Studio Class

The Sybaritic Singer

About the show

Let me be your diva sidekick when it comes to staying focused and extra sparkly in your singing career.

Megan Ihnen is a professional mezzo-soprano, teacher, writer, and arts entrepreneur who is passionate about helping other musicians and high art creative professionals live their best lives.

Studio Class is an outgrowth of her popular #29DaystoDiva series from The Sybaritic Singer blog. Did you feel like you simply ran out of time during studio class to talk about some of the necessary business elements of your career? Do not despair, divas! This podcast is meant for you!

Studio Class on social media

Episodes

  • Episode 22: Teach a Voice Studio

    August 1st, 2019  |  1 hr 17 mins
    teaching, voice lessons, voice studio

    Megan Ihnen visited Hillary LaBonte's vocal pedagogy class at Bowling Green State University in Fall 2018 to discuss running a private voice studio. Thank you to Dr. LaBonte for the invitation and to her students for their excellent questions.
    If you're interested in inviting Megan to record an episode with your studio, please get in touch by emailing info@meganihnen.com.

  • Episode 21: Figure Out Your Own Balance

    July 1st, 2019  |  Season 3  |  30 mins 16 secs
    guests, residency

    Sybaritic Singer & Studio Class founder, Megan Ihnen, talks with students from UNLV's voice department about figuring out the balance of singer life.

  • Episode 20: Outcomes, Not (Mindless) Activities

    May 13th, 2018  |  47 mins 59 secs
    achievement, arts entrepreneurship, classical singing, new music, opera, setting goals, success metrics, success workbook

    "Performance begins with focusing on outcomes instead of activities. In my experience, most people do the reverse. They concentrate their efforts on the pursuit of activities instead of outcomes." Tired of the relentless busy-ness of being a musician? Let's re-focus on outcomes and avoid the temptation of mindless activity, divas, with the help of Douglas K. Smith's book "Make Success Measurable! A Mindbook-Workbook for Setting Goals and Taking Action."

  • Episode 19: Everyone Performs

    May 6th, 2018  |  38 mins 6 secs
    audience building, creative placemaking, new music, opera

    Today, we’re relying on the wisdom of Barbara Townley and Nic Beech in their book “Managing Creativity: Exploring the Paradox.” This episode covers topics such as audience building in opera and new music, collaborative creativity, creative placemaking, and how user-generated content means that audiences have different expectations of artistic experiences.

  • Episode 18: Get a lay of the land

    April 29th, 2018  |  42 mins 29 secs
    classical singing, composers, music business, new music, opera

    In this we’re taking a different approach. It’s been a little while since I’ve posted a new episode and I want to tell you about that. Then, we’re going to rely on the wisdom of Ellen Highstein and her book “Making Music in Looking Glass Land” to help us get “a lay of the land” for us that are out there performing and composing our little hearts out.

    BURNOUT IS A B****. LET’S AVOID IT. article for NewMusicBox - https://nmbx.newmusicusa.org/burnout-is-a-b-lets-avoid-it/

  • Episode 17: How To Change The World Through Classical Music - Part II

    August 27th, 2017  |  Season 2  |  25 mins 23 secs
    change the world, classical music, new music, opera, singing, social justice, voice

    I’m attempting to answer one of my own big questions, “How Do You Change The World Through Classical Music?” Yes. It’s a hefty topic. I have had this nagging feeling that I need to devote some of my attention to how my art can be a force for good and world events don’t seem to be slowing that need or quieting that internal voice at all. It’s getting louder and more insistent. Divas, not only do I want to help you make it rain in your business but I want to help you change the world while you’re at it.

  • Episode 16: How To Change The World Through Classical Music

    August 20th, 2017  |  19 mins 51 secs
    change the world, classical music, diva, music education, music therapy, opera, voice

    In this episode, I’m attempting to answer one of my own big questions, “How Do You Change The World Through Classical Music?”

  • Episode 15: What Are Your Diva Metrics?

    August 13th, 2017  |  25 mins 17 secs
    choosing goals, classical singing, micro actions, new music, opera, singer goals, singer metrics

    In this 15th episode, I’m answering a listener question! Mary, who goes by the artist name Alarke, asked me, “What metrics do you use to monitor your growth and how often do you check them? Do you outsource help?"

  • Episode 14: Brand Yourself - Personal Branding for Divas

    August 6th, 2017  |  27 mins 16 secs
    branding, classical singing, opera, personal brand, singer

    Personal branding is important for singers because you are your own business. In this episode, we'll go over some activities that you can do to understand your personal brand better.

  • Episode 13: Build A Diva

    July 30th, 2017  |  27 mins 10 secs
    bio, classical singing, epk, press kit, resume, singer

    Your digital press kit (often also called an electronic press kit or EPK) is meant to collate important information about you as a singer for presenters, applications, and media professionals.

  • Episode 12: Make It Rain: Your Network = Your Net Worth

    April 2nd, 2017  |  25 mins 42 secs
    classical singing, communications, diva, networking

    In this 12th episode, we’re going back to my “Rainmaker’s Guide to Music Business” lecture and diving into the network portion.

  • Episode 11: Goal Setting for Your Diva Life

    March 19th, 2017  |  16 mins 23 secs
    classical singing, diva, goal-setting, metrics, opera

    Goal setting is all about milestones. Let's discover where you are and what's left to tackle.

  • Episode 10: Leveling Up - Diva Style

    March 12th, 2017  |  49 mins 36 secs
    auditions, classical music, networking, opera singing, performing

    This episode comes from a music business lecture I do called "Make It Rain" and it covers the different stages of your creative career.

  • Episode 9: Your Practice Plan

    February 26th, 2017  |  34 mins 4 secs
    classical singing, intrinsic motivation, memorization techniques, opera, setting intentions

    In this 9th episode, I’m gonna take a little different path. I’m going to just talk about some things that I’ve been mentioning in the studio. I work with singers of all different ages and abilities and motivation and practicing are universal.

  • Episode 8: Kicking Perfectionism to the Curb

    February 19th, 2017  |  17 mins
    classical singing, opera, overpreparing, perfectionism, under-doing

    In this episode, I want to talk about the dangers of perfectionism. Perfectionism can manifest in a couple of ways and we’re going to talk about over-doing and under-doing as a couple of things to watch out for as well as how to accept both failure and success as part of the path.

  • Episode 7: The Post-Show Schmooze

    February 12th, 2017  |  19 mins 20 secs
    audience development, classical singing, networking, opera, schmooze

    Get your post-show schmooze on, divas, with this quick and fun punchlist! This Studio Class episode helps you decipher what an audience member or performer can do to up their schmoozing game directly after a performance.