My Beginnings in Music

Lucy Baker, NATS National Finalist 2017,  photo by Sherman Hayes

When I was young, I was very shy and socially awkward.  I tell this to people all the time and nobody believes me, but its true. Singing helped me become more social--even though I feel like a mix of introvert and extrovert. Learning to sing has given me confidence to speak in front of crowds, and to try new things.

I have always wanted to sing--and the louder the better.  Singing transported me to a happy place, where the daily strain of living in a household with a chronically depressed mother and closeted father, couldn't touch me.  I used to sing so loudly, that it must have sounded like shouting. My mother used to complain that it was sad that I was tone deaf, because I seemed to love music so much. Only after I had finished a Master's in Music degree in voice performance-magna cum laude from the University of Missouri-Columbia-did my mother's best friend, Karen tell me this story about my mother calling "tone deaf".

I am not brilliant, but I am extremely hard working. I realize now, that as a child I suffered from ADD and Auditory Processing learning issues. As a middle child, I followed the rules and constantly read, so I never got into trouble. In sixth grade my siblings got a lot of attention for good grades and I had begun bringing home mostly B's and C's. My Dad used to give me pep talks and encouraged me that I could do anything that I wanted.  This attention was exactly what I needed and I began to teach myself how to study and to find ways to organize my scattered thoughts. By High School I was a straight "A" student. I feel that I began to awake from a fog that I had been in my entire life.

Music was the one thing that seemed more natural for me to learn than anything else. It captured my attention and I was eager to learn all that I could.  Mr. Cotter was my choir teacher and Mr. Sherman was my band teacher.  Both were excellent teachers and encouraged me throughout junior high and high school.

Music lessons do more than just teach someone to sing or play a lesson.  They inspire a student to challenge themselves, transport the student to a different world, build a student's confidence in all their abilities, and science has proved that music helps you become smarter by working both sides of your brain.

When I teach a student, I am their cheerleader. I'm on their side rooting for their success in all that they do. As the girls go through puberty, the things they used to be able to sing with ease have become harder as the female voice begins to mature. I help them face their fears by having them publicly perform.  I believe that my female students always recover from the hormone onslaught faster than their peers because they face their challenges more directly.

My students mean a lot to me.  They become a part of my life and a part of my extended family.  I am thrilled when they come and visit me after they graduate and go off to college. I continue to track their progress and I'm always proud of their achievements!