Can Deaf People Learn How to Sing?

Dot Teaches Hearing Impaired Student to Sing!

(Click HERE to listen to Before & After Audio Tracks!)

When this young man called me, and asked if I would work with someone who was hearing impaired, I thought "Well, why not?" If what I knew was true about pitch issues, and, like Arthur Joseph taught me, "singing has more to do with the brain and muscle memory than hearing," and "less than 2% of the population is 'tone deaf'," then why can't I teach this guy to sing?

So, we set forth on an amazing vocal journey. This young man who loved to sing, but had to use a hearing aid and read lips to get by in the dance industry came to me with a whole new set of challenges most people would never imagine. If I played a note on the piano or sang a pitch, he thought he had no idea what the note was, no concept of where it was or how to reproduce it!

Ben was one of my best teachers. He was consistent, determined and hard working. He even got an acting agent while he was studying with me and landed a national commercial played during American Idol! He wasn't going to let anyone tell him that just because he couldn't hear, he couldn't sing. Like everyone, he loved how singing made him feel. But you can imagine how scary it would be to sing and think, "Okay, I already have hearing issues. What if I sound horrible? How will I ever really know?"

On top of that, I eventually discovered that we had to take out his hearing aids, (which I didn't even think he had at first) because the frequencies were interfering with the correct notes. Ben had to learn first to TRUST that he could do it. KNOW how it felt when it was open and free and LOVE his voice. He had to believe in himself, and that didn't happen overnight.

Click HERE to read the entire article and visit http://www.innervocalpower.com

Was Michael Jackson Vocally Empowered?

It’s interesting. Everyone is thinking about Michael Jackson, now that he is gone. It’s hard to believe he passed away just 15 minutes from my home. When a student first told me she heard it on the radio prematurely, at 3:15 p.m.....

TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE by Los Angeles Vocal Coach Dot Todman, and learn more about empowered Vocal Expression,

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What is a Real Singer, Anyway?

“We were exploring, creating, manifesting and becoming! This is how we learn. What makes us think we shouldn’t do this in more empowering ways as adults?”

Do you remember when you were little and you looked up to an adult or older person, and thought, “I want to be like that!” Then you imagined what it would be like to be that person. You may have even acted it out with your friends or by yourself in front of the mirror! Didn’t we all play “doctor & nurse” when we were little, or other games where we became our favorite roles of interest? When we were children, did we say, “I am not a doctor, and I do not have a degree, so I must pretend” or “I am too little and I will fail!” No! We just became a doctor and embodied the idea of one as best as we could comprehend in that moment. We were little and we knew we’d get bigger some day. We imagined what we wanted to become, and were completely present as we committed to our own magical world. We were exploring, creating, manifesting and becoming! This is how we learn. What makes us think we shouldn’t do this in more empowering ways as adults?

How did we lose this ability to just completely surrender, and fearlessly “become” whatever we wanted at any given moment? Somehow, over time, with school and grades and competition, we learned that there are levels, and some are “better” than others. We learned to judge others and ourselves, and our value, oftentimes was based on a letter in the alphabet. Eventually, most of us stopped playing those games we played as a kid, and learned to “get in the real world” and prove ourselves. Soon the world became a much more serious place and there were expectations and more important roles placed on us. We learned over time, to put more pressure on ourselves.... I think you see where I’m going with this.


SINGER OR NOT A SINGER?

I get calls all of time from people who initially tell me, “I’m not a singer” or “I am a Singer,” and once they believe they’ve finally earned that yearned for title, they continue the same dis-empowering behavior by creating endless levels for themselves within the realm of “singer.” It never ceases to amaze me how we continue the same patterns of always trying to be somewhere, instead of enjoying where we are, now.

A student who recently told me he does not yet feel comfortable with the title of “singer,” had a very logical definition of what a singer is when I asked him. He said: “Someone who is admired, has a magnetic personally, is able to express their emotions musically with feeling, someone who is a story teller, someone who is skillful with words, someone who can make music with their voice... I’m not there yet, because my voice is not exactly the way I want it to be... to the level that I would like to be...I’m still getting comfortable with the growth and learning process.”

Well, that’s pretty fair, isn’t it? Let’s take a logical look at what we want to be, and then we can’t necessarily lie to ourselves and tell ourselves we are better than what we are. We have to be honest and know that we’re not there yet. So we can’t have that title because we don’t deserve it yet. Do we?

What if the belief in the gap itself, created the gap?

To read more, visit http://www.innervocalpower.com

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How Artists Step Up Their Game

(Every week of American Idol Season 8, Dot has been taking notes, giving written advice to each contestant and filming instructional vlogs!

We said goodbye to Matt G this week, who was just beginning to tap into this.

The great lesson of this week had to do with everything we have been talking about since day one of my Idol Vlogs and Blogs!  Poor Randy just calls it "singing," but at the end of the day, he too is looking for the whole authentic picture. This week, in my humble opinion,
American Idol had the BEST MENTOR of the season - because Jamie Foxx challenged every singer to get the singers to find a connection to the words, because obviously they can all "sing."

In addition, all five performers already have the first TWO of my Artist Awareness Components figured out. They all know their best vocal QUALITIES (for the most part) and they all know how to EMBODY what they have to offer in the right song choice. So the last component I've been mentioning all along, is SUBTEXT: commit to what the song means to you, and tell a story. Remember, the audience cares about how you make them feel when you sing!

Did you notice how Jamie Foxx focused on SUBTEXT the entire evening with every singer, and did you see how much each singer grew in their performance from last week?

Actors know about subtext, because they have to bring so much more to their words than just the word written in the script, and they have to do this from a real place.  They learn to tap in to the ENERGY of the meaning of that word.  Jamie Foxx is not only an extraordinary actor, but an award winning singer.  Now, does it make even more sense as to why?  He knows the secret behind how to Connect Authentically to a song!

Again, it's called SUBTEXT and in order to do it at the deepest, most powerful level you have to know who you are first. The deeper your connection to yourself and your
feelings, the more powerful you can convey what you are feeling to others. 

Jamie Foxx challenged each singer to get in touch with what they were feeling.

With Allison, he told her to think of her family while singing "Someone to Watch Over Me."

Kris, was already present during his performance with Jamie, and Jamie told him so.

He told Matt  "My Funny Valentine is a big song, so have a thought for each part."  That was great advice!

With Danny, Jamie got right in his face and showed him his walls and made him deal with them to bring out his vulnerability. And the key to EMPOWERMENT is VULNERABILITY.  He described Danny as channeling and embodying what he felt!  Hey - has he been on my site cuz those are totally Dot words already!

With Adam, they were both on the same page, and he tapped in and knew Adam was committed all the way through.  That's it.

So, from here on out, the competition gets more interesting now, because we're dealing more with how well each artist is committed to the message of the song they choose, than anything (assuming that they have figured out how to choose the right song!

WANT TO READ MORE?

LOGIN at http://www.dotsidolvlog.com and CLICK HERE to read more of Dot's reactions to Wednesday night's  show, featuring Jamie Foxx!