The Daily Tar HeelThursday, February 4, 19885
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Voice professor looks back
on life in professional world
By BETH MILLER
Staff writer
"The performer's life ... is not
steady employment," said Stafford
Wing, the chairman of the voice area
in the music department. Wing, who
made his living as a performer, said,
"I never taught before I came to
UNC."
Wing began planning his career in
college. After spending two years in
Germany with the ROTC program, he
studied at Louisiana State University.
There he worked with the opera
coach, who did guest conducting jobs
for regional opera companies. "He
used me on a number of occasions
for roles with regular opera compan
ies." Wing said, "so not only did I
perform as a graduate student, but
I also began my first professional
experience in the opera."
After graduate school. Wing went
overseas. "I wanted to start my
career," he said. "I went to Vienna
and enrolled in the Academy of Music
and studied voice. I immediately
started singing professionally, so I
was in school and singing as well. I
did a recording with the Vienna
symphony and some other orches
tras, and I toured throughout Vienna.
Austria. Switzerland . . ."
Wing returned to the United
States, to New York, after three years
in Vienna. "I worked at Radio City
Music Hall as my first job seven
days a week, four and five shows a
day that was slave labor," he said.
"My career was varied: concerts,
radio. TV. theater, some Broadway,
lots of oratorio work. Between shows
I would do other auditions because
we got hired by the show. I broke
away from Radio City Music Hall
when I got hired by the NBC opera."
Wing also auditioned with other
groups. "I did pick-up work with
professional choruses, and for me it
was better than selling insurance." He
said that many performers find other
jobs to support their careers in music
or acting.
Wing has stories from experience
which he can tell his students who
aspire to make their living with their
voice. He said. "I did a lot of
auditioning that was my job. I
know what it's like to make my living
as a singer." He claims that there is
no such thing as "having made it"
in the performing world. He said that
a singer can be "employed one day
and be up on stage ... and the next
week you're not employed."
Wing continues performing while
k A. - &
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Voice professor Stafford Wing in his Hill Hail office
DTHChristie Blom
here at the University. "1 have stayed
quite active," he said. "Teaching is
a big part of my life now, but the
performance goes on." Wing per
forms locally and also travels occa
sionally to New York and Europe. "It's
good for the students to see their
teacher's active and still performing,"
he said.
Wing teaches a variety of students.
"Some of the students who come
here have never studied voice lessons
before and some have had very little
voice. But if they have a voice and
if they're musical, it doesn't matter
too much really." Wing said that a
voice is "either there or it's not"
however, those without a terrific
voice at the start can develop one
with practice. Wing said that it is
important for students to keep up
good practice habits.
Wing prefers to practice in the
morning before the daily chaos of
phone calls, paperwork and lessons
begins. He also continues studying
under other voice instructors. He said,
"1 still study; 1 go back to New York
and work with my teacher several
times a year . . . and I'm a teacher."
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