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Question
What should we look for when trying to select a voice teacher for a 7 year old
Hello, Lisa –
Thank you for the question.
The very best thing you can do – especially as the years go by – is become the most musically-informed parent in town. Not everyone identifying themselves as a voice teacher or coach communicates the same thing nor do they impart the same methodology.
Here in San Francisco we are fortunate to have the San Francisco Girls Chorus. Training begins at seven years old. The organization was formed in order that the SF Opera have highly skilled children ready to perform as needed in such operas as CARMEN and LA BOHEME. They also appear in major choral works with the SF Symphony, performing alongside the greatest musicians in the world. Together with the SF Boys Chorus, they were invited by Senator Dianne Feinstein to sing "America The Beautiful" at the Inauguration.
This is a very different approach to singing and music-learning from what a community theater that produces musicals might offer in their children's programs.
The religious venues are also different. For example, the standard repertoire one might expect at a full-out Gospel church is completely different from the Lutheran church down the street.
What does your child want to sing? Where do you want your child to perform?
The opportunities mentioned above – as well as many others related to them – will help narrow your search.
Children who want to sing must know how to read music. Without that very fundamental knowledge, the child stands to be passed-over by someone else who can.
My job as a professional vocal coach is to enable my clients to get a job. To get that job, they have to audition in front of somebody. My job is to not only train and develop their voice, but to maximize the presentation of whatever material they need or want to sing for the audition, the performance, or whatever occasion is at hand.
My studio is in San Francisco. Whenever you want to book an appointment, contact me through Craig's List – http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/lss/1096171760.html
I am also the Editor and Publisher of SanFranciscoSentinel.com. All my articles and interviews about the performing arts provide a link to my personal e-mail.
Take a look at my You Tubes:
Lorena Feijóo - A Look at "Giselle" with Seán Martinfield
SAMSON & DELILAH – Meet Seán Martinfield
CA ACADEMY OF SCIENCES – A Preview Look with Seán Martinfield
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Best regards,
Seán Martinfield
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Answers by Expert:
Sean Martinfield
Expertise
I am a professional vocal coach in San Francisco. In addition to answers from a previous web site (Askme.com - where my "tag" was "VocalCoach") I have published over 2000 responses related to vocal training - particularly as it relates to Musical Theatre and Opera. I have 24 years of experience as Personal Trainer to singers and actors in the San Francisco Bay Area. I sang professionally for 20 years and know what it means to live the life of a musician. I can determine your voice category, i.e., Tenor, Baritone, Bass, Soprano, Mezzo-Soprano, Alto, Alto Belter, etc., and how to broaden and strengthen your range. Need an audition song for a Broadway Musical? I will give you suggestions that are appropriate to your vocal category and to requirements specified in the audition notice. I have also created a vocal methodology, "The Belter`s Method". It will enable those in Musical Theatre to practice more efficiently because it focuses on the demands of professional performers as well as to those auditioning for school and community productions, and as University and Conservatory performing arts majors. If what you want is a better voice and more control over your career moves and choices, contact me. Also, as the Editor of SanFranciscoSentinel.com, it is my privilege to review productions at the San Francisco Opera, Ballet and Symphony, as well as Broadway National Tours booked into San Francisco's Orpheum, Golden Gate and Curran Theatres. I also review works by A.C.T (the American Conservatory Theatre) and Magic Theatre. I cover select films, tributes and retrospects, and various international film festivals – particulary those booked into The City's opulent Castro Theatre – including the LGBT Frameline Festival, International Film Festival, Silent Film Festival, Jewish Film Festival, etc. For private vocal instruction, I can be contacted through SanFranciscoSentinel.com. Look under: Seán Martinfield, Sentinel Editor and Publisher.
Experience
As a vocal coach, I work primarily with singers and actors throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. My students range from absolute beginners to working professionals, from pre-schoolers to senior citizens. The vast majority of my clients come to me through recommendation. I know how to identify any singer's vocal category, i.e., soprano, tenor, alto, baritone, etc. I know how to muscle-up every singer's vocal range and to expand it beyond conventional definitions. I have developed a vocal methodology for those who want to know how to belt, THE BELTER'S METHOD. As a singer who spent half of his career doing Bel Canto, I know that classical or Italian methodologies do not work in Standard American music. Bel Canto cannot be "adapted" to meet the needs of contemporary American music, including the demands of the Musical Theatre.
There are a number of major components to my work as a vocal coach. The first is to identify the client's vocal category and to strengthen and maximize the vocal range accordingly. Then it's about teaching a reliable vocal workout that will enable the client to gain better control of their musicianship. That includes scale work to expand the vocal range and to improve placement, breath control, and diction. Then we work on material for the audition portfolio, the immediate job or assignment, a recording session, etc. My task to is to better equip singers and actors who are hoping to or relying upon their performance skills and vocal endurance to maintain a career in the Performing Arts. My clients regularly appear in cabarets and musical productions throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Some have worked in New York and gone on National Tours. For more information, Contact me at: Broadwaybelters@yahoo.com
Education/Credentials
San Francisco State University – BA in Theatre Arts; graduate work in Theatre, Philosophy, and Comparative Reiligion.
Pacific School of Religion, Berkeley – Graduate work in Ethics
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