Danielle S  
Instruments: Voice
Styles: Classical, Jazz, Pop, Rock, Blues, Folk, Country, R&B, Musical Theater, Opera, Showtunes, Avant-garde

I began teaching in my Junior year of my undergraduate degree at Westminster for a community outreach program. One of my longest standing students is now attending that college for voice performance as well. I taught mostly younger girls who wanted to sing in choir or the school musical. Some were very serious and others just wanted to have a fun hobby. But they all loved to sing and I had the opportunity to excite them even more, and help them follow the path of music. It's nice when students come in for a lesson and it is the highlight of their day, or it relaxes them from any other stress that they may have. I believe that music is such an important outlet for the expression of emotions and an essential element of the human condition. It is always such a joy to share the gift of musical expression with others. After, Westminster I taught some friends around Boston while in grad school at Longy. I have also done several programs to teach children in school classrooms and residents of retirement homes about opera and the voice, which were always very successful.

I strongly believe that every human being is capable of singing. Each person has something to say with their own unique sound. To get that sound out we just need to revert back to the simple tools that we all possess from speech, such as yells or cries, shouts, sirens, slides, and inflection. By taking these sounds that we already know how to make unconsciously and elongating them into words, we have healthy singing. The most important part of singing is making sure no harm is ever being done - so healthy technique is the key, then, we start to focus on depth of sound, etc. I try to help my students find a way to make singing as natural and simple as possible, without overthinking and becoming obsessive about rhythms or pitches. Of course everything should be accurate, but the more the vowels are forward (like in speech), the jaw and tongue can move freely and independently (just like when we yell), and the breath is constant, then everything will be in tune. I also believe that singing is highly physical and I help all of my students with physical exercises to help them become more aware of their bodies and build strength in certain places while releasing others, especially in the belly and abdomen (a place singers often hold so much tension). These exercises are based mostly on Qi-Gong moves which also facilitate smooth, even breathing. My overall goal, of course, is for my students to have fun and be able to express themselves without any limits from unhealthy technique, and be able to share their gift with the world. No matter the age or experience level, everyone has a voice inside them.