Welcome to Music Quench, Stella. Your credentials in the music industry are as impressively diverse as are the cultural and musical influences that have shaped them. Would you please share your Fodor’s-ish journey from your rural South beginnings in the heartland of country & bluegrass music to your operatic & classical evolution in Europe.
As most people in the South, I grew up in church. Music was everywhere. Bluegrass, Country, Gospel, R & B were a part of every day exposure. The South is full of festivals. Music is always a central focus. James Brown lived 45 minutes away, and had huge Birthday parties that were legendary. Johnny Mercer was the pride of Savannah. This list could go on and on. It was simply the musical journey that my life traveled.
In church, the singing was based on the Masters as they wrote Cantatas, Requiems, Preludes, Oratorios throughout recorded music history. It was actually all very natural and organic for me. My early talent in music of course led me toward a music education where the Classics are part of the Post Grad Degree Programs.
As an award-winning songwriter currently writing for television and film scores, you are incredibly adept across genres: classical, adult alternative, new age, healing, country, Latino, Broadway, and light jazz. To what do you ascribe your ability to write so excellently in each of these styles and to be able to seamlessly and creatively move at will from one genre to another?
A love of music, exposure, a curious mind, a desire to express myself, and the study of theory.
Your new orchestral work consists of Opus 1 through Opus 22 merging the coloration and ambiance of many cultures as reflected in it’s name: THE TRAVELER, due for release Spring 2011. Can you provide some insight into how specific cultures came to play a part in this work?
My studies in Opera made me very aware of other cultures. I had both a love and respect for other cultures’ musical “folk influences.” For example in the Opera, Carmen… though it is true to Operatic form, Bizet obviously wrote with great Spanish folk influences.
On the human side, through travels I realized that people are first and foremost, “Human Beings.” Humanity transcends race or culture, and music is the universal language that we all understand, regardless of language. Though I could not speak French when I was a little girl listening to Carmen for first time, I innately understood every emotion as a powerful human experience.
You are an award winning ASCAP Plus new songwriter, a 2006 Finalist in three categories of the ISC International Songwriting Competition and a finalist in the ISC People’s Choice Awards. If you could create the ideal songwriting award you could receive, what would be written on the plaque?
Hummmmm. That is a tough one. I see any award is an honor.
You are a Metropolitan Opera and Southeastern Opera Vocal Winner, a post-graduate student of Vocal Pedagogy and you list voice as your primary instrument. Is the “Pop-Opera” route of such crossover performers as Andrea Bocelli and Josh Groban one that you see as the ideal path for your classically-trained voice as you’ve successfully done on your Singer/Songwriter CD (eg, “Shattered Dreams” and “Changing Winds”) or is the next step taking your vocals up some as yet uncharted road?
I think as an artist lives, they grow, they change. Great artist evolve. Artists must be nurtured and encouraged. I think what an artist becomes is just part of processing their creative inclinations. In Opera, we refer to the singer finding their “fach,” German for “voice.” I think songwriting/composition is the same thing. The artist must find the place where their art form is a simple as their next breath.
Your CD The Hermit Songs with music composed by Samuel Barber for voice & piano is a phenomenal performance showcasing the classical side of your vocals. What inspired you to select this impressive body of work, which no one has seriously attempted since Leontyne Price?
I have heard recordings in very recent history of other singers singing Barber’s Hermit Songs. I performed this cycle, because I am a huge fan of Samuel Barber. What an amazing composer!
Your Live In Concert CD is an incredible mosaic of classical vocals in German Leider, French Chanson, Russian Art Song and Opera Arias, each performed in the language of its origin. How did you select the music you chose?
The Art of Recital/Concert must have form, either by language, period, theme, or composer. Usually we start with Early music and move to more current composers in the Post Romantic or Contemporary Era of music. So there is usually a theme. This CD consist of works that I loved as a singer. Pretty simple.
The Songwriter CD takes me back to your rural south roots (“Tossing the Dice,” “No Trash in this Trailer”) to Latin/bossa nova (“Meaning of Love,” “Secret Nights”) to adult alternative (“Shattered Dreams”) to a touching New Age tribute to your late father (“His Father’s Eyes”). Has this CD been a major marketing tool for promoting your songwriting for film and television?
Songwriting/Composition is just part of who I am as an artist. I never gave it much thought. It is like a painter who paints. The more a painter paints, the better they become. Music like any art form is hard work. A painter has a portfolio, and a Songwriter or Composer has a catalog.
VMD Productions is the label listed on your CD’s. Can you tell us about your relationship with VMD?
VMD GROUP, LLC is a Publishing Company owned by me. SB Productions, LLC is my own Label.
In addition to your “live” performances you interact online with your fans on Facebook and on your blog. In what ways has the social media helped you connect with your fan base?
Psychology was also a part of my higher education. To me, music and psychology go “hand in hand.” In music we communicate brief sectors of “the human experience.” Music is for people. Out of the masses rises a voice of consciousness. I think that it is important not to become so consumed with what the industry wants, but to hear what people think and feel. Music is a reflection of all of our emotions. We hear a song, and it speaks to us as listeners.
Videos have been a larger component of how you market yourself. Will you be coming out with new “live” performance videos?
I plan to do so.
What advice would you give upcoming singer-songwriters as regards songwriting and marketing their music?
Two part question:
For singer/songwriting, be organic, and get really good at the craft. Listen to a lot of music. Get organized. Think of singing and songwriting as a way of life. Have something to say in short order. Follow form. Always remember the joy that music brings, because as in anything, it becomes work. Work hard everyday and keep working hard.
Marketing… I think that there are still experts in marketing such as managers and agents once the artist has a finished product. A good entertainment attorney is a must. If an artist can find a good A & R person, then they are a step ahead of the game. We have lost so many A & R people due to industry changes. Remember above all, music is a business.
In closing, our culture is changing and music reflects our culture. Here we are speaking on line. Nothing ever stays the same, and we are in transition. Remember Miracle Plays were the soup of the day during the Dark Ages. Times change as does the voice of the masses. Music simply reflects the emotions of the people. During these times, try to find your center, extend to others, and keep the joy in your work. Be as good as you can be and shine light to others from the darkness of these times.
Warm regards…
Stella Black
On behalf of Music Quench, thanks for your time and insight, Stella, and continued success to you. We’ll be listening! Garrison
Tags: bluegrass, classical music, country, gospel, Live in Concert CD, LLC, opera, R & B, Singer/Songwriter CD, Stella Black, The Hermit Songs, The Songwriter, The Traveler, VMD Group, VMD Productions