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Learning to Sing
A symphony for your soul...
When you step out of the shower after having belted out the entire second half of Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody, how do you feel? Elated? Full of energy? Ready to take on the world?
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Heather Thomas, a Trinity College trained voice coach and vocal arranger to bands and gospel groups, who has been giving individual singing lessons for nine years, says singing gives you confidence, which 'rubs off' into different areas of your life - and even believes it has contributed to getting some of her pupils to come off Prozac.
Whatever the attraction, learning to sing has definitely seen a revival in recent years, and you'd be hard pressed to find a better way to cheer yourself up after a disappointing weigh-in.
Sing Along Now
Maybe a teacher scoffed at your audition for the junior choir, or your voice broke - right in the middle of your school nativity solo. Whatever the reason, many of us feel embarrassed to sing aloud, except when alone in the car or possibly within the anonymity of Sunday church.
Heather believes that we all have the ability to sing. She says: "All of us can sing, but some people just have easier access to their voices. I aim to teach them techniques to enable them to find their voices. People that come to me have generally had a bad start - maybe a teacher told them they couldn't sing and they've clammed up. It takes a bit of encouragement and guidance, but it's incredible how they progress."
From teens to 'mature beginners', she teaches a wide range of ages and abilities - all the way to a 70 year old. She claims that people come to her for different reasons: a lot have no belief in themselves and want to build confidence to work towards an audition or cutting a demo; and some come because someone's given the lesson as a gift, then continue after the gift runs out.
Heather offers one-to-one lessons, and for those who prefer to learn in a crowd, regular workshops. All lessons take place in the relaxed environment of her home, so you don't have to worry about feeling intimidated in an impersonal, echoing studio.
Her lessons all differ, depending on your experience. However, the one thing that's intrinsic to all lessons is that they're extremely informal and relaxed, with the emphasis being on singing as fun and creative.
Relaxation
Having also trained as a hypnotherapist, Heather believes that an initial period of relaxation and visualisation is essential to 'relax body and mind'. Then it's onto some humming, within the comfort zone of your voice range, and a resonance test - which generally involves lots of laughter! Then it's some warm-up exercises, and finally onto the tunes.
Says Heather: "I encourage my students to build up a repertoire. I advise them to go to music shops or write down list of songs they enjoy or want to sing. Many people use backing tracks and midi files to sing with, others sing without accompaniment, and some very brave people give me sheet music (I'll admit to not being a terribly good pianist!)."
Going For a Song
You can experience an hour of soul-warming singing for around £60 an hour, but lessons are more expensive at weekends, due to their popularity.
Heather says people come as they please, but if you book in advance it's easier to set goals for yourself, such as 'I will have learnt this song by so-and-so date'.
She encourages people to email or call her between lessons if they have any questions, and she is happy to print out tunes for students to practise at home.
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