VocalFri Podcast

#VocalFam we have entered a new VocalFri era with not only our first great guest episode of season 8, but also our first ever episode with our first two CU grad students along for the ride. This week we were thrilled to have Dr. Kimberly Monzón from Baylor University on the pod to discuss her work on AFAB singers and singing through hormonal cycles. Such great advice and wisdom for any voice teacher. Read more about Dr. Monzón on her website. 

We meant to talk about nasality today, then Prof. Pigott saw Dr. P's white board in his office. We ended up discussing learning outcomes for a DMA degree in Vocal Ped./Perf. Oops. So, we ask you the #VocalFam: If YOU wanted to do a DMA, what would YOU want to be able to do by the end of it?

This week Prof. Pigott and Dr. P take a hypothetical journey as they dream what voice juries could look like, if they just started everything over. A really great discussion for those of you revising syllabi or program requirements. Dream the future, be kind, prepare students for success. Have a great weekend #VocalFam!

So much has changed in so little time. #VocalFam Season 8 is upon us, and WHAT A LINEUP we have planned for you this season. Prof. Pigott and Dr. P catch up on Prof. Pigott's teaching of Voice Pedagogy, Dr. P updates us on his transition to Director of Vocal Pedagogy at CU Boulder, and we preview our great guest list for Season 8! We also tossed in a quick Dr. P's quick Deadpool review for those who were waiting for it. This season is going to be spectacular!

Season 7 comes to a close! Today we started preparing Sarah for her TEACHING of Voice Pedagogy in the Fall Semester. More to come on that, but it led us to discuss the working chapter titles for Dr. P's book. Yes, he's finally making a the huge mistake of committing to writing a book. He really needs to reconsider his life choices. In the end a fun time was had by all. Come join the #VocalFam as we close out our seventh year together. 

Dr. P and Sarah address this week's controversial Ian Bostridge performance where he stopped mid song cycle to ask the audience to put down their phones and turn off the flash functions. It was a varied and weaving conversation with two sort of opposite perspectives. In the end, the take home point was, be courteous, consider others, and let's get audience members in seats. Join us.

The #VocalFam is joined by the Sparks and Wiry Cries duo of Martha Guth and Erika Switzer to talk about their joint art song centered project. They share about the importance of diversifying your career as a performing artist and how they both landed in the realm of art song. Also they share about Song Slams. Dr. P and Sarah had the chance to attend the Song Slam in Chicago at NATS National. If one comes to a city near you, do NOT miss it! A truly invigorating creative experience. 

NATS President Diana Allan and President-Elect Alexis Davis-Hazell join us to preview the upcoming NATS National Conference in Knoxville from June 28-July 2. Please consider joining us for all the tremendous activities, sessions, and  information this upcoming summer!

Coming off of Dr. P's recent faculty search and interview process Sarah was curious to hear more about what the job search process is like in 2024. Dr. P shares some thoughts on the overall academic music job market (the bleak part), followed by some recommendations for those applying for positions, and finally some hopefulness about why you still might consider pursuing graduate degrees in voice.

One of our VocalFri philosophies has always been not getting caught up on what terminology we use, as long as we can define and describe how we are using those words. We discussed this on an older episode, but we've seen a lot of recent posts regarding terminology and it seemed like a good time to revisit this topic. An interesting, winding conversation.