food
Food for singers, advice on what not to eat, and some recipes to try
One of the greatest loves of my life is food. I love reading about it, growing it, making it, and of course eating it. This is not unusual among singers either! I have had part time jobs in cafes and restaurants to make some money to help pay for singing lessons - I’m sure you know or have been served by people working between music or acting jobs.
When I travel I love trying out new dishes and dream of coming home to recreate them, even if they never quite taste the same! I will greedily ask you what you ate on holiday, in a restaurant, or made for your dinner party.
This month which is often associated with summer holidays (for those of us in Europe), I thought it might be fun to talk about food and singing - what foods do famous singers eat? What is advised for singers to eat/avoid? And of course some recipes to try that are associated with some of our operatic heroes.
What should I avoid eating when singing?
Well, this escalated quickly - and the truth is… that there are no hard and fast rules! Know your own body, and respond to what works for you. There is no evidence that certain foods will be good or bad, only general advice linked to reflux and heartburn.
I recently ate ice cream just before singing, and it was delicious. Dairy is not an issue for me personally, but if you notice any extra phlegm that inhibits your singing, you might want to time it so you don’t have it right before singing. But don’t presume or deny yourself certain foods if they don’t cause you issues.
Reflux
Reflux can affect the quality of the voice, causing irritation and inflammation. There have been studies that link singing/professional singers and reflux, the link is not entirely clear, the linked study was with a small number of singers. You can read it here:
If you work with and are generally more aware of your body and small day-to-day differences, you may be sensitive to changes others may not notice.
If you are experiencing problems like waking with a scratchy throat, feeling burning in your throat, hoarse voice, bad breath, bloating/heartburn, you should speak to your pharmacist or doctor for advice.
Some of the causes of reflux can be:
Eating certain foods/drinks (coffee, tomatoes, fatty foods, alcohol, spicy food, chocolate)
Eating late at night
Certain medicines
Pregnancy
Smoking
Being overweight
Stress and Anxiety
So to try and reduce symptoms it is suggested you:
Lose Weight if overweight
Find ways to relax/destress
raise the head of your bed when asleep by a couple of inches to use gravity to help
Avoid food/drink that exacerbates your personal symptoms
Don’t smoke
Don’t drink alcohol
Wear clothes that are loose around your middle
You can find more information here:
Anecdotes
We’ve covered the science, we’ve discussed what should be sensible, so now we can enjoy the stories and the recipes!
It is said Pavarotti asked for three roast chickens to be available at all times where he sang. He was also famed for cooking certain pasta dishes for his friends for which there are recipes online
San Francisco opera published a recipe book called “What Aria Cooking” published by SF Opera Guild in 1974, with favourite recipes of the stars including Leontyne Price’s ‘Crabmeat Imperial Casserole’, and Tito Gobbi’s ‘Pasta alla Tito Gobbi’. I feel I need to hunt this down! There are several other cookbooks around with recipes from opera singers
Callas would collect recipes from famous cooks and hotels when she travelled, but was said to rarely if ever cook them. She ate mainly steak and salad to maintain her slimmer figure after her weight loss
Remember that what you eat will power you through your work - so balance the good and the not so good, and consult a personal trainer/nutritionalist if you wish specific personalised guidance to help you improve your fitness or lose weight.Always consult your doctor if you have any concerns and before making radical changes to your fitness and diet.I hope you enjoy trying one of the recipes below - a cocktail, pasta dish, and classic pudding for your enjoyment.
Please comment and let me know if you try one of them!
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1 and a 1/2 ounces of gin
1/2 and ounce of Dubonnet (the red version)
1/4 of an ounce of maraschino liqueur
Dash of orange bitters (optional)
Twist of orange or lemon peel, or slice of orange to garnish
Method:
Shake together the gin, Dubonnet, maraschino liqueur and bitters (if using) in a cocktail shaker with ice, until the cocktail is mixed and chilled.
Strain the mixture into your choice of glass, and garnish. Serve with a name drop of the last famous singer you made the drink for at one of your many soirées.
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This recipe is also called ‘pasta con le melanzane’ (pasta with aubergine/eggplant)
Serves 4
Ingredients:
2 Aubergines cut into pieces of about 3cm
1sp salt
4tbsp olive oil
1 small onion
2 cloves of garlic
pinch of chilli flakes
2 x 400g tins of chopped tomatoes
1 tsp sugar
350g spaghetti
small bunch of basil, shredded, plus extra to decorate
1 heaped tbsp capers
ricotta cheese or finely grated parmesan to serve
Method:
Add the salt to the aubergine chunks and set them in a colander over a bowl to remove excess moisture.
Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a casserole dish or saucepan. Fry the onion with a pinch of salt on a low heat for 10 minutes until soft but not coloured. Add the garlic and chilli for 1 minute, before adding the tomatoes and sugar. Bring to a simmer.
