How Do I Choose the Right Voice Teacher?

How to Find the Right Vocal Coach

Before choosing on a whim, it’s important to decide whether you and your teacher are a good match in more ways than one. Check out the tips below to learn what to look for to find a teacher for singing lessons.

Track Record

It should go without saying that anyone in the market for singing lessons should focus on finding teachers with proven track records in the industry. Fortunately, there are many ways to figure out whether a coach or school is reputable and legitimate.

For example, you can web search for the business or individual and see what comes up in the results. Make sure they at least have a functioning website. There you may be able to find out more about the voice lessons, testimonials, links to social media, news articles, mp3s, etc. If not, refer back to your web search.

In the event that you can’t find any information about your potential vocal coach online, you may want to keep looking as there are many more secure options available to you – Elite Music Academy is one (hint hint, nudge nudge).

Feedback Style

You’re going to want to make sure your voice teacher has the ability to give you constructive feedback. Some coaches tend to sugar coat criticisms of your performance, and while no one truly enjoys to be criticized, you decided to spend time and money on vocal lessons for a reason. A good coach helps you improve your vocal skill without babying your ego or destroying it.

Singing Style

What type of music do you want to sing? Are you a classical or contemporary vocalist? These are simple questions you can ask yourself to help you hone in on a compatible vocal teacher quickly. If you want to sing punk rock, you will generally get more value out of a teacher who has experience teaching or playing this genre than you would from an operatic vocal coach.

If your potential teacher has a web presence, you should be able to quickly decide whether the style of singing they teach lines up with what you want to learn.

Personality

If you’re going to be spending an hour or more a week with the same person for the foreseeable future, you will probably want to at least like them and vice versa. To ensure a pleasant experience for both you and your teacher, try to get to know them before you purchase a pack of voice lessons or even your first one. If your personalities are compatible, your intuition will probably let you know. Trust your instincts and pick a coach you “click” with.

Goals

Do you want to become a high-profile, operatic soprano with gigs and shows across multiple countries? Is your goal to sing without cracking at your older sister’s wedding reception in a few months? Or do you simply want to improve your singing ability for personal reasons? It’s crucial that anyone looking for singing lessons knows what they want to get for their time and money, can express that to a potential voice teacher, and then get them on the same page. Don’t ever let a vocal coach’s personal or professional agenda override yours.

Remember: your voice lessons are about your voice and what you want to do with it. Hopefully, the above has helped you better understand what it takes to find a good voice teacher for you.

If you live in the Toronto area, try out Elite Music Academy’s vocal coaches to ensure a good fit! Get a free lesson here, no obligation or risk involved!