What would a conference whose theme is the voice be without singers? This keynote conversation welcomes three remarkable vocalists in discussion about how they’ve discovered, nurtured, and continue to develop both their instruments and their musical vision. What makes a pop voice distinctive? How do the challenges of a life in popular music, including the difficulties of touring and the challenges of recording, both help shape and sometimes endanger a voice? What is the relationship between songwriting, song interpretation, and “pure” singing? How do singers preserve the pleasure of vocalizing over the course of their lifetimes? What remains personal about the art of singing, and how does that intermingle with technique? How has technology aided the singer’s craft while also sometimes standing in the way of “real” voices being recognized? These questions and others will be entertained in a casual, fun conversation about what makes a voice, a voice.
