Kara Johnstad - office berlin
Transforming Lives Through the Power of the Human Voice

[Volume 3, Issue 40, Oct 2, 2013] 
 
Greetings!  
 
Fall is here and I am so much enjoying the season. Pumpkin soup and lots of squash and as you see below, I discovered a great FUDGE RECIPE! 
 
Anyway, for those of you in Germany, great news. Together with the Cologne Workshop Weekend I will be giving a concert on October 24th! 

 


Today, we'll explore how to anchor and ground the prolific with concrete details.

 

VoiceYourEssence Podcast
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ENJOY TODAY'S FEATURE ARTICLE
 
 
 

SONGWRITING -  

HOW DO YOU EARN THE RIGHT TO BE ABSTRACT AND PROLIFIC
AND HAVE IT RESPECTED? 

  

  

 

 

 

In gratitude and to your continued success.

Stay Gold, Kara

 

The 
Voice Your Essence™ Community
is growing every day and reaches around the globe.
 
                                                                  


         You'll love it!   DELICIOUS FUDGE
 

Must be getting colder outside. My body is longing for cocoa and I have a fantastic recipe that I would like to share with you. 

These past weeks I have dropped wheat and refined sugar and eat very low dairy. I don't want to say no dairy or no sugar, because I choose not to be dogmatic, and yet I am thrilled when I can create delicious recipes that nourish my body-mind-soul system and has no refined sugars or flours and is very "natural". 

So, here is a great recipe for delicious fudge. It tastes INCREDIBLE! 
With no added chemicals or refined sugars and no dairy.  
  • 1/2 cup coconut butter or 120 gram of coconut butter
  • 1 large, very-ripe banana or two medium sized very ripe bananas 
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional)
  • pinch of salt  1/8 tsp 
  • I I personally do not eat sweet. I love dark chocolate. If you would like a sweeter version simply add a tablespoon or two  bit of maple syrup or honey.
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cacao powder (20g)
  •  1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract  (optional)
Take melted coconut butter and combine it with  all other  ingredients in a food processor or use a hand mixer. When the fudge is smooth pour it into a container or candy molds.If you do not like plastic containers then use wax paper and put small spoonfuls onto the wax paper.  Place in the fridge for a few hours, or freeze for a few minutes.

Feel free to make a bigger batch and freeze it.  Just be sure to thaw at least 15 minutes prior to eating.

ENJOY IT!
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KARA JOHNSTAD ist intergalaktischenormgigantisch!!!!! 
 
What a voice, professional knowledge and sensitivity...  
 
Thanks a million for a very special workshop here at my "derGesangsLaden" (The Song Shop).  
 
Yeah, scrumptious!!!!!   
♥  Birgit Schlenther, 
Cologne Workshop 2012
 
KARA JOHNSTAD is a heavenly gift! 
 
... I feel really blessed having been able to meet you at "der GesangsLaden" (The Song Shop) in Cologne. Like a sponge takes water I've taken your words, your sounds, your vibes, your knowledge and your heartiness. 
 
You've done a WONDERFUL job and I want to thank you with all my heart for all you've given to me and everyone in this great workshop. Yeah! 
♥  
Ursula Kamay, Cologne Workshop 2012
 
 You are a crazy, very lovable, wonderful, amazing, natural woman!!
 
I love(d) to be with you ... I cried, I laughed, I�m so blessed to have you in my life ...  Thank you from the very depth of my heart for this great weekend ... for learning, for talking, for singing and for the intimate moments in the midnight-concert :-) ... it is such a gift.
 
LOVE AND LIGHT TO YOU ...  and I hope, we meet again soon.  
♥  Manuela Korst, Cologne Workshop 2012

  

Her passionate style takes individuals on a journey into personal power, authenticity and presence, impacting thousands with her message. Jaijai Jackson , Creator of  The Jazz Network Worldwide 
article
 
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SONGWRITING -
HOW DO YOU EARN THE RIGHT TO BE ABSTRACT AND PROLIFIC
AND HAVE IT RESPECTED? 
 
 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Songwriters are story tellers.

 

Songwriters are magicians.

 

Songwriters can change the whole mood
of the room with one good song.

 

Songwriters can even start a revolution.

 

Songwriters hold the keys to take a group of people into their heart and out of their cages. 

 

Songwriters enter their audience
through the ears and fly with them
by hooking them into their breath.


 

 

 

One of the biggest mistakes young songwriters make is that they fly into the abstract before they anchor the song onto the ground. They drift off into abstract lines like "life sucks" or ' i feel blue or I love you forever" and repeat the abstract sugar coated lines without anchoring the words to real facts and details.

To make a good story work,

you need accurate details.


I tell my clients, you get the right to be prolific and abstract once you have either 1) given me enough details or 2) spent enough time in meditation and reflection when that line comes up and out it is solid as a brick.

The essence
always has a powerful quality
that needs no explanation.

Voice Your Essence Podcast by Kara Johnstad
Click Image & Listen
Truth needs no explaining. 

You either get it or you don't.

 

If the writer has hit the core essence, then it is so compact and solidified that there is no doubt in our minds that this is truth. Until you get to that place - you need to start with owning your abstract thoughts by claiming it in the form of exact details you can taste, touch, smell, see, feel.

 

Begin by writing and singing details before you meander off.

 

For example, take the line "Life is hard".

Could you write 25 concrete images to back up that line?

  1. The man lying in the gutter?
  2. The grandma that was found in a chair with Alzheimer eating Kleenex?
  3. The war hero who returns home crippled finds his wife with another man?
  4. The woman who is standing in a red chiffon dress with her dancing shoes on and the phone rings to tell her he
     has to work late?
  5. The child who grows up without proper shoes.
  6. ...
 
