Scene Change

This month we change the format a bit as Katelyn MacIntyre fills in for Lizzy for an extended "Questions with Katelyn" interview with Annie Donnelon, an artist of many talented who has most recently entered the world of audiobook narration. Annie shares how she became interested in this art form, the techniques she uses to makes her characters come to life, some tips for those who want to build a home studio, how she collaborates with writers, and much more. Plus, we hear a sample of her narration read live to us during our recording session! Join us as we celebrate the talents of 2 of our multifaceted members—Annie's skill as a narrator, and Katelyn's skill as an interviewer!

On this special Read Across America Day episode of scene change, Lizzy interviews first lady of the National Federation of the Blind Melissa Riccobono as she describes her career change into audiobook narration. Learn about her views on Braille and audiobook reading, the technical skills needed in this field, and her perspective on maintaining confidence! Bonus: you’ll get to hear her read part of a Dr. Seuss book!

Listen as Lizzy interviews a pianist and singer of many genres, Oveante! He demonstrates musical chords, plays a couple of songs, discusses performing for Stevie Wonder, and even gives the secret to entry into the Berkeley School of Music in an episode you don’t want to miss! Since it’s our Valentine’s Day episode, you know we talked about love as well, focusing on self love and true confidence this year. Let us know what you think at NFBpad@gmail.com learn more about Ovi on his website here: https://oveantemusic.com/

Calling all creatives! If you're looking for something new and exciting in 2024, this is an episode you won't want to miss! First, our President and one of our Board members bring us news of two exciting NFB Performing Arts Division initiatives that you can play a part in. Then, Lizzy takes the mic with a guest who is no stranger to those who have been around the NFB for a while. His voice and guitar playing are heard on "The Rhythm of the Movement," the album that has become the soundtrack for so many NFB events since 2015. But JP is so much more; he's an accomplished musician and songwriter with some pretty impressive collaborations to his name, a life coach, and a podcaster. Join Lizzy and JP as they chat about performing, transformation, how to make real change, and so much more!

Welcome to our last episode of 2023! As we celebrate the holiday season, famous for virtually every choir imaginable giving some kind of performance, 3 prolific choral singers join us to share their experiences in the group singing environment. They'll also share some tips about succeeding in auditions and rehearsals, and get personal about the ups and downs of finding community and acceptance within the choir. Teaser: One of our guests has recently joined one of the most famous choirs in the world! You won't want to miss this special holiday episode!

Tony Gebhard breaks barriers every day as a musician, podcaster and producer. But he also joined us from the frigid wilderness of Alaska, so we had to get an ice reference in! Join Lizzy and Shane (yes, we give Shane a mic this month) to celebrate our third anniversary by chatting with Tony about his many talents and activities. Plus, hear some more highlights from our division meeting at convention, when Shane took the mic around the room to hear what people were thinking. It's an episode worthy of our "podcastiversary!"

Welcome to the third anniversary episode of Scene Change!!! 3 years ago on October 15, we released our first episode and promised that we would bring you the most engaging, exciting blind artists who are active at all levels of performance and committed to changing the landscape for their fellow blind performers. On this special episode, we celebrate with a very special guest who is no stranger to PAD members: Jessica Victoria! Jessica chats with Lizzy about her lifetime commitment to our community, her pioneering work as a professor and performer, and much more. You won't want to miss this conversation with one of our own!

On this episode of Scene Change, Lizzy interviews The Performing Arts Division’s newest board member, Kingsley Martin. Here his attitudes on jumping right in to acting, podcasting, and whatever else you may want to do. Listen until the end for an unexpected role reversal where Lizzy gets interviewed by the guest! Connect with Us Visit our website: www.nfb-pad.org Facebook: National Federation of the Blind Performing Arts Division Twitter: @nfb_pad

She has been a PAD Board member, a member of our podcast team, a co-founder of RAMPD, and a Latin pop sensation. So, she's done it all, right? Not even close! Since we last featured Precious on the show, she's released several new songs, moved across the country, performed at some impressive venues, and (lest we forget) married our own producer, Shane Lowe. Join us as Lizzy and Precious catch up on where Precious's journey has taken her, her future plans, and what the Kennedy Center has to do with it all. Keep in mind that this is our last episode before the NFB national convention in Houston. We hope to see many of you at our meeting and Showcase of Talent! If you need to join us or renew your membership in time for convention, visit nfb-pad.org/member. See you in Houston!

For part 2 of our series on classical piano, we're rejoined by our panel of 3 accomplished blind pianists as we look into the practical side of performing. How do they learn complex repertoire? How do they make that big leap across the keyboard accurately? How does a pianist adjust the bench to the perfect height and prepare for an outstanding performance? Lizzy and her guests will address all these questions and more on this episode, plus we'll hear what these musicians are up to next! Connect with our guests Yoo Jin Noh: https://www.youtube.com/@yoojinnoh9947 Elizabeth Sprecher: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabeth-sprecher-77348522b/ and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTLuBTOaSOQ David Lai: https://youtube.com/@davidlai1996 Connect with the National Federation of the Blind Performing Arts Division! Website: www.nfb-pad.org Like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/PerformingArtsDivision Follow us on Twitter: @NFB_PAD

This month we begin our two-part interview with 3 talented classical pianists who will share their experience in the conservatory environment, share interesting insights about their diverse backgrounds, offer performing advice, and much more. Of course, we'll also hear a selection of their performances for all who love the piano to enjoy!

