Becoming Grounded - Awareness & Movement in the Voice Studio
Thursday 18th January 2024, 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM (London Time)
Being grounded is a dynamic relationship between the floor and performing artist. A good relationship supports artistic expression and the development of reliable technique. This workshop will guide you to understand the physical connections that contribute to being grounded and introduce you to methods to teach, practice, perform and live while being grounded.
The workshop will feature balance concepts from the Body Mapping course ‘What Every Musician Needs to Know About the Body’, which will provide a map for our movement. Body Mapping grew out of the Alexander Technique and is the conscious updating of body maps that guide all movement.
With a clear understanding of the key places of balance, we will integrate movement patterns. The patterns begin with weight shifting in the feet which can resonate up through the body. These memorable patterns guide the body to remain grounded as we move in a balanced way. The patterns have been adapted from Core Movement Integration and Drew Ricciardi’s themonkeybodyTM method.
Integrating awareness of the body and movement into practice will enhance the learning process by providing access to subtle nuanced movements that create exquisite musical expression. Additionally, with practice these movement patterns will become a basis for performing choreography in the practice room, onstage in recital, ensembles or productions, or when leading a group. Participants will have tools and strategies for integration into performing and teaching.
Vanessa Mulvey
Vanessa Mulvey balances work as a flutist, Body Mapping educator, personal trainer and parkour coach. She is a faculty member at the Longy School of Music of Bard College and New England Conservatory of Music.
Attend this course for as little as £22 as part of the Voice Professional Training CPD Award Scheme.
Learn MoreSorry, this is an archived short course...
We have plenty of upcoming short courses coming soon. See details of some of them below or look at the full list of short courses.
Tuesday 17th February 2026
10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
(London Time)
Simultaneous Singing and Dancing in Musical Theatre: A Cross-Disciplinary Evidence Review
Debbie Winter
Dr Claire Thomas
This short course invites participants to critically examine the latest cross-disciplinary evidence on the physical and vocal demands of musical theatre performance. Drawing on a comprehensive literature review conducted by Debbie Winter and Claire Thomas (Voice Study Centre, University of Essex), the course explores research from voice science, dance medicine, sports science, and performance pedagogy.
Thursday 19th February 2026
8:30 AM - 10:30 AM
(London Time)
It’s not a virus! Reconceptualizing and De-pathologizing Music Performance Anxiety
Rebecca Herman
Performance Anxiety is one of the most widespread and debilitating challenges facing musicians across all ages, nationalities and musical genres. Despite decades of research and the development of numerous interventions, we do not yet have an established way of supporting performers experiencing performance anxiety. Aimed at performers, teachers, researchers and students, this presentation will first summarise the current state of play in performance anxiety research, before exploring alternative ways to think about performance anxiety, drawing on new research outside of performance psychology...
Thursday 19th February 2026
1:00 PM - 2:30 PM
Thursday 26th February 2026
1:00 PM - 2:30 PM
(London Time)
Performing Pain: Vocal Health in Emotional Roles!
Louisa Morgan
How connected are acted emotions to our real-life emotions? Are they expressed differently? Do they feel different in the body? This 2-part course with Louisa Morgan looks at the potential impact of acted emotion on vocal health, why we should consider it as voice practitioners, and how to care for our performers needing to work with it.