Sarah is a vocalist and songwriter among many other things. I met her through working with her husband Richie at Free Energy Device Studios in Sydney on a couple of recording projects a few years ago.
Sarah has her own original music (which I highly recommend you check out - my personal fav songs are Humans and Cellophane) and has also worked with Chet Faker, Brendan Maclean and Missy Higgins to name a few. She gave me an awesome singing lesson before I went on tour and is extremely knowledgeable on vocal care and technique. In my opinion one of Sydney's finest musicians.
I asked Sarah what her three tips would be for touring. Check them out below.
TOURING TIP #1
"This one is for all the singers out there. Warm up! If this terrifies you find a teacher to have a couple lessons with. You don't necessarily need to go week in week out for months with them but get some basics. There are lots of good apps out there to travel with. I have a dorky one simply called 'Warm Me Up' which is good. And warm up BEFORE soundcheck. Even in the morning if you have time. But definitely before soundcheck so that your voice will then continue warming up through sound check and then just do a few noises etc before hitting the stage. This has been a life saver. Touring is the antithesis to optimum vocal health. Some of the main keys for good vocal production are hydration, sleep, eating and exercise so touring challenges all of those things."
TOURING TIP #2
"Hydralyte. This is so good after aeroplanes, alcohol or air conditioning in hotel rooms with no windows etc."
TOURING TIP #3
"Nap. Naps unlock the secrets to the universe! A nap can help so many ailments that accumulate physically and mentally on the road. I have read a lot and practised this great art and the key is to do one of these timings - 20mins, 45mins or a luxurious 1.5 hours. This works with the sleep cycle and stops grogginess etc. Then as soon as I wake up no matter what length I generally drink a berocca and it's some sort of magic. I never used to be able to nap or sleep on planes/in vans etc but like everything you can practise it. Also don't worry if you don't go fully to sleep, a good power down is super effective too. Use an ambient or white noise app if that helps, I like ocean noises and also a good tip ( which I have done a lot on long haul) when you can't seem to shut down is Brian Eno's 'Music For Airports'. I just let it go round and round and chill into it if I can't actually sleep or sometimes it does the trick and you are off to the land of nod. And specifically for singers, rest can really save your voice so if your voice is feeling tired it's a lot of the time simply because your body is too."
http://www.sarahbelkner.com/
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