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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

Why study?

happy weekend!

Conversations with the singers that work with me always bring me to further thought - and often it ends up here on the blog!

This one came up several times this week.

Why study?

I am always flabbergasted - and probably shouldn't be given our social climate - that so many think, in portions of our business - that their undergrad is done,  and so,  why study anymore?

Or  - there are some who have begun a professional career but don't further their studies.

The reasons why those attitudes and decisions are made aren't the point of this blog post.

More to the point,  why study?  why continue to study?  why pick up your study?  and most importantly,  why wouldn't you?

We are athletes are singers and performers.  We need to keep that physicality in the best shape.  Great athletes are constantly honing their craft,  their physicality,  working with coaches on all levels of their work.

As singers,  our physicality and metabolic life is continuing to change, morph and develop.  If we don't work with it and develop it fully,  and allow for it to be realized,  how can we call ourselves professional?

If we are asked to be part of the equipment - doing 8 shows a week - wouldn't it be the natural realization to keep working on the technical behavior so that instrument and equipment can do its job well?

If we are just at the beginning of a possible career,  wouldn't it make sense to keep exploring and studying what the physicality and technique can develop into in order to access it more fully and more specifically?

If you are in your career - wouldn't a regular tune up and 2nd set of ears be the thing you'd need to keep you aligned, balanced and healthy?

We have trainers at the gym;  we have life coaches;  we learn to eat well;  we take dance classes or yoga classes or pilates classes;  we may even take a performance class or two;  we keep getting new head shots;  we keep updating our websites;  we keep auditioning...

but do we study?

Do we learn how we do what we do?  how we need to re-approach what we thought was working and maybe isn't anymore?  do we know how we access that voice? that physicality?  with specific knowledge and action,  or just by the seat of our pants?

Finishing a program doesn't mean you know.

Being cast in a show doesn't mean you know.

You know when you know.  And the more you know the more you want to know.  Because knowing reveals how much there is to continue to learn!

Why study?  Because you must to truly reveal what you have,  what you need to hone,  what you need to develop,  in order to summon your talent at will.

If you call yourself a performer,  or an artist who performs,   then you are connected to the journey of KNOWING.  Knowing requires enquiry;  enquiry requires getting real;  getting real reveals truth; truth reveals authenticity.

Study.

It comes in many forms.

It morphs,  and it changes shape depending on what you need, when you need it.

It doesn't have to be weekly lessons,  although it can be.  It could mean intensive work in the voice studio over a short period of time and then a longer period of allowing that information to wash through you,  and for your technical behavior to catch up physically in order to access things fully.

It could be regular "check-ins".  It could be a combination of intensives and check-ins.

Nothing is in stone.  How you study is reflected on why you study.

I often ask my singers,  "why are you here?  What do you feel you need today?  What do you feel you are here to do?"

Sometimes they know,  sometimes they don't.  Sometimes they think they know,  and as we start to work,  it is revealed what they really need!

So,  why study?

Why wouldn't you?

Even if you are fully formed from a physiological perspective within the singing mechanism,  are you aware of all the micro-shifts and metabolic changes?  Do you know how to access it fully,  freely without issue?  Is your talent easily summoned without restraint,  at will,  because your technical behavior is so ingrained it needs nothing more?

 If you say you are an artist,  or a performer,  then your craft DEMANDS study, observation, changes, adjustments, tweaking, and an honest and true place to explore.

Take on the study - and commit to the lifelong exploration that allows you to access YOU!

Can't, Don't, Won't

welcome to March!

Auditions are in full swing in the Music Theatre community...
Auditions continue in the Operatic community....

It can be a very busy and overwhelming time of year.

How are you doing?


This is the time of year I often re-visit how I am talking to myself,  as I see all kinds of psyches in the studio!  I see the can't, the don't, and the won't...

As artists,  we have an incredible ability to self-doubt.  That's not a criticism, it's an observation, because I DO IT TOO.  Self-doubt doesn't have to be a negative:  it gives us permission to find more, and achieve more, and push ourselves to reveal more, if we allow the doubt to motivate us, not debilitate us.

Our "self-talk" is crucial and it also it important to acknowledge it and see if it needs tweaking or changing.  Behavior can't be "stopped",  but it can be replaced.

Deciding how we are going to self-speak without delusion  (WAAAAAY above my pay grade) is always an important discussion.

What are you saying to yourself?  What are you saying out loud?  What do others hear?

As I challenge myself,  I challenge every singer that walks in the studio with their self-language.  We often don't realize how we self-sabotage just with a word which then becomes a thought, which then becomes a behavior,  which then gets in our way.

How many of us have been told to get out of our own way?  Hmmmm.

"Can't" easily is an excuse.  Remember, this is not exclusive,  but more a way to discover HOW you speak to yourself and when it happens, and why it happens.

"I can't get out of bed to get to that audition call."

Well, unless you are sick or dying,  yes you can.  CAN'T is the excuse of something else.

Maybe you don't want to.  Maybe you're exhausted.  Maybe you're scared.  Maybe you're confused.

What would happen if you took a step away from "can't" and got to the crux?

"I can get out of bed,  but I don't want to."

Fair.

Do you HAVE to?  Is there something that relying on you to DO that task?

Each statement reveals another question that gets you to the real answer that you need to claim and then DO something with.

"I can't learn all this music."  

"I can't decide what to sing."

"I can't decide what to wear."

Unless you honestly CANNOT,  this is stress management talking.

That's okay.  We ALL DO IT.  Move past the "can't" to figure out why that word?

As you move past "can't"  we get to "don't".

"I don't wanna."

okay - that's honest enough.  But, WHY?  Never settle for the can't, don't, won't.  Figure out why the dismissal.

"I don't have time."   "I don't have the money."  "I don't have the aria/song prepared."  "I don't...xzy"

Why don't you?  And you cannot answer with "can't"!!

Do you WANT to?  If your answer is no,  then that is something you can work with to find out what you want and what you DO have time/money/energy/passion for!  If the answer is yes,  then what is in your way for that time/money/preparation/action/energy/passion?

Won't.

"I won't audition for them again."
"I won't sing that again."
"I won't use that monologue."
"I won't..."

Again,  why?  "Won't"  is beginning to claim a decision.  A decision can be unconscious but if you say it out loud, it becomes conscious.  When the conscious CHOICE allows you to create a boundary that is positive,  "won't" works if you know why.  When you know why,  you can claim the choice and create a behavior that replaces the one you aren't going to do again!

