š Laurie and Moana
Today I have two songs to share: Aaron Coplandās āLaurieās Songā from his opera The Tenderland, and Lin Manuel Mirandaās āHow Far Iāll Goā from the Disney movie Moana. It may seem like a strange pairing, but I find that while these songs are super different in style, they are in essence the same. The characters who sing the songs, Laurie and Moana, both are grappling with the unsettling feelings they are having about wanting to leave the safety and comfort of home to explore what lies beyond. They use almost identical images of the horizon to describe the invisible pull towards the unknown.
Compare these lyrics, for example:
Moana: See the line where the sky meets the sea, it calls me.
And these:
Laurie: Why am I strange inside?
Moana: What is wrong with me?
Both girls feel conflict between how they feel and how they think they should feel, and yet they both end up inspired to move forward, despite the risk and the potential for failure. Laurie contemplates the possibilities she has in the āworld so wide,ā and Moana sings āIf I go, thereās just no telling how far Iāll go.ā I feel inspired by their courage, and maybe you will too!
"Laurie's Song" from The Tenderland by Aaron Copland
I first learned āLaurieās Songā for a performance class in grad school and I have been working on it with the help of my teacher on and off for the last two years. I just keep coming back to it, and itās turned into a useful diagnostic for how I am growing vocally. At first I used to really struggle to even get through the whole song consistently, and now it feels pretty ok :) Iāve got a ways to go with my classical singing technique yet, but ālittle by littleā Iāll grow. I really wish I had a recording from two years ago so that you could hear the change that is possible with the help of a knowledgeable, empathetic teacher (Kristen Ruiz- check her out at sonauravoice.com), and lots and lots and lots of practice.
"How Far I'll Go" from Moana by Lin Manuel Miranda
I wouldnāt be singing Moana if it werenāt for one of my newest students. She is so cool- she moved here from Montana for a job at Etsy and she is taking singing lessons (and guitar lessons) as a creative outlet. Anyway, she wanted to sing this song, as so I prepared for her lesson, I sang through the song myself and realized how incredibly fun it was! I do feel rather silly singing the line āmaybe I can roll with mineā because I'm not really cool like thatš...
That's all for now! Thanks for reading and listening.
- Kate
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