What I Talk About

I mean, I talk about a LOT of things; some of which are pretty danged conventional as far as the world of voice teaching goes (you know the stuff: anatomy and physiology of the vocal instrument (AKA: The Vocal Instrument 101), working with the child voice, teaching adolescents, how coordination differs between contemporary tonal outcomes and western-classical tonal outcomes, etc.).

I also talk about a lot of not-super-conventional stuff.

And I’m happy to combine the conventional with the non-conventional so you get the kind of learning and information you want for your cohort or association or chapter or class or, you know, group of people who want to learn some stuff.

OH! And I don’t just TALK about stuff; I also workshop and masterclass allll the things for maximum absorption (because: science of learning says that we learn better when we DO the thing).

Here are a few of the things I love to talk, workshop, and masterclass about:

Shannon Coates, speaker for masterclasses and workshops, dressed in a black tank top dress and wearing a short necklace with large, luminescent beads, Dr. Shannon Coates leans forward into the camera. Her hair is short and purple, and her eyes look into the camera while her head tilts upward to the right.

Several randomly-placed, brass-coloured cogs lay on a dark grey, patterned surface.

The Art of Teaching

This is one of the unconventional things I love to talk about; it’s at the HEART of everything I do.

(Don’t tell anyone but: anatomy and physiology is my sneaky way of getting your attention so we can talk about The Art of Teaching. Because: knowing the anatomy and physiology of the voice is just the start. If we don’t know HOW to reach a student, it really doesn’t matter very much whether we understand the voice science, does it?)

In this talk/workshop/masterclass (your choice, really), we work together to understand and apply educational principles such as student-led learning, in the one-on-one structure of the voice studio. Depending on the length of our session, we will cover everything from

how we shape our policies, to
how we communicate, to
how we observe students, to
how we define student success

And we will consider practical ways to rethink our:

modelling,
communication,
pacing,
and preparation

so we can truly apply these principles for deeper, more effective student learning

NOTE: This subject works best in a workshop or a masterclass structure

PS: the practical application of this subject may or may not involve me working with voice teachers directly to help shape their teaching and/or me working with singers while having an open-mind dialogue wherein I talk about the things I’m observing in the singer, what choices I’m making about how to address what is happening, and why I’m making those choices.

The Vocal Instrument 101

As I may or may not have revealed earlier on this page, The Vocal Instrument 101 is my not-so-secret way of getting you in the door of The VoicePed UnDegree so we can talk about The Art of Teaching.

This session lures you in with excellent information about the anatomy and physiology of respiration, phonation, resonance, and registration … and then gets you wanting to know more about HOW TO TEACH THIS STUFF EVEN BETTER (which: that’s why I do The Art of Teaching, friend).

NOTE: works best as a lecture class or workshop and is super-useful for high school voice classes, choirs, and groups of voice teachers who want to lock down some good information about HOW the voice works.

PS: if you’re a motivated kind of person who enjoys working on your own time, you may prefer to invest in my online, self-directed course called – wait for it – The Vocal Instrument 101 Online Course.

Mix & Match Voice Ped Topics

Child Voice: The anatomy and physiology of the child voice and why we’re not teaching small adults when we work with the child voice.

Ageing Voice: How ageing affects the singing voice and ways to work with (or to be an!) ageing singer.
NOTE: Child Voice and Ageing Voice are excellent lectures for voice pedagogy classes, local NATS Chapter Professional Development sessions, and choirs or choral directors.

Contemporary Voice: One of my signature lectures on how the coordination required to create contemporary tonal outcomes (for music theatre and popular musics) differs from the coordination required to create western-classical tonal outcomes.

Neurodivergent Voice: Another signature lecture about what neurodivergence can look like in a voice student and a few ideas for how to change our teaching methods to create greater inclusivity in the voice studio.

Creating More Inclusive Voice Studios: This lecture is a deeper dive into our traditional studio policies, teaching methodologies, and understanding of accommodation in order to find areas where we can remove barriers to access and increase inclusivity in the voice studio.

NOTE: any (or all!) of the Mix & Match Voice Ped Topic options work well in the 90-minute Lecture Class format OR can be mixed and matched with The Vocal Instrument 101 or with each other in any of the 3-hour or full-day Structure Options

PS alllll of these topics (plus a few more) are part of the Core Curriculum of The VoicePed UnDegree coming in 2022.

Testimonials

It was invaluable to have Shannon's insightful and incredibly knowledgeable guidance on aspects of my teaching. She helped me get really specific about providing concise feedback to my students during their voice lessons. This meant less talking for me and more singing for my students; not to mention more meaningful instructions and better results from my singers! Win, win!

Gabriela Farias, Educator & Voice Teacher (Brampton, Canada)
I am currently doing a Voice Ped Practicum with Shannon and a group of fabulous voice teachers. The Practicum gave me an opportunity to dive into learning in a hands on, non traditional way that sparked my excitement, interest and curiosity. My co-workers have noticed my joy at work, which is in part due to having our classes spaced out to meet restrictions (which gives me time to BREATHE), but also due to the fact I am excited to go in to work and see RESULTS in my students. I feel valuable. I know when I meet an issue I don’t understand, I have a support group to offer help, insight, and the most current research around any given topic. If we don’t know, we learn together. I am asking questions and getting answers. I am finding new sounds within myself. I am finding myself practicing more, making plans, and dreaming. I am literally full of happiness because I feel I have found something special in what Shannon offers to people like me (aka voice teachers who have not received their doctorate in voice but are successfully working in the field). My confidence is soaring because of the knowledge I have and the results I am seeing.

Courtney Fowler, Voice Teacher & Owner at CFPA (Paradise, Canada)
My confidence is soaring because of the knowledge I have and the results I am seeing.

Courtney Fowler, Voice Teacher & Owner at CFPA (Paradise, Canada)
Shannon trained the CFPA voice staff in “The Vocal Instrument 101”. The information given set all of our team up to use the same language when speaking about voice ped or speaking to students, gave us an inside look at the body and how the systems work with each other and what happens when certain things are altered, the science of sound, and more. The value was far above the price, in my opinion.

Courtney Fowler, Voice Teacher & Owner at CFPA (Paradise, Canada)
Shannon's insightful and incredibly knowledgeable guidance on aspects of my teaching was invaluable!

Gabriela Farias, Educator & Voice Teacher (Brampton, Canada)
All of the voice teachers on the team benefitted immensely from learning from Shannon; the value is far above the price!

Courtney Fowler, Voice Teacher & Owner at CFPA (Paradise, Canada)

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