Our vocabulary reveals much about where we are.  It's not always easy to look into that particular mirror,  but if we choose to explore the artistic nature of who we are, and if we choose to embark on the passive/aggressive love affair of the business of show,  then we must DEMAND of ourselves that check in, and that honesty.  It isn't about being hard on yourself;  it is about being HONEST.  The honesty can be tough,  but it will give us direction and clarity.

That doesn't mean if you self-speak light, love and glitter bombs that you are being honest with yourself either!   Stress management and delusion live on either side of the veil.  The truth is somewhere in the middle.

I can't....why?  Answer it immediately so there's no time to meddle.  Then continue to riddle it through to a logical end for that question,  on that day.

I don't...why?

I won't...why?

These words need to be there for each of us to find our boundaries and our behaviors.

Claim them;  answer them;  laugh at them;  take a big breath and DO YOU.

Sometimes it turns into:

I can...
I do...
I will....

Are You READY?

It's holiday season...

It's opera audition season...

It's always theatre audition season...

Sometimes, it's successful,  sometimes it doesn't seem to be.

If you aren't getting the auditions,  or the callbacks if you get the auditions;  if you aren't getting seen;  if you feel frustrated,  disappointed,  despondent, ready to take a hiatus...

Your feelings are valid.  Acknowledge them,  give them permission to exist and let them move through so you can get to the next.

What is the next?

A simple, yet complex question:  Are you ready?

Your answer may be:  Yeah, but Susan, ready for what?  I am not getting seen/getting appointments/getting callbacks/getting ANYTHING.

Ah, but what happens WHEN they call?  WHEN you get the audition appointment?

If you are stubborn and crazy enough to pursue this career choice (and you have to be a little or a lot of both!) - you have to be ready.

Once the disappointment wears away,  get your big girl panties on and GET TO WORK.

There is nothing more devastating than to watch someone who SAYS they want a career,  who may go through disappointing seasons of no work/no auditions,  suddenly get an opportunity, and they just are not ready.

It happens more than you think.

Make a commitment to yourself this season.  Make a commitment to be ready.

Sometimes you wonder if a casting director, or an artistic director even remembers you.  Then, out of the blue,  you get a call.  Are your ready?  (and that's not a story, it DOES happen)

What are you doing to be ready?

Is your voice is tip top shape?  Are you studying regularly enough,  are you practicing consistently to access your talent at will?

Are your arias ready to sing and PERFORM?

Is your audition book ready so if the casting director says "what else have you got in there?"  you could sing that cut exactly the way you want it?

Do you know what you want them to see about YOU in an audition?

Vocally?  Dramatically?

Are you ready to take on those roles or those projects that you say you want?

Is your head shot working?

Is your resume up to date?

Have you up'd your game in order to stand out for all the right reasons once you have a chance to show them what you do?

What if that phone call came today?  Are you going to get excited,  get focused and prep or are you going to start making excuses as to why it might not work?

If you say you want it,  then DO IT.  Prepare even when the opportunity isn't beckoning you.  Prepare precisely because it is not there.  This allows you the opportunity to be ready when the pressure isn't breathing down your throat!

Is the presentation of YOU accessible at a moment's notice?  This is the time to assess and ponder and then do something about that!

Little secret:  the business isn't going anywhere.  You can take some time to get yourself in order to truly be ready when the call comes and they want to see you this afternoon, tomorrow or next week.

So, instead of letting the lack of work, auditions, callbacks get you down - let it be permission to get it all together!  Organize!  Plan!  Study!  Practice!  Discover!  BE!!!!

Yes, sometimes being ready means you hurry up and wait.  Waiting doesn't mean dormant.  Waiting means prepared.  Our business is fickle,  and it's temperamental and it changes its mind quickly.  If you aren't ready to meet the challenge when the opportunity beckons or demands your attention,  you will be stuck in your own decisions.

The opportunity will come.  Be ready for what you need to do, in order to DO IT.

Don't settle for kinda, sorta,  maybe.

Kinda, sorta, maybe isn't memorable for the right reasons.

You want it?  You gotta go get it when it presents itself.

That's the best gift you can give yourself this season:  ALL OF YOU!

What Does a Singer Need?

Happy 4th of July to all of you who celebrate!

As we enter the lazy days of summer,  it can be a great time to re-evaluate,  to re-negotiate,  to re-discover what you need,  what you want,  what your goals are for the upcoming season,  what you want to achieve through the summer.

So what does a singer NEED in order to create an environment to learn, to develop & to succeed in their development?

Talent aside,  there are many other things that can be more tangible or realized.


Talent is nothing without development.  Potential sucks if it's not developed.


What do you need?

A burning desire to sing.  Not a plan B or C;  not an excuse;  not a "yeah, but";  Just a simple burning desire to sing because that it was gives you a sense of yourself like no other.

You need to WANT to sing.  You need to WANT to learn that role, that song, that aria.  You cannot WAIT to throw yourself into the learning process because to sing is to be alive.


A capacity for major doses of reality.  The DESIRE is fueled by this.  You have to know what you are capable of doing and why;  and what you are not ready to do,  may never do,  and why not.

Do you know what it will take to pursue a career?  Are you ready to commit to that?  What are you ready and willing and able to commit to?  What can you glean from that commitment?

Knowledge is power,  and power is knowing.  The singer must have both and recognize that the balance of the two is constantly in flux.

AWARENESS is key.   Where am I?  What can I do?  What am I willing to do?  How do I make that work to achieve my goals?  Are my goals realistic to my talent, my desire, my tenacity, my commitment?  If not,  how do my goals shift in order to make my choices more realistic?

What are my priorities?  Do they line up with what I want or say I want or do they reveal something more important that I need to pursue or acknowledge?

Are you aware of your own psychology?  Are you clear what it represents?

Are you aware of your emotional and mental strengths, and even more importantly, your weaknesses?  Do you know how to develop your sense of self awareness?
Do you acknowledge self-doubt?  Self-sabotage?
Do you recognize what you need to do to move through it?

Are you willing to take responsibility for your emotional life in order to be healthy enough to explore a professional life as a singer?  What are you doing to achieve that goal?

