Touching People Through Voice and Instruction

Mezzo-soprano began getting serious about music when she was 15 years old, just so she could get the good parts in school plays and musicals.

She said she never really anticipated it would be a lifetime craft, even though she went to college and studied music.

After graduating from the Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University with her master’s in music and vocal performance, she was stuck with the quandary: “What am I going to do? I thought I was going to go into arts management,” she said.

So Chadwick took on a “practical job” in the world of non-profits and business. Five years and a couple of companies later, while working at Villa Julie College — now Stevenson University — she realized she wanted to teach, which was something she dabbled with throughout college.

Chadwick is an instructor and performer. Her students range in age from 9 to 83 years. Her list of performances continues to grow and includes stints with the Baltimore Opera Company and Washington National Opera, among others. She has performed in opera, oratorio and solo engagements.

Though teaching is her mainstay, she is clear on what a performance can mean to her personally: “You get to sing through so many emotions that maybe in your day you hold back.

"Maybe you don’t go that far, maybe you hold back and you don’t get to go that far because it’s too dramatic. But you get to do a lot of those things in opera. A lot of my pieces are angry. The mezzos get to do a lot of that … I get to be as loud as I can be. That’s a lot of fun,” she said.

So Patch decided to sit down with Chadwick to learn more about what it’s like in her world.

Patch: How did you get started with music?  

Chadwick: I began voice lessons when I was 15. I never intended on going into music. I just wanted to get the better parts in the high school musicals. And I achieved my goals. By the time I had done enough festivals in high school I realized I could not give up music. I was enrolled in another school and at the last minute reconsidered. I just could not give music up.

Patch: Are you formally trained?

Chadwick: I graduated with my bachelor's and master's [degrees] in music and vocal performance from the Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University in six years.

Patch: What’s it like performing?

Chadwick: I love performing and I love if I feel that I’ve moved somebody — you know that is one of the coolest experiences.

In opera, people go to the theater to feel something or experience something, maybe a cathartic experience, or joy, or maybe the sheer beauty of the singing itself. But people are there to feel something and that’s our responsibility when we take the stage.

Patch: Tell us about an amazing experience you’ve had performing?

Chadwick: I sang at a concert for an Eastern Shore classical radio station. I was the concert-ending piece and they had phenomenal musicians for three hours. The first song I performed was an aria and it was kind of fun and playful.

The second one was very meaningful to me … I put my whole spirit and heart into it and when I was done everything on the inside felt like it was exposed. I actually did not want to take applause or the curtain call or anything because I felt so vulnerable and everything had risen to the surface; I had put my all into it.

I felt very good about my performance, but it was very personal as well.

What happened then, and it never happened to this extent before, these people, after sitting on these hard church pews—came up to me and began to put their hands on me. They had to touch me. And they were like, ‘Oh you are so wonderful.' But everybody had to touch me.

[I was] trying to be gracious and taking it all in and what not, I thought this must’ve been something that they needed to do. I must’ve touched them and they needed contact back. You knew that this was an authentic, real performance.

Patch: What’s it like teaching?

Chadwick: I love teaching. I take great pride in taking care of people and helping them grow. I feel there is a personal relationship established, that must be established. So that they can feel comfortable to allow their voice to come out ...

But on the physical side, I am a trainer and if I see they’re not sweating then I know they’re not trying hard enough. And I’m trying to work certain muscles to strengthen some and work other muscles and strengthen the core and coordinate that process. I work them out.

Personal relationships—that’s the best part. I love the personal relationships and feeling like I’m doing something. There’s this purpose. Sometimes just listening to them and understanding, saying 'I support you.'

But you help them find their voices and you hear the progress and it’s tremendously exciting.

Patch: When is your next performance?

Chadwick: I will be with the new Lyric Opera of Baltimore as Annina in “La Traviata” on the main stage of the Lyric Opera House in Baltimore, Nov. 4 and 6.

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For information on voice instructions you can contact Suzanne Chadwick at 410 963-0893 or email her at suzannemusic@comcast.net.