Have you been wondering how you can beat performance anxiety and learn to make your voice soar across the room, even without a microphone?
Here’s a more intriguing question: What does it mean to express your authentic truth, in your authentic voice?
Would you like to find out? Then join me for my free webinar on Friday, October 12th, noon, PST!
It will be a fun, energizing hour with plenty of time for you to get answers to questions you may have about your voice, or jitters about public speaking.
And invite a friend, will ya? The more, the merrier!
The voice lesson affected me in ways I never imagined. I feel so much more inspired now. Thank you! -Lennon R.
In only a few lessons with Laura, my voice quality improved tremendously, both for singing and speaking. I’m noticing more resonance, clarity, and range. Laura has a great ear, and her teaching and coaching style feels safe, friendly and professional. She is supportive and stretches me. Her acting, singing, and speaking backgrounds blend beautifully to support presence and confidence in her students, as well. I’m excited to continue studying with her, and highly recommend her if you want to improve your voice. -Cricket W.
To Your Voice,
Laura
Lake Oswego’s Transformational Voice® Teacher (Transformational Voice® is a registered trademark of Transformational Voice® Training Institute, LLC, and Linda Brice.)
I woke up Friday morning knowing the lentil soup I’d made earlier in the week was about gone; almost out of leftovers, dagnabit!
I like to eat about as much as I like to sing. Pizza is okay once in a while; TV dinners, never. Whenever possible, real home-cooked food.
But what could I make for dinner with what I already had on hand? (With one exception – the fresh cilantro, which George kindly picked up.) Chili!
It turned out so well, I wanted to share the recipe with you. I’m a toss, dump, stir and taste as you go kind of cook, but here’s the recipe as best as I can approximate.
Laura’s Friday Throw-it-Together Chili
-Brown one small package ground beef, turkey, or leave the meat out for a veggie version. Drain if needed.
-Finely chop (food processor works great) half a bell pepper, preferably red, and 1/3 large onion and stir into meat in soup pot.
-Coarsely chop with scissors a bunch of fresh (the most fragrant one you can find) cilantro leaves – discard the stems. Stir into pot.
Add:
-1 28 oz. can diced tomatoes
-1 15 oz. can kidney beans, partially drained
-1 15 oz. can white northern beans, partially drained
-1 15 oz. can tomato sauce
-1 packet chili seasoning
-1 C water
-Small handful semi-sweet chocolate chips (a couple squares of dark chocolate, even better)
-2 generous TBSP oregano
-1 generous TBSP cumin
-2 TBSP cayenne pepper sauce (like Franks Red Hot)
-Few dashes Tabasco sauce
-Freshly ground pink Himalayan sea salt and ground pepper to taste
Stir together well, bring to a boil, and simmer for 45 minutes. Sing while occasionally stirring.
Serve with grated sharp cheddar cheese on top and saltine crackers, cornbread muffins, bread of choice, or corn tortillas.
Enjoy!
Please spread the love and pass this along to a friend!
Every time I have a lesson with Laura, I come out having learned something new about my voice, and my breathing. I try to use these techniques on a daily basis for acting, singing, and general speech. I recommend Laura to anyone hoping to improve their voice. –Noah G. (13 yrs.)
Lake Oswego’s Transformational Voice® Teacher (Transformational Voice® is a registered trademark of Transformational Voice® Training Institute, LLC, and Linda Brice.)
Can you believe playing with Barbies is part of my job now? It just hit me when I was re-dressing these dolls (two I’ve had since childhood, the rest I got as an adult) for a video shoot.
Why am I using Barbie dolls in my videos? Because we all need to play!
When I begin a new class or workshop, I say “welcome to the playground.” Yes, we need to work on our voices, and understanding our vocal instruments, our bodies, doesn’t happen overnight…but if we’re not enjoying the process – what’s the point?!
Why is the element of play so important? Not just because laughter and fun are essential for our mental, physical and emotional well-being, but because most of us harbor an inner critic that likes to remind us how much we suck. I call my critic Carla – which is actually a very nice name for the hurtful and negative ways we can talk to ourselves, inside our own heads. As if people are just born captivating speakers or beautiful singers. I guarantee you Martin Luther King, Jr., and Lady Gaga had to train.
One of my voice students, Lennon, (we laugh a lot during his lessons!) finds a sports analogy comforting and helpful. Lennon may not be a great basketball player, but he’s pretty darned good at shooting free throws. Once his body got the movement down, he knew what to do at the free throw line. It’s the same with your voice. With training, the knowledge becomes ingrained in your muscle memory and subconscious mind. Take that, Carla! I don’t suck after all. I just don’t know what I’m doing yet…I’m on the playground, learning!
To welcome you to the playground, I’ll soon be inviting you to my new online class, PS (for public speaking): Your Voice Could be Better, beginning this October.
To see if this class is a good fit for you, and to answer any general questions you may have about your voice, I’m offering a free webinar Friday, October 12th, noon PST. Look for the videos and invitation in the coming weeks.
I came away with a much better understanding of how to do, and effectively use, belly breathing to speak confidently, efficiently and effectively. -Caroline M.
Laura is a skilled teacher and observer of her students. -Anita E.
Supportive, fun, safe…and immediately applicable tools and skills. -Barbara M.
Please spread the love and pass this along to a friend!
Lake Oswego’s Transformational Voice® Teacher (Transformational Voice® is a registered trademark of Transformational Voice® Training Institute, LLC, and Linda Brice.)
