Singing and Meditation: Do They Go Together? VIDEO!

I have coached singers of all levels for fifteen years and they’ve all come to me with the same two challenges: lack of confidence and various degrees of physical tension. Neither of which any scale or vocal exercises seemed to get rid of. In fact, students would often leave their lesson frustrated and defeated. They seemed trapped in their body, unable to overcome the stress of their daily life. I spent the first few years of my teaching career hitting a wall with my students, until I realised that it wasn’t the voice that was at fault; it was the mind. It rambles incessantly and has a self-deprecating inner-dialogue which, as I came to find out, seems to be omnipresent in everybody’s head. Not only did my students need to learn how to handle their instrument, they also needed to handle their stress.

I decided to carve out a time in each lesson for my students to refresh and re-connect, not only to their voice, but to themselves as a whole. A vocal spa of sort! I burnt incense before they arrived so as to provide them with a proper peaceful space, kept the studio warm and welcoming, and ensured I felt in a generous mood. I began to see a noticeable difference in their attitude. This inspired me to push the experiment further and to start every session with silent meditation and a few yoga poses. I did wonder whether my students were going to question my rather unorthodox coaching methods when I kept them in Uttanasana for five minutes, but they never did. Instead they embraced this moment of peace as a way to attend to themselves. Some of them, who were already familiar with yoga, felt that combining vocal and meditation techniques was a lot more beneficial to their vocal practice than attending yoga one day, and their vocal lesson the next. Of course! Singing through the opening of the breath, so as to reap the benefits of a relaxed throat is only the beginning, think of how much we can achieve with a relaxed body and a settled mind!

Over the years I have watched hundreds of people bloom and grow proud of their talent and skills. As we embarked on a transformative journey together, emotional walls collapsed and vocal break-through abounded. Of course a teacher’s ability to be fully present is essential to a productive lesson, but a student’s state of mind is key to their improvement. They will only overcome negative blocks and inhibitive habits if they’ve allowed themselves to open up, which takes a substantial amount of trust. Trust cannot be achieved with an anxious individual, whose apprehensions and self-doubts are ruling the session. This is a no-brainer: people must attend to their general well-being in order to become better singers and artists! Working as a vocal coach placed me in a position to help. As I witness my students progress every day, I am inspired to carry on exploring the relationship between voice and mind and develop ways to bridge the gap between them. I encourage other teachers and students to do the same.

Here is a video of meditative techniques that you can use in your own practice.

Eve Buigues is a jazz vocalist, voice coach, and voice clinician based in London, UK. A former Los Angeles resident, she is also known for her singing work on various American TV series (Jag, Andy Richter Controls The Universe), films (Notorious C.H.O., The Antwone Fisher Story), and major artists’ albums (Michael Jackson, Rodney Jerkins). A prolific songwriter, she recorded three full-length albums with LA band Jariya, and the soundtrack for several films featuring star comedian Margaret CHO (Notorious C.H.O, Revolution, I'm The One That I Want, Bam Bam & Celeste, The Grocery Store), as well as for the History Channel, Star Crossed, Juno, and Joe Black’s School of Rock. Since she’s moved to the UK in 2007, eVe has performed at many prestigious venus such as the Edinburgh Fringe festival, the St Bride’s Theatre, the Churchhill Theatre, the Edinburgh Castle, the Stirling Castle, The Dundas Castle, Prestonfield, Cameron House and Dryburgh Abbey, to name a few. eVe is currently fronting The Jazz In Paris Project, featuring up and coming guitarist Kevin Glasgow. She divides her time between teaching and performing across the UK. www.evebuiguescoaching.com