The Big Picture

Let’s put things in perspective. Most of our focus during practice sessions should be on the day to day techniques that methodically lead us to our larger goals. But every so often we need to step back and look at the big picture.

As we’ve discussed, incremental progress can sometimes be difficult to recognize. So the end of the semester can be a good time to look back and consider your capabilities in comparison to the beginning of the school year or maybe to a year ago.

This is the time of year when we should be enjoying the fruits of our labors, though among the stress of finals and juries it may not always feel like that. If you have maintained discipline and kept up with your practice, this jury should feel like an opportunity to perform music that you love (or have hopefully grown to appreciate) and to demonstrate to the faculty and, more importantly, to yourself, the progress you have made in both your technique and your artistry.

Of course, it’s understandable if singing for the voice faculty induces some anxiety or nerves anyway. But when you know you have prepared and can recognize the progress you have made, you really can (and should) go in and perform with confidence and enjoy the experience.

Now, sometimes the anxiety comes in because your level of preparation has not been sufficient. If that is the case, you still have several days to get where you want to be before juries. Of course, among that last minute preparation we also need to ask ourselves why we were less prepared and how we can avoid that situation next semester. But there is still time to deliberately and efficiently get your songs in your voice and your memory.

The MTP and ATP both offer opportunities to put into practice important elements of your training. Consider this: if you are consistently unprepared for juries, what skill are you building? It seems all you are learning from the process is how to get through a performance when you are not legitimately ready. That’s certainly not the purpose of a jury.

None of us are at our creative best or at the peak of vocal expressiveness when we are anxious. While adrenaline can give us a temporary boost, it is not a sustainable way to build a career. There simply is no substitute for systematic, structured practice as a way to reaching your goals. Hopefully that is a lesson you have internalized this semester.

I was talking about work ethic once with one of my buddies (who sings regularly at the Metropolitan Opera) and he said he tries to follow this adage:

Amateurs practice until they get it right. Professionals practice until they never get it wrong.

Practice like a professional.
Be so prepared that mistakes are out of the question.
Create, express, perform…and don’t forget the big picture.

Now go practice. And rock your juries!

What are we all afraid of?

A former classmate of mine (who is now a voice professor) was recently discussing the role of fear in singing. In lessons she works to identify “the moment of fear” with her students. In other words, noticing when mental or emotional reluctance results in physical inhibitions that limit freedom in our singing. 

I talk often about how personal singing is. When people criticize our voices it can feel like they are criticizing us, not just our singing. Of course, we are not our voices. But our voices are an important instrument for expressing who we are and I suspect that is where some of our insecurities and fears come in.

So…what are we afraid of? 

Maybe we’re afraid of making an ugly sound. The American Idol culture seems to tell us that singing should only be done by the people who are already good at it. And if you’re not good at it you deserve our ridicule. 

Maybe we’re afraid of being wrong. The current academic climate places a strong emphasis on achievement, grades, and the “right" answer, as opposed to engaging in productive debate or creatively working out various solutions to a problem. How many times have you sat confused in class because you didn’t want to ask a question that might make you look stupid?

Maybe we’re just afraid of making a sound that isn’t “me.” Since our sound is how we express ourselves, we may be resistant to making a sound that doesn’t (literally) resonate with who we are or who we believe ourselves to be.

Of course, singing and practicing our singing should be about exploring our options and discovering new and (eventually) better sounds. In the same way, education is about expanding the mind to include concepts not yet considered. And growing up is about finding who you are and building a life around your own values and priorities. Fear can be an obstacle in each of these areas and can keep us locked to the familiar. 

Whether in lessons (What will he think?), in performances (Will they think I’m terrible?), or in practice sessions (Who is listening on the other side of the door?), it can be a good idea to identify the fears lurking beneath the surface so we can move beyond the restrictions and limitations they may be subconsciously encouraging.

So…what are you afraid of?

"I have learned over the years that when one's mind is made up, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear."  --Rosa Parks

"Have no fear of perfection - you'll never reach it."  --Salvador Dali

Now go practice.

To your health

Due to the environment in which we work, almost no one stays healthy for an entire semester. The onslaught of cold and flu season is exacerbated by the stressful academic schedule we maintain and the seemingly constant exposure to sick classmates and co-workers. This can be further compounded by the lifestyle many college students choose that is not always conducive to optimal health.

One of the best ways to avoid getting sick, of course, is to constantly work toward overall good health. (Consult a doctor for the best advise. A real doctor, I mean.)

