Here's a great example of THE VALUE OF CROSS-TRAINING, recently added to the comments on an old post. From Stephanie Bass:
"I am a writer, and have been taking voice lessons for about four months now. I'm rediscovering how to produce the mezzo soprano tones that made me so happy as a teenage choir member. And, I am working through decades of 'muck' to find the head space and body space for what my teacher calls 'free singing.'
It has everything to do with being bold, being completely taken by the pure expression of voice, simply hearing the tone and letting the body repeat what it hears. In those rare moments when a full, resonant, clear note soars from my throat I feel as if I've been struck by holy fire.
Last week my teacher told me, "the voice HATES IT" when the singer is shy, holds back, cringes in anticipation of getting it wrong. I get my best sounds when I imitate Julia Child-- in her full-bodied, all-butter, drenched-in-cream joyfulness. There's bold for you. And creativity."
Isn't that lovely?
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2 comments:
Beautifully stated!
It is *exactly* how I feel when I'm riding and suddenly I become balanced, Keil Bay follows suit, and we ride a figure or do a movement that just flows, like we've gone airborne.
This boldness happens with writing as well, but there's something slightly different, and very exciting, when it happens with the physical body.
Inside of getting to that moment of harmony is the willingness to be clunky, off-kilter, unbalanced, etc. Fueled by boldness, you get to that centered place where everything hums.
One of the very best things I've learned about writing is that I never get to the truly good stuff - the lyrical sentences, the perfect gesture that defines a character, the essence of the story - until I'm willing to write bad sentences, stereotyped gestures, a story that plays out on the surface. For me, doing that part is both an act of trust and part of the process itself.
I once heard Lee Smith talk about taking tap dancing lessons and having the useful experience of being a beginner again.
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