Brian Kane

Brian Kane is currently a Mellon Post-doctoral Fellow in music at Columbia University. He earned his doctorate in Music Composition from UC Berkeley in 2006, and was a fellow at the Townsend Center for the Humanities. In addition to being an award winning composer he is also highly regarded jazz guitarist.

Kane, born in 1973, was raised in Los Angeles, California. As a youth, Kane taught himself to play the guitar and the saxophone, developing a keen interest in jazz and classical music. During his tenure as an undergraduate at UC Berkeley, he began gigging on both instruments, playing at local clubs and venues, while pursuing degrees in Music and Philosophy.

Makky Kaylor

Mak "Makky" Kaylor is called "The Voice" by many of the music industry's elite and is featured nationally on Radio, Records, Motion Picture Soundtracks and literally hundreds of Commercial Jingles. There is sincerity and soul in Kaylor's music that sets him apart from other artists. Considered an A-List Session Vocalist in Nashville, Makky is gifted with a highly celebrated smooth, soulful vocal style that has brought him great respect from listeners, legendary figures in the Music Industry and peers alike.

Carol Kimball

Carol Kimball, Emerita Professor of Voice and Barrick Distinguished Scholar at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, earned a reputation as an expressive and versatile performer in opera, musical theater, and on the concert stage. As a recitalist, her imaginative programming and the unusual scope of her repertoire garnered critical praise. She became a specialist in French repertoire having studied and coached with Pierre Bernac, Gerard Souzay, Martial Singher, Thomas Grubb, and Dalton Baldwin. Her recording of French melodie with pianist Thomas Grubb by can be found in many college and university libraries.

Mary King

Mary's career has encompassed a wide range of roles, including that of performer, teacher, coach and most recently broadcaster and writer. A popular and highly experienced mezzo soprano, Mary has worked with leading conductors and numerous orchestras across the world, and has made a particular feature of the contemporary classical repertoire.

Mary is also in demand as a writer. In 2007 The Singer's Handbook (Faber) was published, co-written with Anthony Legge. This has been followed by the first two parts (English and French repertoire) of a projected series of selected vocal repertoire collections with coaching notes, The Boosey Voice Coach. The German repertoire volume is in production.

Darlene Koldenhoven

What sets Darlene Koldenhoven, this beautiful tall blond Grammy Award winner and three-time nominee, apart from the rest . . . It could be her worldwide 1.5 billion viewing audience on PBS as the memorable vocal soloist in Yanni, Live at the Acropoli. In addition to her career as a recording artist, Ms. Koldenhoven is a respected music educator with a magna cum laude Master's Degree in Voice and a Bachelor's Degree in Music Education from Chicago Conservatory College.

Kathryn LaBouff

Kathryn LaBouff has taught English Diction and English Vocal Literature at the Juilliard School of Music since 1986; the Manhattan School of Music since 1984; and the Curtis Institute of Music since 1998. She is the Assistant Chair of the Voice Faculty at the Manhattan School of Music. She has formerly taught at Yale University, Cornell University, Ithaca College, the Mannes College of Music, the Aspen Music Festival, and the Banff Centre for the Arts in Alberta, Canada. Her book, Singing and Communicating in English - A Singer's Guide to English Diction, was published by Oxford University Press in 2008. She is currently a diction coach on the staff of the Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Washington National Opera and the San Francisco Opera Merola program where she works on productions and gives masterclasses for their respective young artist programs. She was on the staff for Opera Theatre of St. Louis for six seasons. She has coached and prepared more than 300 opera productions in English. Other companies where she has coached productions are: the Canadian Opera Company, Vancouver Opera, Glimmerglass Opera Company, Wolf Trap Opera, Opera Festival of New Jersey, the Banff Centre for the Arts, and the Aspen Music Festival.

