I have a private voice studio in Santa Cruz, California. I emphasize having fun while learning solid technique and improving expressive capabilities. I had to stop performing because of vocal problems.  I have learned a great deal in my journey back to a healthy voice that I can use to help you!

                                              What's your challenge?

** TMJ problems ** hoarseness after singing/speaking ** pitch problems ** limited range ** nasal sound  ** wide vibrato ** difficulty being heard ** easily fatigued**...

My students range in age from 8 to 76. We work in the styles you are interested in, from folk and Broadway to classical.  I coach in Italian, French, German and Russian and draw on my years of performance experience to coach in acting and stage movement.  I know from dealing with stage fright myself how vulnerable it can feel to sing in front of others, and work with students to reduce performance anxiety and improve self-confidence.

• Vocal technique exercises to strengthen the voice, create healthy vocal habits, improve expressive ability and increase range.
• Hands-on bodywork to relax tight muscles that are getting in the way of free, healthy vocal production.
• Ear/voice training with a microphone & headphones.

I may recommend a listening program for you.  Listening programs help performing artists fine-tune their vocal or instrumental abilities by improving the brain's ability to perceive the full spectrum of sound, attune to higher harmonics, and reproduce those in their voice or other instrument.  Musicality, expression and technical ability may all improve.

Technology!
Sessions may include work with a microphone that feeds your voice through a special amplifier back to your ears through bone conduction headphones.  This gives you immediate feedback and enables you to hear yourself more accurately.  This translates into rapid improvements in pitch, tone quality and expressive capability.

I also use the Estill VoicePrint Plus program.  This gives you fabulous visual feedback that helps you learn to feel when you are singing correctly and getting that "ring" in the voice that is so important.

Sessions in Consultation With Your Voice Teacher - I also consult with other teachers, and take students for work with the microphone and headphones to work on specific issues your regular teacher would like addressed with this technology.  You will continue to work with your regular teacher while doing this work. 

The Ear and the Voice - Through the work of Dr. Alfred A. Tomatis, we now know that the ear controls the timber, intensity, rhythm, pitch and flow of the voice.  The Tomatis Effect states: "The voice can only reproduce what the ear can hear."  Many voice problems arise from a listening problem; the inability of the ear and brain to accurately process all the sound frequencies.  Singers may "push" to overcome this, resulting in even more problems.  Listening programs expand the ability of the ear and brain to listen, perceive and process sound frequencies, improving the voice.

My Bio - I am a lyric coloratura soprano, and have performed principal roles in regional opera, and as a soloist with area symphonies and ensembles. I made my European debut in Carmina Burana in Teplice, Czech Republic and Krakow, Poland, with the L'vov Symphony. My opera roles include Fiordiligi in Cosi Fan Tutte, the Sandman and Dew Fairy in Hansel and Gretel, Fallon in The Tale of the No-Name Ogre (a role written for me by composer Stephen Tosh), and Fire, Princess and Nightingale in Ravel's The Bewitched Child. Concert performances include Bach's St. Matthew Passion, B Minor Mass and Magnificat, and Verdi's Requiem. I have performed in recital at First Night! Santa Cruz and other venues.

Vocal problems forced an end to my professional career some years ago.  I could not hear that I was not on pitch in a certain part of my range.  It was only after I discovered the work of Dr. Tomatis that I was able to understand and correct my problems.  Because of therapeutic listening programs, bodywork to release muscle tensions, and other work, I have been able to get my voice back.  My own experience has convinced me of the tremendous value of listening programs.  I look forward to sharing them with you!

I also recently took Levels 1 & 2 of the Estill Voice Training (twice, because there is so much information).  This amazing training has given me a deeper understanding of how the voice works, and wonderful new tools to use in teaching all styles of singing and speaking.  Come and see how they can help you!