Jamie Kay Alston's Voice Studio

A Year of Greatness in the Studio!

2012-02-02T12:05:00.000-08:00

Hello Singers and Parents,

It has been too long since I updated my voice studio blog with a new post. It's about time to fill you in on what great things have happend the Fall Semester for 2011 and the upcoming great things coming just around the corner in the Spring Semester of 2012.

Fall 2011: We began in August with lots of new, enthusiastic students! The Private students worked toward their Master Class and Christmas Recital. Learning new vocal warm-ups and technique through beautiful arias, pieces from oratorios, english art songs and musical theatre pieces. Many students began working on Regionals sight-singing and great music to try out with! Each student fulfilled their public performance requirement by singing a solo in a church, class, audition or family event. Group students learned about music theory and history, Composer Corner was a time during their weekly lesson to study the great composers in the history of music. We learned many Christmas songs to sing at the Christmas Recital. We also mastered solfege in warm-ups and prepared for "Ave Maria" by learning it completely on solfege! What a GREAT, rewarding year! It finished with 2 Christmas Recitals with many compliments from the community and nursing home we performed at.

Spring 2012: Welcome new students! New music and technique is being tackled this semester. We had 8 students compete in Regionals Competition and Solo and Ensamble. What a great accomplishment! We are tackling German, Italian, Latin and English Art songs in every lesson. Just WAIT til you see the recital in May! It's going to be the best yet!

Students MANY accomplishments:
*Congratulations to Haylee Abney and Kayla McLemore for their leading roles in QC Highs upcoming show "Little Shop of Horrors". You can see them Friday March 9th and Saturday March 10th at the QCPAC!
*Congratulations to Alison Elg, Haylee Abney and Kayla McLemore for making the top performing choir in QC Krew through the QCPAC!
*Congratulations to the Regionals Winners: Haylee Abney, Erin McDowell, Emma Fisher, Kaylie Minson and Megan Newcomb!
*Congratulations to Haylee Abney for being accepted to University of Arizona's School of Music. We can't wait to hear about NAU and ASU! Good luck at your auditions!

Important Upcoming Dates: (please see your full semester calendar for all the dates.)
1. Regionals Choir Performance at Mountain View High School Saturday February 18th 2:30pm
2. Private Student Master Class Friday March 2nd 4:30-6:30pm
3. All-State Choir Auditions Saturday March 10th
4. Spring Break March 11th-17th NO LESSONS
5. Mandatory Studio Rehearsal Wednesday April 25th 4-6pm
6. Spring Recital Saturday May 5th 2pm (call time for students 1pm)
7. Ashley Morris' Senior Voice Recital Saturday May 12th 2pm
8. Haylee Abney's Senior Voice Recital Saturday May 12th 5pm

Here's to a GREAT rest of the Spring Semester and great music!
Sincerely,
Jamie Alston

REGISTRATION FOR FALL 2011

2011-03-20T11:25:00.001-07:00

Hello!

I am excited to announce that I will be beginning registration for my 12th year teaching voice lessons! It has been a wonderful 11 years and I look forward to another great year of teaching students of all ages to sing and love music! I will begin registration for Fall 2011 April 1st and I fill up fast so the sooner you register the better to save your spot. The registraion form is located to the right of this screen. Click on the image and you will be directed to sendspace.com. You will be able to click on the file there and print it out. Fell free to email me and I will send you my mailing address where you can send it or drop it off at your earliest convinience. The $25 yearly fee is due along with the form for all returning and new students in order to register.

Read more of my policies and classes to the right of this page on the tabs listed below for Private Lessons, Group Lessons and Prep Lessons.

My email is jkavoice@gmail.com. Remember registration begins April 1st! Thank you for your interest and confidence in my voice studio. Here's to another great year!

Christmas Recital 2010

2010-12-10T20:40:00.000-08:00

We are having our Christmas Recital at The Citadel Retirement Community on Saturday December 11th 2010. Please join us and the residents as we sing favorite carols like "Mary's Lullaby", "O Christmas Tree", "Candlelight Carol" and everyone's favorite "Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer"!

There will be a recital at 2pm in the Desert Rose building and 3pm in the Main Lobby.

Thank you students and parents for all your hard work and dedication this semester! I am excited for all the singers to share their beautiful voices at this special time of year!

