Professional Voice Use If you use your voice for a living this means that you rely on it for success in your business. This is obvious if you are a professional speaker, singer, actor or teacher. However, if you talk with many people in the day, have to guide people, present at meetings, make announcements, chair meetings or field phone
No Need to Shout to be Heard How many times have you been to a talk or performance where everything is just too loud? Even with well balanced sound systems some people “shout” down the mic. At best it is boring, at worst it just doesn’t communicate. It is “heard” but not truly heard! Communication Communication is the point of
AKA performance Anxiety Stage-fright: You’ve all felt it to some degree haven’t you, at some time in your lives? The sweaty palms, dry mouth, racing heart or perhaps impending panic? I know I have. Perhaps it was an exam, a job interview , an audition or just speaking or singing in front of others. This is also known as performance
Exams are part of life… This certainly seems to be the case doesn’t it? Have you noticed that we have all become used to being tested at every stage of our lives? There are tests and exams for almost everything, including vocal arts. When you reach a certain level of competence, you get a certificate. This is important in many
Smart Practice As professional voice users we do need to be smart about the way that we practise. i.e. making more of the time we have and working efficiently. Let’s think about why we need smart practice. Avoiding Fatigue We want the voice to be working efficiently and effectively. It’s often very tempting when you have a short notice audition,
This article on apps (applications) is based on one first published by the Association of Teachers of Singing (AOTOS) in their recent newsletter. Thanks to them for allowing me to use it here. If you are a singing teacher and not already a member , pop over to AOTOS and give them a look. They provide a wealth of events,
I’m thinking about tired voice today, particularly as people have been settling back into their teaching jobs after a long break. If you’re a teacher, a singing teacher or a singing student, then you’ll know what I mean. It depends on how much you’ve been doing during the break. Speaking can be very tiring, as can singing for a long
Singing with guitar is something I have done for many years. I have also worked with numerous clients who need to sing and play guitar, in a number genres. I have found that singing when playing the instrument can be easier and better with a few simple adjustments so I’d like to share these with you. Head and Neck Alignment
Gearing up for a new start Just before going to the gym today I noticed that I feel like I’m gearing up for a new term. This is strange because I will no longer be working to this pattern. I have recently finished teaching students in professional training in Liverpool but still have that “back to school” feeling. I know