, or not.

We can feel so discouraged, or angry, or grouchy, or disillusioned, or bitchy because of the business, the struggle, the rejection,  the tiny morsels when you are really starving - that we forget the answer to this question;  if we ever truly claimed the answer in the first place.

How would you feel if you didn't sing?

What would you do if you decided NOT to sing?

Perhaps those questions can help to create an angle to allow you full access into why you DO sing?

The clearer you are about why,  the more focused your day becomes.  The more focused your day becomes, the more open the journey becomes.  The burden becomes lighter.  It is a burden CHOSEN by you,  not placed on you.

We all have a choice.  If you are trying to pursue a career,  you can often feel as if all the choices are not yours.  In fact,  the choices of why and how and when in many cases are still very much in your control and in your power and decision to DO something about them.

 So, why do you sing?  I mean, really?  Not the answer that your teacher wants to here;  not the answer you give your parents;  not the answer you think everybody wants to hear after this length of time trying to be a singer;  not even the answer YOU think you should give to make yourself feel better,  feel important,  feel crucial.

The answer is often in the shadows when the lights are off;  in whispers;  not because you are ashamed of the answer,  but the answer becomes too personal to reveal to anybody else BUT YOU.

Nobody needs to know why you sing.  People will speculate.  People will tell you THEIR answer. 

Your answer is really all that matters if you choose to answer it honestly,  and claim it fully.

There is not a right or wrong answer.

There is only YOUR answer.

Your answer then reveals TO you about you;  and where you are supposed to be next;  and what the next question is;  and who you ask that question of.

The question AND the answer will keep you grounded as so much around us is trying to give us artistic amnesia.  

Keep asking the questions.  The REAL ones.  And keep clearing space to find the REAL answers.  Nobody has to approve,  disapprove, like or dislike.  The question is real,  and it deserves a real answer, that only YOU can provide.

Ask it,  discover the answer.  YOURS.

We all have a story

Sunday musings...

We all have a story.

But here's the thing:  what's it doing for you?

The singers that get stuck, stay stuck,  clearly are stuck,  are the ones who tend to stay so wedded to their story that it doesn't allow them to move forward.

Your story is your narrative,  but if it doesn't move your forward,  why are you hanging onto it?

Look at lyrics to a song that you are considering for audition material:  does it create a beginning middle and a end?  Does it just sit there?  Is it a woe-is-me song?  Does it DO anything?

Our own stories can facilitate the same reaction.

Your story should evolve.  If it isn't, you aren't.

Your story should have momentum.  If you are saying "I know" a lot, but not doing anything to change it,  then it doesn't.

Your story should have possibilities.  If it doesn't,  then you don't.

Your story doesn't need a full narrative.  If it does,  and it's repeated again and again, then it's about the narrative and not about the possibility.

Narrative can become a loop in the case of someone who has clung to the delusion.  They repeat the same phrase/phrases again and again.  They have written the story to justify where they are.

To be honest,  the only justification they are trying to find, is their own.

We all have a story.

We all have a back story.

Is it serving you?  Or is it simply making you spin your wheels?

Are you ready to write a new chapter,  or possibly, allow that chapter to write you?

Taking that step away from the wall can be frightening,  but don't you owe it to yourself to find out what happens?  How bad could it be?

If you are about to answer via narrative,  you are writing the script before it happens! See?

Stop telling the story before it happens...

Stop telling the story that has happened...

Find your moment.  BE in that moment.  Trust you can find what you need AS YOU NEED IT.  Be aware.  Be present.  Find yourself as you are,  not as you were, not as you wish you were.

The authenticity of you is in the discovery of your NOW.   Claim it!

Sing with your WHOLE voice...

happy Memorial Day in the USA (and a regular Monday for the rest of you!)

What is the second half of that sentence?

Sing with your WHOLE voice, with your WHOLE body.

Voice is not just motor/resonance  - but it is the strength, pliability,  elasticity and ATHLETICISM of the body to support it.

If your body is not strong,  you simply cannot support and carry that instrument.  CAN NOT.


Each body - no matter the size,  can be strong.  Your voice resides there - you gotta look after it.  Do not let someone else tell you that you need to "lose weight",  "change your body" - for the sake of the business.  You need to be strong, first and foremost.  You need to be powerful physically in order for your voice to respond to you.

I often tell my singers that the voice itself is always fine.  Where she/he wants to RESIDE is not always ideal.  You know how you feel after a really busy week or 2 and you finally have a day off but your apartment looks like the Good Will has blown up in it,  and the LAST place you want to be is in it, so you leave?  That's sometimes how your voice feels.  It really really REALLY wants to be there,  but dammit if it's not aligned and strong enough,  she/he just refuses to move in.

