Free Hayley Westenra by Hayley Westenra

Battle CD of spirituals and, recognising the name, wondered if there would be something interesting on it. I asked the shopkeeper if I could have a listen to the disc. I skimmed through the tracks, stopping at one that grabbed me from the first few notes. It was called'Mary Did You Know?' I loved the song the instant I heard it and I knew that I just had to sing it. I had never really felt that way about a song before. Previously, it had been a more matter-of-fact process, where I would agree that a song suited my voice and then we would record it.
    For the first time, I had formed a real connection with a song and I was very excited about my discovery. I ran down Queen Street back to the hotel, album in hand, very eager to share my news. When the time came to make the final decisions about the Christmas CD, I knew that I wanted to include it more than any other track. It was my first editorial decision and it gave me a big boost in confidence when it became one of the big songs from the album.
    Gaining confidence when you are working with recording-industry professionals is a very gradual process. With every album, I'm getting a little bit more confident. Other tracks on that album included'You'll Never Walk Alone', which became one of my big live concert tracks, and'Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire', which I enjoyed because it was slightly more like a pop song in its style – laid back, while retaining its original warmth and cosiness.
    My Gift to You was the first album on which I sang new material that had been written especially for me, and that made me extremely proud of the opening track,'All I Have to Give'. There were some old favourites, too: 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow', which I perfected as a singing telegram, and what has ended up becoming my signature song, 'Pokarekare Ana'. I was also really excited that the big bosses had let my sister Sophie, who was eleven at the time, sing backing vocals on two of the tracks, 'Do You Hear What I Hear?' and'Through These Eyes'. We are so close that it was nice to be able to have her on the album. However, I was also quite nervous for her as well. During the recording, I enjoyed taking on the role of overprotective big sister, giving her encouragement and what little advice I had.
    The process of making the album was slightly unusual. We were so tight for time that two producers were employed:David Selfe, who had made my first Universal album, andJim Hall. Each was given half of the album to work on. Once I had finished working on all the tracks that Jim had pre-prepared, we still had one song to find. He picked up some songbooks in the studio and started to flick through them trying to find some inspiration. I watched over his shoulder.
    'Oh, I know that one – "Morning Has Broken",' I said, just as he was about to turn the page past it.
    So he picked up his guitar and I sang along as he strummed the accompaniment. We went straight into the
studio and recorded it moments later. It was as quick as that – on the spot. It meant that my second Universal Music album was complete.
    I was starting to get the hang of working in recording studios. I've never been one of those artists who have superstitions or rituals around going into the studio, but I do like to have some healthy snack food to munch on between takes to keep my energy levels up. I always take a little container of chopped vegetables and fruit – strawberries, carrot sticks, celery sticks, that sort of thing. I never eat dairy-based foods before singing because – and here I must apologise for the graphic detail – dairy tends to make you overproduce phlegm, which clogs your throat. There's a risk of your singing with a frog in your throat, which wouldn't be pleasant for either the singer or those people listening to the album.
    These are the sorts of tips that I learned fromDame Malvina Major, who is one of New Zealand's greatest operatic stars. She gave me some lessons and I trusted her opinions completely.