A former student asked me to write a letter for a friend who was being threatened with deportation (!!) while doing a degree program in music. This person wants to be a voice teacher, and apparently TIIC don’t understand why that career choice requires any kind of formal training. (Slowly I turn…) So I wroteContinue reading “Why a Bachelor’s Degree?”
Author Archives: Mezzoid Voice Studio
Mind the Gap
This morning’s meditation again asked me to draw attention to the momentary gap between inhalation and exhalation (and vice versa). Although I reject the concept of suspension when it comes to teaching breath management, as I have discussed before, I do understand the value of taking a moment to reflect. In England, there is anContinue reading “Mind the Gap”
Home should be where the heart is
I am sitting on my bed in the Journeyman Hotel (a Kimpton Hotel) in The Third Ward of Milwaukee. Bill is on his computer and Pippin is between us. It’s pretty much like any other morning except that we are in Milwaukee. Again. We’re here for Milwaukee Irish Fest, the world’s largest Irish Music Festival.Continue reading “Home should be where the heart is”
Attend the Tale of Lea DeLaria
I had the great fortune of going to see Lea DeLaria at Blues Alley in DC last night. [quick aside – why on earth are women with beautiful Italian names pronouncing them so Americanized? Lea DeL/ae/ria — Laura Ben/ae/nti? Seriously, folks, people would be able to wrap their mouths around the taller /a/ vowel withoutContinue reading “Attend the Tale of Lea DeLaria”
Suspending the breath – why I don’t teach it
This morning, the subject of my meditation app involved a lot of focus on the suspension/stillness between inhalation and exhalation. The momentary pause that exists both before the initiation of each. It’s infinitesimal and you really have to be aware to notice it even exists. I don’t really feel it and I don’t find itContinue reading “Suspending the breath – why I don’t teach it”
Thank you, Barbara Cook
[To Terry Gross on FRESH AIR]“When I’m standing in the wings, waiting to go on, I kind of plant my feet and feel a kind of strength coming up from the ground into me. And then I think about giving back this gift that I have been given. And when I do that, then IContinue reading “Thank you, Barbara Cook”
Milton Peckarsky, 1920-2017
I’m not sure exactly when I met Milton Peckarsky. It was probably around 1997, a year or so after I arrived in Milwaukee. I think I had sung on a MacDowell Club Concert, and he approached me to ask if I would be interested in exploring some contemporary music. I had done a little contemporaryContinue reading “Milton Peckarsky, 1920-2017”
Annuals or perennials? Blooming where you’re planted
Competitions are a big deal in the music business, from childhood talent shows, to state school solo-ensemble festivals, to the Metropolitan Opera National Council auditions, and to the big time, The Voice or America’s Got Talent. I’ve often said that I hated doing competitions, but that’s a lie. I didn’t feel comfortable in them becauseContinue reading “Annuals or perennials? Blooming where you’re planted”
Finding your umami/Balancing your flavors
This morning I saw a Forbes magazine article about why you should “let” your child major in music (the idea of a parent determining what his/her children choose to do with their lives makes me cringe a bit, but I get it). Before the article opened, this quote popped up and caught my eye. AContinue reading “Finding your umami/Balancing your flavors”
Watch your language!
I have been doing morning meditations using an app called The Daily Calm. At the end of each meditation, a graphic comes up summarizing the most important point of the day’s “lesson.” Today it was language. Shortly after I finished my meditation, I went to peruse Facebook (big surprise, I know), and came across aContinue reading “Watch your language!”