Fall 2010 Calendar and Payment Schedule

2010-09-07T20:46:00.000-07:00

Here is our Fall 2010 Voice Studio Calendar:

SEPTEMBER: Regular lessons all month (*Except Monday the 6th- lessons will be moved to Friday the 10th at the same times to observe Labor Day).

OCTOBER: No lessons 10th to the the 24th for Fall Break.

NOVEMBER: Regular lessons all month (*Except Friday the 26th lessons will be moved to Monday the 22nd at the same times to observe Thanksgiving Break).

DECEMBER: Regular lessons the first 2 weeks of the month. "OUR FAVORITE CAROLS" Recital is Saturday the 11th at the Citadel Retirement Community. Call time is 1:30pm. There are 2 recital times 2 and 3pm. Students are required to attend BOTH recitals. Parents and guests are invited to attend both or either. Dress is Christmas colors/nice church dress.

No Lessons Until January 3rd 2011. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!

JANUARY: MANDATORY STUDIO REHEARSAL Thursday the 13th. Group students 5:30-6:45pm; Private students 6:15-8:30pm. There are NO LESSONS the week of the Studio Rehearsal! Remember the Studio Rehearsal is MANDATORY. You must participate in this rehearsal to be in the Broadway Melodies Recital. "Broadway Melodies" Recital Saturday 15th at 4pm. Call time for students is 3pm. There will be no lessons the 17th due to No School. Solo/Ensemble Competition and Regionals is January 28th and 29th.

*There will be a new calendar for February to May*

Payment Schedule:
August 9th, 10th, and 13th- Group Student Fee: $40; Private Student Fee: $75

September 3rd, 7th, and 10th- Group Student Fee: $45; Private Student Fee: $75

October 1st, 4th, and 5th- Group Student Fee: $22.50; Private Student Fee: $37.50

November 1st, 2nd, and 5th- Group Student Fee: $45; Private Student Fee: $75

November 29th, 30th and December 3rd- Group Student Fee: $22.50; Private Student Fee: $37.50

January 3rd, 4th, and 7th- Group Student Fee: $45; Private Student Fee: $75
Accompanist Fee Due by January 13th:
Group Student: $25; Private Student: $35

LESSONS BEGIN AUGUST 9TH

2010-07-27T08:42:00.000-07:00

The Fall 2010 semester of voice lessons beings Monday August 9th. This is in just 2 short weeks! I am looking forward to seeing my new students and my old students all come back ready to sing and learn!

To make sure you are ready your first day back I sent you all an informational email with your lesosn time, Fall 2010 Calendar, Contract Form and Policy Sheet. Please come to your first lesson with the Contract Form signed, a binder, pencil and for my private students: your Jensen Sight-Singing Book and music books. Group students will be recieving your new music at your first lesson. You will need a binder to take your new music home with you.

I look forward to seeing you at your first lesson!
Jamie Alston

REGISTRATION FOR FALL 2010

2010-05-26T08:37:00.000-07:00

Registration for the Fall semester of voice lesson in my studio has begun. If you are interested in vocal coaching please email me at jkavoice@gmail.com. The printable Registration Form is located to the right of this page. For Summer lessons please call me at 480-275-0823. I would love to take anyone with an interest in learning fun songs over the summer!

In the Fall 2010 semester we will be working on Broadway!!! We will also work on sight-singing, solfedge (do re me), and getting private lesson students ready for Regional's occurring in January. Group students will be working on conducting skills and vocal technique. All students will be required to sing in a public performance setting before their recital in the end or November or beginning of December. I am hoping to secure a local Rest Home for our studio to sing Christmas Carols as well.

Thank you for your interest! Feel free to contact me with any questions!
Sincerely,
Jamie Alston

Spring Recital This Saturday

2010-05-13T09:38:00.000-07:00

SENIOR RECITAL INVITE

2010-04-23T18:19:00.000-07:00

March Notes and Important Dates

2010-04-06T12:23:00.000-07:00

What a great month! You have done so well and I am proud and impressed with each of my students progress. Thank you for your hard work, dedication, memorizing and on-time arrival to your lessons!

Special note for Group Students: You did a FABULOUS job at the Queen Creek Stake Easter Fireside! That was so great to see you stand at the mic and sing that simple, sweet song. You did so well. BRAVO!

As of April 1st, every student is off-book... that means every song is memorized and we get to start working on the fun stuff: dynamics and stage presence! Lessons are all normal this month so please make an extra effort to arrive on time to each lesson and be prepared. We have a recital in 1 month and I want to see you ready for it.