Giovanni Lamperti

Giovanni Battista Lamperti was born in 1839 in Milan to Italian singing teacher Francesco Lamperti. He was a chorister at the great cathedral and studied voice and piano at the conservatory. A student and later accompanist for his father at the conservatory, Giovanni knew better than anyone else the method his father taught (which he claimed descended from the great castrato-teacher Antonio Bernacchi). Appropriating it for teaching his own students, Giovanni also began teaching voice at the Milan conservatory and then for 20 years in Dresden, followed by Berlin. His preferred teaching arrangement was having three or four students present at each lesson: each would get their turn while the others observed and learned thereby. He was said to be a strict, exacting instructor not given to flattery, but who enthusiastically praised his students upon exceptional achievement. Many of Giovanni's students became international opera stars including Irene Abendroth, Marcella Sembrich, Ernestine Schumann-Heink, Paul Bulss, Roberto Stagno, David Bispham and Franz Nachbaur.

Jenny Lester

Jenny Lester is a dynamic Bluegrass performer and recording artist who has established herself as an important singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Her original songs are carefully crafted in the bluegrass convention while displaying a contemporary freshness and that breathes new life into the fabled "high lonesome" sound. She studied at South Plains College in Texas, graduating with honors and three Golden Reel awards.

Lis Lewis

Lis Lewis is a voice teacher and performance coach in Los Angeles, CA. She has been training recording artists for over 30 years. Lis is the author of the books The Singer's First Aid Kit and The Pop Singers Warm-Up both published by Hal Leonard and she is the publisher of the online ezine for pro singers, the Angel City Voice. In addition to private coaching, she has worked in collaboration with managers, record labels, producers, bands and songwriters in the recording and rehearsal studio to get the best performances from their artists.

Julie Lyonn Lieberman

Julie Lyonn Lieberman is an eclectic styles specialist, a playing healthy maven, an improvising violinist, singer, composer, educator, recording artist, author, and producer. Formerly on faculty at Juilliard, New York University, The New School For Jazz and Contemporary Music, and William Paterson College Jazz Department she is an D'Addario Elite Clinician, the Artistic Director for Strings Without Boundaries at Duquesne, a composer for Alfred Music and Kendor Music, and a frequent master class clinician for Music Educators and American String Teachers Association's state conferences.

Estelle Liebling

Estelle Liebling was a vocal coach who taught singing using the three-register method. She stressed the "unmusicalness" of the seventh octave, as well as the avoidance of the head register in men. One of Liebling's most famous pupils was Beverly Sills, a coloratura soprano. Also instructed Meryl Streep as a young girl as a singer.

Estelle Liebling had been a pupil of Mathilde Marchesi and carried forth the Manuel Garcia Jr. (Manuel Patricio Rodriguez Garcia) tradition.

Liebling had been a favored soprano of John Philip Sousa earlier in her career.

Roger Love

Roger Love has often been called the Voice Coach to the Stars. For over twenty years he has been helping to build some of the most successful talents in the entertainment and business worlds. His work with recording artists in the studio has resulted in over 100 million album sales worldwide. When Roger was 16 years old, he was already the singing coach for The Beach Boys, Earth, Wind, & Fire, the 5th Dimension, and The Jacksons.

Roger Love is recognized as one of the world's leading authorities on voice. No other vocal coach in history has been more commercially successful in both the speaking and singing fields. He has vocally produced more than 100 million CD sales worldwide, written 3 top selling books, Set Your Voice Free, Sing Like the Stars, and Love Your Voice, created the bestselling audio program Vocal Power...Speaking with Authority, Clarity & Conviction, produced and starred in the television advertised DVD, Love to Sing, and appeared as a regular in 3 major network TV shows.

Lori Lyford

Lori Lyford came to Scottsdale from Yakima, Washington, where she had been the director of the Rolling Hills Chorus in Region 13. Within a few short months, in her first appearance on International competition stage, Lori directed the Scottsdale Chorus to a third-place international medal. The question "Lori who?" was resoundingly answered by those performances, and today Lori is one of the most sought-after coaches in the barbershop genre. Her personal objective is to continue to learn about the barbershop craft and to share that knowledge wherever she can in order to enhance the skills, confidence and musical credibility of our membership.

The Scottsdale Chorus is proud to be under the direction of Sweet Adelines Master Director 700, Lori Lyford. Since 1993, Lori's passion for excellence has led the Scottsdale Chorus to six International third-place chorus medals, one second-place medal, and in 2005 and 2010, the grandest prize of all, International first-place medals and the title of Sweet Adelines International Chorus Champions for 2006 and 2011.

