A Voice Apart

How to Become and Remain to be a Professional Singer  (Part 2) But… What about the Vocal Style? Can it be taught? Let’s Find Out! In this article, I would like to talk about interesting observations that I have made over my 37 years as a vocal coach and voice repair specialist while being the founder of the Royans Professional Vocal School aka The Royans School for the Musical Performing Arts - since 1984. Since that time teaching voice has been our primary focus. Not too many people realize that there are several aspects that must be addressed with respect to the singing craft in general. Let’s elaborate on that, my dear reader: First of all, I would like to bring to your attention that when we begin talking about singing, we will be talking about two separate, but very much so related elements: physical sound and artistic performance. Before I will begin discussing anything further (regarding the above-described matter), I would like to bring to your attention, my reader, that t...

Since 1984, we have been receiving students who really wanted to make it in the music business. And a lot of them did. Many of them got signed with major record labels, as well as, had won many singing competitions including international ones. To name a few, please see below:  Brian Melo - Winner of Canadian Idol 2007  Lukas Rossi - Winner on the CBS TV Show Rockstar: Supernova Alex Norman of illScarlett (Sony BMG Music Canada)  Cindy Gomez - INTERSCOPE Records (Produced by Dave Stewart of Eurythmics) Trish (Patricia Campbell) - Signed with Capitol | EMI Records Candace Santos - Winner of the 2006 and 2007 Rising Star Contests & the 2008 Young Asian Canadian Idol Brian Pisani of One Second 2 Late (Produced by Greig Nori - Sony BMG) Jake Robertson - Lead Singer of the Any Zen rock band Jesse Dryfhout of Stabilo (Virgin Music Canada) Edwin (Sony Records) Brian Byrne of I Mother Earth (Universal Records) Rob Moratti of Saga (Inside Out Records) Nicole Hughes of Min...

A Valentine’s Day Love Story Drama... The Result: An Absolute Beginner Signs with a Reputable Talent Agency! In previous years, I had worked a lot with amateur singers who were labelled as wannabe singers. A lot of them were recognized by various talent scouts and agents, especially when they were appearing in karaoke clubs or open mic events in a variety of bars and clubs. Once upon a time, one of my beginner students was brought up by her husband to a big karaoke club to show him what she had achieved with only 5 hours of instruction (by that time) with me. On top of it, it happened to be Valentine’s day karaoke night! Understandably, my student felt very nervous and insecure... However, she also told me that she remembered (what we still call to this day) “smile and bite”, and to also enunciate and thus pronounce her words with absolute clarity and to the best of her abilities. By the time she finished the song, (to my memory, it was a song called “Time After Time” – by Cindy Lauper...

Lately, we have received (in our studio/clinic) a fair amount of people with various voice/vocal injuries caused by numerous forms of accidents. Some of them even had been in a coma for a number of months and their relatives were advised that they may never come out of it; and thus will continue their existence in a vegetative state… Thank God, some of them proved the doctors wrong and did come out not only from their coma, but even stood up and walked (almost on their own) from out of their wheelchairs… and, nevertheless, on their own two feet! How remarkable is that?  It is indeed! No doubt, those people went through a lot! On this note, it is easy to assume that they are real “troopers” and definitely, needless to say, survivors. Unfortunately, for many of them, outside of other physical challenges, their voice became an issue. Some of them literally lost the ability to talk at all or to talk normally. The conventional doctors, speech therapists and pathologists ...

Regain your voice and your confidence back!   Your voice… desired and deserved!   More and more professional artists end up with the vocal injuries . Nearly every week, we hear that various concerts and tours have been canceled and the lead singers (either a soloist or band lead singer) just about to undergo a vocal cord surgery . How sad is that? Sad indeed!   Why does it happen and why it happens to so many artists? Is it because they are overworked and over-stressed? I think that definitely the above are the factors.  However, if their technical merit of their singing had been intact, less tragedies and cancellations of their performances would take place. So, human being puzzle (in a manner of speaking), like any puzzle, has many components and pieces, which have to fall into the right places. Those singers’ lifestyles, naturally, are very active and filled with a lot of appearances, interviews and performances. Due...

Evidently, there are a lot of ways to get into vocal problems, but there is only one way to get out of them. And that is by utilizing the Vocal Science ™ method –, proper speaking and singing voice application and The Unique Non-Surgical Voice Repair approach. The components of the Vocal Science™ technique have been scientifically researched for nearly four decades. In this instance, the sound has been treated as a physical material body. Since, nevertheless, any physical material entity travels in circular direction, the sound itself travels in the same pattern. When we are talking about a human being producing sound , the sound will travel in circular direction, (relatively, respectively and prospectively to the person’s height of the body and the width of the body), which will be consistent with the circumference of the circle. The Vocal Science method is totally congruent with the laws of physics and geometry.   As we speak now, in Boston US, there are the bes...

Recently, we had an inquiry from a singer situated in Europe who had been diagnosed with Spasmodic Dysphonia. …………………………………………………………………………… “I was diagnosed with spasmodic dysphonia, and the doctor wanted to give me Botox injections, but I refused because the risk of not being able to sing well afterwards (I am a singer) was too great! So my question is, Can you help me get my voice or a better voice back? Is it possible to get instructions via Skype. I live in Amsterdam, the Netherlands!” …………………………………………………………………………… Below is my answer. Hi There, I have to note that it is a little unusual to be diagnosed with spasmodic dysphonia, when you are a singer. Usually, it happens to people who are not singers, but just regular (or professional) speaking voice users. But, nevertheless, it is a very serious problem and in conventional sense, cannot be treated, let alone cured. And yes, the only treatment they could offer is the Botox, which in majority of cases, will not work or ...