Research interests: Music Psychology, music making/listening and wellbeing, voice teaching and expertise, classical voice, music theatre voice, vocal pedagogy, vocal performance.
Accepting mentees: Yes (3)
Biography
Dr Heather Fletcher is a lecturer and voice teacher at The University of Melbourne. Her PhD in music psychology focuses on the practices of expert classical and music theatre voice teachers in Australia, while her other research in social and music psychology explores how music-making and listening impacts everyday well-being. Heather’s work has been published in voice and education journals, and she has presented at conferences across the globe for organisations such as ANATS, PEVoC, and the ICVT. Heather is also an accomplished mezzo-soprano and has performed with companies including Opera Australia and Victorian Opera, as well as in venues such as Carnegie Hall and St Martin-in-the-Fields. She is the current president of the Australian Voice Association.
Qualifications
PhD The University of Melbourne; Australia Music Psychology Thesis: “Investigating the Voice Teacher’s Approach: An Australian Perspective”
PGDip The Royal Academy of Music; London, UK Diploma of Postgraduate Performance: Voice; Licentiate: Singing Teacher
BMus University of Hartford; Connecticut, USA Bachelor of Music: Voice Performance; Minor: Italian
Publications
Published Manuscripts:
Fletcher, H., Davidson, J. W., & Krause, A. E. (2024). Examining the empathic voice teacher. Research Studies in Music Education, 46(2), 337-352. https://doi.org/10.1177/1321103X231172065
Fletcher, H., Krause, A. E., & Davidson, J. (2023). Examining How Voice Teachers Influence Student Achievement. Journal of Singing, 79(4), 445-456. https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/425/article/883087
Krause, A. E., & Fletcher, H. (2023). The purpose of radio and how it supports older adults’ well-being. Frontiers in Computer Science, 5, 1111806. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcomp.2023.1111806
Fletcher, H., & Krause, A. E (2022, September). Researching how and why radio presenters get into radio. On Air.
Fletcher, H., Davidson, J., & Krause, A. E. (2020). Defining the Expert Voice Teacher: A Narrative Review of the Literature. Australian Voice, 21, 9–21.
Articles Under Review
Krause, A. E., & Fletcher, H. (revision submitted 12.2024). Radio relationships: Perceptions on listenership and well-being.
Book Chapters Under Review:
Krause, A. E., & Fletcher, H. (under review). Radio engagement and older adult well-being. In Lehmberg, L. J., & Fung, C. V. (Eds.), Oxford Handbook of Music and Ageing.
Conference Papers:
Krause, A. E., & Fletcher, H. (2024, October 01). Radio: A social surrogate. Poster presented at the 2024 TropiQ Research Symposium. Townsville, QLD, Australia.
Krause, A. E., & Fletcher, H. (2024, April 19). Radio: A social surrogate. Paper presented at the Fostering Creative Health conference. Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
Fletcher, H., Davidson, J., & Krause, A. E. (2022, September). Defining the Expert Voice Teacher: A Narrative Review of the Literature. Paper presented at the Australian National Association of Teachers of Singing (ANATS) Conference, Adelaide, Australia.
Fletcher, H., Davidson, J., & Krause, A. E. (2022, August). Defining the Expert Voice Teacher: A Narrative Review of the Literature. Paper presented at the International Congress of Voice Teachers (ICVT), Vienna, Austria.
Krause, A. E., & Fletcher, H. (2021, November). Radio relationships and well-being in older age. Paper presented at the 54th Australian Association of Gerontology Conference, Virtual.
Fletcher, H., Davidson, J., & Krause, A. E. (2021, July). “I ask them what they can feel.” Proprioception and the Voice Teacher’s Approach. Paper presented at the International Conference on Music Perception and Cognition and the European Society for the Cognitive Sciences of Music (ICMPC16/ESCOM11), Australia.
Fletcher, H., Davidson, J., & Krause, A. E. (2019, December). “Good, good, good, good, good, good… I'm obsessed with that sound!” Charismatic leadership and engendering comfort in the one-to-one learning environment. Paper presented at the Musicological Society of Australia, Melbourne, Australia.
Fletcher, H., Davidson, J., & Krause, A. E. (2019, August). “How did that feel?”: The psychological motives and implications of feedback in the Australian singing studio. Paper presented at the Pan-European Voice Conference (PEVoC), Copenhagen, Denmark.
Fletcher, H., Davidson, J., & Krause, A. E. (2019, July). “Unless you’re strong, the industry will just eat you”: The psychological approach taken by voice teachers. Paper presented at the International Symposium on Performance Science (ISPS), Melbourne, Australia.
Fletcher, H., Davidson, J., & Krause, A. E. (2018, October). “What do you do at the start of a lesson?” The voice teacher’s approach in Australia. Paper presented at the Australian National Association of Teachers of Singing (ANATS) Conference, Blue Mountains, Australia.
Fletcher, H. & Davidson, J. (2018, July). Content, delivery, and perception: Investigating the voice teacher’s approach in Australia. Paper presented at the International Conference on Music Perception and Cognition and the European Society for the Cognitive Sciences of Music (ICMPC15/ESCOM10), Sydney, Australia.
Fletcher, H., Davidson, J., & Krause, A. E. (2018, May). Empathy and the voice teacher’s approach in Australia. Paper presented at the Postgraduate Music Research Conference – Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, Melbourne, Australia.
Conference Posters:
Krause, A. E., & Fletcher, H. (2022, November). How relationships between radio presenters and listeners might promote well-being. Poster presented at the 55th Australian Association of Gerontology Conference, Adelaide, Australia.
Krause, A. E., & Fletcher, H. (2022, August). Implications of radio personal characteristics on listener well-being. Poster presented at the Society for Music Perception and Cognition (SMPC) Conference, Portland, Oregon.
Fletcher, H., Krause, A. E., & Davidson, J. (2019, July). Passion, Lament, Glory in Flow. Poster presented at the International Symposium on Performance Science (ISPS), Melbourne, Australia.