Melanie Tapson (she/her/hers) BFA BEd MSc SLP (C) CCC-SLP PAVA-RV Reg CASLPO Professional Singer Singing Voice Specialist (voice teacher) Clinical Singing Voice Therapist (speech language pathologist)
Melanie is a professional singer, Singing Voice Specialist and clinical voice pathologist with a busy hybrid voice practice in Toronto. She holds a BFA (jazz performance, voice/drums), a BEd (senior vocal music/drama), and an MSc in speech pathology. She has performed on international stages including for Disney Cruise Line and touring with Juno Award winning groups, and she continues to sing and do voiceover work when time permits.
Melanie holds numerous honours as a voice practitioner; she was among the first 14 designated PAVA-Recognized Vocologists, she co-created the voice track for the Certificate in Performing Arts Health and Medicine (PAMA/ACSM) and most recently updated the curriculum for Safe Practices in Rehearsals and Training for Voice Educators in January 2026, she was featured in the 2024 CBC Nature of Things documentary "A User's Guide To The Voice", and she appears in the most recent editions of two popular voice textbooks, The Vocal Athlete (Rosenberg/LeBorgne) and Voice Work: Art & Science in Changing Voices (Shewell). She has also held board positions with the Pan American Vocology Association (or PAVA, where she was the first and longest-tenured Canadian & Eastern Hemisphere Governor), with the Ontario Association of Speech Language Pathologists and Audiologists (OSLA), Speech Language and Audiology Canada (SAC, formerly CASLPA), and the University of Toronto Acappella Coalition (UTAC).
In addition to clinical voice work, Melanie loves sharing her passion for voice through mentoring voice teachers, SLPs, and fellow voice geeks in MVP: Masterclass for Voice Professionals, hosting The Power of Voice, a successful annual international voice symposium, teaching voice disorders to graduate SLP students at Western and University of Toronto, and giving invited lectures around the globe for voice organizations like the SING! International Vocal Arts Festival and the Institute for Vocal Advancement. Melanie is also the vocal health consultant for touring musical productions like Evil Dead the Musical, and is currently excited to be supporting the field of clinical voice and voice disorders as a consultant in the development of the curriculum for a new graduate SLP program in Canada commencing in the fall of 2026.
Upcoming Short Courses
Tuesday 20th October 2026
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
(London Time)
Practical Magic*: The Art & Science of Balancing Voices with SOVTs and VFEs
Melanie Tapson
Through live demonstrations, group practice, and peer coaching, you’ll learn how to teach SOVTs and VFEs with clarity and precision, integrate their principles to support vocal health, recovery, and stylistic flexibility and troubleshoot challenges and adapt exercises for individualized results.
Past Short Courses
Monday 19th January 2026
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
(London Time)
Recover. Rebuild. Reboot. Refine: a self-tuning framework with SOVTs & VFEs
Melanie Tapson
Semi-Occluded Vocal Tract Exercises (SOVTs) and Vocal Function Exercises (VFEs) are celebrated tools in voice care and training, combining science, artistry, and practicality to promote vocal health, efficiency, and resilience. In this interactive workshop, Melanie Tapson — a professional singer, interdisciplinary voice specialist, and clinical voice therapist — explores the intersection of art and science in using these techniques to rebalance and refine vocal function where needed. Using a self-guided framework that helps identify what vocal subsystems need support, these tools can you recover from injury, rebuild after a break, reboot when things feel inefficient on the fly, and refine your voice for any vocal demands.
Tuesday 21st January 2025
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
(London Time)
From Broadway to the West End: Teaching Musical Theatre in a Modern Era
Melanie Tapson
In this engaging two-hour workshop, Melanie Tapson—a professional performer, interdisciplinary voice specialist and clinical voice therapist— focuses on equipping voice educators with practical tools to help their students thrive at every stage of their career, all the way to Broadway, the West End, and beyond.
Tuesday 6th June 2023
3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
(London Time)
The Magic* of Vocal Function Exercises!
Melanie Tapson
This workshop will demystify the four VFEs, explain how they address rebalancing each of the voice subsystems, and help you determine what’s most important about both modeling and explaining them to help your client succeed.