Monday, March 5, 2012

Sometimes You Just Need To Take a Singer's Day

Sometimes you just need to take a singer's day. That is today for me! It is the kind of day where a lot of work gets done, but a lot of recharging can happen. Most of us young singers are working one, two or three jobs on top of all the work we have to do for our art, so sometimes instead of "fitting in" a practice session, it is nice to take a day to focus on all things singerly.

For me, the day must begin with an extended pajama wearing period. I wake up, drink some water, make breakfast, write on my blog, etc, but I do it all in my pajamas! Somewhere in the day, I always like to do something physical, so my plan (once I am out of the pajama wearing stage), is to go for a lovely walk in the neighbourhood and listen to music. You know, enjoy nature, soak up local colour, get the blood pumping a bit. All of that.

The rest of my day is going to be devoted to text work, learning, memorization (I have two roles to prepare for the summer) and relaxation. I honestly don't even know if I will physically be singing. You never know.

All I know, is that a quiet house plus Mozart and Strauss seems like bliss to me.

Now, for those of you still in school and reading this, you may be thinking "Well, I go to school 5 days a week and work to make money on my two days off". To this I say, no one ever went to hell for playing hooky for a day. When I was at Laurier I definitely took singer days even though I had class. Sometimes you just need it! Having said that, I usually chose a day where I had a lighter class load. If you have a fantastic teacher, like I do (and did at the time), they will understand.

I will conclude by reminding you that this is something we all need to do from time to time. Take a day, lose yourself in your art and recharge!