Vocal School Launches in Rhinebeck in July 2018

Eastern European-born vocalist and violinist Iva Bittova initially came on Chronogram’s radar when I profiled her for our April 2014 issue. An adventurous artist, Bittova was involved in the 1980s Czech underground arts scene that undermined Czechoslovakia’s “Velvet Revolution” against oppressive Soviet rule and produced the newly independent Czech Republic’s first president, writer Vaclav Havel. Next month Bittova and singer-composer Timothy Hill are colaunching a revolution of a different kind, right in Bittova’s current home of Rhinebeck: the Zingora School of Voice, which launches July 6-8.

“Over the years I have received many invitations to teach,” the vocalist explains. “Now I am ready to make this the focus of my work. Through my experiences offering workshops and mentoring students one on one, I know teaching to be immensely gratifying for both my students and me. I believe in the freedom of the voice, and of using the voice as a tool for expressing our deepest needs and desires…As the school grows, it would bring me great joy to invite musicians I have met from around the world to share their expertise as guest teachers. At first, the curriculum will take its focus with the Moravian, Slovak, and Roma folk melodies that have been central to my music. In addition, my teaching will emphasize free expression, improvisation, and connection with nature.”

Offered here as a demonstration, this video depicts Bittova conducting a music workshop at the NC State European Institute in Prague this past spring:

https://youtu.be/-HqCd3O2rDQ

The Zingora School of Voice’s grand opening weekend takes place July 6-8 in Rhinebeck, New York. For more information, visit https://www.zingora-vocal-school.com/.

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