Brett Manning

He started out like many singers--frustrated with the lack of results from the vocal lessons he found. After searching through several vocal coaches and methods, Brett came across a set of closely-guarded exercises compiled by an old gentleman who taught several well-known "star" singers. The exercises proved very effective for Brett's own voice and every singer he taught them to. These techniques truly made singing as easy as speaking.

Brett has worked with artists from Capitol, Columbia, Atlantic, Interscope, Dreamworks, Lyric Street, MCA, Epic/Sony, KMG, Word, Embassy, Gotee Records, as well as countless independent record labels. He has worked with the casts of Broadway productions of Les Miserables and Jekyll and Hyde, as well as the Broadway tour of Elton John's Aida.

Mathilde Marchesi

Marchesi was born in Frankfurt-am-Main (now in the German state of Hesse). Her father's name was Graumann. In her adolescence her family fortunes failed, so she travelled at the age of 22 to Vienna to study voice. Thereafter she went to Paris and studied with Manuel Garcia II, who was to have the foremost influence on her. She made her debut as a singer in 1844, and had a short career in opera and recital. Her voice, however, was only adequate, so she moved to teaching in 1849. In 1852, she married Italian baritone Salvatore Marchesi, Cavaliere de Castrone (d. 1908).

It was in this field that she would become famous. She taught at conservatories in Cologne and Vienna and in 1881 opened her own school on the Rue Jouffroy in Paris, where she was to remain for most of her life. Ultimately, she was best known as the vocal teacher of a number of great singers. The most famous among them is perhaps Nellie Melba, but she also trained such illustrious singers as Emma Calve, Frances Alda, Ellen Gulbranson, Selma Kurz and Emma Eames. Marchesi died in London in 1913.

Donna McElroy

Berklee Professor Donna McElroy is a remarkably talented performer, vocalist and arranger. She arranged and sang back-up on gold and platinum releases by Reba McEntire, Garth Brooks, Amy Grant, BeBe and CeCe Winans, and many others. She received a Grammy nomination for her own pop-gospel album, Bigger World, and won a Dove award for her contribution to the inspirational compilation album, Songs from the Loft.

"Usually a person comes to Berklee as a voice student because they want a record deal . . . so that's perfect for me because I can speak from experience on that topic. They may want to be a professional singer and go out on the road, or do jingles and session work, and I've done all that."

"I realized that I have a special gift I bring to teaching, which is experience. Most people get out of school and begin to teach. They haven't done 23 years of hacking away at it."

Victoria Meredith

Victoria Meredith teaches graduate and undergraduate choral conducting methods and vocal techniques, and conducts ensembles. She holds degrees in Music Education (Indiana University, 1972), Voice Performance (University of Northern Colorado, 1975) and Choral Conducting (University of Arizona, 1993). Choirs under her direction have received numerous honours and awards, including six CBC Choral Competition prizes and five performance awards from the Canadian Music Educators' Association. They have performed at conventions of the American Choral Directors Association, the Canadian Music Educators' Association and the Kodaly Association of Canada. Dr. Meredith co-ordinates the Faculty of Music's choral activities and conducts Western's award-winning advanced mixed choir, the University of Western Ontario Singers.

Richard Miller

The American tenor and teacher, Richard Miller, began singing publicly at age 3. Before his voice changed, at age 11, he sang hundreds of times in the Canton, Ohio, area. Advised not to sing during the voice-change period, he studied piano, cello, and organ, but returned to singing in musicals at Lincoln High School in Canton. He was drafted upon graduation from high school in 1944, assigned to the 7th Armored Division tank corps and sent to the European theater in January 1945, attached to the British First Army. Stationed near Marseilles after the war, he took voice lessons at the Marseilles Conservatory. After receiving his M.Mus. degree in Musicology from the University of Michigan, he was awarded in 1952 a Fulbright Grant to study voice in Rome, Italy, at L'Accademia di Santa Cecilia. He later sang for four years as leading lyric tenor at the opera house in Zurich, Switzerland.

