I have been told on many occasions that my German was very good, but I knew there was more that could be done. It always seemed to take more of an effort than was perhaps necessary to achieve sounds and convey meaning. Kathrin was the German coach for an I Musici contract, and in this session with the choir, several things were demystified for me immediately. I knew that I would want to pursue a private coaching with Kathrin for some upcoming Bach cantatas. We had 2 sessions together, one 1-hour and another 2-hour, and it was very effective. I can say that Kathrin was very open to my style of learning (some things need to digest or assimilate, but I would eventually get them, be it that evening or next week...) She was warm, professional, and picky, illustrating with precision the subtle differences in the language. We also worked on how to convey the sense of a phrase while keeping it "German-like" in its delivery. In so doing, an element of my singing technique that had weaknesses across the board (not just in German) was brought to the surface and addressed for the first time. I also felt fully comfortable and encouraged to just let go and sing, when it came to singing phrases after having spoken through them--an essential quality for any teacher. Kathrin is a native speaker and has not only the intellectual knowledge of how to create sounds (IPA, etc), but also the instinctual ability, inviting you to discover how to embody the same thing with precise color, weight and hierarchy in a word and in a phrase. I know I will work with Kathrin again, and invite anyone looking to tighten up and explore German more to seek her out.
Clayton Kennedy, baritone
Montreal, QC