Navigating Vocal Aging for Singers
Monday 20th January 2025, 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM (London Time)
As singers approach their senior years, they can benefit greatly from a voice teacher who understands the normal changes involved as they navigate vocal aging. Equipped with knowledge about what affects their voices now, what strategies address the changes, and what vocal limits there may be going forward are important to know. How is resonance affected? Vibration? Respiration? What exercises can habilitate senior voices? What singing concepts carry through? How is musicianship affected? Range? Vibrato? Coloratura? Dynamics? Diction? Vocal color? Some who look for a voice teacher are lifetime amateurs with experience and pride as volunteer singers. Some are professionals who have had careers and are experiencing changes in their abilities that make it harder to meet professional standards. Others may be very new to singing and now have time to try it out as the healthy activity at this point in their lives.
This course will focus on the realities of aging voices for senior singers and what can be done to address vocal production and peripheral issues that can affect the activity of singing. Teachers can help professional and amateur singers understand, accept, and maintain their voices as they age.
Karen Brunssen
Mezzo-soprano, Karen Brunssen is Professor and Co-chair of the Department of Music Performance at Bienen School of Music, Northwestern University.
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.
Thursday 26th June 2025
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Tuesday 1st July 2025
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
(London Time)
The Contemporary Classical Singer: Incorporating New Music into Vocal Pedagogy!
Page Stephens
There are evolving expectations for vocalists, who now need to perform in a variety of styles beyond traditional classical music. In this two-part course, Page Stephens argues that voice teachers should incorporate contemporary repertoire and techniques into their lessons to help singers grow in expressivity, flexibility, and economic opportunities. The course will cover industry trends, cultural pressures, and economic benefits of contemporary music, and provide tools for integrating new music into vocal education. Interviews with professionals will highlight the strengths and weaknesses observed in the field, and strategies for teaching new music will be discussed.
Wednesday 2nd July 2025
2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
(London Time)
The identity politics of accent learning!
Jenru Wang
Jenru Wang has an MFA in Voice Studies with distinction from The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London - in this session, he will begin to explore the complexities accent coaches might face in their work, examining the intersection of language, identity, and cultural sensitivity. Participants will explore how to navigate challenging situations in different contexts and understand what to do—and avoid—when working with diverse clients and materials.
Thursday 3rd July 2025
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
(London Time)
Vocal “Decathletes” – inside the hidden world of Session Singing!
Kim Chandler
What is a session singer? Officially it’s a freelance, short-term “singer for hire” brought in to be part of a live or recorded musical project. However, it’s more generally understood to be the “behind-the-scenes” singer who is regularly booked for paid recording work. The type of work (and pay) varies a lot. Session singing is a side of the music industry that is largely hidden from the public and isn’t easy to find out much about, even online. Join Kim Chandler as she unpicks this topic, based on 35 years of session singing!