Becoming a soloist - Voice Lessons or Vocal Coaching?

[MandyKate]

Hi everyone,

As I am new here and this is my first post, I'll begin with a little bit of background. I have been passionate about singing since I was very young and sang in my school choirs from third grade straight through to the end of high school; transitioning along the way from first soprano/descant all the way down to second alto. After finishing high school, I became part of the alto section of a semi-professional 180-voice choir which performs at least once a month. It has been a wonderful experience which has taught me a lot, but aside from that I have no formal music training, nor was I raised in a musical environment (there are no other singers or musicians in my family).

The choir that I sing in performs primarily large, classical works, and between choral parts I find myself enraptured by the beauty of the soloists' performances, thinking, "If only that were me." Well, I've decided that it's high time to stop wishing and go out and try to MAKE it me.

Here's the thing: I've had a few solos here and there in the past, which were executed with correct pitch and timing, but which are always vastly overshadowed by other solos in the performance. I have been told many times that my voice is sweet, and that I have very good pitch, but as far as I can see, those are the things that mark me as a good chorister; NOT a soloist. In short, I find my voice lacks any kind of character to distinguish it from anyone else.

Of course, this is unsurprising, as my ONLY musical background is in choral singing, where I have been taught all along to listen, blend, and support. No matter who I sing with, people say "Wow, you guys sound great together!" Singing harmony for many years has taught me to blend my voice in perfectly and adjust to whomever I am harmonizing to. This is a BIG problem for someone wanting to branch out into solo work. (Unless, of course, I was wanting to specialize in singing babies to sleep. For the record; I don't.)

So, back to my mission to become a soloist. Here is where I need advice:

Ideally I would do both, but since affording both would be too much for me, which would better serve my purpose: Voice lessons or Vocal coaching? If voice lessons, how can I decide which kind of lessons would be best for me?

In both cases, how do I go about finding a good teacher/coach? What kind of questions should I be asking to make sure they're really qualified? I don't mind paying more for better quality instruction, but at the same time how can I make sure that I'm getting my money's worth, since I have no standard for comparison? How much, if any amount, is TOO much to be paying?

If you can offer advice on any part of this, it would be greatly appreciated, since the whole concept has me completely overwhelmed.

Thanks in advance. =)

Also, I apologize if this is in the wrong section. I wasn't sure whether this belonged more in here or in performance.

[VideoHere]

may i make a suggestion?

perhaps you need define your goal when you say you'd like to be a soloist?

any specific genre?

[madittenber]

Videohere's question is kinda what I was thinking. I started voice lessons with someone who is a great singer in his own right but he didn't teach 'rock' techniques so I got bored and moved on. It took me a while to find the right coach. I think you need to think about what genre you want to sing and look for coaches from that realm. I am sure that other coaches can help but finding one that you relate to well will be a motivating factor for you.

There are quite a few people on this board that are coaches. I am sure if you go through the past threads you gain knowledge on the coaches and some of the pedagogy's.

[MandyKate]

Before anything else, I'd just like to find my OWN voice, as opposed to my CHOIR voice. As I said before, I feel that my voice is lacking any kind of distinction or character, since choral singing has trained it all out of me.

I'd most like to become a classical soloist since that's what I best know - particularly in baroque music, though the crazy runs often give me trouble. More than that though, I'm hoping that some kind of training - be it lessons or coaching - could at least give me a better idea of what I AM suited to sing. I'm not super hung up on any particular genre just yet.

[joshual]

finding your own voice will take time.

Get a classical vocal teacher ' baroque oriented' because it's a particular style in classical.

Do NOT let decide someone to tell you what you are suited to sing. Decide what YOU want to sing.

Now on the classical side, you must know if you were singing on the tenor or bass side.

I've always hated those classifications, it can suit a style of singing in a style of music but that's all.

Choose what you want to do and the voice will follow ;-)

[Marcus]

joshual have a really good point - don't let anyone tell you what you are suited to sing. Decide for yourself, and be determined. If you have goals and work hard you will reach results.

And as for being a good soloist: listen to and watch your favourite singers and try to figure out what you think makes them good, and what it is that makes them special. You shouldn't copy a certain singer though, just let them inspire you to find your own voice and your own way of expressing things. It's not all in the technique, it's more to singing than that to entertain and enthrall an audience. And it's also very individual what one thinks is a good soloist, so believe in yourself and your abilities!

Read up on everything you can get your hands on, watch dvd:s, listen to recordings. Even if it covers genres you are not really into at the moment. If you feel you need the help of a coach or a teacher then by all means do hire one. But make sure you get along well, and that the teacher is there to support and help you and not tell you "you're only suited to sing this". A bad teacher gives you mental obstacles to overcome, a good teacher helps you develop.

[markgrubb@gmail.com]

Before anything else, I'd just like to find my OWN voice, as opposed to my CHOIR voice. As I said before, I feel that my voice is lacking any kind of distinction or character, since choral singing has trained it all out of me.

I'd most like to become a classical soloist since that's what I best know - particularly in baroque music, though the crazy runs often give me trouble. More than that though, I'm hoping that some kind of training - be it lessons or coaching - could at least give me a better idea of what I AM suited to sing. I'm not super hung up on any particular genre just yet.

