The Hidden Costs of High Notes- Detangling Music Health Narratives
A talk and performance in the Fine Arts Research Lecture Series (FARLS) in Music
Date: Wednesday, November 19, 2025
Time: 12:30 p.m.
Location: Quance Theatre, Education Building Room 1003, 28 Campus Dr., Saskatoon
Free and open to the public
About this event
Detangling Music Health Narratives While music and wellness are often synonymous, emerging research highlights that being a professional musician can have a negative impact on wellbeing and resilience. Additionally, performers are hesitant to disrupt the dominate health narrative, stopping them from speaking out about their occupational health needs.
This FARLS lecture explores this contradiction by focusing on a rarely examined subset of freelance musicians: opera singers. The presentation discusses the lived-experience of elite-level Canadian opera singers, revealing the non-musical stressors that impact their vocal health and career sustainability, while also highlighting the coping strategies used by these artists to offer insights into how they navigate the complex intersection of artistry, health, and livelihood. This topic converges with broader conversations of music industry standards and expectations; music education and training; arts funding; occupational health; and equity and diversity in the performing arts. It aims to foster a deeper understanding of the realities of being a freelance musician while contributing to broader conversations of performers’ wellness and occupational health.