I have two life passions – singing and fly-fishing. To me, singing’s ultimate goal is to communicate, and fly-fishing’s goal is to catch fish. Seemingly simple, actually achieving these goals is complicated by indefinite guidelines, variations and layers of complexity. Unfortunately, technical guidelines alone cannot guarantee that a singer will have a powerful performance that speaks to the audience. In the same way, cast and drift mechanics cannot ensure catching a fish.

The summer after receiving my driver’s license, I decided to buy my first fly rod so I could focus on trout fishing (Brad Pitt made it look easy in A River Runs Through it). I immediately headed to a river in the Southern Appalachian Mountains. After hours of carelessly flogging the river with my fly rod, I realized that I was spooking all the fish within hundreds of yards of my position in the river. I understood too late that I had no idea what I was doing. I was, however, determined to catch a fish. After a few more hours of disheartening flailing, my efforts yielded a trout. As I looked at the trout in my hand, I was not sure who was more surprised at the catch – me or the deceived and hungry trout.

Around the same time, I joined choir to attract the attention of a high school love interest. My choral explorations lead me to discover recordings by Thomas Allen singing The Songs of Travel, Ralph Vaughan Williams’ song cycle. For the first time, I felt genuine truth and realized vivid images in Vaughan’s music. This discovery helped me to make an important decision: to focus on learning the Roadside Fire. I loved the music, and I knew I could sing it honestly to this girl. Unfortunately, I never found the opportunity to sing it to her. However, I did use the song to win a high school vocal competition. During the competition, I felt like I communicated to the people who were listening. Through my college work, I am slowly realizing how much more I need to learn about communicating through singing.

In both of these instances, I achieved the ultimate goals of my passions. However, I had nothing but my personal will to make them happen, and no technique to support my efforts.

As I face more relative successes and failures in singing and fishing, I know that I need technique, as well as passion, to accomplish my goals. Intention is magically encompassed by the nuance of technique. I realize that these passions, while successful in their own way, can always be refined to more be intentional, effective and precise. Singing will always fascinate me. I have dedicated my life to effectively communicating the text and imagery of each piece.