Vocal Health in Children and Young People
Thursday 21st September 2023, 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM (London Time)
This talk will consider aspects of vocal health particularly pertinent to children.
The focus will be on issues which affect adolescents including voice change, performance anxiety, hydration, diet, risky behaviour, hormones, and much more. Olivia will both dispel myths and provide evidence-based advice which voice professionals can pass on with confidence.
This will be deeply relevant to primary and secondary school music teachers, singing teachers, vocal coaches, and children’s choir directors.
The talk will include a workshop element where participants will have the opportunity to try out some of the exercises and techniques. Participation is optional!
Olivia Sparkhall
Olivia Sparkhall is a composer, choral conductor, voice coach and music teacher based on the edge of the New Forest in Hampshire, UK. She is a Voice Study Centre (University of Wales...
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.