TRAINING

Voice Training
The Sound Singing Institute offers private voice training in an Upper Kirby (central Houston) studio just off Alabama. An initial consultation is required prior to ongoing sessions. The initial consultation is comprised of an in depth vocal history interview, vocal health education and intervention, a detailed technical evaluation and exercises to begin the training pathway.

Styles
Professional voice users work in a wide range of disciplines and genres. The professional voice user who is a singer may choose to use his/her vocal instrument as a singer/music educator, a singer/choral director, professional singer (opera; oratorio; musical theatre; clubs- pop/rock, jazz, country, mariachi, salsa), or as a professional actor/singer (theatre) but to name a few. Each discipline demands peak vocal performance for longevity of career.

In order to have a healthy singing voice, it is important to know how to do the following:

1. Sing with healthy technique (i.e., balancing airflow, phonation, resonance, articulation, agility),

2. Sing in the correct voice category/range,

3. Sing in the correct tessitura (pitch area where voice comfortably sits),

4. Choose music that has a tessitura (pitch area) and range that matches one’s own tessitura and range and

5. Sing the genre of music with the healthiest possible stylistic tools.

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Balance and alignment of the vocal instrument, comprised of the body/mind/spirit connection, is just the beginning for the performer. If one knows where center point is, then one can experiment with how far one may go from the central balance point for coloration and effect and still have integrity of technique. It really does not matter what style of music someone sings. What truly matters is what the balance point of the voice is. If a singer knows his/her balance point, then he/she will be able to experiment with breath, resonance (e.g., nasalance), articulation, straight tone and delayed vibrato (along with other aspects) for coloration and effect. It is no different than a painter having a palate with many colors to choose from in order to create nuance in his/her painting.

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Broad Categories

Style is often discussed in terms of two broad categories: Classical music and commercial music. Vocal Pedagogue Carolyn Binkley in Nashville defines Classical and Commercial music as the following: “Classical” is a term which represents many genres including opera, oratorio, art song, symphony, chamber music and the manner of performance associated with those genres and “Commercial” can include the styles jazz, rock, country, pop, rhythm and blues, big band and swing, alternative, contemporary Christian, gospel, rap, hip-hop, heavy metal but to name a few. These two terms are not descriptive of two areas rather, they are commonly used terms that are widely recognizable throughout the musical world.

*The excerpts above are taken from articles and books written by Dr. Radionoff