Exercise Your ‘Right’ to Sing
The recitals in Diana Cole's vocal studio are a group effort, with adult students performing in solo, duo, and group numbers. Cole is in the forefront.
Diana Cole, a singer and vocal teacher outside of Boston, believes that singing is something that all of us, not just a few of us, can do to bring greater joy, meaning, and fun to our lives. “The idea that singing is just for professionals is disturbing to me,” says Diana. “Almost everyone loves music, and some kind of singing.”
In the early 1990s, Diana co-founded Vocal Arts Collaborative, a group that offers workshops, community sings, and improvisational singing to amateurs and professionals throughout the Boston area. She currently maintains a private voice studio, where about 80 percent of her students are adults. Music After 50 talked to Diana Cole about the benefits of singing, what prompts adults to study singing, how to select a teacher, and more…
LRG: Is teaching your main focus?
DC: Yes. After 40 years where singing and teaching shared the stage, now it is mainly teaching.
LRG: Talk about your interest in bringing singing to a broad base of people; why is it important?
DC: There is something inherently satisfying about vocalizing our feelings in songs, whether we are off key or on. It has been shown that singing lights up different areas of the brain than talking. Singing for and with other people is especially exciting, soothing, moving. Moreover, songs outlast many a lofty thought.
LRG: Do you think most people are closet singers?
DC: I think there are a few who truly dislike singing. But so many who would love to sing are led to believe that they can’t sing early on. They even stop wanting to sing. I am asked often if anyone can be taught to sing. And I think if they know they want to sing, there is no reason why they can’t learn. There’s always room for improvement even if you think you can’t hold a tune. And even if there’s not much improvement, you have a right to enjoy singing.
LRG: What are the reasons adults study voice?
DC: Usually to explore this deep-seated inclination to sing, to sound better, to be creative. Some more specifically to get into a chorus, sing a solo, pursue a professional career. But most importantly a desire to communicate feelings.
LRG: Tell me about your background.
DC: I went to graduate school at the New England Conservatory. Then, I really have to credit the teacher, Ella Lou Dimmock, with whom I studied during the summers and after I graduated from NEC. She was a wonderful musician with a great passion for teaching. I quickly became one of Boston’s mezzo sopranos and was performing in operas and concerts to my heart’s content until divorce forced a closer look at finances. Then I took on one student, then another, offered a voice class, and soon built up a community studio. I loved teaching and especially building a community within the studio where students could support each other and socialize as well as sing. In the early 1990s, I co-founded Vocal Arts Collaborative. Along with Jan Maier, a folk singer, and Carolyn Kingston, another voice teacher who just happens to be my sister, we offered workshops, community sings, showcases, improvisational singing…just about anything that interested us creatively.
LRG: Talk about student recitals, and why it’s so important for students to work toward a performance.
DC: Since I want to create a community of supportive adults, workshops and recitals are a way to get people together, and singing is the common connector. I now have three recitals a year. The final recital, in June, always has a theme. It is the most formal of the recitals. It takes place in a beautiful hall with group numbers, ensembles, and lots of acting. I do a minimal staging but the students are incredibly inventive with their own ideas for costumes and acting. Not only do the recitals prepare the singers for other kinds of solo performing, but they keep the studio focused on the joy of communicating their talent and feelings to an audience. And there is a gala reception with everyone bringing food to share.
LRG: How does someone go about finding a voice teacher?
DC: The best sources are other singers (especially if you like their singing). You can ask what kind of community the studio has, and if there are recitals and workshops. Then, in a call to the teacher, you might ask about his or her pedagogy of singing and philosophy of teaching. But the best assessment is a trial lesson, which you will probably have to pay for. Then you can experience the teaching and feel the effect of suggestions on your voice. You also can sense how supportive he/she is and if you can be free to say how you are feeling vocally. Each student has different needs for a teaching style so you might want to try out 2 or 3 teachers. But once you get going, don’t ‘teacher hop,’ hoping that the next month, the next teacher will turn you into Caruso. Studying takes a consistent approach over time to make steady improvement.
LRG: What will vocal training do for my voice?
DC: We are all given two amazing vocal muscles that create our variety of sounds. But of course there is some given talent, but a great deal can be done with learning how to coordinate the vocal instrument — the posture, breathing, resonance, articulation. Just like learning to play tennis, you will improve with a good teacher. I believe each voice is individual…there is not a “desired” sound. And when the voice is free and healthy, we feel its power, its beauty, and its ability to communicate.
LRG: How has your own voice changed with age – or has it? How old are you?
DC: Well, let’s just say that Social Security has me in its sights. And yes, the voice is changing with age. There is some loss of flexibility in the muscles, which means I’ve lost a couple of my highest notes, and rapid runs have lost some gallop. Some of this is also because I have been increasingly focusing on teaching rather than singing. But there is also a confidence in performance and communication, and so many years of study has given me a technique that I can count on. And I still love to sing!
