What a GREAT teacher/student fit feels like

It has been a decade since I’ve had a voice lesson.  A decade since I’ve had that first lesson where you warm up a bunch beforehand, are a little nervous, prepare a voice lesson folder, meet a new teacher and have no idea if you are going to click with then.   A decade since I have put my voice into someone else’s hands. It’s a scary thing to do and but exciting when it’s the right fit.

For the last month, I’ve been looking for a voice teacher, specifically a opera teacher (although I’m a staff singer at a church and sing classical often, opera is a style I’ve never fully embraced).  I’ve had a handful of lessons with  teachers recommended to me by friends and other singers. Each one has been just okay, but not a great fit. I always tell my students that it should feel really good when working with the right teacher. The connection between you and your teacher should feel energetic and just feel good.

So this was a big taste to take my own advice. There were a couple teachers where I thought to myself “I’ll just take from this teacher I’m sure I’ll learn something.” And that might’ve been true.   But I thought it “NO.”  I should feel really good. So I kept trying teachers and finally I found one that clicked.  The persistence paid off.  She’s perfect for me right now and what I need.  And I knew it right away.  If I have gone with one of the other teachers, it would’ve been okay but it wouldn’t have felt like this. That also means I probably wouldn’t have learned as much or been so receptive to what they had to teach me.

Bottom Line: there are hundreds of vocal teachers in Los Angeles. Every teacher has their strengths and quirks, as well as their weaknesses. I can’t encourage you enough to try to find great fit. If you try one teacher and it’s perfect go with it.  if it’s not keep trying teachers until it feels really good. Keep trying until it feels right.

A Great Lesson Fit Feels:

1. engaging (time goes by really fast and you don’t look at the time thinking is this almost over)
2. open (you felt really receptive to what the teacher was saying, and they were receptive to you)
3. motivating (you want to go home and practice everything you did in the lesson)
4. during the lesson you have “wow” thoughts (they gave you new information about your voice/music)
5. encouraging (you leave feeling they respect you and your voice and will take good care of it)

GOOD LUCK!