Sarah Beth Pfeifer

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"When I meet with SB, I know I'm where I want to be on my journey with my voice. I've spent many years bypassing my body and my voice for the sake of performance, and the practice of dropping in with SB and meeting myself where I am has allowed me to really slow down, listen, and bring my whole self into singing. This feels like the beginning of something much bigger for me, and I'm looking forward to witnessing and transforming in this sweet community."
- Morgan Bach

"Working with SB to develop a deeper relationship to myself as a vocally expressive being has been a great gift to me over the past few months. Every session has an easy flow, even amidst intense emotion, SB is there carefully witnessing, keeping breath flowing through the room. There is laughter, tears, all kinds of indescribable sensations, alive in our sessions. While it is not “therapy” is it highly therapeutic for me. It is a space I feel I can be held and witnessed wholly, without expectation or pressure. I cant recommend SB enough. I am so grateful to have her as a teacher."
- Lilly Green​

About Sarah Beth

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Sarah Beth (she/they) is a singer, actor, writer, and artist based in New York City. Her acting credits include The Lightning Thief on Broadway and, most recently, Fun Home at Theatreworks Hartford.

SB began studying voice with Marisa in 2016 and became a member of Constellation Chor in 2017. As a part of Constellation, SB performed in Marisa's Desire/Divinity Project, sang with the New York Philharmonic, traveled to Greece to appear in the Vovousa Music Festival and met weekly at Judson Memorial Church to practice and discern the Core Sounding improvisation practice. SB's deep dives into both of these branches of Marisa's work has had a deeply profound impact on her relationship to singing, art making, and humanity at large. SB is thrilled to be apprenticing Marisa and gaining the knowledge and practical experience that will allow her to help others discover the freedom and joy this work has brought her.​

From Sarah

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"The truth is, all of us have an expressive vocal mansion inside us - inseparable from our selves. Sure, some houses may have a few more rooms, or a wild firehouse pole into the basement. Some houses are more modest, but even those are filled with as many rooms as we have emotions and thoughts. And most all of us will see renovations and changes with time. But we can’t have access to all the rooms, or all the nooks and crannies, until we clear away some clutter. Some of that clutter, then, is physical tension. 

Another “clutter” that can cloud our sound-making is the idea of “singing.” That might be a concept of a “correct” posture, a “powerful” voice, sounding “pretty,” “perfect” or all sorts of idealized versions of singing. This is like having a mansion but living your whole life in one room. Unsinging habituates us to releasing our expectations. Stop listening for a sound. Experience the possibility of all sorts of singing - go through all the rooms and find every nook and cranny. It’s inexhaustible! And here’s where the work of “nonsinging” begins.

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The work is never complete. All homes need maintenance for rusty hinges, peeling paint, etc. Sometimes a hail storm comes through and breaks a window, or a room starts to feel musty and ready for redecorating. So we come back to the work - ever freer from, ever freer to."