-Maintain a balanced diet
-Exercise regularly
-Make a full night’s sleep a priority
-Drink plenty of water
-De-stress your life (to the degree that you can)
-Wash your hands often

But, when you do get sick, as we all eventually do, there are some additional things we can do to minimize the impact on our voices.

-Make sleep an even bigger priority (this is one of the best ways to allow your body to heal itself)
-Continue drinking a lot of water and making healthy food choices
-Prioritize your voice use when sick. Don’t oversing or speak too much if your voice is weakened due to illness.
-Try to keep all coughing to a minimum. Knowing how hard that is on the voice, the less coughing you can do, the quicker the vocal recovery.
-Know the side effects of the medications you may be taking. Most decongestants, for instance, dry out the voice. This doesn’t mean you can’t take them but it should mean you minimize your voice use and increase water intake while using these medications. You can go to ncvs.org and click the “check your meds” logo to see the impact that all kinds of medications may have on the voice.

AND if you are sick please do all you can to keep your germs from spreading to others.

-Keep tissues on hand
-Cough and sneeze into a tissue or at least into your sleeve
-Wash your hands often
-Know when to just stay home

According to Dr. Wendy LeBorgne’s chapter “Vocal Health and the Music Theater Vocal Athlete” in “So You Want to Sing Music Theater: A Guide for Professionals,” a 2013 study supports use of a neti pot to clear sinuses or for allergy relief. She also says that gargling water or salt water (without too much salt) can help in treating or preventing upper respiratory infections.

Many people find tea with honey to be soothing to a sore throat. Or course, this will not (or should not) reach the vocal folds but it can make the tissue of the mouth and throat feel nice. Just make sure that it is herbal tea since caffeinated tea (any caffeinated beverage, really) will have a drying effect on the voice.

No one can avoid illness completely. Unfortunately, the time we are busiest and the most stressed out (tech week, juries, finals) we tend to have compromised immune systems and are more susceptible to getting sick. In that case, take care of yourself even more and be protective of your voice. Any way that you can minimize harm to your voice while sick will hopefully result in being back to full vocal strength even sooner.

Buena salud. To your health.

Now go practice.

Practice makes permanent

I recently read this quote from Carol Kirkpatrick shared in the Classical Singer Newsletter:

"Practice doesn't necessarily make perfect, it makes permanent...The way we practice, what we practice, and how well we practice are what ultimately will carry over to our performance...How we practice matters. We have to make our practice perfect. We can't just go through the motions and put in the time. It takes effort and execution."

I think many of us have gotten into the habit of mindlessness, that is, not really focusing on what we are doing. We eat (but don’t really taste) food while watching TV, we listen to (but don’t really hear) music while we’re doing homework, we have conversations with people while texting someone else. As a result, it seems we have difficulty doing just one thing at a time.

As an undergrad I remember reading “The Miracle of Mindfulness” by Thich Nhat Hanh as an assignment for my first vocal pedagogy class. The book encourages being in the moment in all activities. One exercise he describes that has always stuck with me is mindfully washing the dishes. Try this sometime, wash the dishes without any music or other media playing, without being on the phone or talking to someone else, without going over lines or singing a song in your head--just wash the dishes and give it your full attention. You may notice the texture and color of each dish. You may remember how it was you acquired each coffee mug or plate (maybe there is a person or association this brings up). You may be reminded of how your food choices that day may have impacted your routine or your health.

It’s really hard to do this simple task with full focus.

Similarly, when we practice singing, it can be easy to let our minds wander and just go through the motions. But part of my emphasis this year on shorter practice sessions is that, besides practicing more often, I would like all of us to be more mindful of how we are practicing. Do it with full attention and full intention. Can you notice subtle differences? How does the F-sharp feel differently than the F-natural? What does it feel like when you use a different vowel? Does your posture change when you sustain notes? Are you maintaining a good connection to the appoggio? 

Mindful observation is a crucial aspect of singing but it’s also important when consuming the arts. When we go to a show we silence our cell phones, stop our conversations, and sit in a dark room together to (hopefully) take in as much as we can about what we are seeing, hearing, and feeling.

Try experimenting with bringing this attitude to your practicing. Silence your phone, remove the distractions, and see what you notice.

Happy observations!

Now go practice.

Frustration. Or, the slog blog.

One unavoidable aspect of practice is frustration. First there is the frustration of not being able to practice because something comes up in your schedule. There is also the frustration of getting to your lesson and wishing you had practiced more the previous week. 

