by Shannon Coates | Aug 11, 2018 | Fri Fav Five, Performing 101, Singing 101, The Vocal Instrument 101, Uncategorized
the Saturday edition. because: vacation.
Yeah. I’ve been on vacation and technically? I STILL AM. But you know what? There are SO MANY teach your face off things on The Internets right now (possibly because a lot of voice teachers aren’t teaching as much as they usually do at the moment?) that I just have to share a few.
I had forgotten all about this clip until Marnie posted it to her studio FB page. Not only is it REVELATORY for young singers to hear/see the difference production makes, but Matt spells “mic” correctly. (I mean, OF COURSE HE DOES. But STILL.)
this is me off-mic, human. and i’m awesome at it. of course.
I know, I KNOW. NOT ANOTHER MAILING LIST. But, seriously: it’s way easier for me to just be all: JOIN THIS MAILING LIST than to be linking to his posts every gosh-darned day. (And yes: It’s all about what’s EASIEST FOR ME.) John’s musings are kind of like Seth Godin’s* musings except for singing and voice-teachery-stuff. Which: AWESOME-SAUCE. (Also? He’s funny on that there old email thinggie. which: never a bad thing. #yourewelcome)
really. REALLY? gah.
If you’re kind of nerdy about language (and a lot of singing teachers seem to be …?), you’re going to get a kick out of this one. #truestory
dear great gouda in the sky but is english exhausting.
Folks. If you’re feeling a little (or a lot – no judgement here) overwhelmed by the thought of how to do justice to your studio / business / side-hustle / sheer awesomeness on social media? THIS IS THE PODCAST FOR YOU. Unless you don’t want immediately applicable tips and tricks to make negotiating social media easier. You know, unless that.
but why wouldn’t they want this information? WHHHY?
GROWTH MINDSET, my friends. Fostering growth mindset in our students will radically change the way they learn. Or at least it has the potential to do so. #TRUESTORY
that is a very big promise you’re making, human. YOU THINK YOU CAN HANDLE THE REPERCUSSIONS OF THAT PROMISE?!
Pretty sure I’m up for it, white cat who is full of disdain.
Also? You can teach your face off … I can help.
Go on and find #voicepedme on all the things:
* ummm … if you’re not on Seth Godin’s mailing list, maybe get on that one too … it’s my fav non-singing-related but TOTALLY LIFE- AND BUSINESS-RELATED thinggie.
ps y’all know that my course, The Vocal Instrument 101, is on PRESALE ($200 off. YES: $200 OFF. That is NOT a type-o.) now, right? mmmkay. Just checking.
pps if you want to figure out how to run your business without hating your boss (hello independent voice teachers: I AM LOOKING YOUR WAY.)? You’re going to want to check out Michelle’s course. YES YOU ARE. #pinkyswear
by Shannon Coates | May 14, 2018 | Fri Fav Five, Performing 101, Singing 101, Vocal Health & Hygiene 101, Voice Pedagogy 101
the free-airport-wifi edition*
Singers with issues around performance anxiety? (I mean, I don’t know any … do you? ahem.) Take a look. (Plus? Canadian content.)
humans and their performance anxiety issues. it’s like they don’t realize they have opposable thumbs or something. if i had opposable thumbs (and if I cared … which I don’t), I WOULD RULE THE WORLD.
So, this is a video showing how a diseased lung (from smoking, I think) inflates versus how a healthy lung inflates. So, you know, GROSS. However, if you can handle the PSAness, it’s also a fantastic teaching tool. Especially if you keep in mind that the lungs do not inflate on their own (because they’re not a muscle, they’re an organ, #AMIRIGHT?); they inflate because they are attached to the ribs … which open when the intercostal muscles (as in: ‘between the ribs” muscles. #sosciency) engage … which causes the ribs to swing out … and the lungs to open right along with those swinging ribs … because they’re attached to the ribs. (And then the air rushes into the body because there’s this whole pressure vs volume thinggie going on … which has ramifications for inhalations and breathing for singing … which is a WHOLE OTHER POST. DO NOT ENCOURAGE ME TO TALK ABOUT BREATHING FOR SINGING AND HOW TO TEACH IT BECAUSE WE WILL BE HERE FOR HOURS AND NO ONE WANTS THAT. (Also, I’m distilling those hours into a convenient twenty-minute segment in The Vocal Instrument 101 Online Course so there’s that.))
for the LOVE, woman. stay on target.