Important dates coming up:
- Fall 2010 Registration Forms go out this week. I have priority registration for my existing students until April 15th. After the 15th I have open registration for all interested students. I only have 12 Group Students spots and the Private Student spots are limited in the Fall so grab them while you can!
- May 5th is the Studio Rehearsal. This mandatory rehearsal is from 6-8pm at the location of our recital that I will get to you soon. There are no private lessons the week of the 2 hour Studio Rehearsal.
- May 8th is my Senior Voice Student's Recital. I am encouraging each of my students to attend as it would be a great learning experience! The recital is at 2pm.
-Private Students: if you have ANY lessons to make-up please schedule a time with me to get those made up.
- Our much anticipated Spring Recital is coming up! It is on May 15th at 5pm. Student call time is 4pm. The location is TBA.

I know we will have another great month! Thank you!
Jamie

February Voice Notes

2010-02-25T08:13:00.000-08:00

What a great month! The students have all done so well!!! Thank you to each of you for being flexible this month! I sure appreciate your understanding and love for me.

Some positive notes...

For Group Students:
We worked on note names and values, continued working on Solfege, warm-ups and introduced dynamics and where they are in the songs we are singing. The students learned some new songs and will be getting revised CD's this month. March is our month to memorize all our music!!!

For Private Students:
We continued working on new warm-ups that will challenge the singers and expand range and stamina. We worked on Sight Singing in their blue books and I challenged them all to finish the level they are in right now and they all did!! Their songs are ready for their accompaniments and their CD's will be coming this month.

Some dates to remember this month...
March 3rd is a moved lesson for the Older Group Students at 4:15-5pm!
March 5th there are no lessons. (private students need to reschedule with me)
March 15th-19th is Spring Break. Have fun!!!
March 28th is the Queen Creek Stake Easter Fireside Performance for ALL Group Students. You are singing "Jesus Has Risen". You need to be at the QC Stake Center on Ocotillo and Hawes on the 28th at 6:15pm. The fireside begins at 7pm and ends at 8:15pm. It is Sunday dress. Please invite your family and friends to hear you sing!

January 2010 Notes

2010-01-30T16:15:00.000-08:00

Welcome back to Voice Lessons! To all my new students- welcome! and to all my returning students- so glad you're back for another semester! We have a wonderful semester ahead of us and from what I have seen this first month of lessons it will be a FABULOUS one!!!
Thank you for all your hard work and diligence as we have picked, learned and sight-read music together. It is so fun picking music that will help you as a singer grow. I am confident that you will all learn so much these next months and just absolutely SHINE in the recital!
Please see the SPRING SEMESTER CALENDAR below for all our important dates including the May Recital and be sure to put them all on you calendar as attendance for these dates is mandatory for all students.
We have worked on learning so much music this month. Please remember to keep track of your music and to bring it to each lesson. We have also worked on learning how important practicing is. YOU MUST GET USED TO PRACTICING EVERY DAY! You will soon begin memorizing songs and practicing daily now will help you when that happens.

THINGS WE WORKED ON THIS MONTH:
For Group Students: We have been working on Solfege, posture, practice charts and you have learned 5 new songs! Yes... 5!!! BRAVO!
For Private Students: You have each picked your solos, you have individualized warm-ups and your breathing was stressed this month. GREAT JOB!

THINGS WE WILL WORK ON NEXT MONTH:
For Group Students: We will continue our work on Solfege. We will be introducing dynamic markings in your music and you will start memorizing some songs. You MUST practice, fill out your charts and have your parents initial your charts for those Froggie Stickers. Please remember to use your Practice CD's when practicing. Congratulations to our King-sized Candy Bar Winners: Julia and Emilee! We will start fresh this month so the race is one for the most stickers to win the next King-sized Candy Bar Challenge!
For Private Students: We will be working on level 4 and 5 of your Sight-Singing Book. You will also be scheduling your public performance with me so be thinking about what song you want to perform, where and when! Also, practice, practice, practice... you will be memorizing all your songs so you need to start now with daily warm-ups and breaking those solos apart and making them yours!

Finally, I am excited to announce that I will be teaching Voice lessons this Summer. If you are interested in private lessons or my group lesson I will have more information coming soon. I will have several openings for other students that are not in my current studio so if you know anyone interested please have them email me at jkavoice@gmail.com.

