Articles
Creating your own opportunities
The arts landscape is ever-changing, now more than ever in this mid-pandemic reality. The adaptable singer can enjoy a rewarding career when they are willing to change and grow along with it. Through collaboration, engagement and thoughtful planning, the pursuit …
DMAs and the elusive, coveted full-time faculty position
Much like the “American Dream” of the past century, the DMA Promise is the equally coveted and elusive aspiration of countless young singers and academics. In our field, the DMA Promise is the widely held belief that a Doctorate of …
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Excluded, Penalized, Indebted, Harassed: Systemic discrimination against women in opera
Women face extraordinary odds of success in the opera world, from the conservatory to young artist apprenticeships to the mainstage to leadership roles in administration. Middleclass Artist and the Empowered Musician, in an exhaustive analysis of the opera industry from …
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Embracing and taking pride in your correlating career
“If you can see yourself doing anything else, do that.” Sound familiar? All musicians have heard these words, and many have stopped pursuing a music career because of them. I would like to invite you to consider an amendment to …
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An Impossible Choice: Music majors, COVID-19 and an uncertain future
By Dana Lynne Varga and Zach Finkelstein This Fall, music performance majors enrolled or considering U.S. colleges face an impossible choice. First, they need to determine if remote learning is effective for them. Then, they must weigh whether the in-person …
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An interview with Sarah Whitney—violinist, entrepreneur, and educator
I’m so thrilled to bring you this interview with Sarah Whitney. Sarah has crafted an extremely successful career as a violinist, educator and entrepreneur by challenging “the rules”, creating her own path and following her heart. Check out her extensive …
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Supply and demand: Gender disparity in opera (Part 1)
According to data collected by Datausa.io, 8,133 Music Performance Degrees were awarded in the United States in 2015. If we take a snapshot of the vocal performance degrees being awarded in the USA today, it becomes clear that the number …
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Opportunity vs. debt: Gender disparity in opera (Part 2)
“Supply and Demand: Gender Disparity in Opera Part 1” explored the issue of poor gender parity that exists in professional opera today, and some possible solutions. In this second part of the article, we will specifically discuss the issue of gender …
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Superwomen: Boston-based female artists on balancing pregnancy and parenting with busy careers
Women in the arts often feel they have to choose between having a family and having a career. These talented and brave Boston-based artists are balancing both, and have a lot to say on the subject! They shared with me …
Balancing a singing career with a full-time job
Most professional singers have some sort of correlating career. Secondary income sources are almost always necessary due to high costs of living, student loan debt and the competitive state of the classical singing world. Even a singer who works fairly …
How many YAPs are too many YAPs?
Part 1: Summer Programs Young Artist Programs are prescribed by many colleges, conservatories and industry professionals as part of the necessary path to career success. Over the past decade, the number of applications to these programs has skyrocketed. This is …
Why classical singers are leaving opera for musical theatre
Five working singer/actors share how and why they made the big switch from opera to MT. Contributing Artists: HEATHER HILL’s career covers a broad spectrum of appearances in opera, concerts, Broadway, television and film. She recently finished a four year run performing …
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Filtering feedback: How to navigate the many opinions you face
Swimming in opinions: filtering through the noise We’ve all been there… The conflicting information and comments. The confusing or unsolicited advice. Let’s take a brief look two common scenarios, and ways you can filter through all the opinions to find …
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Budgeting 101 for singers
You shouldn’t need to be wealthy to pursue a career in singing. However, it’s no secret that those who have enough money to finance a career in music for a long period of time are more likely to succeed. They’re simply …
Paying for the college years
It is no secret that the cost of college tuition has skyrocketed in recent years. According to the College Board (www.collegeboard.org), the average cost of a Bachelor’s degree is a whopping $35,000 per year for private colleges ($140,000 for four …
This is enough: accepting and appreciating your career at every stage
I am all about that hustle. We are in an industry that requires you to be constantly striving, creating and reaching for the next goal. An industry that necessitates self-marketing, up-to-date websites and recordings, as well as careful attention to …
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Healthy student-teacher relationships
Everyone has an ego and carries around certain insecurities; this is simply part of being human. Voice teachers are faced with a particular challenge due to the up-close-and-personal nature of the work that is done in the studio. The most …
Fach assumption in classical singing
The image of the fat lady with horns is a pervasive one in our field, and this stereotype affects most of us in ways we don’t even realize. I’m here to tell you that bodies and voices come in all …
The unprepared singer
You look great! But can you sing? Young singers are constantly bombarded with conflicting information about appropriate repertoire, audition attire, singer websites, resumes, bios and headshots. So utterly consumed with these seemingly pressing issues, singers often ignore far more important …
Getting real: The correlating career
The landscape of the classical vocal field has changed drastically over the last several decades. Gone are the days when opera was a cultural staple, when singers could expect daily voice lessons, private patrons and sold out opera houses. Don’t get me wrong: classical music is alive and well, even in America. But the market is so severely oversaturated with artists, in large part due to the massive number of performance majors graduating from college each year, that our audiences can’t keep up with us.
