Carol McAndrew

"We take our music seriously, there is no doubt, but, after 8 years of being a voxette, we have created a Vox personality that the three of us relate to and rely on. It has seen me through some of life’s most challenging episodes.
The music of Hildegard once measured the hours of a day in the abbey. The chant was their communication with the Divine. Hildegard heard the music within and dictated it and taught it to her sisters for worship and praise of God—Creator, Mary—Mother from whom the Son came, the Holy Spirit, and the rest of the celestial hierarchy, including, martyrs, saints, widows, innocents, St. Ursula, and the Church.
Today we approach Hildegard’s music and poetry for perhaps other reasons. We celebrate her music, and love performing it. It doesn’t make for good background music, though, as our arrangements are clever and assertive. It demands much of a singer. We sing her music because it needs to be sung and heard. It needs to be un-caged so to affect the singer and the listener as it will."

Carol McAndrew (formerly Carol Sahakian Grady) graduated from the University of Michigan with degrees in Music Education (B.M.) and Vocal Performance (M.M.).  There was further study at the Banff School of Fine Arts, a season with the Ohio Light Opera, gigs in Chicago and then a move to Grand Rapids, MI and then to Holland, on beautiful Lake Michigan.  Carol has a passion for the use and pedagogy of the voice, along with The Alexander Technique and the Andover Educators (a group of dedicated teachers bettering the techniques of singers and instrumentalists everywhere).  She also helped found The School of  Cantor Training in the Grand Rapids Diocese, as well as teaches cantor all around the country for the National Pastoral Musicians.  Carol works full-time as the Director of Music at Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church in Holland, MI.  She has 3 children of her own, 2 step-children, and husband, Bill.