In 8th grade I found myself in somewhat of a musical identity crisis. I began taking private voice lessons and my loving teacher began to learn the ins and outs of my voice. Up until this point I had been singing alto in school choir because that is where I was most comfortable in my church choir. I accepted the fact that I couldn’t chest notes as high as Beyonce and that if I was gonna salvage my voice without feeling strained while belting uninhibitedly, I needed to live comfortable in alto land. This alto reality was shattered when my teacher (a wonderful classically trained soprano) began to awaken the mysteries of my head voice/falsetto range. We were warming up one day and my teacher turned to me and said, “Why have you been singing alto, you’re a soprano??!”

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Every singer has special things that make their trips a little easier to bare. These are a few items I use and recommend for those who travel a lot for auditions and or business. And remember, you don’t have to brake the bank for many of these things. Wait to buy during holiday sales and or your birthday.

• Travel steamer
• travel humidifier
• garment bag
• external charger
• allergy meds/cough drops/meds of your own/hand sanitizer etc. Violinists have rosin, singers have Ricola (joking… but not joking). Because our bodies are our instrument it is so so important that we treat them with care while traveling. Public transportation = germ frolic zone. I promise I’m not a germaphobe, but I don’t know any singer who enjoys getting sick or not feeling close to %100 for a performance.
• If you’re flying….especially internationally, don’t forget your neck pillow. Your body will thank you later. I personally love the ones with the squishy micro beads.
• Straws: sometimes the drive or subway trip to the audition can take a while. Even if you have warmed up at home, I like having straws sometimes to keep the voice warm. Check out some straw exercises here.
• A BANGIN music playlist to listen to and prepare your mind to sing and calm the nerves.
• make-up kit.
• Screenshots of directions. So what happens if you loose internet or service. I like to have where I am going as a safety precaution.
• Readily available pdf’s of your music, resume, and headshot. Ya’ll… stuff happens. God forbid anything tragic occurs before an audition …but as a safety measure I always have PDF’s that I can pull up on my phone to print if need be.
• Travel sized toiletries. Go to the dollar store and rack up! Also, the “dollar spot” aisles when you first walk inside Target are perfect for these things as well.
• Spices/food favorites: I’m not saying every singer MUST carry around a giant bottle of hot sauce (but hey, if that’s your style, that’s cool too). For long term work engagements in new cities it can be helpful to not have to rebuy essentials each time you arrive. I’m kind of a foodie, so I love traveling with snacks.
• An open heart and open mind. Remember why we do what we love!

Have any special items you travel with to add the this list??? Let me know 🙂