Thank you for a great first month! I will see you all next week at your lessons- ready to work!

Sincerely,
Jamie Alston

Spring Semester Calendar

2009-12-17T12:42:00.000-08:00

Here is the Spring Semester Voice Lesson Calendar:
-Lessons begin the week of January 3rd.
-Spring Break March 14th-20th.
-Queen Creek Stake Easter Fireside Performance Sunday March 28th 7pm.
-Studio Rehearsal Wednesday May 5th 6-8pm. No lessons this week!
-Senior Recital Saturday May 8th.
-Spring Recital Saturday May 15th 4pm call for students, 5pm Recital.

I am pleased to announce that I will be offering Summer Voice Lessons. Please email me if you are interested.

Queen Creek Christmas Performance

2009-12-06T15:03:00.000-08:00

Schedule for Spring Semester Voice Lessons

2009-11-30T12:07:00.000-08:00

Spring Semester Lesson Schedule:
Private Students:
Jessica Lamb- Tuesday 2:30pm
Kelsey Roseborough- Tuesday 3:15pm
Ashley Morris- Tuesday 4pm
Williams Family- Wednesday 6:30pm
Chelsea Duke- Thursday 1:45pm
Emily Ellsworth- Thursday 2:30pm
Amber Jones- Friday 1:30pm
Vanessa Lunt- Friday 2:15pm

Group Students:
Thursday 4:00pm
7-10 year olds
Friday 4:00pm
11-13 year olds

Important Dates Coming Up...

2009-11-25T07:52:00.000-08:00

Saturday December 5th: Queen Creek Christmas Festival at Desert Mountain Park- 2pm call for all students, 2:30pm recital.

Lessons are off for Christmas December 6th- January 4th.

Lessons begin at regular times starting Tuesday January 5th. You will get a reminder email of your times in December.

The tentative date for the May recital is Saturday May 1st. (If you have any conflicts with that date please let me know as soon as possible! This date is not set in stone yet!)

Have a great Thanksgiving!!!! See you next week for your last lesson before Christmas break!

Our Fall Recital

2009-11-22T12:56:00.001-08:00

We had a fantastic Fall Recital this past weekend! Here are some pictures to enjoy! Thank you everyone for your participation, hard work and talent!!!

The studio of very talented singers!

ACCEPTING NEW GROUP STUDENTS

2009-11-17T11:19:00.000-08:00

I am pleased to announce that I am accepting new Group Students starting in January. If you are interested please see the Group Student button to the right of this page for information. Starting on January 6th 7-10 year old students will be 4-4:45pm on Thursday's and 10-13 year old students will be 4-4:45pm on Friday's. Please call me or email me. My contact information is located on the right side of my blog. Thank you! I look forward to hearing from you.

Fall Recital Information

2009-11-15T13:02:00.000-08:00

Our Fall Studio Recital is Saturday November 21st at 5:00pm. This year's recital will be held at the Calhoun's home. Student call time is 4pm. Church dress is appropriate for students. The recital will be about an hour long with refreshments served afterwards.

The students have all worked so hard this semester and I am so excited for them to showcase their talents!

OCTOBER NOTES

2009-10-27T11:08:00.000-07:00

We are coming up on all our recitals and I am so excited to show case my students! You are doing so well. Please push yourself these last weeks before our recitals. You need to be memorized THIS WEEK!!! All music is off-book. As this week are the last lessons of October please remember that payment is due next week. There is a $10 late fee.

Each student was handed a paper this last week of all our important dates coming up. It was also emailed to you. Please read it and email me any questions you have. I need a head count of how many people you are expecting to come to the Fall Recital so we can plan out our number of chairs and food. There is a part on the important dates paper you can fill this number in and return to me this week. The important dates are listed below for your convinience.

