Most voice teachers teach the same lesson to every student. Same warmup, same exercises, same repertoire suggestions. It's efficient, it's comfortable—and it shortchanges the fundamentally different instrument sitting in front of you.

This episode tackles individualized teaching honestly: not the idealized version where you run comprehensive diagnostics on every new student, but the realistic version where you're juggling a full studio and a mortgage payment. We cover how deepening your voice science knowledge is the highest-leverage investment you can make, why the music doesn't adapt to your student's anatomy (so you have to), when to stick to your teaching style and when to send a student to someone better suited, and the real consequences of cookie-cutter pedagogy—including the misclassification problem that silently damages voices for years.

Practical takeaway: start creating exercises from your students' actual repertoire instead of relying solely on generic warmups.

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Written by Timothy Wilds
Performed by Drew Williams-Orozco

Voice training has the potential to be deeply rewarding—for students and teachers alike. But too often, that early excitement fizzles into disappointment and a disappearing student.

In this episode, veteran voice trainer Timothy Wilds explores why that happens and what both sides can do about it. The answer starts before the first lesson: most students have no idea what voice training actually entails. They think they'll just sing songs. They don't realize it involves understanding how the voice works AND deepening their musical intelligence—and that both take real time and effort.

Timothy makes a case for clarity (give students specific, bite-sized practice directives), honesty (tell them the truth about the timeline), and structure (a 90-day minimum commitment that benefits everyone). He also addresses when students—especially children—are truly ready for private lessons, the damage consumerism has done to music education, and why voice trainers need to stop lowering standards.

Whether you're a teacher or a student, this episode will reshape how you think about the voice training experience.

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Presented by Drew Williams-Orozco

"Descend on that high note like a leaf gently falling onto a lake."

Beautiful image. But what does a singer actually do with that?

In this episode, we tackle the imagery debate head-on. We share a personal story of doing breath support exercises for years—lying on piano benches with heavy books, dutifully tensing abs—only to discover that less than 10% of breath support actually comes from the abdominals. Within a week of learning what was really happening, dynamic control improved and a full step was added to the top of the range.

That experience reshaped everything about how we approach imagery in teaching.

We break down: → Why imagery is wildly inconsistent from student to student → The difference between "tangible" and "abstract" imagery → Why most voice teachers rely on imagery (hint: it's often the only tool they were given) → A simple framework for using imagery more intentionally → What singers should know about finding the right teacher for how they learn

Imagery isn't bad. But it's not enough on its own. This episode helps you figure out when to use it—and when to dig deeper.

Get 365 free voice lessons: https://www.voicescience.org/free

Presented by Drew Williams-Orozco

Written by Josh Manuel

The finale of our five-part formant series tackles the question every classically-trained voice teacher faces: how do you teach CCM without making students sound operatic?

Classical technique uses maximum formant manipulation for acoustic projection. CCM flips this—minimal manipulation, speech-like production, letting the microphone handle projection. Same physics, completely different targets.

We cover belt's specific F1:2f₀ tuning (and its ceiling around C5/A4), clarify why mix isn't a formant strategy at all, and explain when to use ring versus twang based on laryngeal position.

If you've ever had a student sound "too covered" or "too classical" for their pop audition, this episode gives you the diagnostic framework and practical fixes.

Series recap included—all five parts synthesized into one complete formant toolkit.

📧 www.voicescience.org/free

Presented by Drew Williams-Orozco

Written by Josh Manuel

"Just sing what's on the page." The advice that made me feel slapped across the face—until I realized I'd been confusing inspiration with artistry for years.

This episode explores why learning music from recordings is like playing telephone, why your "artistic choices" might just be accidents you kept doing, and the framework I use to decide when changes actually serve the character. Plus: how I caught myself making the same mistake with School of Rock nearly 20 years after learning this lesson.

Presented by Drew Williams-Orozco

Written by Josh Manuel

You've read about formants. You understand F1, F2, the singer's formant. But when you try to apply it in lessons, your student's eyes glaze over—or worse, they strain trying to find "more ring."

There's a gap between understanding formant science and actually teaching it. This episode bridges that gap for classical and legit musical theater technique.

We cover two fundamentally different teaching approaches (both work—the skill is knowing which to use when), voice type-specific strategies for developing formant awareness, practical diagnostic frameworks for common technique problems, and when visual feedback helps versus when it becomes a crutch.

In this episode:

• Direct vs. indirect teaching: acoustic feedback vs. kinesthetic imagery
• Teaching singer's formant to tenors, baritones, and basses
• Why the male passaggio is an acoustic transition (and how to teach covering)
• Teaching F1:F0 tuning to sopranos—and why modifications must start early
• The alto hybrid approach: why "low soprano" and "female tenor" pedagogy both fail
• Diagnostic framework for classical technique issues
• Why you should teach the science at every level (age-appropriate vocabulary, not dumbed-down avoidance)

Note: This episode focuses on classical technique. CCM, belt, and mix voice strategies require different acoustic targets—that's Part 5.

Part 4 of our 5-episode Formant Series synthesizing the research from Episodes 1-3 into practical pedagogy.

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Presented by Drew Williams-Orozco

Written by Josh Manuel

Singing is supposed to be fun—so why does it stop feeling that way?

Josh shares his own journey through singer burnout: from loving choir as a kid, to spending every evening locked in practice rooms chasing a perfection that kept moving further away. He breaks down what actually causes burnout for hobbyists, music students, and professionals—and offers different strategies for each.

If you've ever dreaded the practice room, felt like you weren't getting better no matter how hard you worked, or lost the ability to just enjoy music—this one's for you.

Join us for 365 free voice lessons at voicescience.org/free

Presented by Drew Williams-Orozco

Written by Josh Manuel

That B♭4 in your piece—too thin when you "think soprano," too stuck when you bring in chest voice. You're not doing it wrong. Your voice isn't difficult. You're an alto, and you need both acoustic strategies.

In Part 3 of our Formant Formula series, we explore what makes the alto voice acoustically unique: the requirement to use singer's formant projection in the lower range AND F1:F0 tuning in the upper range—and to blend them smoothly through the critical transition zone where most alto repertoire lives.

We cover:

• Why altos are "acoustically bilingual"
• The A4-D5 transition zone and why it feels unstable
• What research reveals about how successful altos navigate this zone
• Why your teacher's advice might seem contradictory
• Vowel-specific strategies (why /a/ is easier than /i/ or /u/)
• Common alto problems and their acoustic solutions
• Practical exercises for developing the gradual blend

If you've ever felt caught between soprano technique and something closer to how lower voices work, this episode explains why—and what to do about it.

📧 Free daily voice science lessons: www.voicescience.org/free

Presented by Drew Williams-Orozco

Written by Josh Manuel