Pedagogy, Psychology, Vocal Health

Warming Up to Mindfulness: Using Vocal Warm-Ups to Calm Anxiety and Love Your Voice // Kelly Hoppenjans

Why do we warm up? Some might say we do this for our vocal health, to exercises our voices, to prepare them for a long day of singing and talking. Some might use warm-ups as tools for technical mastery, to work out issues that arise in repertoire. Perhaps some of us warm up (or say we did) because our voice teachers always told us we … Continue reading Warming Up to Mindfulness: Using Vocal Warm-Ups to Calm Anxiety and Love Your Voice // Kelly Hoppenjans

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Finding Songs, Theory and Aural Skills, Vocal Health

You gotta fight… for your right… to sing in the right key? // Jo Sear

I’ve been a lead singer in a variety of Pop/Rock/Soul covers bands for the past 27 years, and a teacher of Popular Music styles for 16 years. After such a long time inhabiting that world, very little shocks me these days. But I recently experienced an unusual and very pleasant surprise when I joined the Soul function band I currently sing with: Before we started … Continue reading You gotta fight… for your right… to sing in the right key? // Jo Sear

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Private Studio Teaching, The Business of Teaching

Time is Your Brain Container // Meredith Colby

Most voice teachers and coaches say that we charge [whatever] an hour. When we think about raising our prices we tend to think of that increase based on a per-hour or per-lesson basis. But is that “face time” with a client really all that goes into a lesson?  We know that there is a lot that goes into running our studios. There’s a lot behind … Continue reading Time is Your Brain Container // Meredith Colby

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Artist Development, Individual Style, Psychology

Heroes // Kat Reinhert

I was reading this book recently about creating your dream life and one of the exercises in it was to write down your heroes. And I just stared at the page. For probably about an hour. Racking my brain. And then I cried. A lot.  I don’t have any heroes. At least not in the traditional sense I understand. I wasn’t brought up being asked … Continue reading Heroes // Kat Reinhert

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It Doesn’t Matter How Smart You Are // Meredith Colby

How to Help All Your Students Learn More Easily and Faster It’s happened to you as a voice teacher. It may have happened to you as a voice student yourself.  You’ve asked your student for a new or modified behavior or skill, or recommended treating a phrase a certain way, or introduced a technique.  Your student tries, and it doesn’t work. The student immediately does … Continue reading It Doesn’t Matter How Smart You Are // Meredith Colby

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Audio & Sound Production, Sound Production, Studio Singing

Vocal Production for Singers: Using Layering and Effects to Shape Your Sound (Part 2) // Kelly Hoppenjans

In the first part of this series, we discussed the different vocal layering and arranging techniques common in pop vocal production, in order to help singers produce their own vocal arrangements. Just as crucial to a successful vocal arrangement are the effects a producer uses. A judiciously applied reverb, delay, distortion, or autotune can affect the style and overall sound of the vocal, and make … Continue reading Vocal Production for Singers: Using Layering and Effects to Shape Your Sound (Part 2) // Kelly Hoppenjans

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Artist Development, Individual Style, Songwriting

The Delicate Balance of Technique and Artistry // Laura Donohue

I’m fascinated with the complicated relationship between Technique and Artistry, in part because I strive to help my students stay connected to (or discover) their own artistry. But the other reason is personal: as an artist and songwriter, myself, I feel as though I am often chasing wildness.  I have an insatiable appetite for learning; at the same time, I frequently find myself seeking freedom … Continue reading The Delicate Balance of Technique and Artistry // Laura Donohue

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Theory and Aural Skills

Amping Up Your Ear Training To An Eleven // Wendy Jones

The importance of having a good ear and excellent rhythm is of utmost importance in any style of music but in my experience, the depth of harmonic and rhythmic understanding required to sing commercial music has proven more intense than in my classical studies. Therefore, I feel it is imperative that the teacher of commercial voice train vocalists to take a deep dive into harmony … Continue reading Amping Up Your Ear Training To An Eleven // Wendy Jones

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