Dena Murray

Dena Murray has been the head of Vocal Technique at Musicians Institute in Hollywood, CA, since 1996. With over 25 years of professional experience, some of her credits have included theatre production, summer stock, Shakespeare festivals, television and motion picture work, and voice-overs for commercial advertising. Some of Dena's private students include Sarah Hudson (Recording Artist, S-Curve/EMI Records), Judy Wexler, and Douglas Wood.

Dena Murray was born in Los Angeles, CA, where she began her singing career at the age of 12. Her performance career included musical theatre productions, television and motion picture work, and singing for radio commercials. Specializing in vocal technique instruction for over 20 years, her passion has been to help singers achieve their dreams. Dena teaches privately in home and online, working with both beginning and professional singers worldwide. Additionally, she is Patron for VIDLA (Vocal International Distance Learning Academy) and contracted to work internationally online as a master teacher and coach (www.vidla.net) She is also a key Subject Matter Expert for The Modern Vocalist, a large and growing website serving the needs of vocalists internationally.

Garyth Nair

Garyth Nair has been teaching and researching the human singing voice for over 25 years. He is Professor of Music at Drew University in Madison, N.J. where he conducts the Chorale and the Orchestra and is Director of Vocal Activities. Early in life, he chose to pursue music rather than his other love, biology. His research in voice now enables him to combine both loves in the pursuit of better vocal pedagogy techniques.

In addition to his work at Drew University, Mr. Nair is well known as the conductor of one of New Jersey's premiere choruses, the Summit Chorale. He is now in his 34th season as the conductor of this renowned regional institution.

Prof. Nair began his vocal and conducting studies at Westminster Choir College, Princeton, NJ, USA where he was appointed Assistant Conductor of the famed Westminster Choir - the first student in the College's history to be so honored. He later studied at Tanglewood with the late Sir Adrian Boult and completed an M.A. in Musicology at New York University. He is the former Conductor/Music Director of the Chamber Symphony of New Jersey and former Assistant Conductor of the New Jersey Symphony and the senior division of the Lakeland Youth Symphony.

Stephanie Nakasian

Stephanie Nakasian is listed in the Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz as one of the world's leading jazz singers. She first came to international attention in the mid-80s when she sang and toured with the vocal jazz master Jon Hendricks and Company - her "vocal jazz apprenticeship." Since then, she has toured and recorded as a leader and with her partner and internationally acclaimed jazz pianist Hod O'Brien.

Together with their daughter Veronica (who also sings and records under the name Veronica Swift) they make their home in Charlottesville,Virginia. Stephanie has been teaching jazz voice at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville since 1994 and coaches students on jazz phrasing, listening, improv and repertoire preparation for performance.

Blake Neely

Blake Neely is a composer, conductor, arranger, orchestrator, pianist and author. Born and raised in Texas, Blake Neely spent the bulk of his life there before making the inevitable move to Los Angeles. For Neely, pursuing music was never a conscious choice - it was simply what he did - who he was. He took to playing the piano almost as soon as he learned to walk, and he hasn't looked back since. He seized every opportunity, big or small, to get his hands on the world of music. Years of practicing, training and persistence were beginning to pay off when Blake landed a summer internship with Disney while attending the University of Texas. After college, he returned to work for Disney, eventually making his way "up the ladder" to manage their print music department. Thankful for all the invaluable experience and contacts he gained, but still restless for more, Neely struck out on his own. It would be, as it always is in Hollywood, those contacts that helped to take his career to the next level.

Claudia Newberry

With a lifetime of musical experience under her belt, Claudia truly enjoys guiding and polishing bright young talent. Her clientele have remarked that Claudia brings that perfect balance of support and accountability a performer often needs to increasingly impress audiences and land the roles they want! Claudia studied at Eastern Michigan University and received a Bachelor of Music Education in Vocal (major) and Bachelor of Education in Piano (minor). After graduating, Claudia moved west to San Francisco to follow her dreams of performing and pursue a career in music!

Penny Nichols

Penny Nichols is a professional singer, composer, producer and educator. She has performed with Jackson Browne, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Linda Ronstadt, Jennifer Warnes and many other folk and pop legends. Penny's powerful vocals earned her a platinum record with Jummy Buffett, a Grammy nomination with Arlo Guthrie and a Silver Ami Award for best motivational performance.