IMPORTANT DATES:
-By Tuesday October 27th all music is memorized.
-Thursday October 29th- Group Students Fieldtrip to Noah Webster Basic School. Please arrive at my home by 4pm and please pick-up at my home at 5:30pm.
-No lessons November 9th-13th.
-Studio Rehearsal Thurday November 12th 6-8pm at Calhoun Residence (21259 E. Via del Palo in The Villages at Queen Creek). Your accompanist fee is due at this lesson ($25 for Group Students, $40 for Private Students). THIS REHEARSAL IS MANDATORY TO BE IN THE RECITAL.
-Saturday November 21st FALL RECITAL at 5pm at the Calhoun Residence. Call time for students is 4pm. There will be a reception to follow the recital. Students need to wear church dress for this recital.
-November 23rd-27th- No lessons for Thanksgiving Break.
-Monday November 23d- Special rehearsal with Private Students for Christmas. Please sign up with me for your 20 minute time slot for rehearsal with Jen.
-Saturday December 5th- Queen Creek Christmas Celebration. Our studio has been invited to sing at 2pm. Call time is 1:30pm for ALL students. Please wear your Christmas dresses for this performance.
-Christmas Break is Sunday 6th of December to Monday January 4th. Lessons resume Tuesday January 5th as scheduled.
IMPORTANT: There will be a split in my group lessons. Because of the overwhelming response to these lessons I will be doing the younger group students lesson (7-10 year olds) on Thursday from 4-4:45pm and the older group students (10-13 years old) on Friday at 4-4:45pm. I am accepting new students for these lessons now so please spread the word!

That's it. Please email me with any questions. Thank you for all your hard work!
Sincerely, Jamie

Accompanist CD's

2009-10-01T19:00:00.000-07:00

You all have received your Accompanist CD. This CD was put together by your accompanist, Jen Thacker and I to help you practice your Recital Songs easily at home. Please do not lose it! It's like gold! You need to be practicing with your CD every day so you are more prepared for our Studio Rehearsal in just 5 short weeks! This is the month to memorize your songs. Work hard and it will pay off! Have fun with those CD's!

IMPORTANT DATES

2009-09-24T17:07:00.000-07:00

Please make sure these important dates are on your calendars:

October 11th-18th- FALL BREAK- no lessons

Thursday October 29th- GROUP STUDENT LESSON AT NOAH WEBSTER- 4-5pm (no private students)

November 8th-14th- NO LESSONS- Studio Rehearsal Week

Thursday November 12th 6-8pm- STUDIO REHEARSAL- MANDATORY dress rehearsal for Fall Recital

Saturday November 21st 5pm- FALL RECITAL- Students arrive at 4pm

Monday November 23rd- 20 MINUTE PRACTICE LESSONS- my home with Jen Thacker for Private Students

November 24th-29th- THANKSGIVING BREAK- no lessons

Saturday December 12th 11am- CHRISTMAS RECITAL

December 13th- January 3rd- CHRISTMAS BREAK

Monday January 4th- SPRING SEMESTER BEGINS

September Voice Notes

2009-09-24T14:35:00.000-07:00

What a wonderful month of learning! I am so impressed with what everyone accomplished these last 4 weeks- Private and Group lessons! I am looking forward to another great month. Please remember to bring your books, warm-up sheets and a pencil to every lesson. I need you all to come prepared as we are going to go into reciatl mode this next month.

A couple more things to remember:
October Break is coming! My Studio's October Break is the 11th to the 18th. There are no lessons that week. There are lessons the week before when I know some schools have off. Please call and let me know if you are not coming to your lesson. Group Students will have their regular lesson that week but Private students are welcome to reschedule to an earlier time in the day or a different date during that week. I will only reschedlue if you call in advance!
Payment is due at the first lesson of the month. October fee is $75 for Private students and $40 for group students. Please remember fees not made on time will incur a $10 late fee.

For Private Students:
Your Women's Composer Project is due Thursday October 1st. Please see the blog enrty with the instructions for your project below.
You all have done very well with your Technique this month. We worked on your breathing and I hope you will continue your exercises as they strengthen your core sound, vowels and resonation. In October we will be working on posture and resonating. I know you will master this just as well as you did breathing!
Keep in mind that you must sing in public before the studio rehearsal on November 12th. You have your group songs for the Christmas Recital. Please start working on those songs in your regular practice time. You also received your Accompaniment CD this week. Work with it every day!!! You're the best!!!

For my Group Students:
You have done so well this month! I am so proud of you! You have learned all your songs for both our recitals and you just got the best CD ever... your accompaniment CD! Please use this to practice all the time! You will get so much better at your songs as you do! Parents: I assigned solos, duets, trios and group parts this past month. Please work with your daughter on her part. I am so excited that I have so much talent that I could actually assign pasts this semester! Next month we will be working on breathing, posture and vowels.