Find a mentor.  Find that person that is willing to invest in you and challenge you.  A mentor will hold up a mirror to give you permission to see what needs to be seen.  They will help you continue to ask the questions in order to discover some answers, and probably some more questions.  They are not there to enable,  to tell you what you want to hear, but rather, to encourage,  and create an environment safe enough to hear what you NEED to hear and help you find ways to DO something about it.

I think mentoring is like reality training in a safe environment.

As singers,  as human beings,  we need this desperately.

What else do you need?

A solid,  unrelenting work ethic.

A focused consistency.

An unapologetic self-discipline.

The ability to laugh at yourself but always take the work seriously.

The ability to forgive yourself.

The emotional and psychological fortitude to say "no".

The emotional and psychological fortitude to ask "why".

The self-discipline to take a day off and not feel guilty.

The self-discipline to get back to work,  even when the obstacles take your breath away.

The desire and focus to always follow through.  ALWAYS.

So,  what are you working on?  What do you need?  What are you willing to do to acknowledge it,  and develop it and find more of it?

Nothing is promised,  but you have RIGHT NOW to make some choices that will allow you to find your "next".

Happy discovering!!

What about YOU?

Saturday musings...

This audition season for music theatre and opera performers has been what many of you are referring to "the hunger games".

It has left so many of you exhausted, frustrated, angry, defeated, sad, and second-guessing what you are doing.

It breaks my heart.  I see your commitment,  your struggle,  your desire,  your drive...

Yes, there is much that is wrong with the system.  There are flaws in every aspect of the business.  We have little control over that, and must watch it hit critical mass before it changes,  IF it changes.

But, more importantly, what about YOU?

You the performer;  you the artist;  you the human being.

What have you done for YOU during this hunger games season?

When you feel depressed, sad, exhausted, wondering, what do you DO?

If you are a performer wanting a career,  that focus can be exhausting if you actually ignore YOU.  Now you might say,  but Susan, I am studying and taking lessons and classes and going to seminars and intensives and and and...

Okay...but I ask again,  what about YOU?

Does auditioning give you joy?  Does spending all that money on application fees make you warm and fuzzy?

These are the necessary evils to become viable in the business...this is NOT YOU.

Remember when just stretching your body and making sounds and singing gave you JOY?

What is your goal?  Yes, working and being paid for your work is a goal;  Having reliable craft is a goal;  Sustainability in your work is a goal.

What about nurturing yourself THROUGH your voice?

What made you love to sing in the first place?  Do you remember?

How did it make you FEEL?

Listen,  I am goal-oriented as the next type A personality! I get it.  However, pursuing, and working toward something, and focusing - all good things - can sometimes exhaust us.  It is outside of us, and we forget what brought us to this aspiration in the first place.

Who inspired you?

Who believed in you?

Who inspires you now?  Who believes in you now?

Do YOU inspire you?  Do YOU believe in you?

How does it FEEL to take a singing breath?  To just sing because,  oh I don't know...YOU LOVE IT.

What happens when you let all that pursuit release for a few minutes and just come to a song BECAUSE YOU WANT TO;  because you love it;  because you love how it makes you FEEL. 

Nothing more,  nothing less.  Just how it FEELS.

The depletion we feel during and after a hard audition season where we must focus on the DOING to get seen to be called back to have a chance to be hired,  can not just fatigue us;  it can get in the way of us remembering WHY we do the actual singing;  the actual acting;  the actual dancing.

If you can find the joy again and re-discover and re-commitment to the JOY we experience with no value judgement and no pressure, then perhaps there's a chance to be still enough to recuperate from the fatigue.

Maybe, just maybe,  we change our focus to ourselves in the truest form, and our artistry and commitment to the nurturing of self reveals more truths and allows us to TRUST again. 

Perhaps,  finding that space for self will allow for a still moment to release and discover why  it feels GOOD to sing;  why we wanted to in the first place!

Feeling, and letting all the real and positive and beautifully overwhelming feelings envelop us might be EXACTLY what each of us needs right now.

I dare you to nurture YOU.  Shift your focus just a little bit inward and trust it won't betray you.

I dare myself the same thing.

NO EXCUSES!

happy snow day on the east coast of the US!

Self-sabotage:  Such a loaded phrase, isn't it?

We all do it, or have done it,  or fall into it.  None of us are immune to this at some point or other.

So,  when are YOU going to release it and follow through?

How does it start?

A simple insecurity can trigger it.

A simple "yeah, but..." can paralyze you.

It's a reaction to something much, much deeper. 

I see self-sabotage regularly in the studio.  It's one of those things that is often more obvious to someone outside of it - especially if that someone has dealt with it personally as well (!!).  Takes one to know one.

I do not chastise you for the self-sabotage.  Sometimes it's simply a form of self-preservation,  or control, or something. 

However, I will challenge you about it.  Why?  Because if you say one thing and then go against that, why shouldn't I say something?

Many of us who work with singers and actors regularly are always amazed at the ability to self-sabotage on epic levels.  It can happen so easily,  and so gradually,  sometimes I don't even think you realize you've done it for yourself.

How do we challenge ourselves to not fall down this particular rabbit hole?

Here are some ideas:

Who holds you accountable?

Do you have that person in your world who will call you on your shit?  I mean, REALLY call you, not enable you?

We do not need people who tell us what we want to here:  we need those people who will tell us what we NEED to hear.  Find that person.  Demand the truth from them.  Prepare for it.

Are you willing to look at your language?

What you say in public,  what you say in a voice session,  what you complain about online, all reveals something about you and where you are and what you want, what you have and what are fearful of.

Check that language.  What are you hiding from?

Are you excuse ridden?  Are you deflecting?  Are you "fabulous" all the time?  Is everything "great"?

Any extreme reveals some sort of sabotage.  Check it.

Is there drama?

Is there "Kaflamma"?

This generally means distraction.  With distraction comes excuses.  With excuses comes sabotage.

Why are you doing something?

What AREN'T you doing something?

What's your first answer to these questions?  Now, sit and breathe, and REALLY answer it.

What protects you by using sabotage?

What does it actually protect you from?

Is it working?

But, Susan, you might be saying,  it's just HARD.  I am NOT sabotaging.  It's just HARD.

Okay...

What's hard exactly?

Are you in the same place as last year?  Why or why not?

What can YOU change to begin to move forward?  What have you NOT changed in order to stay EXACTLY IN THE SAME PLACE.

