I have a demonstration of which I am fond, which regularly makes an appearance in my studio. I tuck my chin down and sustain a pitch. Sounding very baritonal indeed, I then lift my head, nose slightly above the horizon. The sound thins out unpleasantly, the student looks wary... Then I begin to move my [Continue reading »]

On this lovely Sunday morning, I thought I'd share one of my favorite hymn tunes, sung by the charming Aksel Schiotz. Enjoy!

Resonance is a necessary quality in vocalism, or at the very least in unamplified vocalism. It is one of the primary factors in the acoustic effect of the voice “carrying”. However, resonance is not always about maximum space, but about appropriate space. Streamlining is an undervalued concept when it comes to space in the resonating [Continue reading »]

My teacher, on his piano, had a tiny wicker basket, the bottom of which contained a cutout piece of paper that said, “Deposit Brain Here”. And while this anecdote will ring true in the ears of any teacher who has taught a know-it-all, it must be balanced against the reality that we are instructing people [Continue reading »]

Much like the terrible person who regularly attends church, there are plenty of people who leave school rather stupid. Affiliation with an institution may be an indication of a possible something, but is a guarantee of nothing. One of the rarely spoken truths about academia is that a degree is decidedly not the same thing [Continue reading »]

There is a place in this world for the serious noisemakers, the Mario Del Monacos, the Birgit Nilssons, the Dolora Zajicks, the Cornell MacNeils, the Ethel Mermans.... And Lord knows we love the noises they make! Especially the high screamy bits!! It’s thrilling. Everyone loves a loud high note. But there is a great quote [Continue reading »]

This post, a follow-up to my last one on voice-typing, has been surprisingly difficult to write. I began to suspect that it was because I was trying to make too many points at once. Not surprisingly, in my own head, these points are very intimately intwined. However, I kept getting stuck, realizing that as a [Continue reading »]

It is an interesting thing to hear young singers talking about their own voices. Probably no people are more prone to categorizing than the not-yet-employed young singer. Somewhere between the predictions of the teacher and the musical preferences of the aspiring singer, words begin to be thrown around, like dramatic, coloratura, helden-, spinto, soubrette, etc..... [Continue reading »]

Language is a tricky thing. I don't mean the study of languages, I mean our use of words. They are incredibly useful tools. They paint pictures that communicate things. They can communicate both the vague and the incredibly specific.  But they can also communicate things we don't realize. Our choice of words can communicate things [Continue reading »]

Inside The Actor's Studio: Dave Chappelle Not specifically to do with singing - This video (link above) is nevertheless interesting for its candid perspective on show business. Many people who have only a passing acquaintance with Dave Chappelle might even be surprised to know that he had ever been a guest on Inside the Actor's [Continue reading »]