I recently crossed off an item from my travel bucket list – The Grand Canyon. A must see, I was told by friends and I echo their sentiments.
I spent much of my viewing time in awe of this vast, natural made wonder of the world, finding it difficult to imagine it was all under water at one time and took millions of years to form. Each layer of rock and mineral a different hue, creating a mosaic of color and texture over a never-ending landscape. 277 miles long and 10-16 miles wide, it is too large for the eye to really see. The oldest layer is between 1,680 and 1,840 million years old, the top layer, a mere 270 million, just a bit before the dinosaurs!
One feels rather small next to this largeness, but the voice teacher in my head began to metaphorize (actually more of a simile) between the creation of this magnificent canyon and the much shorter development of a singer!
Vocal technique is like the canyon formation, skills layered on top of other skills over time (thankfully not millions of years!). And in order to maintain the first layers, one must continue to study and practice so “erosion” of abilities will not occur. So even I, in my mature singing life, practice to keep my vocal skills alive and well, adapting (as does the canyon) to age and wear.
I was tempted to sing out over the expanse of the canyon but constrained myself so as not to bother the wildlife and other tourists and to also not get arrested! But the monumental size of the canyon brought to memory the great expansion I feel when I sing in a wide open space that echos and reverberates sound. An immeasurable experience that make me feel life in all its bigness!
Journey Through Time: Grand Canyon Geology. National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior
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