I bring my classical training - some of it, but not all of it - and also my background and culture, to spirituals. And I try to leave room for that unpredictable factor, where the feeling of the song is allowed to come through. The same ethos can be applied to singing Mozart, or Schubert, or Bach. It's not just about what's on the page.
Kathleen BattleNew York is a great place to be fed in the arts. The arts in general are a large part of my life. The city was my postgraduate course.
Kathleen BattleThe question is not... if art is enough to fulfill my life, but if I am true to the path I have set for myself, if I am the best I can be in the things I do. Am I living up to the reasons I became a singer in the first place?
Kathleen BattleSome of the music I listen to is pop. I sing it in the shower - and then for public consumption.
Kathleen BattleWherever and whenever I sing, if there is only one spiritual on a program, people will talk about two things afterward, and one of them will be the spiritual. What I bring to this is the best of my classical training - not all of it. I apply what is appropriate.
Kathleen Battle