One of my favourite type of singer to work with are people are too shy about singing to ever call themselves singers. I sometimes say they started out as “non-singers” Sometimes these singers are terrified to sing in front of me and often they have put off signing up for lessons for years, (decades), because they didn’t think it was possible to get better.
The people I am most excited to work with are those for whom it’s most life changing. I think for this group it is truly transformative work. Once they realise they can actually sing, and get joy from music, it lights them up but also it opens up doors in other areas of life.
Where does the believe they are non-singers come from?
Very often people are told that they shouldn’t sing at a very young age. Perhaps it was a parent who didn’t think they themselves could sing so was embarrassed when their child sang and it wasn’t perfect. Perhaps their sibling or parent was a great singer and they were somehow deemed lacking in comparison.
You wouldn’t believe the number of people who were told to not sing when they were at school. Perhaps they were encouraged to do other things, or to mime, or just told to stay away from singing as it wasn’t their thing.
The sorts of “non-singers” I’ve worked with
“What I love about Rebecca’s singing lessons is that she genuinely cares, whatever ability you have. Her emphasis for me has been to improve my confidence and to do this she uses a huge array of fun techniques to relax me and improve on my vocals. The best thing of all is the sessions are fun, fascinating and inspiring. Every lesson I come away on a total high!”
Kate Phillips
I remember working with one singer who just was astonished every time she sang anything. Her joy to infectious and there are still songs that I listen to and think of her. I also think of her when I take my vitamin D supplement but that’s another story.*
There was the singer who had a lovely voice but was so shy about singing in front of others that I was a safe place to sing in preparation for singing at her sister’s wedding. Initially the fear was too terrifying for her to sing in front of me but with baby steps we got here there.
Then there are the wonderful singers who I worked with online during and since the covid lock down. It is amazing to see the transformation in singers who I’ve not even met! I’ve worked with people this way in the Northern Ireland, USA and France.**
For all of these singers they started their lessons by telling me that they are terrible or terrified or (usually) both. I love working with people who have to work to be able to sing in tune because when we work hard on something we see the value in it.
My equivalents
There are things that I’m afraid of that I’ve done and I felt that my life was changed by doing them. Off the top of my head that goes from tap dancing**** for an audience to riding the roller coaster at Legoland, from giving birth to leaving my marriage. All of these things were terrifying and all of them made me stronger and more confident in the long term.
This review from Mark describes how it changed his life.
“Having been told that I couldn’t sing from a young age I always assumed this to be the case. Thanks to Rebecca I have discovered that this simply wasn’t true – her infectious enthusiasm and encouraging approach have totally transformed how I regard my singing ability and it is no exaggeration to say that my lessons with her have changed my life. If learning to sing is something that you are tempted to do, I would urge you to give it a go – I can’t recommend her highly enough.” Mark Scarbrow
Mark Scarbrow
If you are someone who feels a non-singers, perhaps you do struggle to hit the right notes, or perhaps you sound like you’re shouting at a football match, or wailing like a cat in a well, or whispering in an atonal manner I am pretty certain I can help you.***
If you look at the reviews on my google page or on my facebook page you’ll see lots from people who say how nervous they were to take singing lessons. You can see them here Google Reviews
If you want to check me out further do look at these pages ,
*I’m aware that I write about these people like they’re no longer alive. They’re very much alive but they got what they needed from the lessons and now happily sing in front of other people so they don’t need me any more.
** I still work with lots of international students online. One of my long-term regular students spent some time working in South African and it was so cool to be able to still see her for her lessons.
*** I have once met a singer who I couldn’t help. He had been told he have vocal fold damage and he wasn’t prepared to get looked at in clinic. As such I didn’t feel I could safely work with him. He is the only non-singer I’ve ever not managed to help.
**** I’m proof reading this after a long day in London and I must prompt you to read that again if you mis-read tap dancing like I just did.