The Sing Portland! Blog
Singing At the Edge, Music At the Heart
People randomly burst into song in front of the fireplace, others wander through the garden humming a tune, friends harmonize in line for the buffet, guests serenade you at the dinner table. You’d be forgiven for thinking you’d wandered onto the set of a 1940s MGM...
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Vocal Improvisation: the unexpected antidote to a crazy world?
I imagine all previous generations have had similar thoughts, but we really are living in a crazy world, going through crazy times. We could despair, shake our heads, and lose hope. But I see hope all around us and nowhere is it more obvious than when I’m taking part...
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Connecting without conversation: what does friendship look like to you?
Is it the person you’ve known since you were a 5 year old kid running round your yard, playing catch? Is it the one person you know you can call to pick your kids up from school when you get a flat tire on your way home from work? Maybe it’s your college buddies,...
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How to use music to find connection in a disconnected world
You’ve probably noticed we live in a culture of busyness — we judge and are judged by our productivity, our “hustle”, our packed schedules. The busier we are, the more successful we must be, right? Not that this is necessarily a problem. Having purpose and working...
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Folk music: food for the soul, food for society.
It’s no secret that one of the things I love most about music is its inherent power to change how we feel. It brings us joy when the world is dark, it brings us connection when we feel alone, it brings us confidence when we feel doubt. We’ve all felt the changes a...
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Bright lights, big city: Sing Portland! is heading to NYC!
What do Duke Ellington, Glenn Miller, and Judy Garland all have in common? Apart from being ridiculously talented that is … can you guess? You’ve got it: they all played Carnegie hall. And as of March next year, you’ll be able to add Sing Portland! to that list! No, I...
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The ballad of Carol and John: when singing is about far more than the song.
Let me tell you the story of Carol and John. I guarantee if you’d seen them at choir you’d have wanted to know more about them — they had a way of standing out. Carol was suffering from a degenerative disease, the results of which were partial blindness and dementia....
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Move over, Laughter. It turns out Singing is the best medicine!
I always love to talk about the bigger picture benefits of belonging to a choir —the spiritual, soul-level benefits of singing: the confidence it can bring you, and the way it connects you to your community and to your inner being. And that stuff is hugely important!...
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Music as art vs music as life. Do you have to choose?
Imagine this: you’re starving. But what are you in the mood for? Do you feel like donning your sharpest suit and heading out for a perfectly presented, Michelin star-worthy 5 course meal? Maybe you’d rather just pop to that tiny street stall where the tacos wouldn’t...
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Let’s sing for peace this June
It would be the understatement of the year to say that things have been a little dissonant lately. We’re constantly surrounded by news that goes from bad to worse; huge, much needed cultural upheavals that can leave us feeling raw; and the general sense of frustration...
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Are you listening to your inner critic or your inner child? (The answer’s more important than you think.)
You know that feeling you get when you’re so excited your smile reaches your ears and you just want to jump up and down like an overjoyed 5-year old? That’s me right now. I’m planning our next house concert and I’m just so excited about it. I’m overflowing with ideas...
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You Can Only Ignore Your Destiny for So Long… Because (Spoiler!) It Never Gives Up On You
Is your heart talking to you? Mine spoke to me when I was a teenager; it told me music was my thing, what I was made for. It told me to pursue a career as a musician. My parents told me otherwise. And I listened, at least for a while. I ignored my heart, suppressed my...
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