FAQ

A. Anyone could take a golf club, swing it and hit a golf ball or a tennis racquet and hit a tennis ball, to be able to carry out either of these tasks with accuracy and ease a coach will show you what you are doing wrong and how to correct the swing of the golf club or the tennis racquet to make the ball travel easily and accurately.

The same can be said of the vocal coach and a good coach will work with the voice to develop technical and performance skills to get the best musical experience from the voice.

A. There are two major factors you should look at when looking for a vocal coach. You should see video of students that the coach has worked with and you should see video of the vocal coach singing. These along with some testimonials will give you a good indication of whether someone is a good teacher. Please feel free to view videos of myself and many of my students singing.

A. I can’t speak for other coaches however with me as your coach…

• You will learn how your voice and vocal folds (chords) work including good vocal health.
• You will Learn vocal exercises to prevent any damage to your voice when you sing.
• You will learn correct breathing technique including intercostal and diaphragmatic breathing.
• You will learn correct vowel pronunciation and vowel placement.
• You will learn how to phrase a song and sing with the desired feeling for any particular genre of music.
• You will learn how to get the absolute best sound from your voice.
• You will learn to sing higher and lower than you thought possible.
• You will learn how to sing in your chosen style(s) eg; Pop, Jazz, Rock etc.
• You will learn microphone techniques for stage and recording.
• You will learn how to sing harmony.
• You will learn performance technique and how to make full use of a stage.
• You will learn how to set us a sound system to achieve the best sound from your microphone.

A. This depends on a few factors. Usually weekly or fortnightly lessons are sufficient with the student carrying out daily practice in between lessons. However someone may have a deadline to be at a certain standard in a short period in which case more frequent coaching would be required. The length of time a singer would require a vocal coach again is dependant on their goals and any natural ability they may already have ie someone may simply want to improve their singing to sound better at karaoke and require a set amount of coaching to achieve that standard while a professional singer may want on going coaching to keep their voice and performance it the highest level.

A. There are a number of things you should expect from a good coach.

1. The coach should have a pleasant and professional attitude and be passionate about improving your singing.
2. The teaching studio should be a clean and comfortable environment and should include the necessary equipment for teaching. This should include a piano, sound system and up to date recording and video equipment.
3. Your coach should teach correct technique as well as performance skills and have a good knowledge of voice Antony as well as different genres of music.
4. Your coaching experience should be pleasant and enjoyable with the coach informing you of what your weaknesses are but also helping you to improve and giving lots of encouragement as well as letting you know your strengths. At no time should your coach be unpleasant or annoyed that you may be struggling with part of your tuition after all it may just be the coaches inability to explain exactly what is required. I pride myself in making sure my students have a great experience.

A. Your coach should want (and help) you to be enthusiastic about the journey you are making on becoming a better singer.

• They will expect you to be on time for your lesson.
• They will expect you to give adequate notice of a cancellation if possible.
• They will expect you to do the recommended practice set out in your lesson.
• They will expect you to enjoy your lesson feeling that you have achieved something while having fun at the same time.
• They should expect you to leave the studio feeling uplifted, happy and looking forward to your next session.
• Both myself and my students feel invigorated and a great sense of achievement after each lesson.