Like many musicians in the Sixties, Penny started her career as a folk singer in coffeehouses around Orange County, CA. She shared stages with many legendary artists such as Jackson Browne, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Linda Ronstadt and the Stone Ponies,Jennifer Warnes, Mary McCaslin and others. In 1964 & 65 she sang in a bluegrass band with John, Bill & Alice McEuen (John then took Jackson Browne's place in the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and the rest is history) and then formed a duo with Kathy Smith called the Greasy Mountain Butterballs which toured Vietnam in the fall of 1966. Upon returning, she opened the show for numerous artists at the Troubadour and Ash Grove in Hollywood.

Judy Niemack

Judy Niemack was born in Pasadena, California and began singing publicly at the age of 7 in church. Throughout her school years, she sang in every kind of vocal ensemble: madrigals, chamber choir, musical theatre productions, folk groups, rock bands, and eventually a vocal jazz quartet. When she was 17, she decided that singing was her life, and began to study classical voice with a teacher of "bel canto".

Throughout her career, Judy Niemack has accomplished a great deal as a singer, educator, lyricist, composer, and inspiration to younger jazz vocalists. Yet with all that she has done thus far, one gets the impression that the best is yet to come. "I love standards and have performed them all of my life but this is a new era and it is time to create new music," she says. "I'm open to all forms of vocal improv and I'm very interested in mastering the art of music and pushing the art form forward to new places."

May Oskan

May Oskan is a lifelong singer and performer who teaches in Marin County, San Francisco, and the East Bay. She welcomes students ages 10 and up and has experience coaching all styles of contemporary singing, from musical theater to metal. Her students cover the spectrum of experience from absolute beginner to working semi-pro, and have a wide range of vocal goals.

May is also a certified massage therapist specializing in injury rehabilitation. She brings her knowledge of anatomy and physiology to voice lessons that are logical, inquisitive, and fun. She is always expanding her own vocal education and practice, and is currently studying classical voice.

Heinrich Panofka

German violinist and composer, better known as a singing-teacher in London. He was born at Breslau, and studied according to his father's wish. He himself was eager to complete his musical education, begun under his sister, a violinist, and the cantors, Strauch and Foerster, and at last his father acquiesced. He went to Vienna in 1824 and studied violin under Mayseder, and composition with Hauptmann, making his concert debut in 1827. In 1834 he went to Paris, where he played at the concerts of the Conservatory, and studied singing and music-teaching with Bordogni, with whom he founded an Academic de Chant, which failed. From 1844 to 1852 London was his home, and there he became celebrated as a singing-teacher. During Jenny Lind's engagement at Her Majesty's Theatre in 1847 he was assistant conductor. From London he returned to Paris, but in 1866 he moved on to Florence, where he spent the rest of his life. The Practical Singing Tutor; L'art de chanter; Abecedaire vocal; twenty-four vocalises progressives; Erholung und Studium; twelve vocalises d'artiste; eighty-six nouveaux exercises; twelve vocalises pour contralto; and twelve Vokalisen fur Bass are his most important works.

Gitika Partington

Gitika believes in the sensational power of group singing, bringing people together to express joy and celebration through song. Not being able to read music is no obstacle and Gitika's tips and the original arrangements included here demonstrate just how rewarding and inclusive teaching a cappella by ear and gesture can be!

Gitika Partington is a singer/songwriter, vocal arranger, teacher and choral director. She has an MA in choral education and holds many other musical qualifications. She runs regular 'popular and world style' singing workshops as well as national training sessions for adults and children. In addition she runs three adult community choirs where all the music is learned by ear and is mostly self arranged.

Anne Peckham

Anne Peckham is a singer, voice teacher, and choral conductor. Recently promoted to the rank of Professor in the Voice Department at Berklee College of Music, Anne teaches private voice lessons and directs the Berklee Concert Choir. She has developed curriculum for 'Elements of Vocal Technique,' a lab required of all of Berklee's vocal students. She also co-founded the college's 'Musical Theater Workshop,' a class that culminates each semester with recitals featuring full shows and scenes.

