academic gears

POPUP VOICE PED CLASS

Testosterone-Influenced Voice

Something I’m asked A LOT by voice teachers is, “what do I need to know to teach singing to men?”

So I put together one of my POPUP Voice Ped Classes on the subject in 2020 and – wouldn’t you know it? – that class still holds the record for the MOST participants out of ALL of the POPUP Voice Ped Classes I’ve ever offered.

Aaaand … before I go any further, I want to be clear that, when we’re talking about “male” and “female” voices, what we’re really talking about is, larger larynxes & vocal tracts and smaller larynxes & vocal tracts, and the various options that those larynxes & vocal tracts have when producing vocal sounds in specific frequency (or pitch) ranges. Guess what the major contributing factor is to that size difference in larynxes & vocal tracts? The extent to which a larynx & vocal tract was influenced by testosterone as it changed through puberty. Yep. Just that.

So, THAT’s why I use the language I do. (If you’re interested in a more in-depth discussion around gender and voice and vocal tract sizes, scroll on down and take a look at the Live Office Hours I did with Liz Jackson Hearns earlier this year.)

Exactly why is this subject so popular?

I have a feeling it has to do with a bunch of factors including that …

the majority of independent voice teachers were trained to sing in specific (ie higher) ranges, by teachers who were also trained that way …
so the majority of independent voice teachers are out there teaching with no explicit OR implicit understanding of what it feels and sounds like to sing with a larger larynx & vocal tract in lower pitch ranges.

I mean … that’s it, really.

We just haven’t had the experience for ourselves AND no one has ever really explained it to us.

Which:

that’s what we’re going to do in this POPUP Voice Ped Class:

Talk about the anatomy & physiology and the science-y stuff behind what happens when a person with a larger larynx & vocal tract wants to sing lower frequencies (or pitches).

That’s it. Easy-peasy. #pinkyswear

* Scrolling to find that video of the Live Office Hours I did with Liz Jackson Hearns? SCROLL NO FURTHER.

DETAILS:

90 minute class
$97 CAD
Wed, 24th November
10AM et
Delivered over zoom

Can’t make the live class? No worries! The class recording is available for 21 days to everyone who registers in advance.

When you register, you’ll get an email with all the deets re signing in to the class. AND you’ll get a few reminder emails as well. Because who doesn’t function better with a few reminders? #amiright?

Popup voiceped class for testosterone-influenced voice.

Here’s what some of the #reallifevoiceteachers who have participated in past POPUP Voice Ped Classes have to say about them:

Dr. Coates's wealth of information, warmth, and vivacious energy made this practicum an absolutely wonderful and enriching experience.

Tatum D'Souza, Singer, Voice Teacher, Founder at The Vocal Studio (Mumbai, India)
I have always believed that understanding how young voices work from a physical and pedagogical point of view is extremely important, not only just for training solo voices but also for choral directors and school music teachers. It was an honour for Mississauga Childrens’ Choir to host a teachers' workshop with Dr. Shannon Coates as our guest clinician. Dr. Coates was such a dynamic presenter with lots of helpful information for our participants. It was especially interesting to me to discover what is reasonable to expect from young voices and why (from a physiological point of view) which will help me to select appropriate choral repertoire for my choristers. I would recommend Dr. Coates to anyone/organization who would like to learn more about how to teach/engage young voices. Thank you for being our guest clinician and we look forward to having you with us again soon!!"

Jennifer Tung, Artistic Director at Mississauga Children's Choir (Mississauga, Canada)
You've brought me full circle in my teaching, Shannon! I spent years teaching voice based solely on imagery (which was the way that voice was taught to me) and then I retired from classroom teaching and had the time to take some voice pedagogy courses.

Suddenly, I felt like I had missed out on the past twenty years of research and was intimidated by all the voice teachers using what seemed like purely technical terminology to teach voice.

Then I listen to you, and I see that, although you know all the anatomy and physiology and can teach it, you still stress the need to communicate to our students about feeling and imagery rather than getting too "sciencey". So, I take inspiration from that and am learning to combine the imagery with the technical terminology to facilitate the deeper learning of my students.

Thank you for all that you do!

Elspeth Maynard: Voice Teacher & (Retired) Classroom Educator (Windsor, Canada)
You want to revolutionize your teaching and up your game in teaching voice to amazing new levels of professionalism and understanding? Then look no further than the fantabulous Shannon Coates!! She continues to amaze me at how she can take her vast wealth of knowledge, experience, and research, and compile it into practical, immediately relatable, easy to understand concepts in vocal pedagogy. She extends compassion and care to those she mentors or teaches. Her passion for vocal pedagogy is contagious. I love her enthusiasm and fun personality, she makes vocal pedagogy exciting and sooo much fun! . I just recently finished her child voice pedagogy course and loved the structure and flow of the course. Every single time I do a course with Shannon or learn anything from her, I love how I can immediately put to work what I have been taught. I quickly see exciting results in my growth as a teacher, and in the growth and capabilities of my singing students. I plan to continue to invest in vocal pedagogy courses from Shannon, she truly is amazing! You are missing out if you have not taken a course from her yet.

Rebecca Gulbranson, Voice & Piano Teacher, Founder at Dolce Melodies Studio (Herriman, USA)