A friend of mine, a former Peruvian tennis pro who toured South America with her country’s national team in the 1970s, now coaches tennis in the States. From her small rural town, she has taken many students to national championships over the years because of her passion and skill at teaching tennis. She shared with me recently one of her philosophies that she tells all of her students: You try. You fail. You try again. And you fail better.
Anyone who has become a master of something understands this philosophy. The road to excellence is paved with failure. Determining to fail better each time you get back up and try again really is the key to ultimate success.
Singers, voice teachers, vocal coaches, parents, and exhibitors gather in Chicago this month for the CS Music Convention—all with one real goal in mind: to better master the art of singing. Such mastery is built on incremental changes made over hours of persistent, sometimes grueling, sometimes joyful, but always detailed work.
In singing, there are so many different areas where we must apply this work. There’s the technical side of things: good posture, aligned vowels, clear diction, low breathing, and a smooth passaggio—just the tip of the iceberg! Then there’s the presentation part: delving into the meaning behind the music, the character you are portraying, and all of the dramatic elements of really bringing that persona and the music to life. And don’t forget the business part of a career: from résumés to headshots to making and cultivating important relationships—all of this requires attention, time, and more work!
The voice teachers at the convention, representing some 80 colleges and universities, all desire to help you glean these skills. (See class descriptions starting on p. 76.) James Nova lays out some revolutionary ideas for using technology in the practice room to up your technical game (p. 28) and will demonstrate those ideas in his convention class. The vocal coaches like Kristin Roach and Eric Trudel and opera company execs like William Florescu and Dan Novak (p. 86), participating in this year’s Audition Feedback Experience, are ready to discuss your whole package.
Soprano Nicole Cabell, featured in this month’s cover story (p. 18), is failing better and better these days with a fully booked international singing career and a new teaching position at DePaul University in Chicago. Not only is she detailed in her vocal artistry, she pays attention to the small business details of her career. In e-mailing with Cabell to plan her involvement at this month’s convention, I have witnessed her kindness, courtesy, quick response to e-mails, and careful attention to every aspect of her career.
Cabell, like all experienced singers, knows that failing better over time also requires facing a lot of rejection and failure! It’s part of the nuanced artistic work in the practice room as well as the many “no”s to get that one “yes” after a multitude of auditions. Read sage advice from Susan Mohini Kane (p. 32) and Debbie Riggs Wood (p. 38) on maintaining perspective, bouncing back, and staying resilient—topics they will expound on in their convention classes.
In any pursuit of excellence, failing again and again is inevitable. That failure can sometimes stop us from trying again. But if we can continue to fail better and better each time we try, all of that diligent and detailed hard work will ultimately lead to our success.
