I have a love-hate relationship with e-mail. I love it because it makes communicating with others so much easier! I hate it because my ever-overflowing inbox is also ever-overwhelming. But one recent e-mail I received amid the masses tipped the scales in the “love” direction. CS contributor Angela Myles Beeching’s weekly networking newsletter caught my attention:
This week, at a workshop at Manhattan School of Music, two recent alumni spoke about the challenges and surprises they faced in transitioning from students to professionals. They each described how important it is to know who you are and what it is you have to offer that other people want or need. They emphasized knowing what you are actually providing that other people value. In other words, what problem do you solve for others? What is it that you make possible for others? The trick here is that how others view and value us may be different from how we’d like to be seen and valued.
Finding professional success requires gathering two essential pieces of information. First, you have to know your talents and abilities—or, as Beeching says, what you have to offer. Second, you need to clearly understand what people in the industry want or need. Obtaining this career-vital information requires getting feedback from both ourselves and others.
Like e-mail, most of us have a love-hate relationship with feedback. We know we need it and we conceptually want it. Indeed, we often crave it—that is, until it’s not what we want to hear. And when it doesn’t line up with how we see ourselves, well, there’s the rub.
Singer and music publisher Glendower Jones has a lifetime of experience evaluating his own abilities against what other people want and need (see p. 44). When his embouchure was wrong for the clarinet, he put his energy into singing. His voice led him to New York City where he crossed paths with Joseph Patelson of Patelson’s Music Store. Jones began collecting printed music and ultimately started a publishing business. He credits his success to finding out what people want and providing it for them.
Having the right people around you giving input on both your own abilities and what other people are looking for is essential. Christa Ludwig, featured in this month’s cover story (p. 24), credits her mentors for her success—namely, three conductors who guided her throughout her career. Her voice teacher, who also happened to be her mother, not only gave her a solid foundation of technique, including her mastery of messa di voce, but also relevant instruction on when to sing what roles—advice gleaned from her mother’s own mistakes.
In addition to listening to external feedback, we also must listen to internal feedback. Our bodies provide us with an immense amount of information that we must tune into and interpret. In Greg Waxberg’s article (see p. 40), singers and Juilliard’s resident dietician share advice on how to prepare for both matinee and evening performances. From what to eat, to when to eat, to when to sleep, to how and when to exercise, the way we treat and prepare our bodies has a huge impact on our ability to perform at our very best.
As audition season continues, prepare to receive varying levels and types of feedback by reading Amanda White’s article (p. 16) for insight on how to get better feedback and how to interpret the information you get. And as you work to evaluate that information, consider tenor Stephen Cole’s career (p. 20). While being a leading tenor may come with more glitz, glamour and, yes, money, Cole recognized that his abilities could fill the distinct and unique niche of a character tenor—a decision that has led to years of success on the stage.
May we have “long ears,” as Ludwig says in her cover story interview, to listen to and evaluate feedback—both internal and external—and then to use that information to better understand both our own skills and abilities and the needs and wants of those hiring in the business. And then to discover how the two can synergistically come together.