But then there is the frustration of just trying to make the voice work the way you would like. Sometimes we can go through prolonged periods of stagnation. With voice, we are constantly looking for a balance among muscles, which takes time, finite coordination, and physical growth. When we feel like we are doing everything we ought to be doing but don’t notice any progress, it is easy to get frustrated. 

After starting the year with some great momentum, I’ve felt like I’m back in a little bit of a vocal rut again. It’s not bad, I don’t feel like I’m getting worse. But I also haven’t felt like I’ve been growing over the last few weeks. 

Now that I’ve started rehearsing Threepenny Opera, my routine is all different. Actually, I haven’t found a routine yet—every day is different. So as long as I’m already unsettled, I’m going to try and use this as an opportunity to do some things differently with my singing as well: a new set of exercises, practicing at different times, and trying some new repertoire. I think we need that change of routine sometimes, especially if we feel stuck or like we’ve plateaued.

Like any discipline, singing can become a slog sometimes. It’s not fun when it’s not working. But, though frustration is probably inevitable, it doesn’t have to lead to discouragement. Stay focused, keep exploring, and keep putting in your time. You are ALWAYS moving somewhere, even if it isn’t where you thought you were going.

Peace and happy singing.

Now go practice.

Just Breathe

In my reading and practicing this week I've really been thinking about the role of the diaphragm. Of course, we all have heard statements like "sing from the diaphragm" or "support from the diaphragm." In fact, you may have even heard those phrases from me from time to time (though probably not recently).

But two different sources that I've been exploring have once again challenged many preconceived notions about the diaphragm's function. First of all, we have to keep in mind that it is a muscle of INHALATION and, as such, it has almost no role in exhalation (i.e. phonation) (i.e. singing). Of course, we do feel resistance in the lower abdomen as we sing, which is the whole point of appoggio. But it's important to note that this 'lean' or 'resistance' is not necessarily the work of the diaphragm. In many cases it may be the work of the external intercostals (muscles of inhalation between the ribs) or the muscles of exhalation (internal intercostals [at the ribcage], external obliques, transverse abdominals, or rectus abdominals [6-pack muscles]).

Now, we may still 'feel' activity and resistance in the lower abdominal region or even at the rib cage. But we probably need to be honest and stop referring to the diaphragm when it comes to the resistance we feel when managing our breath for singing.

True, this may all be just a matter of semantics. But, in the interest of calling a spade a spade or, as I prefer, employing fact-based pedagogy whenever possible, it seems the diaphragm has a much less significant role in singing (actual phonation) than we had thought in previous decades.

I don't know that this has changed the way that I sing or the way that I practice, but as academics, as pedagogues, and as smart musicians, I appreciate this information so we can correctly identify what is ACTUALLY going on when we sing.

Breathe well. Sing well.

Now go practice.

Back at it/Building a routine

Getting back into the swing of the school year I've really been trying to follow my own advice of consistent, shorter, focused practice sessions so I can get used to the routine of my schedule right away. I've actually done pretty well with it so far.

I do some straw phonation in the car on the 10-minute drive to the Trax station (while it's not ideal to practice in the car, I think this kind of light phonation can be OK) and then I continue Session 1 exercises and a few Session 2 exercises for another 10-15 minutes after I get to school but before my teaching starts. So my voice usually feels pretty warmed up and ready to go by the time I see any students.

Since I'm preparing for a recital (this Friday, Sept 12th, 7:30pm, Dumke Recital Hall, BE THERE!) for my Session 3 practice I've been trying to run groups of songs in the order they will be on the recital so I can start building muscle memory and pacing for the performance. Then, in rehearsals with Alex, we've been able to really focus on ensemble issues (tempos, timing of breaths, etc.) and other expressive elements (balance between piano and voice, where to add rubato, different interpretive choices, etc.). 

Now that my teaching schedule is set, I also want to make sure I'm honoring the time I set aside for practice in the middle of the day. That's been pretty easy now since I have a performance coming up this week but once that is over I need to make sure I'm still working on my voice and learning new repertoire.

I'm glad to be back in the swing of things. While I love the freedom of spontaneity, I've found that routine is really important in my life on a day to day level. Otherwise, it's too easy for me not to get anything of significance done.

I'm also looking forward to reading all of your blog posts this year. I hope this can be a useful forum for all of us and can help provide some support in keeping us on task and working toward our goals.

Happy singing!

Now go practice. 

Practice

"If we want to become enlightened, we must go to a teacher and receive some instructions. But once we receive instructions, the most important thing is to put them into practice. Only through practice can we hope to achieve enlightenment."
--Thich Thien-An, "Zen Philosophy, Zen Practice"

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” ―Aristotle

Now go practice!