Yesterday, I spent the day recording with the Larksong Trio. With the addition of a clarinetist, we recorded six songs on texts by e.e.cummings, composed by my longtime friend, William Fletcher, aka Bill. The whole day was such fun!
I love recording because it requires my entire, focused attention. I need to be 100% present, singing the word on the note in the phrase I’m singing as I am singing it, not on the word I just missed or the last note which went flat or sharp or the tricky passage coming up. The second my mind wanders to notes already sung or those to come, I frequently make a mistake. Spending an entire day immersed in what I’m doing as I’m doing it is bliss. It’s tiring and invigorating at the same time. It requires all my attention, but focusing all my attention on only one note or phrase at a time is like a vacation from worries, planning, and to-do lists, the fast tap-dance my brain does for me every day.
Recording yesterday reminded me that I can do what I’m doing any moment I like, regardless of what I am doing. Because music has demanded my attention, I have learned how to focus and be present singing, conducting, arranging and teaching. This is a skill that can easily be transferred to daily living. When my brain takes off upon awakening with today’s to-do list, I forget that I know how to be present – both enlivened and relaxed. Like writing this blog in the late summer sun – being present, smiling at the fun of it!
Try this for yourself: Take a break from what you’re doing for a brief moment. Sit still where you are and breathe, noticing the texture of the air on your skin, air breathing around your body. Inhale, easily, the exhale a sigh, joining your breath to the air. After 2 or 3 audible sighs, add a tone to the sigh, sliding down your breath until you find a note your body likes. Slide audibly on your vocal slide 3-4 times. The last time, let your voice sound the last note for the length of your breath. Connection is my sounding breath vibrating with the molecules of air around me at this very moment. Present. Supported. Smiling.
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