We're switching up the format of this month's episode as we share a recording of the membership call that kicked off 2023 in the NFB Performing Arts Division! That call featured a lively discussion with a panel of blind music educators who are making a difference in the lives of their students every day. Learn their creative techniques for dealing with the day-to-day challenges of the classroom, how they deal with their students' thoughts about blindness, what tools they use in their work, and much more! We host these membership calls bimonthly on a wide variety of topics of interest to blind performers! Want to know when the next call is and how to participate? Become a member of our organization so you can receive our newsletter, join our events, and much more! Visit nfb-pad.org/member for more information.

Hang out with our host Lizzy and creative couple Dan and Michelle to learn about their relationship podcast, shared values, and advice for finding and keeping a partner on air and in life. Who knows whom better? What might they name a potential restaurant? How do they divide their duties on their show and at home? Tune in as these partners on and off-air slide in our DM's this Valentine's Day! Find their podcast here: https://downinthedm.libsyn.com/

Ready to jump in to a new Performing Arts project? Join our host Lizzy and producer Shane as they give real life examples of how to do so in seven steps (move past anxiety, gain clarity, find resources, assess the cost, take action, and show up) plus a bonus! The innovative spin on classic ideas and episode highlights will surely motivate you to start your project ASAP

our Scene Change host, Lizzy Muhammad-Park, talks with 3 seasoned performers about confidence building, putting a price on talent, future performance ideas, and more! The episode includes helpful hints for when to begin looking for gigs, where to perform, and how to build solid connections that might lead to future work. Featuring: Lawrence E Brown III, Christina Ebersohl, and Cristina Jones.

It's November. It's cold. It's dreary. It's gross. It's that weird time between the enjoyable part of fall and the holiday season. What genre of music would best describe November? The blues, obviously. So we found a guy who plays the blues with 2 instruments at the same time! How does he do it, and what does he have in common with Scene Change production team member Precious Perez? Find out the answers to these and many more questions as we spend our November episode with Noe Socha!

What do pizza, toilet paper rolls and the NFB Performing Arts Division have in common? They all join with many other topics to make for what might be the most fun, freewheeling episode of Scene Change yet! Join Lizzy and your newly-elected PAD Board--all 7 of them at one time--as we get to know each member better and talk about what the division has planned for the future. We hope our return episode will be as fun for you to listen to as it was for us to record! Connect with the National Federation of the Blind Performing Arts Division! Website: www.nfb-pad.org Like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/PerformingArtsDivision

Welcome to our July episode, and thanks to everyone who attended our convention events, whether in-person or virtually. All the beautiful post-convention selfies on social media made us think that, if blind people aren't gracing the runways of fashion shows and modeling competitions, we should be. Well, we found a blind model who is doing just that! Check out this unique conversation with one of the most inspiring "scene changers" we could hope to find! Connect with us! Website: www.nfb-pad.org. Facebook: National Federation of the Blind Performing Arts Division. Twitter: @nfb_pad

Join Lizzy for this month's riveting episode featuring Krishna Washburn, a professional ballet dancer, and the artistic director and sole teacher of 'Dark Room Ballet', along with The 'Dark Room Ballet' program coordinator and lead administrator Alejandra Ospina. Interested in ballet? This is an online ballet course specifically for blind dancers. She's got something for everyone. She's got intro courses, they are eight weeks long, and she also has open courses for experienced blind professionals. They are tuition free. In this episode, you will hear more about this exciting opportunity and all it entails. Her summer course is beginning on June 25, and Registration closes on June 18, 2022. Sign up here: https://darkroomballet.com/ Connect with the National Federation of the Blind Performing Arts Division! Website: www.nfb-pad.org Like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/PerformingArtsDivision Follow us on Twitter: @NFB_PAD Episode 21 notes 0:41 – Introducing Krishna 3:10 – How it’s like to be a blind ballet instructor 16:08 – How to sign up and prices for other courses 31:48 – The difference between sighted, blind, and balanced 36:15 – Do students need to purchase ballet shoes before class 37:05 – What tape is used 39:49 – Krisna dancing while teaching 41:59 – Who taught Krishna 47:39 – Misconceptions for teachers to break 54:40 – Advice for anyone advocating for equality in the dance space 1:04:51 – Contact information 1:07:54 - Outro

In honor of Mother’s Day, we take some time this month to celebrate our members who are moms on stage, in life, and sometimes in both. Enjoy this fun and enlightening chat as Lizzy, joined this month by cohost Katelyn MacIntyre, talks with three awesome moms, performers and leaders about their journeys. Connect with us! Web: nfb-pad.org Facebook: facebook.com/performingartsdivision Twitter: @nfb_pad