Teaching Philosophy
Our Three Keys to Success
We have devoted and committed our entire professional lives to the art and science of healthy singing. It is through this level of commitment we have developed our three keys to a successful singing career.
The first and most important key to success is an unfailing and dependable vocal technique. It is paramount to us that our students do not develop vocal damage because of the demands of their careers. Through our guidance in voice lessons, we give our students a thorough understanding of the anatomy and acoustics of the voice and how to make it work effectively, the necessity of proper inhalation and breath management, the correct use of the vocal articulators, and the accurate use of registration.
The second key to success as a singer is to develop a technique for acting. It is truly as important to have a technique for acting as for singing and the one we believe in is called “sense memory.” This acting technique takes real-life experiences and feelings the singer has had and manifests them while they are performing. Once we help our students determine the emotion of the piece we ask them to try to remember a time when they felt that emotion. Once they can pinpoint that specific experience, we ask questions to help make the memory even more real such as what do you smell, see and taste? What is the temperature? What time of year is it? Who else was there? Students, using their own life experience, become much more effective as actors and performers because they use their own real emotions.
The third key to success is only achieved through observing our students in a live performance. Although we definitely would never allow our students to take this step until we were confident they were ready, we believe the stage is a wonderful teacher. The only way to truly evaluate whether a singer is ready to take their career to the next level is to see how they do in front of a live audience.
Are you ready to explore our three keys to success? Contact us today!
Education and Training
Shelley and Joel have devoted their entire professional lives to the art and science of healthy singing. When you join the JVS family of singers, you will receive a unique and individualized plan for improving your voice. “We followed exactly the same path in our training and education and were privileged to work with some of the finest vocal professionals in the world. We may present it to you slightly differently in a lesson but we share the same beliefs in how our students will be taught.”
B.M. Vocal Performance: Illinois Wesleyan University
M.M. Vocal Arts and Performance: University of Southern California (High Distinction in Voice)
A.D. Artist Diploma in Opera: Pittsburgh Opera center.
Professional Certification: Opera Music Theater International, for completion of the 2-year young artist training program for opera and musical theater performers; Sarasota Opera Studio program.
Dr. Tom Cleveland
Retired Director of Vocology at Vanderbilt Voice Center and Professor of Otolaryngology Medical Center School of Medicine Vanderbilt University; Voice Faculty at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles.
Voice Lesson Focus: Vocal technique, mechanics of the vocal instrument, vocal anatomy.
Vocal technique including down and out breathing and breath support, raised soft palate, low larynx, relaxed body position, and correct speaking range.
Educational focus: Rehabilitation skills learned for vocal damage; instruction on how to train all types of singers including: pop, rock, gospel, broadway, and classical.
Dodi Protero
Vocal faculty at Academy of Vocal Arts; Private Voice Studio in New York City.
Voice Lesson Focus: bel canto vocal technique.
Jerome Hines
Internationally acclaimed opera singer, Founder/Director of Opera Music Theater International.
Voice Lesson Focus: Vocal technique, aria, and role preparation with discussions of character development and stagecraft techniques.
Notable vocal professionals with whom we have studied
Placido Domingo, Licia Albanese, Colin Graham, Will Crutchfield, Tito Capobianco, Emmanuel Villaume, Christoph Eschenbach, Hugo DeHannah, Martin Katz, Warren Jones, Yelena Kurdina, Tony Manoli, Joe Colinari, Heinz Fricke, James Conlon.