The great things about choices:  you can always TRY something,  and if it's not working, you can MAKE ANOTHER CHOICE.  That's action-oriented.

Self-sabotage makes no choice but to stay stuck.

You have choice.  No, you REALLY do!

Make a choice,  make a NEW choice,  find a new class, a different teacher or even a consultation to get a different perspective!  We can learn from EVERY situation.  If we start a possibility with "yeah but..." we lose the possibility before we even acknowledge.

Every possibility has a "maybe".  Don't shut it down before you start!

So, on a day that has made you stop - a day full of storm and snow - give yourself permission to say "I WANT TO...."

Dream a little...

What do you want to achieve?  What could you change or suggest or explore to perhaps explore a slightly different perspective in order to keep pursuing that achievement?

Say you are a scared.  That's the first step of releasing the self-sabotage.

Say you aren't sure.

Say you don't know.

Say you have no idea.


All these things are not failures, or flaws.  These things open the possibilities.

Possibilities are scary as hell.  Possibilities make you breathe differently.  Possibilities allow you to dream again.

So are you going to feel dragged down by PFO letters,  no audition or no call back,  or are you going to say, "NO".

Are you going to surrender to the self-sabotage?

Are you going to pretend?

Are you going to create another reality that only YOU live?

That takes a great deal of energy - more than you really can deal with.  Sadly the self-sabotage and delusion is yours, and yours alone. 

Or, are you going to say, "NO WAY."

Are you going to relinquish the chip on your shoulder,  the excuses, the jazz hands and pretend?  All coping mechanisms,  and needed in moments but not something you can rely on in the long run.

Are you going to build on that shallowness,  or get your hands dirty and dig into it all and say NO MORE SABOTAGE!

Decide to seek truth.

Decide to seek change.

Decide to claim what you have.

Decide to claim and develop what you do not yet own.

Be still,  feel it all,  mourn it,  and release it. 

The people that see you clearly,  will rejoice with you,  not blame you!

Dare to discover YOU and what YOU need.  You find that when it's time to find it.

However, it's you and ONLY you,  and nobody can claim it but you.  You have nobody to blame if you don't.  You have nobody to answer to, if you DO!

Releasing self-sabotage allows us a new day,  a clean slate,  and an opportunity to pursue and develop and claim ALL of what we are meant to do and be.

Take the time it takes to find it all,  release it all,  develop it all - and make excuses for NOTHING.

HAPPY "YOU"  YEAR!

I dare you...

Are you settling?

Do you "settle" for less?

for crappy?

for "not what I was expecting"?

I have been known to "make do" much longer than I should have - and therefore - "settling".

It actually pisses me off.

WHY DID I DO THAT?

You don't have to make excuses.

You don't have to create a litany of reasons why.

You just do not have to settle.  Period.

Your castle,  your rules.

So often, we feel as if we HAVE to take that job,  HAVE to audition for that show or project,  HAVE to, have to, have to.

What if I told you,  you don't have to?

What if I told you,  having to leads to settling?

What if I told you settling leads to mediocrity?

What if I told you mediocrity leads to your soul being sucked away?

What if I told you,  that if you were GIVING the advice,  you'd tell that person "settling" the exact same thing????

What are you settling for, anyway?

You haven't worked in a while so you SHOULD take that job?

why?

You need to get another credit on your resume,  so you SHOULD audition for something that really isn't your fach, your wheelhouse, your type?

why?

You should just take that job, even though the pay sucks, and the living conditions are like a 3rd world country...because...

why?

Why do we settle?????

We are,  you are, I am,  WORTH SO MUCH MORE!

I know a secret I want to share with you....

Theatre isn't going anywhere.  It has been here since ancient times, and will outlast all of us.  It is not going ANYWHERE.

So,  what's the rush?  What's the hurry?  Why the settling?

We so often get so panic-stricken about work,  about being seen,  about staying current.  Yet, by settling,  what does it really reveal about us?

Could it be anxiousness?

Could it be fear?

Could it be panic?

Could it be desperation????

I don't know about you,  but I don't particularly want anybody to see ANY of that.  EVER.

And frankly,  why should they even be part of my or your consciousness?

Who told us we had to be anxious or fearful or desperate?

Those stupid inside voices that need to be silenced quickly,  that's who!

Even the business doesn't say that.  They WANT to hire us if we are right.  However, if we bring in desperation or fear or anxiousness,  they cannot.  They need us to be grounded, and real, and clear, and focused & all those things we know we can be.

 While teaching, I often talk to the singer while they are singing - not because I don't think they are doing what I am asking of them,  but rather to remind the subconscious of what we are DOING.  And I often say,  I need to be the LOUDEST VOICE IN YOUR HEAD.

Who is the loudest voice in YOUR head?

The voice that settles,  or the voice that says "no shit today!"

Those voices need to push you when you don't FEEL like practicing, or preparing;  when you don't FEEL like getting to a dance class or a performance class.

Those voices need to push you when you hit your snooze button but you need to get to that audition.

Those voices need to push you when you need to self-submit online BEFORE you have an adult beverage,  or a date, or a snuggle on the couch with your pet.

Those voices need to push you when you'd rather eat pie than go to the gym.

THOSE voices.

Those voices don't settle.  They pester.  They challenge.  They know the truth.  They know YOU know the truth.  They are loud,  they are noisy, they have no sense of decorum and they will kick your butt if you don't start paying attention.

If you DO ignore them and settle - trust me - they will KICK YOUR ASS.  HARD.

It takes more effort and work and energy to try to shut them up than it is to actually DO what is right for you.

Why do we fight it?

Why do we settle?

I have two words for you:  STOP THAT.

Or three words:  STOP THAT STUFF.

QUIT settling.  Figure out where that self-sabotage is.  Figure out why.

And STOP IT.

STOP IT NOW.

I don't want "Yeah I know".

I don't want "Yeah but..."

I don't want "Yeah I probably do..."

JUST STOP.

Figure out if settling is serving you,  or if it is simply wasting time and energy keeping you from the power and possibility that is yours.

POWER & POSSIBILITY is stronger than "settling".

Settle because there's nothing better to do????  There is ALWAYS something better to do!  You just have to take a little more time and effort to discover it.

The focus is never ahead of you - but always in your peripheral vision.  Stay alert.  What lurks there is precisely what you need to see in order to never settle.

Not settling means saying "thanks, but no."

Not settling means saying "I am better than that."

