I was listening to, of all things, Gold Mother by James today and it got me think about how I'm approaching the world and my life right now. I've been hibernating the last week or two, doing a lot of punishing and judging, not so much of the curious exploring. I only realized listening to that song what a funk I was in! So this tip of the week is as much for me as it is for you.

Tip of the Week: Be Curious!

Imagine a baby approaching the world, they don't even know how their fingers work! Everything is wonder and mystery and discovery. Why shouldn't we continue to approach our bodies that way all through our lives? If anything as adults we have more of a capacity to appreciate just how intricate and powerful and fragile and versatile and strong our bodies are. But instead of being in awe, we punish, we bully, we ignore and neglect.

And of course this especially applies to approaching voice work. Do you ever bully your voice? Take it for granted? Do you ever ignore what your voice is telling you because you're pushing for a result no matter the cost? I know I do. Let's take time this week to approach our bodies and our voices with respect and curiosity. Approach your practice, your singing, your rehearsals and your conversations with wonder and joy. Truly listen to your body. This could be the beginning of a beautiful relationship.

In honour of my birthday I'm giving away 2 fabulous prizes!

First prize:
A spot in the November Technique Workshop (Vancouver, BC) with a value of $250!

How to enter:
Private message me through LivingVoiceCoaching on Facebook or email me at livingvoicecoaching@gmail.com before 11:59pm PST on November 6th 2012 with your full name, email address and answers to the following questions:

1. What is your favourite quality about your voice?
2. If you had the chance and anything was possible, what would you improve?

The first prize winner will be announced on November 7th, 2012!

Bonus Prize:
Three private voice sessions (also in Vancouver, BC) with a value of $120! *Redeemable in 2013.

How to enter:
Subscribe to my mailing list before November 30th, 2012.

Ways to subscribe:
1) Through the "subscribe" button on the homepage at www.livingvoice.ca
2) Email livingvoicecoaching@gmail.com with your full name and email address saying "I want to subscribe to your newsletter!"
3) Private message LivingVoiceWorkshops with your full name and email address saying "I want to subscribe to your newsletter!"

The bonus prize winner will be announced on December 1st, 2012!

"Winter is coming" as they say. Are you prepared?

If you're like me and you walk down the street singing a lot you'll have noticed the change in the weather in Vancouver, BC. My throat does not like these temperatures (OK I know they're not that low yet, I'm a ninny, I admit it) and it closes up in terror when I breathe in that icy ether.

So it's just going to get even colder, what can we do about it?

1. Wear a scarf outside. A warm neck is a relaxed neck. Shoulders too. The last thing you want is residual tension from the weather!

2. Warm ups are always important, but even more so in winter. Your warm up is there to WARM up your throat. If you don't usually warm up (wrist slap for you) or you usually only do a quick one, take a bit more time and be a bit more gentle with yourself at the outset.

3. Let that air in. I know, it's cold, your body doesn't want to, but breath is still of the utmost importance and skimping on an inhalation is not the answer. You might unconsciously breathe more shallowly in winter. Make it conscious and allow the breath to travel at least all the way into your belly (Or deeper! If you haven't read the Go Deeper Tip Of the Week, make that your next stop). Remember that breath is the fuel for the sound: less breath, less sound and less vocal range.