We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jan Shapiro a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Jan , looking forward to learning from your journey. You’ve got an amazing story and before we dive into that, let’s start with an important building block. Where do you get your work ethic from?
I believe I got my work ethic from my father. He grew up very poor and had nothing. He was a World War. II hero . When he arrived back home , his mother had passed away . He had no place to stay and stayed at first with his older brother Leon. On the Gi Bill, he was eligible to go to college. He went one semester at University of Missouri , Columbia Mo. But with the encouragement of his older brother , came back to his hometown of Festus Mo. and joined his brother in the scrap metal business, ” Shapiro Brothers” . As a little girl I did not understand much about what my father did but I know he got up early every morning and worked late into the evening hours. He and his brother also worked on Saturdays as well and sometimes over the whole weekend. All through my childhood, I remember my father working hard and he instilled that in all of his children. We could have fun but first there was work -helping our mother with daily chores. My father felt that if you wish to become successful , you had to work at it . It was not an option to just ‘sit there’ an wait for something good to happen.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
I am a professional vocalist/musician and vocal instructor .
Having retired in May 2017 from the Berklee College of Music in Boston after more than three decades on campus, Ms. Shapiro is renowned for her expertise as both a vocalist and voice teacher. In addition to her tenure as a teacher, she chaired the voice department between 1997 and 2010. During this time, Ms. Shapiro took a special interest in jazz vocal history, which she studied intently beginning in the late 1980s with the assistance of 1988-90 National Endowment grant.
She continues as a professional performing vocalist since 1971 and as a private vocal instructor since 1978.
After serving as Voice Department Chair at Berklee College of Music, I resumed full time teaching at Berklee until my retirement from Berklee , summer 2017. When I retired from Berklee College of Music , Boston, I decided to return to my hometown of St. Louis. I teach privately in my home studio as well as teach adjunct at one of the local St. Louis Colleges.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Three qualities that shaped my future were : persistence , discipline and hard work If there is something you really want to do you can dream it but you also have to put it into action.This is not always easy but one must ‘keep your eyes on the prize’ . While you are aspiring to fulfill your dreams , you may need to work at least one job ( if not two) that is not in the field you wish but necessary for you to survive.
Persistence is the key – stay steady with your goal.
Before we go, maybe you can tell us a bit about your parents and what you feel was the most impactful thing they did for you?
My parents provided me with a solid education. They supported my professional endeavors . But I had to do it myself –they did not ‘hand me money’ ,hire people to help me,etc .. I had to find my own way by myself and work for for the goals and career I wanted. Sometimes that meant I worked more than one job to pay my rent, Sometimes that mean working a ‘day’ job while still pursuing a career in music.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.janshapiro.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jan.shapiro.56
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jan-shapiro-374205288/
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/jan-shapiro-740600507