10 comments
Posted 10/23/09 at 10:56 am
I’ve heard that if you’re trying to learn how to sing after age 35 then just forget it. You’re stuck with what you got at that point. I would like to know from Diana how true that is.
I started singing as an excercise in coordination becasue I hated that I could not sing and play at the same. It has helped a lot even though my voices isn’t the greatest, or even very good. I seem to have mis-placed my shyness to sing in public somewhere along the way too -
Posted 10/23/09 at 10:57 am
D’OH! I can’t type my user name in correctly either …
Posted 10/23/09 at 5:59 pm
I can’t imagine anyone saying 35 is the cut-off. Absolutely wrong. I’ve had singers go from shower singer to soloist after the age of 35. I’m so glad you didn’t listen. Since breath is so important in singing, it can only help your musicality playing the guitar to sing along. And think of all the musicians that didn’t have great voices (Bob Dylan).
Keep sharing your creative “voice” without hesitation.
Posted 10/24/09 at 10:33 am
Leah and Diana,
Great interview and a wonderful site! Encouraging older singers,especially those that have had bad experiences as kids or young adults, is so important. I have also had very rewarding experiences teaching adults who are over 50, and am still singing a few concerts a year (with Diana in duets) at a post social security age!
Posted 10/24/09 at 1:37 pm
I am one of DIana student and a big fan! I started lessons after age 30 and I am now a few years before SS age and continue on,,,it is one of the highlight of my iife! I am looking for many more years of singing thanks to the techniques and guidance of a great teacher. Singing is a wonderful hobby and many studies demonstrate that learning music is affecting our physical and emotional health. I observe tremendous changes in other adult students in the studio who started with a timid voice and are becoming great performers. We all enjoy the few minutes of fame we get three times a year during our recitals. I wish to every body who wants to sing to find a teacher as dedicated and enthusiastic as Diane (and by the way Caroline too!!!) . I hesitated to start taking lessons thinking it was only for serious singers, like opera stars or soloists in a chorus.,,,,I was completely wrong! Go for it at any age, It is fun and rewarding!
Posted 10/26/09 at 11:41 am
Diana and Leah,
Great interview. I’ve been studding with Diana for the last 10 years. Like all of her students, I have benefited greatly from her teaching methodology and guidance. Diana focuses on every aspect of singing; technique, breathing, interpretation, and performance. I agree with Diana that saying 35 is the cut-off is absolutely wrong. I started singing after 35 and I’m glad I did. I can compare my singing then and now and I can tell the difference. Singing is wonderful and there is always room for improvement. So, keep on learning.
Posted 10/26/09 at 1:55 pm
I, too, have been one of Diana’s students. Diana pointed out that the vocal cord is a muscle, and with exercise it gets stronger. There are other aspects of singing that also improve with practice and tutoring, so we are not stuck with our uneducated voices. As with any endeavor, the more you do it the better you get, and even if certain vocal qualities deteriorate with age, I totally agree with Diana’s opinion of Dylan–sounds like gravel–twists your soul.
Posted 06/01/10 at 1:37 pm
Diana, I just wanted to say that I really appreciate your comments. I feel it is never too late to begin singing. I have been singing most of my life, but formally studying voice at age 42. After completing a bachelor’s degree in vocal performance I am now beginning to teach voice in my local community. I would love to go back to school for a graduate degree. And after applying to 6 and being rejected I am feeling discouraged. I did get an audition at Boston Conservatory, but was not accepted for the fall semester. Do you have any suggestions of schools that admit may older students?
Posted 06/01/10 at 2:23 pm
Hi Janese,
I’m glad you enjoyed the interview and glad you are not letting age get in the way of your dreams. What degree are you hoping to get on the graduate level. If you are looking to up your credentials for teaching than I would look for a school with a Pedagogy major. If you are looking for further professional performing credit, it may be difficult because I think there is a bias for younger singers. But then as a singer you can get professional training in many ways outside of a degree. There are programs for training in acting, technique, master classes etc. Also if you join NATS (National Association For Teachers of Singing) there are many seminars and workshops available. Let me know if you have further questions.
Posted 06/03/10 at 7:23 pm
Thanks so much Diana for the advice. I had been concentrating on schools with master’s performance emphasis programs. But I am finally getting the message that most schools are catering to younger performers for a variety of reasons. But I felt if I didn’t at least try to get into a great school like Manhattan School of Music or Boston then I would have regretted not trying since graduating with honors. So I’m really happy for the experience of the audition at Boston and now I know more about other programs out there like Manhattan School of Music has a summer program that I was invited to attend but couldn’t this summer due to family obligations, and NEC has a continuing education program for working adults who may have a degree, but are wanting to enhance skills, techniques and the classes are at a cut rate. So I am learning as I go and I’m finding there are not a lot of resources. Just as a side note, I found out yesterday that I was able to secure a space for a voice studio and I’m really excited about that. Thanks again for your help.
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