Open Intervals
Give the New Hymn "New Creation, Arise" a Listen
Recording from home is sometimes a challenge.
My particular challenge is the volume coming from and the length of time it takes my fridge to run.
Seriously, my fridge is running. And when it runs it prevents me from recording, so I have to get creative.
It really doesn't matter how long it takes me to record a piece like this, I do a couple of takes and sometimes I have to stop.
Stop in the middle to cry.
Stop between takes to pull myself together.
Because there is no good reason why we sh…
The Elm Ensemble Has a YouTube Channel!
The Elm Ensemble has posted videos from our April 2019 Evensong project, which was called "Hope for the Journey."
On that program we sang several moving pieces and now the recordings are up on YouTube.
It's truly a pleasure to sing with the Elm Ensemble as we gather together in Dexter, MI for a weekend and there are a wide variety of singers, from local church choir singers to professionals from out-of-state.
I cannot tell a lie, the post-service reception is one of my favorite parts. Having …
One Good Thing: "This Year"
A couple of months ago several other singer friends and I decided to start a group meeting and the entire purpose, beyond staying connected to people in this absolute 3-ring trash fire/dumpster fire/tire fire of a year was to simply share one good thing.
No matter how small, it all counts.
We've talked about conversations we've had, people we've connected with again, the stress of the current situation and all the things we do not know.
Among all of the stressful and horrible things we've end…
Free German Diction Class
On April 7th I offered a free German Diction class for singers and voice teachers and it was an absolutely lovely time.
There were singers and teachers from Virginia to Colorado and from one part of Minnesota to another.
Here's what we covered (and all of this in 90 minutes!):
- how the German vowel:constant ratio differs from English
- how German children learn to read and how that instructs singers on German diction
- the Ich-Laut
- the Ach-Laut
- pronouncing the German "w" or /v/ sound
- an ove…
"Dear Everyone... From Nicole"
A few weeks ago I had an interview on the Quarantine Phone Calls, which you can read about here. This is my Letter to the World.
Dear Everyone,
My heart goes out to you, whether you're here in Milwaukee or as far away as Iran, Japan, or South Africa. I want to send you courage. Courage to ask for the help you need, courage to face every moment as it arises. Courage to remember that every day is a step in the right direction.
I also want to send you honest. Honesty so you can feel every emotio…
"Hold steady. Keep going" graphics to download
Feel free to download whichever color you like best. Right-click to save the image.
There's a cranberry color, a dark blue and an Irish green one just for Matthew Thompson. Thanks again for having me on your podcast, Matthew!
Listen to the Quarantine Phone Calls - I was a guest this a.m.
Yesterday the author and marketing pro Seth Godin opened up an Akimbo Coworking space. It's free coworking for people working at home and it's open through April 18th.
Of course I signed up.
And there I connected with Matthew Thompson, a podcaster from Northern Ireland. In a few hours' time he was able to schedule 15 interviews and today he has already posted 4 of them.
These are regular conversations between two people about life in general and how they're managing our current situation.
2 Super Cheap Recipes to help Singers Survive
Singers are usually on very stretched budgets, and now's the time to learn some reeeeeeally cheap recipes that are good now and in other, less interesting times. ;-)
This first one is new to me, the second recipe is for a lentil soup. A client of mine sent me this recipe a long time ago and it's good in all seasons, with different spices, etc. I freeze single portions and
1. Navajo Flatbread
(Found on FB via Joyce Larson and Brandon Johnson)
Navajo Flatbread:
Makes 6
2 cups flour
1 - 1 1/4…
The SDSO concerts have been cancelled.
Next month's scheduled concerts of the Pärt Stabat Mater and the Mozart Requiem have been cancelled and will not be rescheduled.
Your Gig has been Canceled. Crisis or Opportunity?
This post has been updated. Twice.
The amount of gigs canceled right now is no joke. Neither is the income lost for artists who are already overworked and underpaid.
Right now we're fluctuating between not knowing a whole lot and really not knowing anything at all. The uncertainty can be overwhelming.
Yesterday a friend canceled a long-planned trip to Europe. A friend in Venice (Italy is on lock-down) has had to cancel a performance; her performance group is posting "Music for Quarantine" to …