The statement on Coaching the Classical Singer generated a session at the NATS National Conference in Salt Lake City, July 2010. A vocal coach serves three main functions, to support the singer in the necessary collaboration indicated by the vocal repertoire’s instrumental demands, to bring linguistic expertise to singer’s of various cultural-ethnic backgrounds, and to facilitate the musical-dramatic interpretation so intrinsic to the vocal arts. To achieve the goal of superlative singing, the singer requires study and practice unlike most other musicians, often including three pianist-collaborators: the rehearsal pianist, the recital pianist, and the coach. The coach serves as a member of the vocal team, along with the teacher of singing, to advantage the singer’s education and training. While not a voice teacher, the coach aides the singer in: surmounting musical challenges, recognizing cues, linguistics, routinization, musical-dramatics, memorization, performance practice, and moving from technique to performance. In essence, they are the singer’s partner in, “so many rehearsals as the work that culminates in the appearance of ease and spontaneity.”
Coaching the Classical Singer