Fantastic job this month! I can't wait to see what we can accomplish in October! Thank you for all your hard work!!!
Jamie

Women Composer Paper- Private Student Semester Project

2009-09-10T09:12:00.000-07:00

My Private Students need to complete their semester project by October 1st. Please write a paper about your female composer. If you have several female composer songs you are working on, choose one or you can be ambitious and do all of them!! Here are some examples of information I would like you to consider writing about:
1. Her full name, birth date, death date, place she was born, if she was married and to who and anything about her family.
2. Where she studied music and with whom.
3. Her other works of music.
4. Her leading roles in any performances and dates.
5. Her native language and when she was first published.
6. All information about your song: if it is part of a cycle, an opera, a musical...; if it is in another language please translate it providing a poem for both languages; the general feeling of your song; the scene in which it takes place; who are you while you are singing the song?. (There is so much to this category. Please provide as much information as you can!)

You can use your music, Google- the internet is great!!!, books, ask me anything! Remember to have fun with this! We will be sharing your paper with all the students so make it a good one! Remember this project is due October 1st!

Senior Students

2009-09-10T08:23:00.000-07:00

Chelsea LaRee Duke is a senior at Queen Creek High School. She has been involved with music her whole life and has taken private voice coaching for five years. Chelsea has grown and flourished through coaching and plans to minor in music this coming fall. She debuted her talent in Romeo and Juliet: The Seussical as Juliet and has continued buliding her repertoire on stage as a Sister in Pirate of Penzance at Queen Creek High School. Her other musical and acting credits include: Aladdin, To Tell the Truth, Check Please, and A Thousand Cranes. Chelsea has been involved in Queen Creek High School choirs and had the honor if being placed in the high school's top choir, Bull Dog Singers. She plans on joining the EVMCO High School Choir this fall. She has also participated in her Ward and Stake Choirs. Chelsea enjoys performing and hopes to continue building her already impressive repertoire. Along with her minor in music she hopes to major in law and teach voice lessons.

Vanessa Vernice Lunt started taking voice lessons last fall and she has enjoyed every minute of it! She loves to sing and has been in various choirs at school and church since she was very young. She espcially enjoys music theatre, participating in such productions as Pirate of Penzance, as a daughter of the General and Aladdin as Jasmine at Queen Creek High School. Vanessa has played the violin for 9 years and during that time had the privilege of being part of the Southwest Symphony, joining them on their European Tour. She is joining the EVMCO Orchestra this fall and is teaching her own violin studio. Throughout high school she has been vigorously involved in extra-cirricular activities including cross country, track, student council, choir and orchestra. Music is the most important part of Vanessa's life next to her testimony of the Savior and her family. Vanessa is hoping to continue with music in college and hopes to continue to grow musically for the rest of her life.

August Notes

2009-08-24T21:01:00.000-07:00

At the end of each month I will post notes of accomplishments and what we need to work on as a studio so parents and students are aware of their accomplishments. You should all be so proud of yourselves! I am so proud of what you have achieved this first month of voice instruction! I will start with my private students: great first month!!!! What talent you all have! You have all been given solos, you know your female composer you will be studying this coming month, and you have your specific warm-ups and sight-singing exercises! Bravo! Please practice every day and remember to begin working on your female composer paper. I would also like to see each of you pick a sacred song this coming month and schedule a date to perform in public. My group students: WOW!!! You did so well this month! Bravo to you! I am so overwhelmed with the talent we have in our group this semester. You have learned 4 new warm-ups, studied rhythm, learned solfege hand signs, and you have learned 6 new songs! Please remember to fill out those very important frog practice charts! Remember we are aiming for "high 5" each week! 5 days of practicing, 10 minutes each. I will be assigning solos this month. I hope you will be excited about that! Please remember to use your practice CD at each practice session you have. That CD is so important! Great job this month to all of you. I am so excited for September!!!

SENIOR RECITAL IN MAY

2009-08-24T20:57:00.000-07:00

I have 2 wonderfully talented Seniors from Queen Creek High School this year. They will be performing a very special senior recital in May that you won't want to miss. A senior recital is a very significant moment for a vocalist to honor achievement and growth and I can't wait for theirs!

Recital and Rehearsal Information

2009-08-24T20:53:00.000-07:00

We have 2 recitals this semester. The first is at the Calhoun Residence on Saturday the 21st of November at 4pm. The second is our service recital at Creek View Manor in Queen Creek on Saturday December 12th at 11am. There will be a Studio Rehearsal at the Calhoun Residence on Thursday November 12th from 6-8pm. This rehearsal is mandatory to be in the recitals.