You can work all you want on "vocal technique" but if your body isn't strong,  and integrated with your breath and your support,  then all the exercises in the world will not save you. 

Your body will save you.

The WHOLE voice, YOUR voice, wants YOUR body. All of it.  Not just a portion.  ALL.

Are you willing to get strong in order to do what you say you want to do?

Strength and integration are what singing are about on a physical level.  We are asking something rather inhuman of ourselves.  We have to train the body with the same focus as those who are the top athletes in their fields.

Forget fat,  forget critics,  focus on YOU.  If you sing,  you must be strong.  If you are not,  you will notice that when you are nervous your "technique" disappears;  your "breath" disappears.

Until you can summon your technique,  your strength,  at will,  you are hoping, wishing & praying.

When your body is strong,  you have a place to reside.  Your voice has a place to reside, to trust and to THRIVE and shape itself in the uniqueness that is YOU.

Sing EVERYTHING with your wholeness - voice, spirit AND BODY!

Your authenticity DEMANDS it.

What is a REAL voice?

Sunday musings...

Spent the morning listening to the soundtrack of Jason Robert Brown's "Bridges of Madison County" and continue to remain inspired.

Bridges closes on Broadway today.  Ridiculous.  One of the finest shows in live theatre, and some of the FINEST singing I have heard across the boards in a long time.

If you haven't listened, then you need to.  The greatness that is Kelli O'Hara and the riveting Steven Pasquale will reveal to you what REAL voice is.

Singers in theatre,  you really need to release "where to put the sound",  "do I sing it in a mix/belt-mix/chest mix?"  which I shall say it now - is BULL SHIT - and just SING. 

It takes a long time to discover who you are as a singer.  It not only takes time,  exploration,  honesty and work to discover what your voice IS,  but it also takes times to discover the conversation you are having with yourself,  and the questions you need to ask to find the RIGHT conversation to have.

You will only sound like...YOU.  Trying to "type" yourself is always comparing to others.  Recognizing who you ARE if the first step of discovery.  Challenging yourself to become better than your PREVIOUS self is the work.

If you hear "you NEED to sound like so-and-so"  or "you will only get hired if you sing it this way" - RUN! RUN FAR AND FAST!

You need to learn how to sound like YOU.  Then and only then will you be able to dress that sound in the fabric of the style and genre you want/can/will sing.  YOUR voice informs how that is worn.  The style informs YOU.  If you don't know who you are as a singer,  how can you possibly be authentic?

If you aren't being noticed,  called-back, booking,  there are many things out of your control.  HOWEVER,  what is in your control is defining the authenticity of YOU.  What is YOUR real voice.
Get to know it,  find its idiosycrasies, its deliciousness, its annoyances,  its quirks.  Discover and embrace its imperfections,  its complexities,  its nuances and uniqueness.

Kelli O'Hara isn't a type.  She IS Kelli O'Hara.

Steven Pasquale isn't a type.  Steven IS Steven.

Let them inspire you - not to become LIKE them,  but to become YOU.

The authenticity of YOU is discovered in your work, your journey, your conversation.  Do not deflect or hide beneath a type.  Create YOU,  reveal YOU,  and walk in that room with all the foibles and fabulousness that IS you.

You will only create authenticity when you truly claim it as your own.

So what is REAL voice?   Revealing the truth.  Daunting perhaps.  Liberating and real?  you bet it is!

I DARE YOU!

Actors and the VOICE

Sunday musings...


I have had several actors come to me recently who have major vocal problems.  They simply have not cared for,  nor do they seem to know how to use and look after their instruments.

It bespeaks a larger issue...I see so many so-called "actors" who take business classes to try to get work,  but have completely ignored the craft of simply caring and using their instrument.

An actor does not have to take singing lessons to use his/her voice.  However, an actor should be taking VOICE lessons in order to use his/her voice in a healthy way and to learn about support,  breath and resonance,  as well as building on endurance, power,  projection and more.

I have many actors who come in to work on their speaking voices THROUGH singing work.  The singing is more athletic simply because of duration,  and so they build a larger range,  a better understanding of support and movement of breath,  and their speaking voices become much more anchored and resonant almost immediately.

I am amazed at how many actors,  stage or screen,  do NOT work warm up their instrument prior to using it.  Many just haven't thought about it.

