I know this comes a few days after the start of it, but, Happy Autumn!
I had a couple of interesting experiences last month. The first had to do with an aggravated ankle injury that stopped me in my tracks for weeks. I am still recovering. The other was a first for me. I had to hold auditions for 30-minute musical. It was an interesting month.
First, my injury. It was the price of beauty and dancing.
Weak ankles and high heels just don’t get along well. The ankle always loses. So, for weeks I’ve been unable to walk around and be my usual energetic self and it’s awful! But an interesting thing happens when I have an injury (yes, this happens more often than I care to admit), I get all philosophical and existential.
So, I was thinking about time.
It is going to take time (and medical intervention) for my ankle to heal. But then I started thinking about music, and particularly, singing. It takes time to listen to music. It takes time to internalize and connect with music. Classical music in particular takes time to enjoy and really get into. It’s full of emotion and big feelings and those things take time to digest and unpack, but it’s really rewarding and meaningful. Likewise with singing, it is full of emotion and takes time to really internalize. I am trying to teach my students to slow down. Often we try to just get through a song rather than taking time to enjoy singing each note. But it’s important for singers to intentionally connect to each tone and fall in love with each phrase and those things take time. Sing each note like it’s the last one; like you’re going to hold it forever. Take the time to love each note.
The other experience I had was being on the other side of the audition table. It was wild!
It was new being the one holding the auditions. The kids did great, but I still had to make decisions that affect someone’s opinion of themselves and that was difficult. Hearing their reactions to the process and knowing that they are nervous but excited was an interesting feeling. I get it; I’ve been there. And, more often than not, I haven’t gotten the part. The difference is that I have a personal connection with these kids and I want to see them do well regardless of the outcome. After the audition, I get to invest time in making sure they still do well. That’s part of why I love 30-minute Musical; it’s not just a music class, it’s a confidence class.
And such were my adventures in September. Full of new experiences, joy, frustration, and love. As we go into the holiday season, I am looking forward to more experiences, joy, healing, and singing…especially singing.
Until next time!