Singing with Michelle P.

I love to sing, I love to act and I love to teach! I have been teaching for over 10 years and sincerely value bringing music and theater into people’s lives. My teaching philosophy is simple; anyone can sing, each person has something wonderful to offer and everyone deserves a chance to shine. With that in mind, here is a little background on me and my journey to becoming a teacher. I graduated from California State University, Northridge in 2005 with a Bachelor’s degree in Music Education with an emphasis on voice and choral conducting. At the age of 15, I was accepted into the California State Summer School for the Arts on a full merit scholarship in the field of Theater. There, I studied acting, directing, singing, writing, stage combat, voice, set design, lighting and sound. I performed as a member of the Masanga Marimba Ensemble for ten years, singing and playing music from Zimbabwe, South Africa, Central and South America. As a group, we have toured all throughout California, Arizona, Colorado, Oregon and Washington, playing at world music festivals, charity concerts, weddings, private parties and more. I have been singing in choirs since the third grade and was a member of The Northridge Singers (named Choir of the World 2003) for three years. In college, I was the Vice-President of the MENC (Music Educator’s National Conference) CSUN chapter and received a recognition award for my work as a singer with the Women’s Chorale and an achievement award for my work as a student teacher in the Music Education department. I have been singing and acting for over 20 years and have been directing musicals and teaching voice since High School. My passion for directing and teaching started in a high school elective class called Musical Show Production. This is the class that I began to write, produce, direct and perform in my own original, full-length musicals. For the past 6 years, I have been a classroom music teacher at a private school in southern California. There I taught grades Kindergarten through 8, music, musical theater, acting, choir, tone chimes, scenic design, art, dance and character development. I recently moved to the bay area and I am currently directing musicals in the North Bay (Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, School House Rock Live, Rent, Once on This Island) and teaching voice, musical theater and acting. I have been living out my dream as a performing arts teacher and have had the honor of working with the most wonderful students over the years. I can’t wait to meet you and can’t wait to see you shine! *** Lesson Details *** I work with students to bring out their individual strengths and nurture their love for music and performing. During lessons, we will work on breathing, posture, diction, articulation, projection, musicianship, stage presence, and tone. I think it's important that a student loves what they sing so I try to find repertoire that is fun for the singer, presents a challenge, aids in developing strong vocal technique, promotes good vocal health and will make their music theory and singing voice as strong as possible. Every genre of music has something unique to offer, so during lessons, we will work with many different styles of music from Italian arias to show tunes, and from pop songs to R & B favorites, versatility is the key. Together, we’ll find the beauty in your one-of-a-kind voice, get you singing what you love, and sounding brilliant! I look forward to working with you to build confidence, express yourself, discover your own style, and have some fun! I value proper technique but the most important lesson I provide to my students is to have a great love for performing. I will help you love to sing and sing really well! *** Studio Equipment *** Living Room: Good neighborhood, seating for parents, piano *** Travel Equipment *** I would provide sheet music, audio tracks to practice with and a music player. They should have a keyboard or piano. *** Specialties *** I specialize in Musical Theater style singing, R&B style and Jazz/Blues style singing. I also have classical voice training and can teach music in several different languages. I can also teach African style Marimba and singing.