FAQ

1. Why do you call your method " Speech Level Singing"?
Singing is sustained speech on tone. We teach that the larynx (voice box) is in the same relaxed position as in speaking. Singing is sustained speech on pitch. When you speak in a comfortable manner, you outer muscles do not interfere. You can learn to maintain your tone with this comfortable speech level posture when you sing.

2. Do you teach opera, jazz and all genres of music?
We give you the vocal coordination you need, enabling you to sing any style you want. SLS exercises move you through your entire range giving you more styling choices and the vocal freedom to hit the notes you desire.

3. Do you teach beginners as well as professionals.
Yes, the same excellent technique can be used by anyone.

4. Can you be too young or too old to begin singing?
No. If you can talk, you can sing. With young children, we mostly keep singing fun. It all depends on the child's ability to concentrate and that varies greatly. As for older students, Bob Hope's wife, Dolores, recorded an album of Jazz standards when she was 92, singing with a lovely tone. My youngest student is 4 yrs. and my oldest is 96 yrs.

5. Can anyone learn to sing or are singers born with the gift to sing?
Some certainly are more gifted than others, but as long as you can speak and are not tone deaf, you can sing. If a person has trouble singing on the right notes, there may be a variety of reasons for this. Sometimes they just haven't learned how to use all the different parts of their voice. We can work with you to pinpoint what you problems are, and help you improve. All students notice improvement from studying this technique.

6. How long will I need to take lessons?
This entirely varies with the voice and the commitment (whether the student's intention is professional, semi-professional, or for one's own enjoyment.) We have solved range and mix problems in a single lesson, but many have been students on and off for their entire careers. If you are just beginning, or coming back after a long absence, I would give it at least 3 months to better evaluate your progress.

7. What is so different about Speech Level Singing?
The key to this technique is understanding the "Mix." As you sing higher into you range, you quickly encounter areas where your voice many "jam up", or "break" and sound weak. We call this area a bridge or passaggio. When you learn how to approach these areas in the right way, you can negotiate through them with finesse, increasing range into the higher areas.

8. Do I really need vocal technique if I can already sing?
Yes. Vocal technique is fundamental to keeping you voice healthy to sing for a lifetime. Without training, the singer may get into bad habits which eventually may hurt the voice. We often see the glamorous side of pop stars and yet, no one talks much about the problems some of them face. Some depend on steroids to reduce inflammation. Others do not sing live, but depend of playback prerecorded tapes ("lip-syncing") Several professional singers have had numerous operations for vocal nodules ("nodes") polyps, cysts and other forms of vocal disease. If the singer continues to sing incorrectly, these nodes may rupture, resulting in hemorrhaging and complete loss of the voice.

9. Can I get a lesson via the phone or the computer?
Yes. We can teach over any speaker phone (as on cell phones) or via the internet on such programs as Skype. Video cameras may be used so we can also have visual. If both parties have downloaded Skype (or MSN messenger, etc.) the internet connection phone call is free. Some students are on tour or on stage in London or Broadway and cannot physically receive coaching except via the phone. Others live in an area where there are no SLS coaches and we accommodate them this way as well.