Teaching Philosophy
First and foremost, music is an amazing gift, and I approach teaching with that constantly in mind. Independent of all the difficulties in life, those who enter my studio should know that for a brief time they can focus completely on creating something special and beautiful. I hope to encourage not only the innate love of music in those I teach, but also an appreciation for its ability to transcend.
I feel strongly that there is always more to learn, and it is that never-ending desire for knowledge that drives great educators to continually improve. Learning should be a life-long process, and every teacher should perpetually remain a student to increase knowledge and thus increase their ability to teach. As most things in my life, I approach vocal instruction with a balance of seriousness and humor. Learning goes easier when things are taken seriously, but not too seriously. I encourage a learning environment that is genuine enough to give straightforward criticism, but light enough to not hurt feelings.
Honesty, authenticity, and sincerity are of utmost importance in the teacher/student relationship. I feel that relationship should be one that is mutually enriching, and that cannot happen without clear and open communication. I believe that both criticism and praise should be immediate and constructive. A predominately negative teacher can cause discouragement or even abandonment. An overly flattering teacher can cause a false sense of confidence and thus their compliments carry very little sway. By balancing these two, a good voice instructor can cultivate true confidence by giving both praise and criticism with honest and sincere assessments.
Understanding the needs of each student is paramount among the requirements of being a good teacher. Learning a student's history, experience, goals, and aspirations helps me to adjust my teaching style to best help the student. For some students a more scientific approach to vocal production is most helpful. For others using metaphors and conceptual descriptions help most. Some students need constant challenges and pressure while others need space and room to grow. Whatever the best approach may be can only be discovered with effort to get everyone on the same page.
In this day and age with the constraints of time and money, the voice teacher has minimal exposure to his or her students. Because of this, the hour or two a week that they spend together must be used to give the student the tools needed to succeed, first in the practice room and in turn on the stage. While I believe a student should depend on his or her teacher for guidance in the learning process, it is ultimately the student’s responsibility to learn and grow. Despite environmental factors that play a role in each of our lives, we are individually responsible for its course. By providing each of my students with the tools to succeed, in other words teaching them how to continually teach themselves, I empower them to take that responsibility upon themselves. I support each of my students, yet at the same time I make it very clear that without their own personal effort no true or lasting progress can be achieved.
I subscribe to an altered approach to the commonly used motto, Practice makes Perfect. I believe that only Perfect Practice makes Perfect, or more often, Practice makes Permanent. The approach we take in the practice room will consistently become apparent on the stage.
I feel vocal "warm-ups" should be more properly referred to as "technical exercises of aspects of good vocal production that are taken out of context to allow specific attention toward each individual aspect." That would make for a overly long name, so "warm-ups" work fine. I feel that warm-ups are to singing as grammar exercises are to poetry. They allow the singer to focus on and work to improve one specific aspect of good singing, such as legato, articulation, resonance, breathing, etc, without being distracted by the words, music, and drama of a song. After a proper warm-up, it is important to then incorporate the skills worked on in warm-ups within the song repertoire to see them applied in context.
Music is another form of communication. And vocal music is set apart from other forms of music in its unique ability to communicate not only through sound and pitch but also through words. The relationship between the words and the music is of utmost importance. I feel that good singing is built upon the foundation of proper vocal technique, but I feel great singing builds upon that foundation to convey a message and connect with an audience. Singing is so much more than the sounds that come out of one’s mouth. It is the expression of mind, heart, and soul conveyed through the voice and body of the performer.
Singers must learn to rely on the feeling of healthy singing and not the sound of it. The aural feedback one receives can vary wildly according to the venue, and being solely dependent on the sound can be quite dangerous. For the unprepared singer, vocal damage can occur when singing in larger venues that do not give the same kind of immediate aural feedback as the practice room or voice studio. This self-awareness of how it feels comes with practice, external feedback, and constant encouragement of proper vocal production. Only with consistent correct singing will one learn how it feels and develop the ability to sense what is not only healthy but beautiful singing.
Overall I truly believe studying voice can help anyone improve. The ability to sing is a combination of work, training, and a portion of that divinity allotted to mankind, often referred to as talent. We have no control over who receives a greater portion of that talent, but the work and the training are completely in our hands. Singing is a process of finding one's voice, and with an individual's hard work combined with the caring guidance of a good instructor, it will be an enjoyable, worthwhile journey.
