​I decided I should post something since the last time I posted was December 2017! So much has happened since then. I got married, had a baby, the craziness of 2020 happened, we moved to Lacey, and now it's only a few days into 2021 and there is still so much uncertainty in the world.

I am still teaching a handful of students from the Seattle area, virtually, of course and it is so good to see their lovely faces weekly. If I'm honest, my days have become monotonous, especially with the winter weather. It's basically toddler life for me 24/7, so it's refreshing to teach lessons a few hours a week. I actually feel recharged after teaching lessons. I love watching my students gain confidence in their singing. I miss accompanying alongside my vocal students and loved playing all the challenging contemporary musical theater numbers, but I've actually been able to offer more insight during virtual lessons with the piano playing out of the way!

We had 25 participants for this year's Fall Sharing. Everyone performed beautifully and I can proudly say each student has improved so much since the beginning of the term. Parents raved not only about their own child, but the other performers as well. I feel very blessed to have such a great group of students and supportive parents. It was our first time performing at The Fleming Arts Center (no relation to me, unfortunately!) and the staff at Fleming Arts Center loved the program and commented how nice it was to hear each student's individual voice in their solos. This made me very happy, because that it is exactly what I strive for in each student....to help them find and grow confidence in their own unique singing voice.

2017 was truly a great year for my students. Many of them made it to All State choirs, performed solos in their choir performances, and played principal roles in their plays and musicals. I am so happy to be part of their growth as a performer and a young adult.

​On a personal note, I am off to New Zealand for 3 weeks for vacation to close out 2017! I figure I should take a long vacation before 2018 starts. I have a lot in store for 2018 - vocal festivals, recitals, and music directing....and who knows what else!  It's going to be another exciting year!

We had a wonderful Fall Sharing on Dec. 3rd! Since there were only 22 performers for the event, we were able to do one seating. I was worried the little ones wouldn't be able to sit through the whole event, but everyone was really attentive! Students were given a rose and bookmarks that I purchased from Korea as a gift for participating in the recital. I had many parents come up to me and comment how talented my kids were and what a treat it was to watch all of the students. 




As I enter year 4 of teaching, I am really starting to see growth and change in some of my students. I wanted to share a video of Leah from the sharing. Leah is an 8th grader who has been my piano student for 3 years and voice student for the past year.  Her has grown so much in the past year that I wanted to share Leah's musical journey with you. Last year, Leah auditioned for All-State choir and was not chosen. To be honest, as we prepared for the audition, I knew that she would not be chosen. She had no idea what breath control was and how to manage her lower register or head voice. Her voice was all over the place. But with each lesson, we slowly worked on the fundamentals of singing and technique.  It's been very exciting to actually hear her voice change over the past year!

This year, Leah auditioned again for All-State choir...and was chosen! She told me that while recording her All-State choir audition, her teacher asked her who she was taking voice from. I knew this was a very good sign! This year, Leah is a section leader in her school choir and also made the audition-only select choir at her school. She also had a solo in her recent choir concert. And she's told me that her choir teacher at school also makes comments to other kids like, "Be more like Leah."  Hah!

Leah's success at school this year didn't just come from taking private voice lessons. She took piano for two years prior to starting voice. I was hard on Leah when it came to piano for the first two years, more so than any of my other student because I could see the potential. Sometimes after her lesson, I would actually feel terrible that I was being hard on her...but she is now one of my most advanced piano students and is incredibly musical as a pianist and vocalist. And she can READ music. I encounter too many piano students uanble to actually read music. And Leah is still taking lessons from me, so maybe I wasn't that terrible. I would have  to say that having the piano background has really helped Leah advance as a vocalist this year. 

Here is Leah's peformance of Days of Plenty from Little Women.  Even through nerves and having to wait 1.5 hrs during the recital for her turn, she did really well. I was impressed by how poised she was and her musical choices in phrasing for the song.  After only a year of private voice, Leah is truly on her way as a vocalist!

We are heading into Year 4 of Melismatic Studios! It's been so exciting to see the growth of my voice and piano students. In addition to the EVFMC Junior Vocal Recital and Spring Sharing, I am adding  a Fall Sharing this year. This year, I decided to cut down on my teaching, but opportunities still keep coming up so I 'm excited to see what the year has in store!

Earlier this year, I was in Seattle Musical Theatre's production of 9to5 the musical and played role of Judy Bernly (Jane Fonda role).  Some of the leads got the opportunity to participate in a fundraising cabaret for Nathan Hale High School's theatre program. I've included links of those performances (starts at 0:45) and also a pic from this past year's Spring Sharing.  

This past weekend was so amazing that I felt I needed to share!
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Two of my students performed as soloists for the first time at Solo & Ensemble at Beaver Lake Middle School in Issaquah. I was so proud of them and their hard work.  Maddy particularly impressed her adjudicator. Good work!

​After Solo & Ensemble, I headed home to get ready for my own performance!  I starred as Judy Bernly in Seattle Musical Theatre's production of 9to5 and this week was closing weekend. Six of my students showed up for the performance that evening and they all brought me flowers!  It's like a mini farmer's market in my home right now. 



Here's a little video taken from backstage of one of my solos in 9to5:

This was the second year that my studio participated in the Eastside Vocal Federated Music Club Junior Vocal Festival. My students did amazing work! I was so impressed with the progress the girls have made since last year. My youngest student, age 7, was so scared that she started crying....yet she managed to compose herself and flawlessly sing two LONG pieces. The other vocal teachers were so impressed by my students, and I received compliments all day from them about how wonderful my kids sounded. I was so proud of the kids...so proud that I even shed a tear during one of my older student's performance. These kids have come so far and I feel so blessed to be part of their growth as a vocalist and also as they become confident young women. Congrats!

This year's Spring Sharing took place at Our Savior Lutheran Church of Issaquah on May 30th. It was a great way to end the school year and mark the progress made between this year and last.  Last year we had 19 performers, this year we had 28 performers! 

I split the recital into two seatings again and this time each set had a focus: the first set was Pianists and Pianist/Singers and the second set was Musical Theatre singers.  I also gave out awards this year, including Most Improved, Accelerated Learner, and Perfect Attendance.  The kids seemed to be inspired by each other after the recital, because everyone came back to lessons with a new motivation!  

Matthew was one of two soprano boys selected to play the role of singing German child in Village Theatre's Cabaret. I was so excited to see him on stage. He's had a busy year since I started working with him last spring.  He starred as Young Tarzan in KIDStage's summer production of Tarzan, the Shepherd Boy in Seattle Opera's Tosca, and now the singing German boy in Village's Cabaret.  What an amazing experience at such a young age!  

Look who was included in Matthew's bio!  What a nice surprise when I opened Cabaret's program...

I recently became a member of the Eastside Vocal Federated Music Club to connect with local voice teachers in the area.  It has been great sharing information with other teachers and getting advice from them. Each year the EVFMC hosts the Junior Vocal Festival. Students get the opportunity to perform two pieces that are adjudicated by professional singers and teachers in the area. I love this event because it gives the students an opportunity to get advice from other teachers and allows them to perform for and hear other vocalists their age. The event is very similar to NATS without the competitive environment. 

I had 12 students participate in the event this year, and many kids were very nervous, some to the verge of tears.  This was the first time most of them had a performed a solo, let alone two!  I was so proud to see my kids work through their nerves and give strong performances.  What a great learning experience!