James
ARCHER
Vocal Lessons and Coaching
Music has always been a large part of my life. My father is a professional musician and I had taken many different instruments growing up, but it is singing that I love the most. Therefore in the Fall of 1999 I declared my first major in vocal performance at the University of Nevada Reno.
While studying voice privately I had a teacher or two who would scoff at my questions and would tell me to “Just sing!” Only recently have I realized that is not who I am. I need to understand why and realized that most vocal teachers are not of this mindset whether it is because it came more naturally for them or because they just never had the vocal issues I had growing up (I had a lisp and could not say ‘r’) A vocal teacher once told me that my voice was “interesting.” Although my mother took it as an insult I do not believe he meant it as such but was trying to articulate that my voice was unique. Sadly, after studying for a couple years in college and comparing my voice to others I believed that I had to fight against my natural voice, the one that sounded like me, in order to produce a sound similar to the artists I wanted to sound like. Because of this and some bad teachers along the way I have I have spent years trying to unlearn and relearn how to sing in a manner that is representative of my own unique voice. Over the years I have come to understand a lot about my voice and can articulate, in ways many of my teachers could not, the reasons behind certain techniques in singing.
I find that I sing better when I understand the functioning behind a process, fully grasping the concept and eliminating the questions of “why.” For example when I took piano lesson I hated doing scales because I was led to believe they were only busy work. Only recently did I find that one main reason for scales is to help with flexibility and dexterity in your hands. I look at my voice in the same way. This can create more work, but once a concept is understood in a way that makes sense to me I can move forward.
My Philosophy -
1) I believe in using tracks for lessons.
-I believe that the student should get the most out of their lesson. Using a track allows the focus of the lesson to be on the student 100% of the lesson creates the best learning environment.
- You to have something to practice with. Making it more likely that you will practice outside of lessons.
2) It is important to find your "true" voice.
3) Vocal technique is universally important whether you are a pop singer or a classically trained singer. I do not believe that one type of singing is more correct than another but technique is important because when we have a bad day we can always fall back on our technique; making our bad days good. Both Steve Perry and Barbara Streisand who have "pop" sounds have amazing technique. It is how they decide to use that technique with their “true” voice that gives them their unique sound. This can be a bit controversial for some vocal instructors who believe there is only one technique for singing, but I believe that what may work for one person does not work for everyone, which I have also learned from experience. If something isn't working I feel it is important to try different techniques so that the student learns to understand how their own voice works.
4) The material you work on should be a mixture of material you want to sing and suggestions from me. I believe having a wide range of material can only expand your versatility and will help the main type of singing you want to pursue (pop, opera, musical theater, etc). Also by working on material you may never perform or use we can experiment and "mess" those songs up without worrying that you may sing it someday.
5) Mistakes are to be encouraged and embraced. It is through mistakes that your voice can decide where it needs to go, and will make you be a stronger singer.
If you are interested in lessons or have any other questions please don't hesitate to contact me through the contact page or using my email jamesarcher13@yahoo.com. If you use my email please put Voice Lessons in the subject line so that I know what it is regards to.