Not settling means saying "I deserve better than that."

From yourself.

From your craft.

From your business.

From the people you surround yourself with.

From everything that you feel informs you,  involves you & infuses you.

NO.  MORE.  SETTLING.

Here's your line in the sand.

Watch what happens.  Listen to what happens.  Sing what happens.

Saying "no" doesn't mean a door closes or a bridge burns.  Saying "no, I am not settling" means possibilities begin to percolate and build;  You just have to have the courage to say it and walk away.

You don't walk away with your head down, in defeat.

You walk away with your head held high,  paying attention to each moment with your focus in the periphery!!!

Are you ready?

Me too.

Ignorance is not Bliss

It really isn't. 

Many of us, when we look back at things we did in our studies, in the business,  when we didn't know what we do now, CRINGE at how we handled things.

It happens to ALL of us.

However, it doesn't mean you cannot be as prepared as possible and when you know better, you do better.

Let's talk auditions, shall we?

In music theatre,  things are a little slower now for holiday season and will ramp up again soon enough.

In opera, deadlines are coming for summer program applications,  many YAPs and general auditions are happening now.

What are YOU doing?

Here's just a quick check list to see if you are ready to truly be taken seriously for whatever you are focusing on.

1.  Are you studying?

This doesn't mean once in a while,  or calling a teacher or a coach for a "quick fix" the day before or the week prior to an audition.  This means, are you studying regularly?  Figuring out what that means for you is CRUCIAL for you!

2.  Are you ready to audition for what you are want to be seen for?

Do you know the business landscape you are entering?  Do you know what is required?  Are you accessing that fully enough in your current development to be seen as a viable candidate?

3.  Are you taking workshops about the business of show?  Do you take advantage of blogs, webinars, online skype sessions, and in person workshops to get to know what the business of show is really about?

4.  Do you have a team around you that can give you TRUTH about where you are in your current development to help you with recognizing the mine fields, what to avoid,  where to be seen?

5.  Are you doing regular research about casting directors, opera companies,  conductors,  directors, agents, regional theatre companies,  summer stock and the like, in order to recognize the people who are in the position to hear you and hire you?

6.  Are you working on the "other" aspects of your craft - not just singing - like acting,  audition protocol,  dancing and/or moving well?

7.  How is your online presence?  Are you up-to-date with your website?  Are you visible professionally on social media?  Are you on audition sites for submissions?

8.  Do you know how to prepare for the actual AUDITION with repertoire,  presentation,  what you wear,  how you approach things?

9.  Are you overwhelmed yet?????

That last one was supposed to make you laugh.

It CAN be overwhelming.  It doesn't have to be.  Breaking things down for yourself will help you figure out where you are,  show you were you might need a little more time,  a little more attention,  and help you organize what can be an overwhelming process.

There is no reason to feign ignorance anymore.  It often is used as a stress management tactic,  but it never really fools anybody.  The only person it might fool,  is you.

If you commit to your process,  you will find what you need in order to access what you are ready for NOW.

NOW is all we have.  Use it wisely.  Don't wish,  just get it done.  One step at a time.

Theatre isn't going anywhere.  When YOU are ready to be seen and heard,  it will be there.

Don't panic,  don't whine.  Don't claim ignorance in this day & age.  Find what you need;  if you don't know what you need, ask for some guidance!  Many of us are here to help you get on the right path for YOU.

During this upcoming holiday season,  take stock,  be real with yourself,  begin to discover more about yourself and prepare to step securely into your NEW YEAR as you pursue this crazy, wild and wonderful business, called show!

Professional IS as Professional DOES

happy Sunday!

My blogging life has dropped off considerably so apologies to those of you who have been waiting for a post!

Much has been happening and often, the same issues recur over and over again.

One of the recurring issues I have seen as ongoing,  is the lack of professionalism when it comes to social media.

But Susan,  someone is going to say,  social media isn't meant to be professional!

Ah, but APPROACH means everything!

Approaching a professional in the business is requesting a moment of their TIME.  And in that moment, you might be requesting their time to enquire about their services, or a question that will take their time.  Just because they are on Facebook or Twitter or any platform that gives you access to their profile,  does not mean you should  approach with a casual flair.

Social media is a double-edged sword.  It makes us accessible,  but it also seems to eliminate personal boundary. 

HOW you approach someone in the business reveals more about YOU than it does about them.

Before you just start messaging someone,  stop for a second and figure out exactly what you want to say and why you want to say it.

Be respectful.  If your time is valuable, so is theirs!

If you are asking a professional question,  don't assume a freebie.  Any professional's time is worth something.  They determine that worth,  not you.

Figure out how that professional wants to be contacted.  Social media?  Via their website?  Via phone?  If you aren't sure,  ask.  When in doubt,  an email is often the most respectful,  as it allows the person you are contacting to get back to you in their own time;  it also shows you have taken the time to find their website,  discover their contact information and made an initial enquiry, instead of just pm-ing them via their Facebook page.

I often get inquiries via FB and simply send the link to my website and request they email me once they have read through.   Most inquiries then come through the channels I prefer and can deal with effectively.  If they don't,  then the inquiry was not that serious.

If you are asking for a professional's time and expertise,  don't assume they are going to be your "friend" or "peer" in the asking.  Every professional I know has worked hard to develop their expertise, and that isn't for free.  They are not simply going to meet you for coffee to talk about your career when you are someone unknown to them.  You are saying "but Susan, nobody does THAT!" Oh yes, they do my sweet snowflakes,  yes they do.

A professional's time is worth whatever they decide it is worth.  If you are seeking out their TIME in relation to their expertise,  then you are approaching said professional,  with professionalism.

Many of us are more than willing to go the extra mile to help you,  if we see what you are willing to do,  how professional you are behaving,  if your talk matches your walk,  if you truly are looking to develop your knowledge, your craft,  your career.

Most of us have a fairly strong bullshit detector.  This allows us to see and discern quickly.  We have to.  This is something YOU must develop too. 

So, how do you develop this professionalism and etiquette even if you are green in your craft and/or in the business?

A few things to consider:

1.  Approach with respect,  and ask for clarification if you are unsure.
2.  Do NOT assume.  Ask.  Request. 
3.  Know who you are approaching.  Do your research. 
4.  Know what you are requesting.
5.  Follow up, follow up, follow up!


It's not rocket science,  and should be common sense,  but even that is lacking these days.

