Category Archives: Voice

“La Lutte Vocale”: The Battle that really isn’t. Thoughts on Linguistic Ambiguity and Reflexive Antagonism.

Posted on January 11, 2017 by

How many times have you expressed something, only to have it misunderstood? If you’re like most people, your answer is most likely: ‘frequently’! One of the advantages of language is that it’s flexible and multi-dimensional. One of the disadvantages of … Continue reading →

Posted in Anatomie, Archetypes, Breath, Breathing, Coaching, Communication, Fitness, Gesang, Gesangslehrer, Gesangspädagogik, Inner Game, Learning, Lehren, Lehrer, Lessons, Oper, Opera, Pedagogy, Sänger, Seminars, Singing, Stimme, Students, Teachers, Teaching, Vocal Pedagogy, Voice | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

INSTANT KARMA

Posted on May 30, 2016 by

The idea of “Karma” as it was probably originally intended seems foreign to how we live our life. The idea that there is some mechanism by which our deeds come back at us is anathema to many of us, especially … Continue reading →

Posted in Authenticity, Communication, Congruence, Creativity, Ecstatic Living, Emotional Intelligence, Singing, Speaking, Voice | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Tool or Crutch? Support, Independence and Integration in Singing.

Posted on January 24, 2016 by

Remember when you learned to ride a bicycle? You either had “training-wheels” or your father ran alongside you, holding the bike steady. How long were these tools necessary before the wheels came off or dad faded smiling in the distance? … Continue reading →

Posted in Anatomie, Authenticity, Coaching, Concentration, Congruence, Creativity, Emotional Intelligence, Gesang, Gesangspädagogik, Kommunikation, Lessons, Music, Musik, Oper, Opera, Pedagogy, Performance, Performance Training, Presence, Teaching, Vocal Pedagogy, Voice | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Voice Student from HELL. Our „Deal Killer” priorities as voice teachers.

Posted on October 27, 2015 by

For years I was convinced that I could teach anyone. My first “Voice Student from Hell” convinced me how important it is for teachers to have conscious and specific priorities. Part of the arrogance of my youth was a compensation … Continue reading →

Posted in Lessons, Pedagogy, Priorities, Students, Teachers, Voice | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Envy and NLP: The Dark Side of the Bright Side of Life

Posted on August 25, 2015 by

Ray Wilkins and Evan Bortnick Imagine for a moment a good friend in the same line of work as yourself. One day he tells you of an enormous success he’s just had. He landed a big account. He was awarded … Continue reading →

Posted in Emotions, NLP, Psychological Shadow, Transformation, Voice | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Gifts of Pain. The Rewards of Fear.

Posted on August 16, 2015 by

A provocative title! Pain and fear are usually understood as things to avoid. Our survival is based on the instincts we’ve evolved to avoid pain and fear. How then, can there be gifts in pain and rewards in fear? I … Continue reading →

Posted in Coaching, Communication, Emotional Intelligence, Potential, Voice | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Sport, Entertainment and Art

Posted on October 28, 2014 by

Evan Bortnick       http://musa-vocalis.de/ Gesangsunterricht Wiesbaden The distinction between Sport, Entertainment and Art is much more than just a semantic one. This distinction, together with our definition and attitude toward it make our goals, our dreams and our values transparent. I … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Authenticity, Congruence, Opera, Performance, Self Expression, Singing, Voice | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Games Voice Students Play — Past Teachers’ Failure

Posted on August 21, 2014 by

Evan Bortnick       http://musa-vocalis.de/ Gesangsunterricht Wiesbaden I’ve been noticing lately an increasing tendency, in blogs, in facebook and on singing/teaching sites in general, towards indignantly commenting about how many ‘bad’ voice teachers there are out there. This tendency seems emphasized by … Continue reading →

Posted in Audition, Authenticity, Congruence, Emotional Intelligence, Lessons, Music, Opera, Pedagogy, Performance, Performance Training, Presence, Singing, Teaching, Voice | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

„Don’t Push”— Pressure Centers Above and Below

Posted on May 12, 2014 by

Evan Bortnick       http://musa-vocalis.de/ Gesangsunterricht Wiesbaden How many times have we singers heard that admonition; “Don’t Push”? Either we’ve said it ourselves (to ourselves or our students) or we’ve heard it a million times from our own teachers. It sure sounds … Continue reading →

Posted in Breath, Breathing, Mental Training, Music, Opera, Pedagogy, Performance, Singing, Teaching, Voice | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Motility and Mobility

Posted on March 11, 2014 by

Evan Bortnick       http://musa-vocalis.de/ Gesangsunterricht Wiesbaden It’s always been a particular fascination of mine how singers move. The raised shoulders, the furrowed eyebrows, the tensed upper lip, the pelvic wave all have both an emotional expression AND a very specific technical, … Continue reading →

Posted in Authenticity, Breath, Breathing, Communication, Concentration, Congruence, Fitness, Lessons, Mental Training, Mind-Body, Opera, Pedagogy, Performance, Self Expression, Singing, Speaking, Stillness, Voice | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment