by Shannon Coates | Dec 11, 2018 | Ageing Voice 101, Daily Blog
Lots of things get better with age. Don’t you believe for ONE MINUTE that they don’t.
Speaking of better with age: One of the true pleasures of working with adult singers is that they are at the stage in life where they have the experience to sing the big, juicy songs with integrity. And? Those big juicy songs were written with those big, juicy adult chops in mind, so they can handle the rep technically as well as emotionally.
And just in case you’re wondering exactly what that rep looks like (for women) in the music theatre world? WELL … my friend, Cate Frazier-Neely put together this handy little list. WITH YOUTUBE LINKS #THANKYOUVERYMUCH.
Also? If you love a little noise with your belt-fest rep? Why not try on Me and the Sky for size? It’s a beaut. (and there’s no twenty-five year-old in the WORLD who can sing that sucker with integrity. #fightme)
Enjoy working with those fine wines, my friends.
#teachyourfaceoff
by Shannon Coates | Nov 27, 2018 | Daily Blog
it’s an american thing …
… this frenetic lead-up to Christmas that starts with Veterans’ Day and goes through Thanksgiving, while barreling through Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and now Giving Tuesday, barely pausing to catch a breath before sliding head-long into Christmas (and Boxing Day). We are soooo much more civilized in Canada, of course, what with our Thanksgiving occurring well before Remembrance Day and leaving space between 11th November and 24th December to properly celebrate.
But I must admit to being slightly enamored with this idea of Giving Tuesday; a day to intentionally NOT purchase something but to DONATE something. And, of course, given the nature of our relationship with our HUGE and POWERFUL neighbours to the south, Canadians are getting in on some of that Black Friday / Cyber Monday action (I know I did: HELLO THERE NEW RED TURTLE NECK SWEATER THAT I MAY OR MAY NOT BE WEARING RIGHT NOW) and, hopefully some of that Giving Tuesday action as well.
And if you own a voice studio, what better way to do some good in the world than to take the opportunity to give on behalf of the studio? I’ve done this for a few years now: donate a large lump sum (I calculate it by multiplying $10-15 by the number of students in my studio) to a charity of your choice (especially one that fosters music or the arts) on behalf of your studio. Then give everyone in the studio a card (and maybe a sticker or two because: I teach young children too) with a message letting them know how happy you are to be able to donate to such and such a charity in the name of the studio, and wishing them the joy of the season.
It’s a pretty simple way to not have to stress about getting presents for every single person in your studio. (#yourewelcome) And? You get to spread a little joy while you’re not stressing. How great is that?
#christmasyourfaceoff
ps if you know of / are associated with / run a charity that would be ideal for a voice studio to donate to, I hope you’ll leave a comment so we can get some great ideas going!
by Shannon Coates | Nov 14, 2018 | Daily Blog
Us voice teachers, we know IN OUR BRAINS that we are likely not the right voice teacher for every student out there. We know it in our brains.
But when we have a paying singer in our studio – especially one who may or may not bring some extra visibility to the studio or to our teaching because of their connections and/or performance opportunities and/or talent – it can be very difficult to admit that we are not the right voice teacher for that singer. Very difficult.
And there are a multitude of reasons that we may not be the right teacher for that singer: our personality does not go well with theirs, our primary teaching style does not mesh with their learning style, our diagnostic skills are not yet developed to the point of being able to accurately pinpoint the inefficiencies in the vocal production so we can help to correct them, we do not know enough about the particular style the singer wants to perform in, etc.
Recognizing that we are not the right teacher for a particular student (regardless of the reason) requires personal fortitude and a deep sense of worth that is separate from the worth we can (and do) get from being great teachers.
But recognizing that AND doing what needs to be done (whether it is changing something in our teaching, increasing our pedagogic knowledge, OR finding the right teacher for that student and releasing them to that teacher) for the good of that student? That’s what makes us the greatest of teachers.
#teachyourfaceoff
ps if you’re interested in upping your diagnostic skills, here’s a FB Live I did for voice teachers outlining a few ways to do so
pps and if you’re a singer who would like to know how to self-evaluate whether it may be time to move to another teacher, here’s a handy guide from D. Brian Lee
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