How to Choose a Voice Teacher

Just about anyone can claim to be a voice teacher, but how many of them are actually qualified to teach you to sing healthily and successfully? Many aspiring singers are lured by the cost-effectiveness of a CD or DVD set, the hype of studying with someone famous (or a teacher who has taught someone famous) and often end up disappointed. These are seven important things to keep in mind when selecting a voice teacher.

1. Fit. How compatible are you with this teacher? I know a lot of excellent musician-educators who cannot and/or will not teach contemporary commercial music (CCM). If you want to sing a specific type of music, choose a teacher who has at least some experience with that genre or style. Similarly you should choose a teacher who is more concerned with your goals than his ego.


2. Price. Many teachers are prohibitively expensive while some are suspiciously inexpensive. Don’t base your final decision on price. A teacher’s rates are a direct reflection of the value she places on her own services. Rates significantly below market are a firm indication of insecurity or lack of experience—musically and/or with teaching and billing for her services. Conversely, exorbitant rates indicate an unusually high level of education and experience and/or inexperience with pricing.
   
   Reputable community music schools have lesson rates between $85 and $100 per hour while most independent music teachers will charge between $40 and $80 per hour. Lesson services usually charge somewhere in between but the teachers affiliated with lesson services and music schools on average receive 30% – 50% of what comes out of your pocket which means you are likely overpaying. Shop around and choose a teacher you can afford, but don’t cheat yourself!


3. Proximity.The congested roads and highways of major cities make driving almost impossible during peak travel hours. Keep in mind what day, time of day, where and how you will be traveling to get to your lessons. Weigh the net benefit of having a teacher travel to you: consider you will ultimately be paying for the teacher’s travel time in addition to your lesson. As a result of driving to you, he is sacrificing billable teaching time and incurring travel costs which will likely be passed on to you via a travel fee or an inflated rate.


4. Terms. When and how do you pay? When you pay onsite, you are sacrificing lesson time because typically payment will occur during the time your teacher has allocated for you. Per quarter and per semester agreements are popular with established teachers and music schools and those agreements typically stipulate that the teacher will collect all or a significant percentage of the money you agree to pay initially whether the lessons are taught or not. Also, consider most single or per lesson rates will be inflated to compensate the teacher for the instability and inconsistency of income such a model creates. Monthly rates are common and based on 4 1/3 lessons each month; however students statistically take forty-four (44) lessons per year rather than fifty-two (52) which means you will ultimately be paying for lessons you do not get.


5. Experience. Energy, curiosity and commitment to the craft are everything in voice education. Fortunately, there is no direct quantifiable correlation between those three characteristics and how many years an educator has been teaching or performing. Also consider an experienced singer does not mean that person is an excellent teacher as well. While performance experience is invaluable to a voice teacher nothing beats at least a couple years in the teaching studio.


6. Education. Universities and conservatories are designed to produce performers not independent music educators. Nine times out of ten, a teacher with a Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) will be overkill for a novice singer. On the other hand, a teacher without at least some formal education or extensive private study may not have a strong enough command of the fundamentals of music to help you achieve your goals.


7. Money Back Guarantee. This is an important but usually irrelevant consideration for the average consumer. Less than 1% of music students want or need to take advantage of a money back guarantee. This of course means that the other 99% of students are paying for an incentive they cannot use and as a result are collectively funding the teacher, company or school’s guarantee. While it is an attractive incentive, don’t forget that these guarantees usually expire after thirty (30) days and you will continue to pay for it for the duration of your relationship with that teacher as a part of your lesson fees to mitigate the risk of that 1% of students who will request their money back.
   
   If you still have concerns money back guarantees, consider the following:
   
   
   • Is the teacher reputable based on the first six criteria?
   • Are the prices fair considering what's offered rather than in comparison to what others are charging?
   • Are you ready, willing and able to put forth adequate effort to your lesson experience?
   • Would you be expecting a money back guarantee from a college, university or private school?

Here’s to finding your perfect voice teacher! Happy Singing!