LESSONS

To understand my approach to teaching, you need to understand a critical turning point in my journey. When I applied for the master’s program where Dr. Barbara M. Doscher taught, I thought I was taking the ultimate step to achieving vocal freedom. Those of you in the classical world will know her well, as she is one of the leading vocal pedagogy experts and highly respected for her work and book entitled: The Functional Unity of the Singing Voice. I waited to be admitted into her studio and thoroughly loved my lessons when finally accepted. I was readily cast in light opera, traditional musical theatre and mezzo roles offered during this time. One day, while in a private lesson with her, she turned to me and said, “Tanya, what is your goal?” Was this a trick question? “…ummmm… to get better at singing…?” Then she paused and reframed the question. “Do you love opera? Did you come here because singing opera was your greatest desire? You have the skill level that it would take to do it, but is it what you really want?” …. more hesitation from me, as I was suddenly being confronted with a choice for which the implications and direction had not fully been realized. I answered with humility and sincere honesty, “I came here because I wanted to be the best singer I could be and learned you were the teacher to bring that out of me; I love opera, love classical music and love the languages, but I guess I never got further than that in my thinking about a whole career.” Her answer confirmed the trajectory of my life, or maybe I should say, set it on course with a far greater understanding. She continued, “Tanya, if I train you for a traditional career in opera, really take you all the way, you will lose the flexibility to sing other styles. I would give anything to be able to do what you do. I’ve got phenomenal opera students who can’t hold a candle to the way you interpret a Gershwin tune. You have a passion for American music. Your time would instead be spent learning German Lieder, French and Italian art songs, and I will get your voice so big and round, it will be hard to sing other genres. So, I want you to think seriously, is that what you want, is that your desire?” Holy cow…. Dr. Doscher had taken a back seat to her formal style of teaching and become quite real with me in that moment. The gravity of the coaching and her motherly love was not lost on me. Not once in all our lessons had she indicated I didn’t have what it takes. On the contrary, she pushed me, demanded of me, expected more from me-like the coaches who are tough-but you know they have your back. She recognized a different strength and quality, which, at that time, was less obvious to me. I was just being obedient to the concept of improving my voice. How on earth does that affect my philosophy and teaching technique with you? I took her statement very seriously and realized that in my own studio I need to teach technique that brings the most healthful flexibility to any voice. Yes, I had a healthy dose of classical training. Yes, I still sing with classical influences and can turn it up if a song requires it; but I have spent the rest of my life studying to understand how to make and how to teach far more variety in one’s voice. Yes, the basics of singing technique, breathing, health of the voice, are always part of my lexicon; but what about bending a phrase, falling off a word, messing with rhythm or belting, mixing, chest voice, texturing, riffing, vowel modification or conversational singing? My philosophy, in other words, would be to take your 8-crayon coloring box and turn it into a 16-color or even a 24-color crayon box by healthfully adjusting the rules of classical training. I will teach you styles, (if you desire), so that if you must sing or audition for a classical role you can do it, or if the next audition is for a country role, gosh darn it, you can do that too. I am known for explaining things in a very comprehensible layman’s way that allows my students to easily grasp the needed technique. The vocabulary or road map to great singing doesn’t have to be rocket science. It should be full of experimenting and fun. I had a student who came in a few years ago and told me she was told to be polite and use her inside voice. Ummm, not in my room! You’re allowed to be loud, emotive and make ridiculous sounds till we find the ones that best help you feel how to get to your ultimate desired sound, color and texture. If you already are clear on your style and goals, great, let’s fine tune and set you up for success.