I know how precious your time is, so I’ll give you five top highlights of the program:
1) Breathe with a relaxed belly and ribs out; don’t clench your abdomen.
2) Have your body straight, with good posture.
3) Speak with resonance (pretend like you’re a little nasal – use the whole area inside your head, not pushing your voice back into your throat; this helps you avoid that low, ‘gravelly’ sound.)
4) Speak in your authentic pitch range (this can be more challenging than you think!)
5) Feel something while you’re speaking – that way, your audience will, too. This is called “emotional espressivity.”
These tools are actually very simple. The hard part can be breaking years of bad conditioning.
The inner voice (what you’ve been taught about yourself and have told yourself over the years) and the body, our physical vocal instrument expressing our outer voice, are closely entwined.
When you start working with your voice, you will transform. As you transform, so will your voice.
If you take the time to watch the whole video, notice I did a couple of things “wrong.” And that’s okay! You’ll be okay if you do things “wrong,” too. What did you notice? What are you afraid of doing “wrong?”
Let me know on the blog!
Lake Oswego’s Transformational Voice® Teacher (Transformational Voice® is a registered trademark of Transformational Voice® Training Institute, LLC, and Linda Brice.)
What Happens When You Learn You’re an Opera Singer
I host a monthly TV show on TV Toastmasters, and this particular episode is too great not to share. I interviewed Lenny Gotter, who – after starting vocal training – learned he’s a Dramatic Tenor opera singer.
Find your voice – change your life. Seriously!
Our portion of the show starts at 13.40 and the program is about 13 minutes long. Take a look/listen, and share your response or any questions on the blog!
Please spread the love and pass this along to a friend!
The voice lesson affected me in ways I never imagined. I feel so much more inspired now. Thank you! -Lennon R.
In only a few lessons with Laura, my voice quality improved tremendously, both for singing and speaking. I’m noticing more resonance, clarity, and range. Laura has a great ear, and her teaching and coaching style feels safe, friendly and professional. She is supportive and stretches me. Her acting, singing, and speaking backgrounds blend beautifully to support presence and confidence in her students, as well. I’m excited to continue studying with her, and highly recommend her if you want to improve your voice. -Cricket W.
Lake Oswego’s Transformational Voice® Teacher (Transformational Voice® is a registered trademark of Transformational Voice® Training Institute, LLC, and Linda Brice.)
I watched the movie Urban Cowboy (1980, John Travolta and Debra Winger) free on demand recently. Okay, fine, I’m old enough to have seen it when it first came out. But it had been so long I remembered almost nothing of the film, other than some pretty fine country music. If you like that kind of thing. Which I do, from time to time.
I can’t say I recommend the movie. Domestic violence, other kinds of violence, cheating on your partner, and I can’t – for the life of me – figure out why anyone would want to ride a bull. I’ll ask my friend, Dan, as he used to be a bull rider.
Yet one line from the movie struck me. Bud (Travolta) and Sissy (Winger) were watching a rodeo with convicts let out from prison riding the bulls. Bud said that convicts make the best bull riders. Sissy wondered why. Bud said it’s because they’re not afraid of being hurt. That they’re just going back to prison to convalesce anyway.
This is how it is with many of our dreams in life and sharing our voices. We don’t – because we’re afraid of being hurt.
Dan Meyer and I went to school together in South Dakota from kindergarten through high school graduation and have remained in touch ever since. While he no longer rides bulls, Dan is still very involved with the rodeo where he now lives in Idaho. In fact, he’ll soon be traveling to the National High School Rodeo Finals in Rock Springs, WY.
Why do people ride bulls? Dan says, “It’s the adrenaline rush. It’s like why people jump out of airplanes. Sheer adrenaline. And then you challenge yourself with the next one. Every bull is different; every bull is going to move differently than the last one. It all boils down to how you can compensate for each movement.”
I asked Dan just one other question: “How does it feel when you’re done with a bull ride?”
He responded, “An over-the-top satisfaction, knowing you went one on one with something bigger and better than you.”
Maybe public vocal performance and bull-riding aren’t that different after all.
When the spotlights are on the stage and you’re waiting for your cue, adrenaline courses through your body. Every song, every speech…each audience…is different. You’re going one on one with your fears. And, when it’s over, and you know you’ve done it (regardless of whether you “won” or “lost”, performed “better” or “worse”) the satisfaction is real and ready. You have more experience under your saddle cinch and are ready for the next challenge.
What if we were to act like a convict let out of prison for one day – and ride our own personal bull, whatever that might mean, without fear of being hurt?
Interesting to think about, huh?
Please spread the love and pass this along to a friend!
Supportive, fun, safe…and immediately applicable tools and skills. -Barbara M.
Laura truly connects with her audience. She makes people feel comfortable and safe to be vulnerable and find their authentic voice. Thank you. -Angela P.
In only a few lessons with Laura, my voice quality improved tremendously, both for singing and speaking. I’m noticing more resonance, clarity, and range. Laura has a great ear, and her teaching and coaching style feels safe, friendly and professional. She is supportive and stretches me. Her acting, singing, and speaking backgrounds blend beautifully to support presence and confidence in her students, as well. I’m excited to continue studying with her, and highly recommend her if you want to improve your voice. -Cricket W.
Lake Oswego’s Transformational Voice® Teacher (Transformational Voice® is a registered trademark of Transformational Voice® Training Institute, LLC, and Linda Brice.)