I feel strongly that there is always more to learn, and it is that never-ending desire for knowledge that drives great educators to continually improve. Learning should be a life-long process, and every teacher should perpetually remain a student to increase knowledge and thus increase their ability to teach. As most things in my life, I approach vocal instruction with a balance of seriousness and humor. Learning goes easier when things are taken seriously, but not too seriously. I encourage a learning environment that is genuine enough to give straightforward criticism, but light enough to not hurt feelings.
Honesty, authenticity, and sincerity are of utmost importance in the teacher/student relationship. I feel that relationship should be one that is mutually enriching, and that cannot happen without clear and open communication. I believe that both criticism and praise should be immediate and constructive. A predominately negative teacher can cause discouragement or even abandonment. An overly flattering teacher can cause a false sense of confidence and thus their compliments carry very little sway. By balancing these two, a good voice instructor can cultivate true confidence by giving both praise and criticism with honest and sincere assessments.
Understanding the needs of each student is paramount among the requirements of being a good teacher. Learning a student's history, experience, goals, and aspirations helps me to adjust my teaching style to best help the student. For some students a more scientific approach to vocal production is most helpful. For others using metaphors and conceptual descriptions help most. Some students need constant challenges and pressure while others need space and room to grow. Whatever the best approach may be can only be discovered with effort to get everyone on the same page.
In this day and age with the constraints of time and money, the voice teacher has minimal exposure to his or her students. Because of this, the hour or two a week that they spend together must be used to give the student the tools needed to succeed, first in the practice room and in turn on the stage. While I believe a student should depend on his or her teacher for guidance in the learning process, it is ultimately the student’s responsibility to learn and grow. Despite environmental factors that play a role in each of our lives, we are individually responsible for its course. By providing each of my students with the tools to succeed, in other words teaching them how to continually teach themselves, I empower them to take that responsibility upon themselves. I support each of my students, yet at the same time I make it very clear that without their own personal effort no true or lasting progress can be achieved.
I subscribe to an altered approach to the commonly used motto, Practice makes Perfect. I believe that only Perfect Practice makes Perfect, or more often, Practice makes Permanent. The approach we take in the practice room will consistently become apparent on the stage.
I feel vocal "warm-ups" should be more properly referred to as "technical exercises of aspects of good vocal production that are taken out of context to allow specific attention toward each individual aspect." That would make for a overly long name, so "warm-ups" work fine. I feel that warm-ups are to singing as grammar exercises are to poetry. They allow the singer to focus on and work to improve one specific aspect of good singing, such as legato, articulation, resonance, breathing, etc, without being distracted by the words, music, and drama of a song. After a proper warm-up, it is important to then incorporate the skills worked on in warm-ups within the song repertoire to see them applied in context.
Music is another form of communication. And vocal music is set apart from other forms of music in its unique ability to communicate not only through sound and pitch but also through words. The relationship between the words and the music is of utmost importance. I feel that good singing is built upon the foundation of proper vocal technique, but I feel great singing builds upon that foundation to convey a message and connect with an audience. Singing is so much more than the sounds that come out of one’s mouth. It is the expression of mind, heart, and soul conveyed through the voice and body of the performer.
Singers must learn to rely on the feeling of healthy singing and not the sound of it. The aural feedback one receives can vary wildly according to the venue, and being solely dependent on the sound can be quite dangerous. For the unprepared singer, vocal damage can occur when singing in larger venues that do not give the same kind of immediate aural feedback as the practice room or voice studio. This self-awareness of how it feels comes with practice, external feedback, and constant encouragement of proper vocal production. Only with consistent correct singing will one learn how it feels and develop the ability to sense what is not only healthy but beautiful singing.
Overall I truly believe studying voice can help anyone improve. The ability to sing is a combination of work, training, and a portion of that divinity allotted to mankind, often referred to as talent. We have no control over who receives a greater portion of that talent, but the work and the training are completely in our hands. Singing is a process of finding one's voice, and with an individual's hard work combined with the caring guidance of a good instructor, it will be an enjoyable, worthwhile journey.
