I’ve been a private studio voice teacher
for over twenty five years and I've also taught voice at the college/university
level. My teaching philosophy is "Figure out what works for this
individual student, because singing is not a one-size-fits-all sort of
activity".
"Colla voce" is Italian for "with the voice". It
is often seen in the piano part where the singer might take some liberty - a
cadenza inserted or a dramatic stretch to the phrase.
I've tried to put things on the website that are of interest
to voice students, especially beginning and intermediate singers. Others
of you may also find useful information or links here. FAQs about Voice
Lessons is everything (well, not everything) you ever wanted to know
about studying voice, if you've never tried it. A number of topics are
covered in the Articles, such as stage fright, Alexander Technique, vocal
health, breathing and others. If you are doing research or interested in
reading further, Resources is a collection of book titles and web links on
various aspects of singing. Take a look at Essential Repertoire and
Vocal Exercises to find
books and vocalises that I use in my teaching.
Suggested Listening is mostly a list of my favorite singers, and Studio Notes
has information about studio events for my students.
While I cannot take requests for lessons by email, please feel free to write to me with questions or comments. I can be contacted
at
.
Thanks for visiting Colla Voce!
June Bowser
A Special Note About Flu Season 2009-2010
We’ve never been quite so aware
of the possibility of coming down with the flu. No need to panic, though. The
“Swine Flu” is no more deadly than other flu strains, in spite of the media’s
hype. (Most of the reports of deaths include a statement that the victim had
underlying medical issues. Asthma or emphysema, for example could make a case
of the mildest sniffles a serious thing to battle.) “Pandemic” means a disease
is widespread because it passes easily from person to person. It is capable of
morphing into various forms, one of which will probably get you. Your weapons
against it include:
- Flu vaccine
- Hand sanitizer
- Lysol
- Listerine
- Anti viral tissues
- Antibacterial cleaning wipes – Great for light
switches and door knobs.
It also helps to get sufficient sleep, eat a healthy diet
and avoid touching your face a lot. The face masks you see people wearing in
the news reports may not help much, but if you want to wear one, go ahead. I
don’t think anyone would fault you for it. After all, you’re the one who knows
your own body’s weaknesses. It could be you’re one of those people who can’t
shake off an infection until it turns into bronchitis and stays with you for
several months. You’re the one who gets to suffer through that, so if you want
to wear a mask or skip shaking someone’s hand, that’s up to you.
Medicines like Tamiflu are
prescriptions. You need to be on it within 48 hours in order for it to be
effective. Unfortunately, that’s just about long enough to decide that you
really are sick and to call the doctor’s office. If he/she can’t see you until
a week from Tuesday, you’re out of luck. Some people like using AirBorne (to
avoid catching what everyone else has), Echinacea or Oscillococcinum (at the
first signs of illness). They’re available at health food stores and even some
supermarkets.
What else can you do? Wash your
hands a lot, be aware when the people around you are sick, and, to avoid
spreading it, stay home when you’re the one infected. Remember how many others
can be breathing your germs at school or work (especially if you work at a
restaurant!). If you come to your lesson sick, I’m not the only one who might
catch it from you. Remember the students who are coming after you and handling
the same pencil or music stand and breathing the same air.
Right now the winter flu season is
going on in the southern hemisphere and the germs are continually evolving.
That means this fall’s flu vaccine may or may not be effective against Swine Flu
(H1N1), but if it helps you avoid a different bug, that’s good, too.
Want more information? Try
Wikipedia, or, better yet, http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/.