The unique size and shape of your resonating chambers, length and thickness of your vocal folds, thickness and shape of your skeletal structure and flesh result in tone qualities unique to you. Singing without a choir, practicing many hours, singing, singing, searching, feeling, singing will result in you finding your voice.

Vocal coaching helps you work on a specific piece, including your own works. This is not what you are looking for.

Vocal training includes posture, breathing, formant, resonance placement, extending range, increasing power, repertoire,.... Private lessons are not like choir lessons or even what you probably get from a voice teacher at high school or university. I train with Robert Lunte at The Vocalist Studio and he is a great teacher and voice. However, because your interest is in classical music I recommend Bel Canto. I know Dena Murray said she used to sing classical and of course she offers Skype lessons. Don't settle for a local teacher that is not great. Skype lessons are very effective. It is more important to get a great teacher than to be in the same room with the teacher. I have had three teachers and Rob slaughtered the first two in about 30 minutes of our first skype lesson. Ken Tamplin teaches Bel Canto; however, I think he is more into pop / rock / metal.

Concerning the difficulty of runs, my 2nd voice teacher had a quote on the door, 'everything is diffucult before it is easy' or something like this. Professional voices put in the work; you have to put in the work too.

Don't let people tell you what you can and can't do. I used to have a usable four octave range with HUGE tension and now I have a usable five octave range with NO tension. I used to sing OFF PITCH badly and now I sing off pitch once in a rare while. You are cheating yourself letting people who don't know what they are talking about tell you stupid $h!+ like 'you are born with it or not' et cettra. Sounds like you have the dream, get a great voice TEACHER and put in the work.

[gno]

MandyKate - You need to try and find a good teacher. Try to get some recommendations - I'm sure someone in your choir knows of a good teacher nearby. Start networking and get people's opinions. I will say this - good classical voice teachers are often connected to the universities. Maybe you have a nearby college with some voice teachers. Ask how long the lessons are - at the college level they are usually 50min to an hour. Neighborhood teachers are usually only 1/2 hour (which is not enough IMO). If you want to get good fast - I'd go for the best teacher you can find that teaches at the university level with longer lessons.

If you want to post a recording of you singing, you'd get some great free insights from people around here.

[Robert Lunte]

ok... nice feedback team...

Mandy... first of all, understand that choral singing and solo singing are two very different things. As a choral singer, your principle role is to blend with other voices... as a soloist, your principle role is to stand out from other voices. You can go both.

For your solo work, it would be advisable if you found a great voice teacher that can teach you how to use your voice as a soloist and most private voice teachers are about that... not choral singing... as a soloist, you are going to learn to sing with more amplification and with a different laryngeal configuration then what you use to produce the choral sound.

Short of it, find a good voice teacher. I would be happy to help you and will guarantee results, but there are many good teachers available here on TMV.

Hope this helps.

[VideoHere]

mandy, when i grew up, i found i gravitated towards certain voices and vocal styles. i even discovered i liked certain singers (both male and female) on a subconcious level. i'll bet you have your favorites and may even have suppressed them from conscious awareness because you were so focused on the choir and the blending aspects.

i'm a firm believer in emulating certain vocalists for developmental reasons. for me, (as everyone knows by now, lol) i gravitate towards clean, powerful rock vocalists with heavy r&b influences.

i know i'm not a john denver, josh grobin, kind of singer, so i don't aspire to incorporate those singer's sounds into my vocals..gees, i'm a a help of any kind to you lol!!!!

[MandyKate]

Wow, thanks everyone for the great feedback. Knowing that I'm actually looking for a different kind of vocal production and not just performance techniques is a big help. There are members of my choir who do have voice teachers, but none that I've heard about are currently taking new students. I live in a large city, so the really good voice teachers all seem to have as many students as they can handle already. The suggestion about looking through the universities seems like a promising one, though. I might give that a shot.

I've looked up area teachers online as well, but no matter how many testimonials they have on their website, I'm hesitant to go in without some kind of recommendation from someone I know; especially since I have no prior experience and so probably wouldn't even know if the teacher wasn't that great.

I've read a couple things about phone or skype lessons as well, but hadn't seriously considered them. However, reading that people here have had good experiences with them, I think I'll look into those more as well. Are there any real advantages or disadvantages to phone vs. in person? I would think it would be easier to spot and correct posture and breathing in person, but I could be wrong.

[markgrubb@gmail.com]

I've read a couple things about phone or skype lessons as well, but hadn't seriously considered them. However, reading that people here have had good experiences with them, I think I'll look into those more as well. Are there any real advantages or disadvantages to phone vs. in person? I would think it would be easier to spot and correct posture and breathing in person, but I could be wrong.

I live in Kansas City and studied in two of the top studios here. I spent a lot of money, time, effort and ended far far far from where I desire to be vocally. I studied via Skype with Robert Lunte at The Vocalist Studio and improved drastically. I am still studying at TVS via Skype. Robert has corrected - the way I hold the microphone, called out tension, my formant, my posture.... I had the same concerns about the quality of the lesson via Skype versus being in the same room. What I have learned is 1) most of the story is told in quality of the production - color, tone... and seen with the ears more than the eyes 2) DON'T settle for a local teacher when you can study with an voice teacher that teaches on an International level

I can recommend some great voice teachers, most all of which are on The Modern Vocalist Voice Council / Subject Matter Experts