Vocal Coaching Lessons

What is Vocal Coaching?

Koko Vocals specializes in effective and holistic vocal coaching. With our knowledge and expertise, we guide you towards a healthier voice, by building your singing muscles and brain pathways step-by-step, based on your specific needs as a singer. We work with kids, young people and adults.

We use a variety of playful, exploratory techniques to find the most effective approaches to developing your voice, based on your artistic and stylistic desires - including recording projects (albums), live performance, or just general confidence in singing -  tension points, and learning styles and learning needs. 

This includes advice on posture, breathing and exercise, as well as vocal hygiene to promote general health and well-being, and techniques you can hang your hat on to build your confidence, ability and stamina as a professional, or amateur, singer.

See how we work in a Solo Vocal Lesson. We also help groups through our Ensemble Vocal Lesson.

What are Koko Vocals’ credentials?

Your Koko Vocals vocal coaching expert is knowledgeable and experienced in Classical, Musical Theatre, Pop, and Jazz, building on a range of pedagogical styles and experiential knowledge, including Classical, Estill, Vocal Process and general vocal anatomy and physiology.

She has a PhD in Music, Vocal Performance.

She has nearly 20 years’ experience working with the full range of voice users:

• Professional singers (pop, folk, musical theatre)

• University students (she worked as a Senior Lecturer and Programme Leader in Musical Theatre; Lecturer in Singing; Associate Lecturer in Music - vocal lessons)

• Casual singers (children - adults)

• American accent coaching for musical theatre (children to adult)

• Group singing (children 6-12; young people 13-17; young adults; adults - also in France!)

• Singing Exam preparation
  

How do we work with your voice?

We start to reduce tension in your posture, breath support (reduce constriction and engage retraction), in your articulators (tongue, jaw, lips, velum, larynx, etc.), and to improve your technique from your chest voice (speech quality / TA dominant, true belt, mix belt, supported falsetto - men) to your head voice (falsetto / CT dominant, mix, unsupported falsetto – men).

You get easy, practical exercises that increase your vocal range, as well as smooth out transitions (passaggios) between chest and head voice.

We can also look at stylistic elements, from relevant and effective onsets and offsets for different vocal styles to vowel modification at height, to vowel/tongue tuning, etc.

What is a typical lesson structure?

Physical warm ups - to prep the body for the very physical act of singing

Vocal warm ups - based on the style and range of your song

Your choice of song, or we can guide you based on your level and stylistic interest

Choose 1 or 2 main technical points to work on to get you singing your song with greater ease and confidence. Examples…

• vowel modification work for greater resonance with less effort

• where to breathe based on the lyrics / sheet music

• how to breathe efficiently

• how to achieve a character voice

• belt technique

• falsetto (head voice) technique

• transitions between registers

• onsets / offsets for ease, clarity and for characterization

• nasal port closure for clarity of tone

• articulation exercises for clearer diction…

Vocal warm downs - to bring you back to a neutral, healthy speaking voice

Is it worth the money? 

Invest in your voice

to gain tactics for saving your voice and learning to take care of it, long term.

Gain access to a new level of self-expression and confidence

as this can affect all areas of your life in a positive way.

Notice improved confidence on stage in performance

when you nail that high belt note, ace that corporate presentation, or find that character voice.

Achieve a boost in everyday confidence

You may even be delighted just to have the ability to say, “Yes!” or “No!” in a clear, bold voice.

How do I know this vocal coaching works?

We know we have provided quick results for ease and confidence in our clients’ singing and speaking voice through our vocal coaching, whether they be professional or amateur. Our 5-star Google Reviews are a testament to the effectiveness of our coaching.

Who else has benefited from your expertise?

Don’t just take our word for it, though; see our 5-star Google Reviews and our Testimonials to read about how we have supported our clients in their individual vocal journeys!

I’m nervous about singing in front of anybody! Is it scary?

Starting something new can be daunting. Even seasoned pros may need some time to get accustomed to working with a new voice coach.

At Koko Vocals, we are aware that this is particularly true when your instrument is inside your body; this makes singing in front of one other person particularly personal and intimate.

So, we take the pressure off with silly, fun and effective voice openers and techniques. We use a friendly, compassionate, personal approach to put you at ease and make you feel welcome.

We start with the very basics…

(especially for new singers, with review for pros): posture, breath control / pressure, styles, etc. We make a lot of noises at first. This is to get your voice going.

Often, what we think of as ‘singing’ is not making efficient use of our voice, and we may have better access to a clear voice in speech. In the first few lessons, we may focus on your spoken voice before we begin to consider pitch (singing notes).

We work at your pace:

If something is too complex, we can stop to explain. If it’s too scary, we can always go back a step or two and break technique down into chunks. The main thing is don’t be afraid to…

• Be playful

• Make mistakes - Koko Vocals will hold your hand all the way.

• Try something new.

How do the logistics work?

Check out our Policies page for payment options, policies on lateness and cancellation, and suggestions for really great Online and In-person lessons at Koko Vocals!