What is the Best Type of Singing Lessons for You?
By: Mariana Vargas
Tags: Education, Learning, Music, Teaching, Singing Lessons

What is the Best Type of Singing Lessons for You?

Music school, a choir, a private tutor, or video lessons? Let’s take a look for alternatives and find the most suitable option for your needs!

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels

So, you decided to start singing lessons. Maybe you want to sing along with your instrument, want to improve your public speaking skills or you are just pursuing a new hobby.

How are you planning to learn? Singing lessons can be expensive and require considerable weekly time, so you want to make sure you will find the best place and method for it. Let’s take a look at the options you have and compare the pros and cons of each of them.

Disclaimer: I do not have any affiliation with any of the entities mentioned as example in this post.

Music schools

Photo by John Matychuk on Unsplash

Every music school is different. In big cities, it is easy to find schools specialized in one genre in specific, e.g. jazz school or rock school. But some schools teach music in general. Some academies are specialized in singing, while others provide classes of different instruments.

Every school has specific teaching methods. It is common to have some sort of evaluation to acquire a certification. Good institutions invest in qualified teaching staff, appropriate equipment, facilities, and resources to provide successful education programs.

Advantages:

You become part of a community with similar-minded people, where you receive personal mentoring and can easily keep updated about music projects and gigs inside this community.

Usually, the curriculum includes different courses like singing, music theory, and combo, so you can acquire a complete education.

The certifications may be useful if you are willing to teach music in the future.

Disadvantages:

Fixed schedule for classes, with periodic evaluations, which may be hard to articulate if you do not have an organized schedule. However, some schools have flexible schedules as well.

Requires financial investment.

How to find the most suitable school for your needs?

Lookup for schools around you and try to get some information personally or on their website.

If the school organizes concerts, attend one to determine if you see yourself doing that type of work. Another good idea is to connect with some students to clarify any questions you have about the school methods. Some schools even organize open classes, where you can assist one class and chat with the teachers and students by the end.

Once you identify a potential school for you, there is nothing better than trying for yourself! Many schools offer trial classes, so you can schedule one and see how it works for you.

Choir

Choirs are another option to learn how to sing. There are different types of choirs, organized by age, by gender, or by genre. For example, I have been part of three choirs in the past — a child choir, a religious choir, and an adult choir focused on classical music — and the repertoire was very different in all of them.

I’ve heard a lot of misconceptions about what is being to be part of a choir, for example, that you don’t have to be a skilled singer to be a part of it and that you only sing boring music in churches. I can assure you this is not true. First, choir rehearsals include serious singing training. Second, the choir repertoire varies very much. During my choir experience, I have sung religious music, worldwide music, and even Queen songs.

Lisbon Youth Choir, photo by Teatro Nacional de São Carlos

Advantages:

Just like the singing school, the choirs are a community where you get singer friends with different music projects and life experiences to share.

Less pressure to learn, since your individual voice is not in the spotlight.

It is easy to find choirs with affordable fees (or even for free).

Disadvantages:

Lack of personal coaching.

Fixed schedule for rehearsals.

How to find the most suitable choir for me?

You can apply the same process I suggested to find a music school: search for choirs around you, attend one of their performances (or lookup for it online), connect with some members to clarify any doubts, and ask to attend one rehearsal.

Personal Coach

Singing is a complex skill. It evolves a lot of body knowledge and training, just like a sport, but also requires poetry interpretation, word pronunciation, and performance experience. It is a useful skill not only for someone who aims to become a singer. For professions that require public speaking, having voice control is essential to become a confident speaker and avoid voice damage. A vocal coach is the best option for someone who wants customized lessons.

After 2020’s pandemic, remote online lessons became popular, which create more opportunities. Although the sound delay affects the quality of the lesson, it may be the only option for someone living in a small village to receive mentoring from a personal vocal coach, or the only opportunity for someone to have lessons with an international top vocal coach.

Vocal Coach Cheryl Porter with a student, photo by Cheryl Porter

Advantages:

Receiving personalized education and dedicated mentoring.

Disadvantages:

It is an expensive option

How to find the most suitable vocal coach for me?

Vocal coaches can be hard to find in small towns, and good ones can be hard to find even in big cities. Once you get a contact, research about his teaching background. Many singers start to teach to make extra income but don’t have tutor experience. Being a good musician doesn’t mean someone is also good at teaching, mentoring, and motivating, so even if the vocal coach is a well-known musician, you must lookup for his teaching experience and get student reviews before signing up.

Video Lessons

YouTube is full of free video lessons from many different vocal coaches. It is easily accessible, entirely free and you can attend the lessons in your own schedule. Many vocal coaches also offer their own e-learning courses you can purchase.

As a singer, I have to advise you not to rely on video lessons if you are a beginner. Receiving feedback is the most important factor when learning to sing. You must make sure you are learning proper technique not only to sound better but also to be sure you are not damaging your voice.

I believe video tutorials may be very useful for some specific purposes:

Review previously learned technique, if you already are a skilled singer;

Find warm-up exercises, again, if you already are a skilled singer;

Music theory lessons;

Singing tutorials who don’t require actually singing, e.g. tricks to remember lyrics, songwriting tips, or insights about the music industry.

Nicola Milan is a vocal coach with dozens of jazz & blues tutorials in her youtube channel

Advantages:

Free schedule

Affordable price (or even for free)

Disadvantages:

You have to motivate yourself

You don’t receive any feedback

There is no support if you have any doubts

How to find the most suitable online lessons for me?

I don’t know how to answer this one. There are online lessons to learn every singing technique and even to learn how to sing specific songs. The best online lessons will depend on your goals.

Online lessons are a good complement if you already have some vocal training and understand the tutor’s vocabulary. But please, be careful when learning how to sing by yourself. The voice is a very delicate instrument and bad technique can be harmful.

In conclusion

Music schools are most suitable if you want to learn not only singing as an instrument but music as a whole. It is a good investment if you are committed to being part of the music community and connect with other musicians.

Choirs can be a more affordable option than a music school and also allow you to integrate a music collective.

A personal coach can give you the most personal feedback possible and video lessons are the most flexible option, in terms of schedule and investment.

No option is better than the other. There are good and bad music schools, as well as good and bad choirs, personal coaches, and online lessons. The most worthy option will depend on your personal goals, available time, and financial capacity. Lookup for the options you can access and consider your alternatives carefully.