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Aug 14, 2017

Show Notes Every Sing episode 009
Dr. Natalie Lerch on Horseback Riding and Singing
 

Dr. Natalie Lerch, Voice Department at Cornish College of the Arts and avid horsewoman - or as she likes to call herself - Diva Cowgirl, talks about the correlation between singing and riding horses.


Mocha, Natalie's horse, is a 22-year-old paint. She's had him for 7 years and he has a fabulous sense of humor. 
 
Like an audience, the horse wants to have a fun, easy experience. Natalie learned to control her nerves on Mocha, calming herself down, and she found a complete shift in his personality. The singer’s experience can be much like this.
 
Dr. Lerch has noticed in her horseback riding lessons, her teacher often says, "Don't forget to breathe." Just as she tells her students. Breathing in and for the song is similar.
 
Singers have to prepare their posture to move, to not be rigid or schlumpy.  The kind of posture she works on with the horse is to feel like your hips want to stay with the horse, your waste is a slinky, and your upper torso wants to float above that.
 
Energy and preparation - You can't just yell "Go" to get a horse going. There has to be some preparation just as in singing. Learning to physically release into the energy of the high note is like releasing into a jump.
 
Horseback riding makes Natalie more flexible as a singer and a teacher -  mentally, physically, and emotionally. And to be more forgiving of herself.
 
Singers and cowgirls need to acknowledge their emotions and deal with them in order to have a successful experience.
 
"Courage is being scared to death and saddling up anyway."
 
Try something new. 
 
Make sure that your life is balanced. Sometimes we want something so badly but get in our own way because we don't take the time to step back and let it percolate.
 
 
 
Every Sing on Twitter: @Every_Sing_Pod
 
Nancy's website: NancyBos.net
 
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