MezzoGirl
Los Angeles, CA
Female, 29
I sing beautiful music -- primarily opera -- but I also do concert work, church music, studio/scoring sessions, and whatever other performance opportunities I can get my hands on.
Hopefully, your opera contracts. But the great thing about singing is that you have many sources of income: church, chorus and concert work, recording sessions, private events, teaching ... I was at a singer's workshop recently with Dan Montez and he made a great point: if you have a full-time job, you could lose 100% of your income in a day. But if you're a singer, you probably have many sources of income and if you lose one of them, it won't break you. It was a different perspective than most people's usual stream of thought/panic about freelance work! Also, if you know how to sight-read well, you can get booked for many more jobs. If you don't, contact AFTRA or AGMA and see if they sponsor any classes to help you with sight-singing. In LA, there's a fantastic sight singing class through AFTRA (you don't have to be a member to participate but you do get a discount if you are) -- Music1on1.com has the details. It's especially great for score recording session singing technique and a fabulous place to network. They also do events to meet session contractors, discuss demos and marketing and other such workshops.
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Yes, but there are many factors that would have to be in place (and be precisely executed) to make that happen -the singer singing the glass's resonating tone and the loudness of the voice as well as defects in the glass. Here's a link to an incredible article on the topic in Scientific America that also cites a taped experiment proving the unassisted voice can shatter glass on Myth Busters. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=fact-or-fiction-opera-singer-can-shatter-glass
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The jury's still out on this from the research I've done, but it does seem that larger ribcages have their advantages in singing. Almost every singer's ribcage will expand in size, which may also just give the appearance of heaviness as well. But that doesn't mean that large voices and long phrases can't come out of smaller framed people. The 'largeness' of a voice comes from the resonating cavities in the head combined with the amount of strength and release in the singer's body. Singing is so much about how you use and release body tension. It's a very physical art. Also, singing makes me insanely hungry, so perhaps people don't make the right choices after singing til 11p at night (I always have a healthy snack right after I'm out of costume). My teacher and I have discussed the differences in body types and singing as I'm smaller and more athletic. Some of the sensations that come from extra weight that are technically very useful, I just can't identify. So I have to find other sensations. I find that strength training and running really helps me because of my size. Having the sensation of a lower center of gravity gives me extra 'weight' while singing.
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Vocal technique, music history, music theory, coaching with specialists in the repertoire you're working on, piano, acting, movement, diction (if you don't know the International Pronunciation Alphabet, learn it!) and business management/finance. I think the self-employed singer has to have their business skills set so that one can focus on the creative and technical aspects of being a singer without the stress of over-worrying about finances and such. Plus, you can see the progress you're making and where you need to put greater attention when you have a specific plan with goals. If you're still in school, take marketing and small business finance or something comparable. If you're out of school, you might want to find courses at a local college for this.
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Call Center Employee (Retail)
Which cable company do you think has the absolute worst customer service?
TV Meteorologist
What were your worst on-screen bloopers?
Hairstylist and Makeup Artist
What types of clients are the worst to deal with?
Really, it's NYC if that's what you want to do. You could try living in Chicago if you're great with comedy and want to do that as well. Or LA if you're interested in the film/TV world. But if you want music theater, live in or around NYC. You can audition for cruise lines and theme parks that utilize music theater talent well and have you living in different places for long stretches of time. But you need to be around where the auditions are- and the vast majority are in NYC. Auditioning is the biggest part of your job when you're starting off.
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My first professional opera contract was offered to me because I was in Arizona State's production and the conductor was asked to present it for the Connecticut Early Music festival, so he pretty much took the whole university cast with him.
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I think it depends on what interests you. For instance, my mother is not a music fan and the fact that I sing has driven her nuts for years. Then one day, she called me and said that she really wanted to try to like opera. After my initial shock, I suggested that we see Carmen together. The music is very familiar to most people (the Habanera is one of the most famous songs ever written), it's about a sexy gypsy who makes men fall in love with her, there's dancing, sex, color, murder...you name it. My mother still didn't like that one. Finally, I realized that she'd probably like an opera that dealt with history. We both love history, so we chose Giulio Cesare, which deals with his time in Egypt with Cleopatra. It's early opera, so I would usually not suggest it as a first opera as it can feel a bit stiff to an audience used to seeing a lot of action in their entertainment. The result, my mom finally decided to "Like" me on Facebook! Most opera companies usually have a Q&A before certain performances and those will definitely help you understand the opera more- story, context, music to listen for, etc. Here are some ideas for what might interest you: Sex= Carmen, Samson et Dalila Comedy= Marriage of Figaro History= Giulio Cesare, Anna Bolena (at the Met & Met HD live broadcasts now) Drama= La traviata Musical Theater= La Boheme (if you liked Rent, you'll love La Boheme-same thing really except trade HIV for consumption) Fairytales= Hansel & Gretel (sometimes going to a children's opera first helps as they're shorter and have simple plot lines, and usually sung in the native tongue of whatever country you're in.) Enjoy the opera (I hope)!
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