Unless you are working in silent film,  your instrument is your voice.  Your body is your instrument.  Why wouldn't you want it to be as athletic and strong as it could be?

This is in no way a chastisement!  This is a simple nudge to encourage you to view your training and your development as an actor a little further than what many have done.

You need to understand the function of your voice.  What are your possibilities?  How strong and tangible is your breath?  What kind of range do you have vocally?  (A grunt and a squeak do not count!)   What is your resonance like?  Where does your voice naturally sit?  Does it tire easily?  Do you project without restriction?  Are you gasping for air?  Is your throat sore after you have used your voice?

We aren't even talking about the craft of ACTING.  We are simply talking about the physical instrument and all of its possibilities.  The craft of acting should wrap itself around the physicality of the voice,  and sadly, often it is ass backwards and the voice itself is forgotten.

So what should you do?  Just like take a yoga class, or a pilates class or a spin class,  you warm up first.  You do not go into a full blown attack without letting the muscles get loose and lengthen and breathe.  Just like working out in ANY athletic activity,  so should you allow the voice!

Find yourself a voice class that is structured on the instrument as focus.  Find a teacher that understands the actor's voice and can help build a regime of development for you specifically.
 Take the time to really discover your voice.  Each actor has physicality,  has breath,  has tone,  has range,  has resonance,  has language.  Wouldn't you want to discover more about that and access all of what you are?  Wouldn't you want to know how to use all these factors in order to develop MORE breath, MORE support, MORE resonance,  MORE power, MORE dynamic. MORE range and never get vocally tired?

The more you focus on the athleticism of the voice and simply develop it,  the more possibilities exist.   If there are possibilities,  then anything can happen!

Treat your voice with the respect it deserves.  It IS your instrument.  YOU are an actor.  The two are entwined.  Now is the time to get conscious about it and do something to make it MORE.  Let it reveal itself to you,  develop it, nurture it,  and CLAIM IT.

happy discovery!

Welcome 2014! Goals & Processes!

Happy New Year!

This is always a somewhat melancholy time for many of us...and an opportunity to allow clearing the clutter (literally and figuratively) and discover what we want to focus on at the beginning of this year.

I read a great article this week http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/230333.

It looks at the difference between goals and systems.  It really spoke to me. 

We all have goals.  Yet, somehow, it's not always easy to reach them.  We aren't always in control of the goal.  But we ARE in control of the system we take on.

Committing to the process, not the goal makes complete sense to me.

I will use myself as an example.  I haven't written "this book" yet...you will fall over and hurt yourself when I have finally completed it and published it I know...

I realize now,  I was too focused on the "I will complete my book this year" instead of the process of creating "writing time" each week.

Daily schedule/weekly schedule of process takes the pressure of "deadline" off, and allows us to find the creativity to evolve.

Have you created some of your "dream big goals"?  Sometimes they seem daunting,  unattainable,  too good to be true.  However, if we work from a process,  we find the reality that supports the possibility of those dreams to come true.

Perhaps one of your dream goals is to perform on Broadway.  That is a very broad goal.  So if we start with process - dreaming doesn't get you there.  Do you study your craft regularly?  Are you auditioning regularly??? Are you getting regular call backs?  Are you trying to take classes with major casting directors to gradually become known?  What are you being recognized for?  What do you want to be recognized for?  Are you developing that skill?  that talent?  that possibility?  Have you done any professional performing?  Do you have an audition book that you can sing solidly?

The embracing of the process puts it in YOUR hands.  You have to be realistic.  Process takes time.  It takes practice.  It takes a realistic view of where you are and where you are going.

Goals are great - if you are willing to embrace the process.  I can't write a book and publish it, if I don't make time to write.  Well, DUH. 

You can't work as a professional artist if you don't work your process to become professional in craft, and in business.  Wanting it, setting the goal and not reaching it happens when the process is ignored.

Some people are big ideas people.  Some people see the detail.  As artists in the business of show,  we need to be both.  Or we need someone in our circle we trust to balance that which we do not see, and can point it out clearly.

This is why we study;  this is why we have coaches and teachers, and mentors and the like - to not tell us how great we are,  but to challenge us to think beyond what is comfortable.

What do you want????  That is the big picture, no matter the answer.

How do you get there??? Those are the details.  That reveals the process.

Sometimes the process reveals another goal.  Imagine! 

Choose to reveal the authenticity of you in every aspect of your process.  The more authentic you are,  the more your process develops,   and the clearer those goals appear.

It's your journey.  You are entitled to change your direction if your process takes you there.

Welcome to a new year to each of you!

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