Singing for Health Network Series Workshop 5: Singing for Parkinson's
Thursday 10th December 2020, 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM (London Time)
All sessions are recorded and will be sent out to all registered participants.
Voice Workshops
Health and wellbeing: Singing for Parkinson’s
Aims
- The student will gain a holistic understanding of the symptoms of Parkinson’s.
- The student will understand the neural, cognitive, and motor learning challenges present within sessions.
- Teachers and facilitators will experience how to use their existing knowledge of vocal pedagogy and body mapping to create an enhanced singing programme specifically targeting the needs of their clients.
Objectives
- Can recognise and react appropriately to Parkinson’s symptoms within a singing session.
- Can deigns targeted exercises to enhance the therapeutic benefits of sing for Parkinson’s classes.
- Can begin to develop a toolkit of strategies that can support motor learning.
- Can develop safe working practices for themselves and their clients.
Session
What is Parkinson’s?
- An overview of symptoms and the possible profile of our clients
- Established therapies
- The benefits for people with Parkinson’s of being part of a sing for Parkinson’s programme
What the research suggests
- The neurological and cognitive implications of Parkinson’s for the singers.
- Skill acquisition and motor learning in a choral Parkinson’s class.
Putting theory into practice.
- Integrating research and a knowledge of singing pedagogy to enhance the therapeutic outcomes for a Parkinson’s vocal session
Break out groups 1
Develop aims and objectives for:
- One targeted physical warm-up
- One vocal exercise
- Suggest a song that demonstrates how you will develop these exercises.
- Reflection in action: consider how you may need to adapt to the clients learning needs.
Setting up a Sing for Parkinson’s Group.
Break out group 2
Things to consider
- A question of diversity.
- What are the barriers to attendance?
- Thinking about a community approach.
- What are my biases and assumptions as I teach the class?
Health and safety round-up
References and Bibliography
Elizabeth Drwal Stuttard
Elizabeth is a Vocal Coach and Choral Facilitator, Community Dance Facilitator and Researcher...
Sorry, 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 2nd December 2025
2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
(London Time)
Vocal Health, Well-being and Hindustani Classical Music
Dr Sunny Sandhu
Join Dr Sunny Sandhu for a 2-hour course that introduces participants to the ancient practice of kharaj exercises in the Dhrupad tradition, focusing on the deep and resonant lower octave of the voice. Through guided breathing, slow tonal exploration, and sustained notes, students will learn techniques that strengthen the vocal cords, expand range, and develop clarity and stability in sound production!
Thursday 4th December 2025
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
(London Time)
(R)evolutionary Voice Training: harnessing human instinct to accelerate vocal transformation!
Maddie Tarbox
Human beings and our vertebrate ancestors have been communicating via vocalization for millions of years – those sounds did not start as complex language, but as animal mimicry, acoustic cuing, and emotional primal sounds. Join Maddie Tarbox for this two hour session as she unpicks the repertoire of instinctive shortcuts that can lower cognitive load and accelerate vocal change!
Tuesday 9th December 2025
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
(London Time)
Low Male Voices (LMVs): Development, Technique, and Repertoire
Dr Dann Mitton
Join Dr Dann Mitton for this two hour workshop where he explores the Development, Techniques, and Repertoire favoured for Low Male Voices (LMVs). Typically labelled as 'Bass' and 'Baritone', these classifications are used in classical music, choral settings, and vocal pedagogy to help determine suitable repertoire and vocal roles. In contemporary music, the distinctions are less rigid but still useful for understanding vocal range and timbre.