Voice FAQsHow do I find a private teacher?Article by Robert EdwinHow do you find a good singing teacher?How do you match your needs to the teacher's skills? What questions do you ask? These questions and more are answered in an article written by Robert Edwin. What are voice lessons like?Voice lessons are like going to an old school dentist! Scary and Painful!No, they’re not. In fact, going to voice lessons should be like getting to go to your favorite class ever; a teacher you love and a subject you love. It’s your money, don’t settle of anything less than the best. The format of most lessons are ½ vocal warm-up and strengthening exercises, 1/2 working on a song. However, there are other options; for instance, you can request your teacher work with you on harmonizing, music theory, sight reading and ear training. Another option is to spend all of your lesson on warm-ups and exercises but don’t let this happen every week - you need experience transferring the knowledge to songs. Some teachers do a lot of body and posture work, citing expertise in Body Mapping, The Alexander Technique or another body awareness method. These are very useful skills and well worth working on for some of your lessons. Other teachers do lots of coaching; language skills, performance critiques and blocking a song. That’s great too, but make sure they are teaching you how to sing better, too. Can these CDs replace voice lessons?Singing 101 and the Vocal Workout CD will be useful tools for as long as you’ve got pipes to sing with, but they fall short of going to private lessons. You need expert ears to hear what you are doing and guide you in your development. It would be similar to taking video golf lessons; it is a great start but eventually you need to see a golf pro to find out what specific areas you need to strengthen. Besides, going to the golf pro means you are actually on the course, and going to a voice teacher means you are actually singing for someone, maybe even in a recital.Can I take private lessons from Nancy?Well, first off, there are most likely a bunch of great teachers in your area; don’t expect a magic bullet from Nancy. Instead, ask friends who take lessons, search the internet and the yellow pages. NATS is a great web resource to find a voice teacher.That said, if you will be visiting Seattle and think you could really benefit from a "one-time-only" lesson, please contact the studio via the feedback form to check Nancy’s availability. Be very specific about dates and times that would work. And finally, if you live in the Seattle area and want to be considered as a regular student of Nancy’s, send your request via the feedback form. There’s usually a waiting list but it is worth a shot. Where do I buy sheet music?My favorite stores are:
Burning questions...Do you have any burning questions regarding singing? You can ask Nancy here.Nancy will not be available to respond until May 1, 2008. |