If you’ve been teaching for any length of time, you’ve definitely encountered singers whose vocal production issues seem to stem from something more than physiology. If you’ve never thought about it before, this is a good starter article (with link to a full-on documentary) about the role that the psyche can play in vocal production. (With thanks to the ever-fabulous Liz Jackson-Hearns for the heads up.)
you? are not a psychologist, woman. so you’d darn-well better refer out when necessary. #justsayin
If you teach operatic tenors? You need to just stop what you’re doing and watch this video. Go on. Do it now. You can thank me later. With (dairy- and nut-free) chocolate.
that’s a lot of bossy right there. #justsayin
It’s nine minutes long. It’s absolutely fascinating. You’re not going to regret it. #pinkyswear
Until next time,
You can teach your face off … I can help.
* You guys, I have been through three time zones (and had two puke/terror-inducing landings to boot) since Friday. This post was started at the Deer Lake Airport (which? might be*** located in one of the most beautiful areas on the planet, which is where I spent a day adjudicating some really lovely young singers (and a guitarist and violinist) with my colleague, Martha) and was finished while visiting family in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. And it is going to have to tie you the heck over for a few weeks, given that I am on my way to LA next week and in a conference all day Friday (wanna’ come? there’s still room!) so maybe I get a FFF post done and maybe I don’t. It’s MY BLOG so I get to decide these things.
** SHOUT OUT to Stephanie, who brought this blog to my attention … and who may know a thing or two about dealing with performance anxiety. #OneOfTheBravestPerformersIKnow
*** And by “might be”? I mean “TOTALLY, ONE HUNDRED PERCENT IS”. It’s not super-easy to get there but, WOW, is it worth it. GO THERE. (And tell them I sent you. If there’s a critical mass arriving on their doorstep all saying that Shannon sent them, maybe I get a free skiing vacation out of it. (ARE YOU LISTENING NEWFOUNDLAND TOURISM?!?))
by Shannon Coates | Mar 2, 2018 | Fri Fav Five, Performing 101, Productivity 101, Singing 101, Vocal Health & Hygiene 101, Voice Pedagogy 101
because there aren’t enough lists in the world*
Every Friday, you can now expect a -WAIT FOR IT- curated list of the best voice and voice pedagogy things I’ve seen all week. I KNOW, RIGHT?
Let’s get going with the FIRST EVER Friday Favourite** Five (or Fri Fav Five (although … that fourth letter in “five” is driving me kind of crazy … but it looks too weird as Fri Fav Fiv, right? right.) … or FFF …)!
FOR THE LOVE, WOMAN: GET ON WITH IT.
You guys, IF YOU ARE HUMAN, you need to listen to this podcast episode. It’s like a mini Tim Ferris Episode on SINGING. Seriously. If you ignore everything else on this list (I mean, why would you want to? But, you know, IF YOU DO.), please do yourself a favour** and listen to this episode.
someone dressed us like hoomans. may we listen to this podcast? also, GET US OUT OF THESE STUPID COSTUMES. WE ARE NOT YOUR PLAYTHINGS, HOOMAN. WE WILL KILL YOU IN YOUR SLEEP. unless you offer us treats. then we will hold off on your execution until the treats run out.
Need a little paradigm shift in LESS THAN EIGHT MINUTES? Here you go. (I LOVE her reasoning for not looking anyone directly in the eye when performing.)
i refuse to not stare directly into your eyes. i am a cat and I do not obey hoomans. even hoomans as incomparable as meribeth dayme.
Yeah. It’s a bit of a title, isn’t it? Also, I don’t know Thomas personally so I have no idea if he’s INCOMPARABLE or not (although, given that he’s HUMAN? I BET HE IS.). The gist? If you have a passion project, set aside one hour per day to work on it. Read the article to find out why and for ideas of how other people are doing it.
“passion project”? really? why can’t you be like a CAT? WORK LESS! SLEEP MORE!
No. Seriously. You’re Welcome.
[I searched for “famous cat” on one of my favourite creative commons photo sites. And this came up. I have no idea what it is or what it means. #yourewelcome and #IllSeeYouInMyNightmares]
Looking for a little inspiration to get you through next week’s teaching? Or singing? Look no further.
[Here is a picture of a cute widdow white kitten kissing a cute widdow white puppy. Just to cleanse your palate from that last one. I am nothing if not generous. And also, concerned about whether you are able to sleep tonight.]
You can teach your face off … I can help.
*In my mind? Listiness is next to cleanliness. And we all know what cleanliness is next to. SO BRING ON THE LISTS.
**In Canada, we didn’t drop extra vowels from our words just because they got too cumbersome and unwieldy. NO WE DID NOT. WE ARE LOYAL TO OUR UNNECESSARY VOWELS.
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