“When people talk, listen completely. Most people never listen.”
― Ernest Hemingway

Hear: Let the sounds arrive at your ears.

Then listen. Hearing is biological. Real listening takes effort.

Consider the sounds of the instruments; the EQ, the reverb, the effects, the panning.
Study the vocals; the timbre, the pitch, the emotion.
Use good studio headphones, monitors, then try your car stereo to analyse what your audience will hear.

Stand before another human being and really hear them.
Consider the words. What is unsaid? Notice the tone and inflections. See the facial expression and body language.

To be listened to is to be valued.
To be heard and ignored is a death.

Does someone ignore your words?
Past hurts build walls. People don’t listen well through walls.
Sometimes you can help them over their walls, sometimes they are happier hiding behind them.

Ears are for hearing. Listening takes ears AND heart.

This beautiful painting is ‘Untitled’ by Sian Brown.
Sian is a singer-songwriter who has recently found painting as another way to sing a song.