Voice Lessons in Donald, OR

Instruments: Piano Guitar Voice Ukulele

My teaching experience began in 2008 when I started tutoring and assisting a choir director at a school in Boston, MA. I worked there throughout my schooling and transitioned to private lessons after graduating in 2011. I also started a program called Sing Play Rise which offered free private tuition for students who joined the choir. I then moved back home to be with family and have been teaching in the PDX area at various schools since then. Read More

Instruments: Voice

Simple breathing techniques, Hal Leonard's Vocal Warmups, is a good book I use for beginners levelsand other techniques will be taught to my beginners. We will discuss each student's goals and what they hope to accomplish in their classes. I will ask each student to sing a couple of notes and songs that I have prepared in order to assess their vocal range (alto, soprano, etc.). With the song of your choice, we will go over tone, vowel placements, translations, and performance enhancers (supporting additional sound, staging, etc.) to make the song your own and better than you have performed before. Read More

Instruments: Piano Voice

I have been teaching music for over 12 years, with 2 years of experience as a full-time music teacher at a prestigious K-8 private school, and several years of experience working with college students, graduate students, and adult amateurs in masterclass setting. I believe that everyone is different, and that everyone needs different things from their teacher. I am committed to getting to know my students well, and therefore keeping them happy and motivated throughout the course of study. Read More

Instruments: Voice

Firstly, I believe that laughter is important. It helps students relax and enjoy themselves, and it perfectly engages the muscles needed for support. I try to maintain a teaching atmosphere where laughter is possible. I also believe that the student essentially teaches themselves to sing- I diagnose and provide input. I can take a more hands on approach for less experienced singers, but ultimately, nothing is going to stick if the student is not consiously engaged. (For younger students, there is more emphasis on fun and making noise than on specific technique) Read More

Instruments: Piano Voice

I believe that every student is different, and that is important to understand each student’s passions and interests.  It is important to find out how each student learns, and to motivate him or her to improve, grow, and be passionate about music.  I do not want to only teach the notes on the page; I want to instill a lifelong love of music and a basic knowledge of music theory.  Learning the goals and aspirations of each of my students is very important to me, as I know that performing music should be about joy and self expression. Read More

Instruments: Piano Guitar Voice Saxophone Clarinet Bass Guitar Synthesizer Ukulele Music Keyboard Electric Guitar Classical Guitar Acoustic Guitar

For kids I find that having a large quantity of music to learn at each level gives more variety and sense of achievement, so I usually recommend beginning students have multiple books to aid in learning. For example a young piano student will study from lesson, theory, performance, and technique books each week. This yields a well-rounded student who is proud of their achievements and eager to move forward. For adults I recommend a lesson/theory combination book at least to help with reading music. Read More

Instruments: Piano Guitar Voice Violin Cello Viola Trumpet Trombone Saxophone Flute Clarinet Drums Bass Guitar Synthesizer Harmonica Ukulele Recorder Electric Violin Fiddle Double Bass Euphonium French Horn Tuba Piccolo Mallet Percussion Orchestral Percussion Oboe Bassoon English Horn Music Keyboard Electric Guitar Acoustic Guitar

My methods vary on the student and subject. Beginning students will typically focus more on technical pieces of music to improve on certain aspects of a few pieces to perform. More advanced students will still practice technical parts of their music, but less time will be spent on it during a lesson. Advanced level students will spend more time on repertoire and performance. The more advanced a student gets, the more I expect them to practice outside of lessons and apply their newly learned technical skills into their music on their own. Read More