Student Spotlight: James Atkins
(By Karin Cravotta)
James Atkins can’t remember when he first became interested in music, but he has always remembered singing. “I remember singing the ABC song with cousins from when I was three.” According to his father, Steve, “James was born musical. Before [James and his twin brother, John] were born, if I played [jazz pianist] Brad Mehldau’s version of ‘Paranoid Android’, they would both start kicking until their Mum ordered me to turn it off. Mum was worried her singing of lullabies would scare the twins, so she began taking lessons when James and John were first born. James started trying to sing along before he could talk. He always sings in the shower — we have even had guests staying with us trying to discreetly listen.”
James began learning keyboard when he was five, and switched to piano when he was seven. At eight, he joined choir and began playing clarinet. “Singing is similar to clarinet in that you have to create vowels with your mouth in both, to create richer tones, or variation in tones and words. On the clarinet, this is called “voicing”. With a clarinet, the front of your mouth has to stay gripping the mouthpiece, so you can only use the back of your mouth for the “voicing”. With singing you get to use your whole mouth, head voice and chest voice. I find the clarinet much harder!” |
James and his father discovered Resound NW driving around the neighborhood. James wanted to audition for a choir and they were looking for some pointers. Says Steve, “I dropped in and had a chat with Daniel, and it just seemed right.” James then began taking vocal lessons with Resound NW’s Brian Hotchkin. James enthuses, “Brian is a great teacher. He encourages me in so many ways, and teaches a LOT of things, like how to put more emotion into my voice. I really, really look forward to my classes with him!”
According to Steve, “The difference after just one lesson with Brian was incredible. For years, we had been telling James to open his mouth more, to no avail. But one lesson with Brian, and now we wish we had a volume control! I wish we had found Brian years ago. According to Brian, “James has a great instrument and is also extremely musical - He can learn new music quickly, takes feedback and incorporates it into his singing with a great attitude. It’s fun to see his smiling face in the studio, and I enjoy his bright energy.” Adds Steve, “Besides the bouncing up and down joy that fills James after each and every class, the highlight for me is actually the group class [Song Studio], where the variety and passion for music from so many different people is just, well, joyful. Happy. Beautiful.”
Before joining Resound NW, James had only performed as part of a choir and band, never as a solo singer. But at our Studio Gathering in the Fall of 2015, James impressed us with his solo rendition of John Legend’s “All of Me.” “I was extremely nervous! And I was really happy when I finished.” When asked what he thought of his son’s performance, Steve muses, “I had never heard ‘Good grief’ in the middle of a performance before. I was so stupidly proud, as he just took a deep breath and continued, hunting down that key wherever it was hiding.”
Several months ago, James auditioned for the Advanced Boys [section] of the Portland Boychoir, directed by Dr. David York. “The audition was great! It was fun, and I was accepted! We “compete” with Pacific Youth Choir, and just last weekend our choirs sang together at “Portland Sing!” at the University of Portland. I find it is more fun (and a lot easier) singing as part of a group (even if you get to do solos.)”
James continues, “Music, just generally, makes me extremely happy, so I’m looking forward to all the good times after performances. I do not really have any specific goals [for this year], other than to get better at singing and playing some different types of music… When I was little, some of my favorite songs were from [Australian band] The Wiggles and my Dad’s weird Triple J collections [compiled by the Australian radio station of the same name]. Now I listen to pop, techno, jazz and classical. My favorite band at the moment is Imagine Dragons.” Says Brian, “James is very versatile with his repertoire - singing pop songs, classical, a bit of everything!” |
When asked what advice he would give to potential new students, James asserts “I would tell them to have fun while trying, and to sing whatever and whenever they want. Soon enough, they’ll get better and better at singing, and, as they do, they will enjoy it even more!”