Statement of Teaching Philosophy

 

To teach singing is both an incredible privilege and a tremendous responsibility. A singer’s instrument is their entire body, making singing a uniquely personal discipline that requires courage and vulnerability from all those who pursue it. I am acutely aware of the fact that my job as a teacher is not just to help students hone their vocal technique, but to help them develop a healthy relationship with their voice and a mindset with which they can face the rigors of our industry. I have been fortunate to work with teachers that have both instructed me in efficient vocal technique and helped me to grow as an artist and person, and the opportunity to be such a positive figure in others’ lives has been my life’s most meaningful pursuit. I will always love performing and have enjoyed the development of my performance career alongside my teaching career, but my greatest passion lies in teaching.

My approach to voice teaching is based in the idea that singing, by its very nature, requires us to integrate a multitude of different concepts. We must perform with efficient vocal technique, clear and idiomatic diction, a compelling dramatic presentation, and expressive musical choices. With so many different things to think about, it is only natural that many singers tend to overthink and fixate on various aspects of their singing, preventing them from being fully invested in their performances and practice sessions. While it is important to be able to isolate the various elements of singing in lessons and in the practice room, we are ultimately expected to combine all these elements in performance. I believe that the dramatic, linguistic, and expressive aspects of singing can almost always be executed in a way that serves the technique, and, by integrating these ideas, a singer can accomplish as many things as possible while thinking about as few as possible. An additional benefit of this approach is that it becomes virtually impossible to teach any two students in the same way. Though many aspects of vocal technique are quite objective, they manifest differently in each student and are further affected by each student’s individual approach to diction and acting. When viewing each student’s voice as a unique and integrated whole, it is never tempting to take them through a set routine for their voice type. It instead opens the door to spontaneity and creativity on both my and the student’s part, as each piece presents different issues, and different opportunities for the student to make new discoveries about their voice.

Though the importance of artistic expression in singing cannot be overstated, I believe that healthy and efficient vocal technique should be the foundation of any singer’s voice. Every student must learn the basics of support, registration, and posture, as it is difficult to sing expressively without them. My technical approach in voice lessons is highly kinesthetic, but this work is bolstered by a solid knowledge of vocal anatomy and voice science. Every student should have a working knowledge of their voice, such as knowing the basics of how breath works and what their soft palate is, but translating this knowledge to their performances requires them to feel these concepts in action as they sing. I therefore place a significant emphasis on exercises that actuate the various physical processes of singing without the student having to think much as they execute them. This approach translates smoothly from lessons to the practice room and encourages the development of muscle memory and efficient practice habits. I always talk to new students about building their “toolbox”, or an array of exercises and techniques that they know will achieve a certain physical result. While they also need the background knowledge that singing through a plugged nose can help access palatal space and eliminate nasality by blocking the nasal passage, when they are in the practice room, they simply need to notice that they are singing with nasality and reach into their toolbox for the exercise they know will correct it. As students progress in lessons, they become increasingly adept at diagnosing their own vocal faults, so discoveries are being made in the practice room as well as in lessons. My belief in a holistic and integrated approach to teaching also applies to purely technical work, as there are many exercises, such as SOVTs, that can simultaneously achieve multiple vocal goals.

The voice is unique among instruments in that it is inextricably linked to language, and this speech-singing connection is a significant part of my approach to teaching, regardless of musical style. Virtually every aspect of vocal technique can also be executed in speech, and approaching a piece of music from the position of the spoken sound can simplify the student’s mental process and allow them to experience vocal technique in a more organic way that can be easily translated to the sung sound. Speech can also be used to bridge gaps between vocal styles and provide students with a methodology that is equally efficient in classical, musical theater, pop, and rock singing. While the registral differences between genres are of undeniable importance, one can approach any piece of vocal music from the position of speech, as skilled composers almost always set the text in a way that reinforces the technique of their specific musical style. Simply put, text lies at the heart of everything we do as singers, and to deepen our understanding of it is to deepen our understanding of our art form as a whole.

While I am quite confident in by abilities as a teacher, and I believe that the success of my students justifies this confidence, I am also aware of the fact that I still have much to learn. I plan to further develop my abilities by applying for workshops such as the NATS Intern Program, and by continuing to pursue my performance career to gain more real-world singing experience that I can then pass on to my students. My journey of growth as a teaching artist will never truly be complete, and each new teaching experience has only deepened my dedication to my craft and my students. I view any challenges that await me in my career, however daunting they may be, as opportunities to learn. Whatever the future has in store for me, I will wake up each day grateful for the chance to share my love of singing with others.