Recently, I have enjoyed coaching the Crouch End Players community theatre in preparation for their musical play "Sea Airs" - a love story set in my native Cornwall, featuring Sea Shanties and traditional methodist hymns, as well as songs from the 1980s. As opening night approached, the cast have been beset with seasonal colds, coughs and the usual Autumn term lurgy! Under these circumstances there is a lot of well-meaning advice given to amateur performers, some helpful and some downright destructive! But finding the right advice can be a minefield, particularly relating to amateur performers who have to work all day and perform in the evening, and who don't get much rest! I remember when I was studying at Trinity College of Music (now Trinity Laban) in the 1980s, we were lucky enough to have a lecture from the eminent throat specialist, Mr David Garfield Davies, to educate the singers about vocal health and hygiene. Mr Davies is laryngologist to the RSC and
...now take a nice, deep breath and relax your shoulders...