Page 14 - 2020 Classical Singer Magazine January Summer Program Issue

OVERCOMING
ADVERSITY
The Inspiring and Intelligent Heidi Moss
By Michelle Latour
Performing arts industries can be riddled with vanity. Learn how one singer used her scientific background to find healing when her looks were suddenly taken away.
14 Classical Singer / Jan/Feb 2020
Imagine having a stellar year as a singer— advancing in prestigious voice competitions, participating in Young Artist Programs, and having your professional opera debut. Then imagine having it all taken away by a severe and painful injury. Soprano Heidi Moss was stricken with Bell’s palsy, which left the right side of her face permanently partially paralyzed. This month she shares her inspiring story about how she fought her injury and returned to the stage.
What adversity did you overcome?
In 2007, at the height of a promising professional singing career, I came down with a rare, seventh cranial nerve injury commonly known as Bell’s palsy. My particular case was the most severe, resulting in complete destruction of the facial nerve. Eighty-five percent of cases heal completely, and 14 percent of cases with only small residuals. Then there was me, the lucky one percent with damage just as great as if the nerve was cut in half through surgery or shot with a gun.
Although it is more known for muscle control of the face, thus making facial expressions challenging, there are also other muscles that are impacted. For instance, I have to tape my eye closed every night to protect the cornea, and I can choke periodically due to swallowing difficulties, and my larynx can become asymmetrical.