"I teach vocal technique to singers who are interested in all styles of music. The people who come to me usually have a well-established personal sound, and my job is to help them fine-tune the craft of singing. I think it's hard for students to find somebody who teaches technique and who's open to teaching students who aren't interested in classical music. That's where I fit into the voice pedagogy puzzle. I'm very interested in all kinds of contemporary, commercial music, and so that's what I do. I help pop singers, rock singers, jazz singers, r&b singers, gospel singers, anybody who is interested in improving their voice or aspects of their vocal technique.

Dr. Pamelia Phillips

Dr. Pamelia S. Phillips is the Conservatory Director of Professional Programs and Chair of Voice and Music at CAP21. Pam earned her Doctorate of Musical Arts and Master of Music in Vocal Performance from Arizona State University and a Bachelor of Music Education from Arkansas State University. Her performances range from contemporary American Opera premieres to guest performances with major symphonies. Roles include title roles in Carmen, Tragedy of Carmen and Lizzie Borden, the Witch in Hansel and Gretal, Giulietta in Tales of Hoffmann, Dorabella in Cosi fan tutte, Mum in Albert Herring, Constance in the world premiere of She Stoops to Conquer, Lady with a Hat Box in Postcard from Morocco, Frau Bauer in Dora, Beatrice in the stage premiere of Garden of Mystery, Mrs. Cornett in Tobermory, staged performance of From The Diary of Virginia Woolf, Gloria Thorpe in Damn Yankees, Gymnasia in ...Forum, Liebeslieder singer in A Little Night Music and Lady Thiang in King and I. Symphonic performances include Berlioz' Le mort de Cleopatra with the Bronx Symphony, Mahler's Fourth Symphony with the Centre Symphony, Das Lied von der Erde and Mahler'sThird Symphony with the New York Symphonic Arts Ensemble and guest artist with Phoenix Chamber Symphony, South Texas Symphony, Scottsdale Fine Arts Orchestra and the National Chorale.

Lisa Popeil

Lisa Popeil is one of America's foremost singing experts and has an international reputation as an innovator in the technique and pedagogy of vocal styles. She holds a Master's Degree in Voice from California Institute of the Arts and has taught professionally for over 30 years. Creator of the Voiceworks Method and "The Total Singer" instructional video, Lisa brings her enthusiasm and long experience to the training of singers around the world. Her Voiceworks Studio is located in Sherman Oaks, (Los Angeles) California.

For celebrity clients, her experience in instant vocal improvement, song choice, audition/performance prep and maintenance of vocal health keeps her in demand as a resource for actors, managers, directors and record producers.

The Voiceworks Studio has a full digital recording studio, as well as a performance area with stage, lights, sound system and video. Her private students range in age from 5-80 and include beginners to celebrities in film, TV, musical theater, and recording worlds.

Roberta Radley

Roberta Radley, Assistant Chair of the Ear Training department at Berklee College of Music, has authored two online courses, "Basic Ear Training" and "Harmonic Ear Training," a DVD, "Harmonic Ear Training," and co-authored Berklee's Core Ear Training Textbooks, Volumes 1-4. Her specialty, harmonic ear training, is presented in her book The "Real Easy" Ear Training Book. Ms. Radley performs, and presents seminars, for Berklee in the US and internationally. She also performs with the jazz vocal trio The Sisters of Swing, which features several of her own arrangements on their premier CD "Mood Indigo."

Using harmonic ear training methods from The Real Easy Ear Training Book(her study guide forstudents and supplement for teachers), Ms. Radley will present musical examples emphasizing "real-world" ear training. She will show application of the ear training studies from her book to your students' own musical needs.

Karma Raines

I teach all styles of singing with specific exercises tailored to you. Your voice is basically a flexible wind instrument. With focus and practice, you can learn to sing with good pitch, develop or increase your range, and sing without strain or tension.

