Today we’d like to introduce you to Charlotte Bash.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Charlotte. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I grew up in LA and started singing in school musicals when I was seven, so singing and performing has always been a major part of my life. In my teen years, it became clear to me that if I wanted to have a long career, I needed to be classically trained.
After receiving a merit-based scholarship to Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music, I decided that I absolutely had to go there, and I received my Bachelors of Music in Voice Performance. After I graduated, I started writing music so that I could create more opportunities for myself as an artist, and I began teaching voice to support my art. Teaching truly keeps me grounded in this lifestyle of constantly feeling like I’m alternating between being a rock star to just… not feeling that way at all… 😉
Currently, I am singing with The Verdi Chorus (an opera chorus based in Santa Monica), singing in Disney orchestral concerts in Asia, lending my voice to a Canadian YouTube series that focuses on children’s’ education and in addition to private vocal coaching, I am the Music Director at a Special Education school. I’ve released pop singles, but I am currently focusing more on writing musical theater. I am very excited to announce that my first musical will be premiering this July!
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I think it’s impossible to be on an artistic journey without any bumps in the road. Everyone in the field is very passionate about what they do, and the art of singing is very vulnerable so that in itself complicates things. My two main challenges in my career have been time management and finding myself as an artist.
As a singer-songwriter-vocal coach, you have to be a time management expert. You have to practice your craft, learn your material on time, direct others so that they feel comfortable working with you, take direction so that others feel comfortable working with you, create new content, market yourself AND manage your day to day a million times a day because your schedule will always change! You also have to have the awareness that nothing you do will ever be flawless, but you have to work like it could still be. It is A LOT!
When I first began my career, I feel like I had a lot of people trying to come at me and impose their vision of what I should be on me, so this caused a lot of confusion and turmoil. I felt a lot of pressure to become a pop icon, and like I was a loser for not being one. I now feel like I can just let my proud opera/ musical theatre nerd flag fly high and see where that leads me.
Tell us about your art. What do you do, what do you specialize in, what are you known for, etc. What are you most proud of as a company? What sets you apart from others?
I am proud of my versatility that has come from working in various genres, including the ability to sing in various languages. These skills have been especially helpful in the session world, where I’m rarely asked to do something run of the mill. (Usually, it’s “Can you sing like a Persian pop star, let’s do Gregorian Chant and then switch to EDM, etc.”) I also love that I can bring my real-world experience to my students so that they have a better understanding of what it’s like to work in the music industry. However, not all of my students are aspiring professionals, so at its core, I’m helping them discover their unique goals and achieve them. Versatility and flexibility are what I think keep me working on a consistent basis.
What are your plans for the future? What are you looking forward to or planning for – any big changes?
I am incredibly excited about writing a musical. It’s been a life long dream for me and I always saw it as something I would do far into the future. I’m so glad I decided to take the leap now because I think really exciting things are going to come out of this.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.charlottebash.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/charlottebash
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/charlottebash
- Twitter: www.twitter.com/cbashmusic
Image Credit:
Bob Lee
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