Fall 2009 Semester Goals

2009-08-24T20:47:00.000-07:00

It's so important to have goals for yourself! That is how we succeed... having reasonable, attainable goals. A sign in my music room reads:
"We are what we repeatedly do.
Excellence, then, is not an act
but a habit."
-Aristotle
"We are what we repeatedly do" means practice. My goal for the Fall 2009 Semester is to get each of my students practicing every day! That is how you will reach your personal goals!
Some other projects we are working on this semester are:
1. Studying and singing a specific female composer.
2. Singing a solo in a public setting before the recital in November.
3. Sharing our talents at a rest home for a Christmas gift to the residents there.

2009-08-24T20:41:00.000-07:00

PRIVATE LESSONS

2009-08-24T16:16:00.000-07:00

Many students find that a result of private training helps them to have more musical confidence. That is my goal in private coaching. I want each of my students to develop a confidence in them musically. As we work together in private instruction to strengthen your talent and increase your confidence, you can become an influential member in youth choirs, church choirs, community productions and choirs, and from there- college vocal groups and music theater. As your personal coach, I pick music suited specifically for you- to help develop your unique talent. I hope to introduce you to all types of vocal music to develop a deeper appreciation of music in general. I encourage my students to come to me with song choices of their own as well.

In addition to providing you with an opportunity to perform in our studio recital, I will always encourage auditions and public performances and I will help you prepare not just your voice, but your musical selection as well. This time is yours. I will begin your lesson on time every week and expect you to arrive on time each week so that your time and efforts are spent well in the valuable time we have each semester before your recital. I have a “no knock, walk right in policy” as I hope that each student feels comfortable in my home. Please arrive in time for your lesson each week so we can make the most of our time together.

GROUP LESSONS

2009-08-24T16:14:00.001-07:00

I am so excited to offer Group Singing Lessons for 8-12 year old girls. I believe that this age is a great time to teach music technique, theory and performing. There is no better way to develop confidence, in my opinion, than through music!!! In group class, we focus on warm-ups, basic theory, sight-singing, solfege, and singing beautiful repretoire. There will be 2 recitals this semester.

Each student in group lessons is treated as a group member but also is given individual attention. There are solos to try out for each semester. Also, if you are interested in private lessons, the group class is a great place to start as I will usually draw my private students from my group lessons when I feel they are ready to work on solo repertoire.

Group lesson time is Mondays from 4:15-5:15pm at my home. You will be provided with music. Please bring your own folder/binder and pencil to each lesson.

PREP LESSONS

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If there is an opportunity for a school musical audition, choir audition, if you are singing in church or if you are a high school choir member wanting to try out for Regionals, I would strongly suggest prep lessons. These are mini lessons to help you succeed in your musical endeavor. To prepare you as a performer, a vocalist, and to give your musical selection the best edge we can. We will decide what course of action to take with the lessons and how many we might need together. Please contact me if you are interested as I fill my extra prep time slots quickly. These are short-term lessons so make sure you are planning ahead to give yourself adequate time to be ready for your audition, performance, regionals, etc.

STUDENT COMMITMENT

2009-08-24T16:12:00.000-07:00

Practice: My biggest expectation of my students is daily practicing. You MUST practice at least 20 minutes daily or your time and money will not be well spent. Remember, 20 minutes of practicing 5 days a week is better than 100 minutes once a week. Also, I expect each student to come prepared with their music, staff paper, sight-singing book, pencil and small recording device (if you desire) to each lesson. That is how we will develop your talent best!

Performance: Each student will learn to perform individual solos as well as how to sing in a group. Before each recital we will have a group lesson called a Studio Rehearsal. The Studio Rehearsal and Recitals are MANDATORY. You will be given the dates ahead of time. Also, each private student must arrange a date to sing in a public performance setting once a semester BEFORE their recital. I will help them pick a venue for this assignment.

POLICIES

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Make-up Lessons: For private students there are 2 make-up lessons a semester. I will only make up a lesson if the student is ill and is not able to attend their lesson. The make-up lesson must be made in the month the lesson is missed. Group lessons cannot be made up. Please try to come to each rehearsal so we are better prepared for the recital.