Singing with David C.

Having graduated from Westminster Choir College, I have learned many techniques for helping students to understand their voices better. I have taken voice lessons myself since 2002, and still do take them. This gives me the opportunity to learn new and different techniques. As every student is different, there are many different techniques that can help the student to find their voice. One style of teaching that I really feel is important when discussing the voice is the idea of just singing. Often times, as was my experience, when people hear voices they like they will mimic that sound. The problem with that is that the person will start singing with a voice that does not work with their body. That is usually my first goal if they have this particular issue. Many times breath and support need to be addressed right away. After that it is teaching the student technique and helping them through the growing process of their voice. This technique is for the healthiest kind of singing and will preserve the voice for a much longer time then would other styles of singing. That being said, a person can still sing other styles with a slight variation to the technique, but still keeping things healthy and feeling good. I have added that I am willing to teach individuals who have special needs. I will say that where I teach does have stairs and is not wheelchair accessable. I am sorry about that. I do work at a school for children with developmental disabilities during the day and have been there for almost 4 years now. I have worked with adults as well as children. This has not been in a music setting, but I do have some ideas as to how to make it fulfilling for them as possible. That being said I will be honest with these individuals as well as patient. I believe that they should be treated equally and therefore will get the same level of attention as any of my other students. *** Lesson Details *** I am a fairly laid back teacher, with the philosophy that the student must find their own reason for practicing and work hard. If the student is a young child, I believe that they sing because they love to do it and that love should not be killed by becoming a chore. I would encourage them to practice more in the form of play. This is the work of children after all. If the student is older, and at an age where they are more serious about the work that comes from learning how to sing properly. Then they should be able to find their inspiration for practicing. I am a firm believer that no one can change someone except for them-self. The idea of a curriculum would of course differ from student to student, but it also differs with age. With young children, the first goal would be to see how well they match pitch, because it will be difficult to get the student to work on technique if they have trouble matching pitch. Therefore that would be my first goal. After that, I would test the students range and work on teaching them technique. If the student is in the process of changing their voice, I will work on helping them through this change and help them to find their new voice. This is where the biggest chance of students loosing their real voice and starting to mimic other older singers. The fact is that, they will have a more mature voice in time, but they need to sing in their voice and the more mature sound will come. The main thing will be working on stretching there range little by little. This is because after the male voice changes, they tend to have a very small range. This would be the large overall goal to teach them to use their own voice, stretch their range, and learn technique. If the student is in their upper teens, then they should have a larger range, but they may still need to find their own voice. The next part will be just teaching the student technique and stretching their range. *** Studio Equipment *** Piano and guitar *** Travel Equipment *** I could supply a keyboard if need be. *** Specialties *** Choral Singing, Classical singing, Ear training, and Musicianship