Vidya Lutchman – Singer Songwriter Musician – Updates Releases Live Shows

I’m having surgery! Due to medical reasons, it turns out that very soon I will be going under the knife (and hammer) in the form of oral surgery followed by braces. The process is long and daunting (30 months of treatment) but after some alarming discoveries about my dental health I decided that it must be done.

After consulting with my orthodontist I learned that in order to widen my narrow jaw I would have to undergo surgery where they literally break the bone! Yikes! The “bone” being my skull. Funnily enough though, what scared me the most was not the surgery itself but how it could potentially effect my singing voice. Unfortunately for me there are no known cases of singers who chose to undergo this kind of surgery for that simple reason – they were too scared of how it would effect their singing. So, I had to rely solely on the surgeon’s educated guess that it should not change my voice.

Right now I have little rubber rings called “spacers” that have been wedged in between either ends of my second to last molars on my palate. The spacers are there to help create space between those teeth so that they can insert an appliance similar to a retainer called an Expander. Then comes my bone-breaking surgery and braces.

Since there is no real information out there about how this kind of procedure impacts on singers and performers alike I figured it would be a good idea to document and write about my experience for others to perhaps use as a resource.

Brace yourself, the ride is going to be a bumpy one but at least it will be filled with music! Ha!

As with most anything you can always rely on one thing and that is that you always have to be prepared for change. Many bands go through countless rearrangements and reconfigurations usually in the form of gaining or losing a band member.

Earlier this week I received the news from my good friend Kam who sang harmonies with me in the band that she was dropping out. I can’t say it came as much as a surprise since she has a lot going on in her life and even though I enjoyed her time with us I knew it was limited.

That said the band is still moving on strong. We’re working hard on some new songs and will be adding a new instrument to the mix, keys/synth. Andy, our lead guitarist will be taking on double duty and I think we’re all very excited about the new progression of our sound.

Sometimes changes make you realize your full potential. With the band we’re making the most of what we’ve got and getting more creative with our resources.

Vidya

It’s only been a little shy of 5 months time since the band and I have been playing small cafes around the city so you can imagine our excitement at receiving the opportunity to open for The Webb Sisters at Club Soda.

Before the show as we were reveling in our very own dressing room, Hattie of The Webb Sisters knocked on our door and sat down with us for a little chit chat. I absolutely fell in love with her outgoing, warm personality. A truly genuine human being. She even complimented our vocal harmonies which means so much coming from such a talent as herself.

It’s not everyday that you get to see your name up in lights on the marquee (even if it is misspelled – Vidya Luchtman!) Hey, I’ll take that :)

Vidya