Q: I have an eleven year old daughter who loves to sing and has done some solos at school. We have thought of getting her lessons because we fear her developing bad singing habits and she loves to sing so much. Is it early to start lessons?
A. Eleven is a pretty good age to get going. I used to teach kids a lot and have coached younger kids than that. It's all about building confidence to express and to get the child to experience what it feels like to release free sound in my opinion. When kids get into that age they start becoming awkward and self-conscious. That is not the time to teach "proper" techniques of how to breathe and stand and so forth. That just leads to more awkwardness and restrictions (and subconscious fears of doing wrong), in my opinion. When they discover the great feeling of releasing free vibrating sound, their confidence builds too. By doing so they also strenghen the voice in a healthy way, and good healthy breathing becomes second nature. A free voice is also a healthy voice. Of course, as you may know, this is what I encourage with adult students too. Perhaps it is my background teaching kids that has made my method popular with adults. Now, I hate to sound as if I'm trying to sell you something, but if you get the Sing With Freedom DVDs watch them yourself. Don't have her watch them neccesarily (unless you think she'll respond well to them). Armed with the knowledge you gain from the DVDs, you can then easier evaluate the various philosophies among local singing teachers. I don't think you need to be afraid that she'll develop bad habits if she enjoys singing. The more she does it, the more she will discover what she can do with her voice. But just like learning a baseball swing, it is much easier to excel if someone shows you how to do it, as I alluded to in "The New Era of Singing Training". Cheerleading and screaming on the other hand, now those are bad habits that have ruined many voices. I also recommend playing an instrument.
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