|
Ingveldur Yr Jonsdottir
|
Islenska
Singing is my passion in life!
My name is Ingveldur Yr Jonsdottir, or Inga as people prefer to call me.
Singing has been my life for the past 25 years, ever since I stepped into my very first voice lesson 15 years old, in Reykjavik, Iceland.
Soon I discovered that this was going to be my life; to be a singer. I went to Vienna in Austria only 18 years old, to study singing, and was accepted into the Conservatory of Vienna, where I studied operetta and musical theater, with a lot of theatrical and dance training.
At that time I didn't realize how important this training was going to be to me, I only took this class, because I was too young to be accepted to the opera class! Today I am eternally grateful of having had this training, for it gave me the insight to real stage acting and some heavy duty physical training, as well as other kind of music than just opera.
All these things have helped me tremendously on stage, since for some reason I always seem to end up singing roles that require a lot of acting and physical action! So I guess I can consider myself to be a singing actress.
When I was 23 I was accepted into Manhattan School of music for the graduate program, and graduated from there with a masters degree in 1991. It was wonderful to be a student in NY at that time and also to get to know music life on both sides of the Atlantic! Both cities, Vienna and NY, had their musical advantages, and I was lucky enough to experience some of the best singers in the world life on stage.
I was also very lucky to study with some wonderful teachers; in Vienna my teacher was Professor Egilsdottir and in NY my main teacher was Cynthia Hoffmann. I also had fabulous coaches and teachers such as; Nico Castell, Bob Coward, Dick Jones, Charles Spencer and Martin Katz.
After some years of auditioning and performing in various places around the world in operas and recitals (here is my CV) people would come to me, to ask me to teach them. I really never thought I would become a voice teacher. And what surprised me, was I even liked it! Sometimes I like it more than singing!
To work with people who are either discovering their voice for the first time or to help people who are having vocal problems, finding new solutions; I just love it! The voice is such a magical instrument.
Some years ago, I discovered Jo Estil's vocal training systems, and that opened so much for me. All these different ways of explaining technique all of a sudden became clear to me, as well as giving me the courage to sing and teach different styles of music. I learned safe ways of teaching and performing belting and pop singing, and started to experiment singing in those styles myself. A lot of fun!
Imagine having been so classically trained that a simple song from a musical theatre piece was like a mystery to me, and then being able to sing a whole recital with standards and musical theatre songs, just within a year.
I guess I became more bold with age...! Recitals have really become my favorite, although I will sing an opera role occasionally, (only if it is theatrically challenging and interesting, mind you!)
In recitals I can really be myself, make fun of the whole thing, and entertain people with humor and music. I like to talk to the audience, communicate and brake the invisible "wall" between the performer and the audience. I love having the freedom to put a program of different styles together. Now a days that doesn't seem to be an issue; classical singers of the modern time mix and blend all styles and music periods in their repertory. I am a part of a duo, Inga & Gurry, we have now traveled to many places giving recitals. We perform all kinds of music; Icelandic traditional songs, cabaret songs, classical songs, and more. We like to mix and match so to say. (see Inga&Gurry)