A professional in ANY business will respond more favorably to someone who approaches them WITH professionalism. 

Your behavior toward someone reveals more than you know.  That you have complete control over.  Don't feign "but I didn't know".   Find out. 

Simply treat others the way you would want to be treated.

Behavior is as behavior does.

Your professionalism is revealed through your BEHAVIOR not your resume.

The Business of Singing Coffee Clatch Workshop in NYC

If you are a classical/opera singer you need to know Cindy Sadler!  Her Coffee Clatch Workshop hits New York City on NOVEMBER 8th!  

 Cindy is known throughout the opera world for her savvy and tell-it-like-it-is

There's still space available for our Coffee Clatch Workshop on November 8! Here's your chance to "caffeinate your career" by addressing specific issues in an informal, fun setting. Tickets here:

https://www.universe.com/events/the-business-of-singing-coffee-clatch-workshop-tickets-new-york-SHQF4N


Follow and read Cindy's Blog http://100lbs.typepad.com/mezzo_with_character/

Her website: http://www.cindysadler.com/

And The Business of Singing:  http://www.thebusinessofsinging.com/

Singers in Atlanta - or willing to get to Atlanta: check this out!

If you or any classical/opera singers you know are interested in going to Atlanta or live in the area,  I cannot recommend Maestro Leonardo Vordoni enough!

He is back in Atlanta for the duration of 2015 and starts private coachings TOMORROW NOVEMBER 2!!!!

Please pass on the info to any singers or teachers that might benefit!

Coachings can be booked online here:

http://atlantavocalcoaching.setmore.com

and follow the prompts. 

For fee details you can just contact him directly clicking on SEND EMAIL in the STAFF MEMBERS  page.

Mo. Vordoni's website is here:

www.leonardovordoni.com

Needs & Wants

happy September!

We are into the middle of the month already,  and I am not sure how that happened, but ONWARD!

As the academic year as begun, and audition season starts in full force,  here come those questions again:

What do I want?

What do I need in order to do what I want?

Will my wants change if I really focus on my needs?

Am I willing to be honest enough to truly figure out what my needs are first in order to discover if my wants are actually viable?

It's time to take stock and question in order to find the answers and then put those answers into action!

Do you make lists?

Do you create a vision board?

Do you write in a journal?

What gives you a more focused and somewhat tangible accountability outside your own thoughts?

Whatever works for you,  do it.  This helps to keep things clear as you can stand with some distance and objectivity in order to create some order of the chaos!

There is no direct path - however, needs & wants when it comes to a balance of craft and business of show,  should be there to bring each other into higher relief.

The clearer you are the more concise you can be to discover what you have to do to focus on those wants and needs and how they feed each other in a positive way.

Wanting to be a working actor or working singer,  and being told you aren't ready because you refuse to acknowledge what you NEED to get there,  isn't serving you.  You are spinning your wheels,  wasting time and probably money,  and getting little of what you need and ultimately nothing that you feel you want.

 I see too much "cart before horse" activity. As an example:  if you are a dancer and your singing is holding you back,  then do your research,  find out who is teaching voice and will give you the tools (not the tricks) to SING WELL and find your voice and build the craft of voice to access what you NEED to be able to feel confident and strong walking into that callback or audition.

 If part of what you NEED isn't developed enough,  you've got to address it in order to access your craft more fully.

Don't use the crutches - throw them away and get to work!

If I tell you that I want to wear this gown,  and can't because I am 20 pound heavier than I want to be and do nothing to get off my ass to lose those 20 pounds and just complain that I can't wear that gown - the responsibility is not on the business, or the gown, or the 20 pounds! 

The responsibility is on ME!!!
 How badly do I want to wear that gown?  What do I need to do in order to do that?
Do I have what it takes to DO what I need to do in order to reach that goal and wear that gown?  What is actually important to me?  Wearing the gown?  Taking off the weight? Feeling good and healthy?  Just talking about it?


See where I am going?

Often we get cluttered in our wants/needs,  and end up feeling overwhelmed,  and then, do nothing, or give up.

Fall season is a chance to slow things down,  go inward and start to get real with ourselves.

What are we doing?

What are we doing too much of?  Why?

What are we wanting but not achieving?

What are we being told we need to do?

Are we looking into that?

Are we ignoring that?

Are we dismissing that?

Why?

Yes, sometimes it's bullshit.  Sometimes it's not.  Sometimes it will reveal what we really need to see.  Always remember the source.

What are we afraid of?

What are we ready to claim?

 And guess what,  it's okay to say "I'm not ready to do that yet."

We have to be ready.

We have to be ready to identify the differences between needs and wants.

We have to be ready to dream.

We have to be ready to put action into acquiring those dreams.

We have to be ready to realize what those wants REQUIRE OF US.

We have to be ready to have an honest conversation with self,  and seek out those who will be straight with us and help build us up - not tell us what we would like to hear in order to stay comfortable and complacent.

Write out what you want.  Create a vision board.  Work one want at a time.  Don't overwhelm yourself.

Then start researching and discovering what you need in order to move you closer.

DESIRE your NEED,  not just your want.

The journey and the work doesn't have to be overwhelming.  In fact,  committing to the realization of the NEED can be more fulfilling than you ever imagined. 

The work can then illuminate the deeper truth of the want.

Dream, aspire,  create the big picture.

Then desire and focus on the steps to create a journey that is uniquely yours and yours alone.

Desire the need.

Plant the seeds to fulfill your needs.

Watch what happens!

 

A little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing...

happy Labor/Labour Day weekend and the gateway to the fall season!

As we embark into a new semester,  a new audition season,  a new performance season,  there are always things to consider,  re-visit,  tweak,  and discover!

Fall is my favorite time of year.  This is really the "new" year for me,  and so I hope re-visiting old topics in new ways will be a way of ushering in that new year!

We've all heard that saying "a little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing".

Last week,  I came across a social media post that was a singer's list of "audition to-dos" she has gathered from a masterclass with a director.  She was excited about what she learned,  and you cannot fault her for that.  She wanted to share her knowledge,  which was very generous.

However...

Much of what she wrote down was not accurate:  maybe accurate in certain circumstances,  maybe accurate pertaining to that particular director, or maybe not accurate at all.

Her instinct to share her new-found knowledge was lovely,  however,  that knowledge did not have a context,  and if someone were to take that "advice" literally,  it might have been a horrible mistake.

