Valerie Williams wrote to my comments on a parent list::
> I must respectfully disagree. (unless you are just joking, then maybe I am
> taking you too seriously)
I am joking in a serious way.
First, you target parents. That's all of us, isn't it? We are parents, going
to be parents or have been parents, now grandparents. Yes, I imagine there are a
couple who will never be parents on this list but the majority of us are, have
been or could be.
Second, the problems I faced as a professional singer and manager having 19
children are going to be vastly different than those having one or two
children. If you think not, try finding a baby-sitter for 19 kids. So the list
would have to be broken down for singing parents of one, two, three, four and
more children to have any real impact and provide help.
I phrased my comedic remarks in the way I did because of the impossibleness of
having a general parent's list that made sense to all; targeting one family of
vocalisters as opposed to the group. Sometime ago a suggestion was made to
break the group into specific sections to which I replied in a similar fashion.
I believe the vocalist group, as a whole, can handle the occasional 'what do I
do with my kids' problems better than a smaller group. More is better,
especially here. Besides, a discussion of what to do with kids applies to many
other areas, not just to singers.
I realize you want to talk about, 'the VERY REAL pressures of paying for lessons
(vs. buying your kids shoes), finding time to practice (when you are exhausted
from caring for an infant all day/night)' but I don't understand how any group
can help. These are general problems facing all parents regardless of the art
form they choose to practice, and these answers usually come from yourself in
trying different methods to cope. If a person is totally exasperated and can
find no workable solution then it means the person has to either give the kids
away or postpone their particular art form until the kids are older. In my case
I chose to give up singing professionally until the last of my kids were old
enough to fend at home for themselves. I just did a different art form, one
that didn't keep me away so much.
I suggest if you are totally exasperated and ready to give up, then do so, at
least for awhile. Kids are much more important than music, at least in my
book. There are other ways to put butter on the table besides singing, until
the kids are older. I have not met a single person in the professional art
world who does not have something prepared to fall back on. And if one is not
in the professional music world it doesn't matter if music has to go on the back
burner for awhile.
Just my five cents-
--
Dean FH Macy, Lit.D./Mus.D.
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"Specializing in Management of exceptionally talented youth in Music"
<http://www.newenglandtalent.org> EPI Records - NetWork Films
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"Making children do something they don't want to do is the job of the parents.
If that doesn't work, there are always juvenile detention centers." - Mike R.
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