Cook uncovered for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Heat the oven to gas mark 7/220C fan/200 C.
Pat the aubergine dry with a clean tea towel/kitchen roll. Stir in the remaining 2 tbsp of oil, and spread it out on a baking tray and roast for 25-30 minutes until golden around the edges.
Meanwhile cook the pasta according to packet instructions, and reserve 100ml of the pasta water.
Stir the aubergine into the sauce with the basil and capers. Season to taste.
Stir the cooked pasta into the sauce, with some of the pasta water.
Divide between 4 bowls and top with ricotta/parmesan and extra basil for decoration.
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Serves 4
Ingredients:
Choose 4 ripe peaches, the best seasonal ripe peaches you can find.
200g Fresh raspberries
Lemon Juice (optional)
some sugar
100g icing sugar
Vanilla ice cream - home made or bought
Fresh almonds/flaked almonds to serve
Method:
Blanch the peaches for 2 seconds in boiling water, remove them with a slotted spoon and place in iced water for a few seconds. Peel them when cold.
Optional- to reduce the peaches browning, place them in water with a little lemon juice. This helps if you are preparing the dessert in advance.
Sprinkle the peaches with a little sugar, and place them in the fridge.
Puree 200g of raspberries and pass them through a fine sieve to remove the seeds. Mix with the icing sugar, and refrigerate.
When ready to serve, either prepare one large celebratory dish or plate into 4 bowls.
Add a bed of ice cream with the peach on top, covered in the raspberry sauce.
Use almond flakes to decorate - Escoffier suggest only fresh and in season, but shhhh, we don’t need to tell him!
singing lessons: why do we sing?
The Science and Psychology behind why we sing
Exploring some of the science behind why we sing.
There are lots of reasons that we as humans sing - as a teacher I’ve had pupils come for lessons for all sorts of reasons. Sometimes the reason they started lessons aren’t the same as the reasons they continue, but they are all welcome!
Singing has many benefits for us, some obvious, and some a little more hidden.
Which of these reasons do you recognise?
As a teacher, my job is to welcome you to lessons and help you reach your goals.
One of the first things I do is to ask you what your goals are, establishing some of the reasons that have brought you to my studio.
This is a valuable time for me to find out all about you. Some people wish to learn a certain song or have a goal of singing a certain type of music or for a particular performance, and others simply enjoy the process of learning about their voice and singing music with me each week.
When teaching adult learners it is unusual that someone joins me with no experience of music or singing, so it’s nice to know what that is.
How you describe your past experiences helps me understand what kind of experiences they were - were they all positive? Why did you stop? If there was a particular reason you might prefer not to talk about it, but it is usually apparent in the way you describe the past.
My job is to help you and your voice from our meeting onwards, without negativity or judgement. My studio is a positive space open to all.
So why do we sing? What makes us want to do that or encourages us to meet with others and sing together? Here are some of the psychological reasons why.
Deep breathing
Singing encourages calm, regular, deep breathing, and full exhalation. We know these things to all be helpful for both mind and body. They encourage a feeling of calm, relaxation, reduce stress and blood pressure
Accomplishment
Learning a skill, developing knowledge and ability, gives a sense of accomplishment and pride. We enjoy tasks with slow or fast development that challenge us
Complex task
Singing uses many parts of the brain all at once, particularly if you count performance and memorization as part of the process. Our brains enjoy complex tasks, and these are in turn good for our brains. It is an in-depth focussed activity that forces us to concentrate. If you are learning music to perform in a musical or opera you are also adding in movement and acting. We know complex tasks are good at keeping our brains working well as we age
Connection to others
The act of meeting with others, joining together to sing a song in rehearsal or performance, builds a feeling of connection and bonding that is positive for us.
Communication beyond language
A parent singing lullabies to their baby soothes the infant but also conveys that they matter. The act of singing a lullaby to your child releases the ‘love hormone’ Oxytocin in the parent, and decreases the stress hormone cortisone.
Music makes us feel good
Music has been shown to have a positive effect on people with depressions and anxiety, and to reduce cortisol levels
Conveys Emotion
Singing music helps us to process emotion - we access memories, we convey emotions, we work through our sadness/grief, and we celebrate with song.
‘we sing the blues not just because we are sad, but to give the emotion voice. I think all of us have had the experience of knowing the emotions of a performer by just hearing them sing or play’ - John Lennon, retired professor of Emporia State University
It amazes me that there are so many scientific, measurable benefits to singing! Teaching in schools and privately I have witnessed the joy and mood-boosting effects of singing and music and it is always a wonderful thing to be part of that.I hope you have enjoyed this list, if you wish a more complex explanation, follow the links to some of the science. Why do you enjoy singing? As ever, feel free to comment below.