In this "instant" society we live in,  we literally have everything at our fingertips.  It doesn't make it correct;  just cause it's on the Internet doesn't make it true!

The same can be said for those we "meet" on Facebook or discuss things with on other forms of social media.   It doesn't mean a person is deliberately trying to be deceptive or give your wrong information!  In fact,  often that person is trying to be helpful. 

We must recognize the source:  who is offering this knowledge?  What authority do they have?  Is it first hand knowledge, or 2nd hand,  or a friend of a friend or interpreted from someone's account of something?

I challenged this young and enthusiastic singer to clarify her points and put them in context.  She began to see what I meant:  some of her points were specific to the master class she was involved in and wouldn't have a more universal "truth" the way she accounted it.

Some of her points might have relevance with the director who was offering the master class.

Some had no relevance at all.

And,  all points were HER interpretation,  not a prepared sheet of information from the director. She was making notes based on what said director was saying/or what she THOUGHT he was saying.

Context means EVERYTHING.

By all means, explore!  Ask questions,  read,  share your findings!  However,  when you DO share make it clear to your readers or the people you discuss things with that this is just YOUR interpretation of the events,  not a syllabus created for you by the person offering the information in the first place.

When you read - (including this blog!!!) - know who is offering you the information and what the purpose is.  Does this person have experience and information in which to partake?  Does it make sense to you to listen?  Does it make sense for you to simply observe and take it with a grain of salt, or does it hit you on a gut level and maybe you need to pay closer attention?  And if so,  why pay closer attention?

There is no black & white entirely in the business of show or in the pursuit of craft and artistic development.  Guidelines, perhaps;  a basis of structure,  perhaps;  motivation,  perhaps;  But not "always do this",  "never do this".  As soon as you see that,  there will be someone who says "I like just the opposite".

Perhaps this reveals the answers then.  To every "do this"  there is a "do that".

It is up to YOU the emerging and developing performer to discover and create what works for YOU within the parameters of the business you are pursuing a a career in.

You need to know what you bring into the room.

You need to know how to find your authenticity in voice, and presentation.

You need to know who you are in that moment.

You need to know how to be comfortable in your own skin.

You need to know how own your audition,  your rehearsal process,  being a colleague,  your callback,  your conversations with others in the business,  and more.

YOU need to figure that out.

Nobody can tell you that so-and-so said it so it must be true. 

Any of the knowledge we have is a dangerous thing if we don't open up the context and discover how we inhabit it.  How do we figure that out?  We learn to live it,  and live WITH it.

Knowledge,  gravitas,  presence,  true understanding,  all come from time,  experience and paying attention to small grains of information and discovering where it leads.

There are no tricks;

There are no lists;

There are no magic formulas;

There is work.  There is commitment.  There is time.  There is perseverance.  There is determination.  There is eagerness.  There is questioning.  There is seeking.

Then,  the knowledge deepens and you are able to begin to claim what you do not yet own.

Happy "NEW" year.  Relish the journey.  It is yours and yours alone to enjoy and discover!

I wanna be on Broadway! I wanna sing at the Met!

Sunday musings...

When asking singers new to me what their goals are,  inevitably I get one of these two answers from time to time:

I wanna be on Broadway.

I wanna sing at the Met.

As we enter another audition season,  another performance season,  another academic year,  we shall hear these two lines, and many others similar,  in many places:  the voice studio,  the audition hallway, the student lounge...

And as a music theatre veteran gypsy said to me last week while rolling her eyes: "So do a lot of people honey,  get in line!"

I shall go one further.

What does that MEAN to you?  Being on Broadway?  Singing at the Met?

Since you haven't done it,  you don't know what the reality of that is.

So what does it represent to you?

Often when inexperienced, or naive,  or something else that is vague,  we come up with pat answers like this.  It reveals MUCH as to where you are in the bigger picture of the journey.  Don't worry, we've all been there.

I just want to challenge your language in order to help you find out what you REALLY want.

If you don't know you can't figure out how to do it, or how to get there.

What is it about "Broadway" that appeals?  Why?  Is it the actual location?  Is it the prestige it evokes? What do you need to do to "be there?"   Do you even know?

What about The Met?  What does that represent?  What makes you qualified?  Why?  What would it give you?  What can you give it?  What do you need to achieve and develop to allow you an opportunity to be there?  And if that opportunity comes,  what does it mean?

The more "pat" your answers are,  the more questions I will have!

What do you KNOW about the location you want so badly?

Is it the place or what it represents?  What does it represent to you?  Why is that the goal?

How do you do that?

How do you develop knowledge,  craft & tenacity to achieve it?

Is wanting it enough?  What do you actually have to DO????


Start with your answer,  or your supposed answer.  Allow yourself permission to change it,  once you have started to structure what is needed to get there.

If destination is important, then how you get there has to be precise.  Do you know what it takes to find that precision?  Are you prepared?

Do you even know the questions to ask?

Or,  are you beginning to wonder if that "pat answer" has more flexibility?  Maybe the journey,  maybe the discovery,  maybe the work and the self-awareness will actually reveal less rigidness and more fluidity to take paths of possibilities you won't see right away.

The more we learn,  the more questions we have,  and the more we seek,  and the more we learn, and the more we discover,   the deeper we become and the clearer we become and the more questions we ask and....


If your goal is a destination only,  perhaps it's time to start asking questions.

What's the first question?

Why.

Always,  why.

Why am I doing this?

Why am I here?

Why is that my answer?

Why?

Happy questions!   There should always be more of those than answers anyway!  Otherwise,  why bother seeking the answer if the question isn't asked?

ASK QUESTIONS!  LOTS OF THEM!!!!!

They will lead you to more questions,  to possibilities, and answers that morph and flex with the growth of YOU!

HAPPY DISCOVERY!!!

A New VLOG!

happy Sunday evening all!

I want to recommend to you a new vlog series called "Notes from the Bench"  produced by Mikhail Hallak & Studio 113 Productions in New York City.

Here is the first episode in case you haven't seen it - it's going to be a great series!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymFfJ0heXiQ


ENJOY and keep watching for more content!

 

Dear Singer...What is it about the Business?

Dear Singer,

First,  you have to identify the difference between making music and being an artist AND making a living making music.   You have to know how to separate those two.  They are not,  nor have they ever been the same.