Rhiannon Rhiannon

Rhiannon is a vocal artist with a vision of music as a vehicle for innovation, healing, transformation, and social change. A vibrant, gifted singer, performance artist, composer, and master teacher, Rhiannon has been bringing her unique and potent blend of jazz, world music, improvisation and storytelling to audiences for over four decades paving a unique path as an independent artist. Collaborations include the all-women's jazz ensemble Alive!, a cappella ensembles SoVoSo and WeBe3, Bobby McFerrin and Voicestra, the instrumental trio Spontaneous, duets with pianist Laurence Hobgood, and improvised performance pieces with Japanese dancer Shizuno Nasu:The Ocean Regards Us All As One. Rhiannon's book about her life and teaching methods, Vocal River, The Skill and Spirit of Improvisation, was published in 2013. Rhiannon lives and works on her farm on the Big Island of Hawai'i, currently building a teaching/performance space, Ha Lau Leo Nani, The Gathering Place, honoring culture and community.

Seth Riggs

Seth Riggs is considered by many to be the best and most successful voice teacher in the United States. He is certainly the busiest. No other teacher, past or present, has ever matched his phenomenal track record. His students are a veritable "Who's Who" of singers, actors, dancers, and entertainers throughout the world. Seth Riggs's vocal technique and the methods he uses to teach the technique were forged and tempered by the fierce demands placed on the world's top performers, who must often perform several shows a night - night after night!

Riggs lectures and conducts Master Classes on vocal technique at colleges and universities all around the world. He also has assisted some of the country's foremost doctors who specialize in organic and functional disorders of the voice in vocal therapy (the elimination of vocal nodules, polyps, and various conditions of fibrosis). In the pragmatic world of show business, where time is money, Seth Riggs is the man professionals turn to for results.

Carol Rodgers

Carol "Mama O" Rogers is a 30-year veteran of the recording and performing industries. Her numerous vocal recording credits include a "Best World Recording" Grammy winner, Brasileiro (Sergio Mendes), and her voice has also been featured in major motion pictures (Antitrust w/Leonardo DiCaprio and Bossa Nova w/Amy Irving), network TV (2001 Teen Choice Awards) and educational software (Walla's World). As a live performer, Carol has toured the world with her musical inspiration and mentor, Sergio Mendes, and appears regularly with her own group, "Mama O". During ten years of teaching vocal technique at MI, Carol's multilingual stretching and strengthening techniques for the voice have trained students from all over the US as well as Sweden, Japan, Mexico, and Brazil, where she is the vocal coach for teenage duo sensation Sandy & Junior. Her stylistic teaching technique has been captured on the Warner Brothers instructional video, Blues Vocals. At MI, her specialties include "everything you can do in the studio" plus Blues Vocals and the Blues LPW.

Darlene Rogers

Darlene Rogers is the Director of Texas Harmony Chorus, a chapter of Sweet Adelines International, is an acclaimed music educator and vocal coach. She has been teaching and coaching proper vocal production skills to choruses and quartets in the barbershop idiom for more than three decades.

Darlene began her Sweet Adeline career in 1968 in Ponca City, OK. In 1970, she became a member of the OK City Chorus, where she later bacame assistant director. In addition, she was director of the Oklahoma Jubilee Chorus in Tulsa, as well as a member of the 1975 Region 10 Champion Lady Luvs Quartet.

Darlene currently resides in Flower Mound, TX where she teaches private voice lessons. This outstanding and dynamic musical leader is in great demand as a coach and teacher by many award winning choruses and quartets in both the Sweet Adeline and S.P.E.B.S.Q.S.A. organizations, including the 1999 Sweet Adeline International Quartet Champions, Rumors.

Bob Rose

Bob Rose is a well known vocal instructor with a unique variety of talents and abilities. For 30 years, he has developed a specialized singing method to put into his CD book entitled "Contemporary Singing Techniques." He has worked with artists such as the Beach Boys, Mary Stuart Masterson, Members of the SF Chorus, and many others. Based on his state of the art recording experience from working with many famous producers, Bob offers his singers a unique blend of performing/recording experiences for all levels and styles of music and speaking.

Katharin Rundus

Katharin Rundus, Instructor of Voice and Choral Studies at Fullerton College, is a teacher, a conductor and a singer. Her most recent performances include Haydn's Arianna a Naxos with the Early Music Ensemble Con Gioia; soprano solos in J. S. Bach's B Minor Mass and St. John's Passion; Mozart's Requiem; Haydn's Creation, Beethovan's Mass in C, and many chamber music recitals featuring the music of Handel. She enjoys the challenge of working with young, developing voices at Fullerton College both as a voice teacher and as director of the Chamber Singers and the Women's Chorale. She received the Bachelor of Music degree from Coe College , the Master of Music degree from Westminster Choir College, and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the Claremont Graduate University.

