A soprano finds cathartic release sharing her vocal gift
This week we welcome Tina Siganporia, a New York City soprano who performs gospel, R&B and musical theater. Tina has sang with groups including Lavender Light Gospel Choir, The Black, and the People of All Colors Lesbian and Gay Gospel Choir. While she doesn’t qualify for many of those designations, she is welcomed as an ally. With Indian parents in an interreligious marriage, she was raised as a Parsi in the Zoroastrian faith, which is an ancient Persian religion. Professionally, she works as a psychology researcher, and is now earning a master’s degree in mental health counseling at Brooklyn College, on track to become a licensed therapist.
Tina says: “I think the intersection between my work as an artist and my profession as a clinician is definitely something I want to keep exploring. As a person, I do feel more connected with my emotions when I’m in song. I feel like there are things that I am saying that I am not able to articulate in words or everyday. When I sing, I really want to tell MY story, the true story of what I’m dealing with or going through at that time. My mom has been chronically ill for years now and I’ve been coping with it a lot the last year, especially — just coming to terms with my grief. At my last solo show, I went through the seasons of life or of the year –Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter, in that order. And my finale song, “Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child,” (a black gospel spiritual) allowed me to go musically to places I was unable to go while speaking with others.
“I’ve been through a lot of bad relationships, a lot of being lied to, or heartbreak, or feeling used. I realized a part of me was still angry about it. I decided to create a show depicting my past experiences but I wanted it to tell a more broad story, as so many women and so many people in general have been victims of terrible exes or terrible boyfriends – terrible men. The show became about dismantling the patriarchy, being against transphobia, homophobia and domestic violence in our society. It was called “Boys Will be Boys – Held Accountable” and was presented at the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music. The show included around 10 other vocalists, dancers and spoken word artists, all sharing their own stories through their performances. I also sing around the city with Sing for Hope and other pianists. We perform at the painted pianos around the city and at the Oculus.”
Check out more of Tina’s work on her Instagram