There are rules that apply to each of those facts,  and you have to find them and acknowledge them and follow them.  You haven't done that yet or you wouldn't be feeling they way you are feeling.  Acknowledgement of rules,  prevents you from taking it personally.

Even if you were Equity,  the stats are 95%  unemployed at any given time.  This is BUSINESS of show.

You have chosen a profession that has a ridiculous unemployment rate.  You have to want it badly enough to stick to it.

Knowing how your voice works, or  how to be an actress and all the craft associated,  is NOT how the business works.  The two are not the same, nor do they necessarily go hand in hand.

You have to learn how the business works and the time it takes to figure out the game and how to play it.   You have to be prepared to be in this game long enough (sorry sweetie - 2 years is no time - or 6 months or even 5 years...)  to find out whether it's what you want to be bothered with long term,  or simply walk away and find another way to keep making music for your well being.

Just wanting something doesn't make it so.

We work not because we are good enough,  but because somebody thinks we are,  and sees us playing the game to their reasoning.

The game is often bullshit and it has NOTHING to do with craft or artistic integrity - but it is what has to happen in order to work.

So - prepare to learn the game.  That takes time. A lifetime really.  There are no assurances in this business.  None.

There are no answers but the ones you discover for yourself,  about yourself and about how you function or not, in the business.

The level of the business doesn't matter:  same game, just another day and another process.   Community theatre, regional professional theatre, Broadway - ARE ALL THE SAME.  The players and venue change.  The stakes may change.  Learning to play the game in the venue you are in is what the business is about.  Discover your game.  Play it.  Get good at it,  or walk away.

I am just trying to be honest with you.  The work you do on your artistic self will always be there;  don't misunderstand that.  Artistic self has NOTHING at all to do with BUSINESS self.

Learning the business,  learning the game,  and how you navigate those land mines - is up to you, and takes more time than you realize.  If our artistic selves continue to evolve and develop over a lifetime, then so,  do does knowledge of the business and the business self within the business of show.

Chin up!!! Your path is your path.


Accept it,  experience it,  walk it - or choose to walk elsewhere.  Wherever you,  BE THERE.  Fully, honestly, and completely.




Sending you good wishes,
Susan

What is Vocal Technique Anyway?

happy Fathers Day!

First and foremost,  you aren't going to learn to sing from this blog post.  You aren't going to get any 'vocal tricks'  (because they don't exist!) but I hope I can give you some solid information and clear some things up.

Lately there has been so much misinformation,   pseudo-information,  kinda true kinda not information,  being thrown around via blogs, or websites, or YouTube videos.  The age of immediate information via the Internet is always a double-edged sword as you still have to wade through it to find what is real,  who is offered the knowledge and does it make sense.

There was a blog post that was being talked about that dismissed "classical style".  Two words that have no meaning unless they are connected to something.  The young man making these statements has since made his blog "private" which is probably a very good thing,  and sadly doesn't realize what he doesn't know.  I am not linking anything of it here. 

Many singers and teachers are not clear enough about what technique is and how it layers fully.

To dismiss a style or genre just because you don't do it, or understand it,  has no validity. 

When asked if I "teach opera"  or "teach music theatre"  or "teach pop or jazz",  I respond with:
"I teach the singers who sing in these genres."

There IS a distinction.  To teach or sing a certain style or genre ASSUMES you already have access to your instrument fully enough to wear that style.

THIS is technique.

Technique is the true access to the behavior of the instrument in order to work with it fully with ease and clarity in order to move into the genre you say you do.

Great technique develops as behavior.  Physical behavior that is developed over time,  and honed and crafted in subtle ways as one grows and develops in one's craft.

Great technique is not a quick fix.

Great technique is not SEEN - but allows a style,  a genre,  a character to have a place to revealed fully.

Great technique is going to allow you access more of your physicality in order to do what you say you do or what you say you want to do.  It should lengthen your singing life,  not exhaust it.

We often call great technique,  be it voice, acting or dance,  "classical".   Why?  Simply because we are working for a balanced neutral to fully access the FORM of what we do.

The form of what we do always begins and ends with the athleticism of the body,  the breath and the alignment.  Its function is to find a balance of resonance in the vibration of the tone we produce.  Its function is to find a full elasticity of register,  of range, of dynamic;  to develop a physical and buoyant legato as well as an ease and finesse of movement.

Notice, NONE of these things have ANYTHING to do with style.  Style then informs that form.

Vocal behavior must come first.  It must be what we go back to in order to discover without value judgement, what our instrument does and what it needs.

What do great dancers do no matter the style they are dancing?  They go back to the barre.  Back to neutral.  Back to the basics.

If you are an opera singer then you can develop further operatic technique,  and stylistic technique depending on the genre and the composer.

If you are a theatre singer,  then you can further develop specificity to traditional legit technique, or contemporary legit technique,  or belt technique.

If you are a jazz singer,  then you can further develop specificity to register technique, mic technique, use of language technique.

And on it goes...

So often we put the cart before the horse.  We try to develop stylistic technique into the physicality before that physicality has had time to develop,  to understand and to create a place to reside.

This is when we often have to "redo" our technique.  Discovering physical behavior is a constant in our lives as singers.

Asking WHY we work the voice the way we do is crucial in developing the physical knowledge of what it allows for.  If we don't know WHY we cannot make it behavior.

A teacher's job is to find the singer where they are - physically, emotionally, intellectually - and where they are in their physical behavior technically and how they process.  It's work!

As  a teacher,  I am going to demand as much from myself to find you as I do from you to ask the questions to find you too!

So let's consider calling vocal technique what it really is:  an athletic physical behavior that develops the body and the vocal mechanism to allow full access to the instrument in order to begin to develop authenticity in the styles and genres we want to sing in.

Let us not confuse the term "classical" with anything but developing FORM.

Is your voice building or isn't it?

Can you access what you say you do?

Do you have the physicality to access the stylistic techniques in order to be authentic in that style?

Find your instrument first.  THAT is alpha and omega of vocal technique.  It doesn't have a value judgement.  It doesn't have a style or genre.  It's just about you.  What YOUR instrument does when it finds its truest form and can access itself fully there.

You aren't going to know what your voice can do until you actually create a place for it to reside!

So,  drop the wrapping of the style for a moment,  as scary as that may be,  and dare to find what what is REALLY underneath....


https://soundcloud.com/susan-eichhorn-young/10-ah-but-underneath