WollCon’s Head of Voice is just as much at home on the stage as she is in the classroom.
Award winning singer-songwriter Trish Delaney-Brown is a rare blend of craft and art. Whether delivering her own compositions or unique renderings of jazz standards, Trish finds the song’s heart and communicates its message with clarity, purity, purpose, and joy. She’s always been attracted to an organic, ‘real’ sound and lyrical melodies, and has a passion for jazz singing.
“I love songwriting and improvising, which is essentially songwriting in real time. Slamming out an AC/DC number has never felt like a good fit for me.”
While she’s tackled everything from music theatre, opera and cabaret to jazz ensembles, big bands and a cappella – Trish knows jazz is her home.
“Jazz has this interplay and balance of form and freedom, a swing feel, scat, vocalese, the voice as an instrument – all these elements just really appeal to me.”
She was a founding member of ‘The Idea of North’ (TION) which remains a highlight of her career. An Australian a cappella vocal ensemble established in Canberra in 1993, they won the 2010 and 2013 ARIA Award for Best Jazz Album. The self-managed group taught Trish and its other founding members (Nick Begbie, Meg Corson and Andrew Piper) everything about building your own success in the music industry.
“We learnt how to negotiate the shift from friends who sang together for fun, to friends who were also business partners. We did everything from venue liaison, booking gigs, business planning, marketing, setting up study tours, applying for grants, as well as rehearsing like crazy, arranging, writing and recorded songs. It was an incredible training ground.”
Trish is extremely proud of her 15-year contribution to TION but there is an occasional twinge of regret she wasn’t part of the ensemble for the Aria Award winning album, although her husband was.
“It is a pet peeve of mine that my husband scored an ARIA award with TION and I didn’t! Their first album after I left, featured instrumentalists and my hubby Duncan Brown played bass. It was a big decision not to return after the birth of my first child, but it was the right one for me. I know my time with the group was instrumental in TION’s success.”
Older and wiser, Trish’s vulnerability now sits comfortably with her on and off the stage, her songwriting is honest, and when she performs she aims to build an authentic connection with the audience.
“My experiences and the way I articulate them in song are unique, but they are also universal. We know how important hearing our stories is to us as humans, and I love being a conduit for that.”
Trish is always keen to share what she has learnt over her many years as a singer, songwriter, voice teacher and coach. She’s also loving the LYHRA experience (a vocal trio pictured below), where she continues to perform regularly, as well as with her quintet (the TDB Quintet).
“After a few years of not performing (when my kids were little), it’s a total joy having that performance energy back in my life. I’m also loving prioritising my own music – be that with my quintet, LYHRA, or with Bill, or other gigs that come along. I’ve developed this strong desire to just do it! Life is short and ‘if not now, then when?’ … keeps ringing in my head.”