Which life stories could express life is hard? Let's take a look at some songs you may know.

Coal Miner's daughter, written and performed by Loretta Lynn, is a great example

of how facts are there to make a song more powerful. .


My daddy worked all night in the Van Lear Coal Mines,

All day long in the field a-hoein' corn,

Mommy rocked the babies at night,

And read The Bible by the coal-oil light,

Everything would start all over come break of morn'.


Norah Jones also uses solid facts to anchor her truth in the song  Broken.


Got blood on his shoes

mud on his brim"

purple hands

alone under a broken street light,

singing silent night,

 

In my lyrics for Message of Hope I also work consciously to create a strong contrast between pain and hope, going from darkness to light and back up the message of "hope" with clear images that give us hope. Images and facts such as "

 

Message of Hope by Kara Johnstad

Life is hard imagery.

when we have no wings to fly away

When night resides in day

when waters are too wide and deep

and the mountain climb to steep

transformed into images of hope

miracle of birth

spring that lies hidden in snow

bread that starts as grain

bird that flies against the winds

a heart that can forgive our sins


So now it is your turn.


 

SONGWRITING GAME:  
EARN THE RIGHT TO BE ABSTRACT BY GATHERING POINTS WITH FACTS

 

Take index cards and write on each card a different abstract line, for example


Life sucks

Life is good

Thank You

So sorry

Such is life

I'm fine

God is good

Easy as pie

Love ya

Rise and Shine


Then give 25 solid images and facts to back up the generalized abstract thought. Go through your song ideas and start to add concrete details. At some point in the process you will be striking a  balance between the poetic and prolific and profound and the facts of life. That is when your music will begin to have a deep truth that is able to touch many.


Enjoy the journey. And share with me and the Voice Your Essence community what works for you!

 

In gratitude and to your continued success.

Kara 

Voice Your Essence Podcast by Kara Johnstad
CLICK IMAGE & LISTE
 
 
 
P.S. Share with us your experience, and feel free to join the Voice Your Essence™ Community over on Facebook: www.facebook.com/voiceyouressence. I'm really excited to hear what you have to say.
Thank you, as always, for tuning in, reading and contributing.

 

  

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEBSITE?
Please do! Just be sure to include this complete blurb with it.
 
TRANSFORMATIONAL SINGER- SONGWRITER AND COACH, KARA JOHNSTAD, IS PASSIONATE ABOUT TRANSFORMING THE WORLD THROUGH THE POWER OF THE HUMAN VOICE: She works one on one with clients to open their voices, write powerful songs and anthems, create CDs and a lifestyle that allows them the freedom to create and live as independent artists. Kara's vision for 2014 is to get her songs into films and documentaries that are in alignment with her vision of global mind global heart.  www.karajohnstad.com  
 
cologne-workshop



 

  

OCTOBER 26 + 27, 2013
Cologne, Germany 
 
 

THE ENERGY BEHIND EMOTIONS
flipping fear into personal power

 Learn more about the Cologne Workshop



A (r)evolutionary performance workshop 
which delivers clear and instant results.  
  • Developed for singers that want to sing SOLO
    and stop holding back. 
  • Learn how to win your audience
    from the minute you walk onto stage. 
  • Whether you are a choir member wanting to take the big  solo in church or an semi-professional singer auditioning for THE VOICE OF GERMANY, you will discover a method that connects you to your authentic power and gets you the applause you deserve.  
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2 FULL DAYS OF  

  • NEW MIND SETS   
  • POWERFUL VOICE TECHNIQUE
    that works!
       
  • SINGING FRONT AND CENTER  
    in a safe and supportive environment.
           
  • AND THE JOY OF TRANSFORMING FEAR AND INSECURITY INTO A MOVING PERFORMANCE: 

  

 

        WORKSHOP 
THE ENERGY BEHIND EMOTIONS 
flipping fear into personal power

 

OCTOBER 26 + 27, 2013  
Saturday & Sunday in Cologne, Germany


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Kara Sutras by Kara Johbstad: Sing Into Your Future
 
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Kara Johnstad is creative visionary, transformational catalyst and a powerfuvoice in the time and age of transition.
 
She is an acclaimed singer/songwriter with more than 100 songs written - all of which she has produced and published under her own indie label, creator of the Voice Your Essence™ Artist Development Program and founder of the 
Voice Your Essence™ Community.
 

  

Leading change agents, healers, personal development speakers and others recognize her as being a unique source of powerful truth and wisdom. As a top voice expert she has helped thousands with her "break-through" voice techniques and shares with us the secrets behind this powerful instrument and the role the human voice plays in fine tuning our mind-body-spirit systems.

Kara connects each and every week with subscribers from around the world via her 
Voice Your Essence™ eZine 

  

If you liked today's issue, you'll also enjoy listening to Kara's soulful music as part of your daily ritual of reconnecting to source or jump onto the next level and experience personally the power of your true authentic voice with Kara Johnstad's 
Voice Your Essence™ Programs
.
Images of Kara by Joerg Grosse-Geldermann
Image: "Misty Lake" by Nick Coombs / www.freedigitalphotos.net
Image: "Chocolate Brownies" by voraorn / www.freedigitalphotos.net
Image: "Male Singers" by phanlop88 / www.freedigitalphotos.net
Image: "Asian Woman Thinking" by Feelart / www.freedigitalphotos.net
CD Cover Art: "Message Of Hope" by Linda Gavin / www.jusum.com
Image: "Young lady singing with Mic" by imagerymajestic / www.freedigitalphotos.net
All other images by Kara Johnstad
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