Gloria Rusch

Gloria Rusch is a multi-talented session singer, recording artist, performer and actress. In addition to recording and performing with John Novello, she has appeared with Stevie Wonder, B.B. King, Al Jarreau, Duke Ellington, Chick Corea, JD Nichols (The Commodores), and others. Her performances on record, on concert stage, and as an actress, have garnered rave reviews. In addition to her artistic work, she is as well a highly respected music educator and founder of The School of the Natural Voice, one of the most sought-after schools for vocal coaching in the business. Her Caesari Vocalises vocal audio tape seriesis in wide use by singers around the world. Her students have ranged from beginners to platinum and Grammy-winners, such as Paula Abdul, Eric Martin and Billy Sheehan (Mr. Big), MintCondition, Kevin Edmons (After 7), Nia Peeples, Traci Spencer, and many others.

Elizabeth Sabine

Dubbed the "Auntie Mame of Heavy Metal" by NBC News, Elizabeth Sabine is a Voice Strengthening Specialist. In recent years she has become known for her work in restoring and strengthening the voices of hard rock and heavy metal singers. She has also been able to apply her techniques to assist people in many other fields such as school teachers, trial lawyers, auctioneer, actors, preachers, etc.

Elizabeth Sabine was born in London in October 1923, and the family emigrated to Australia in 1924, settling in Sydney, New South Wales. Her father died in 1932, and in her teens Elizabeth helped her mother make exquisite flowers from feathers, which were then sold to the milliners (hat shops). She also won a scholarship for ballet, but left school at 14 years of age in order to work and help family finances. In time she took up singing and acting, working overtime to pay for her own tuition at the Conservatorium of Music.

Edith Salazar

Edith Salazar has jumped into the spotlight after her participation in Spanish TV show Operacin Triunfo as vocal coach and Deputy Director of the Academy, but her performing and teaching experience goes a long way back. She has built a solo career along with the most relevant artists of Hispanic music. Edith is a multifaceted artist; not only is she one of the strongest and most gifted voices that can be heard today, but she is also a talented composer, conductor, pianist, actress and vocal professor with an inherent talent for the scene. She was trained as an academic musician, but she has developed many other styles such as jazz, blues, bolero, bossanova, rock, pop, etc., out of which she has created a unique style of her own.

As a musician, she has played, recorded and toured with countless artists such as Miguel Bose (she played the keyboards and background vocals with the band for 6 years) Alaska (Fangoria), Cabaret Pop, Tam Tam Go!, Rafael Amargo, Jose Luis Perales, Sergio Dalma, Simon Diaz, Alex De La Nuez, Ricardo Solfa, La Guardia, Ciudad Jardin, Cool Jerks, Alejandra Guzman, Javier Corcovado, Joshua Edelman, Rubem Dantas, etc.

Robert Sataloff

Robert Thayer Sataloff, M.D., DMA is Professor and Chairman, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery and Senior Associate Dean for Clinical Academic Specialties, Drexel University College of Medicine. He is also Adjunct Professor in the departments of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery at Thomas Jefferson University, the University of Pennsylvania and Temple University; on the faculty of the Academy of Vocal Arts; and Conductor of the Thomas Jefferson University Choir. Dr. Sataloff is also a professional singer and singing teacher. He holds an undergraduate degree from Haverford College in Music Theory and Composition, graduated from Jefferson Medical College, Thomas Jefferson University, received a Doctor of Musical Arts in Voice Performance from Combs College of Music; and he completed his Residency in Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery and a Fellowship in Otology, Neurotology and Skull Base Surgery at the University of Michigan.

Shalee Schmidt

Shalee Schmidt's radiant voice is equally at home performing on the musical theater, opera, operetta, and recital stage. Her specialty is the character role where she excels as a musical storyteller. Her opera and operetta roles include "The Duchess" in The Gondoliers, "Papagena" in The Magic Flute, "Erata" in Orpheus in the Underworld, "Ludmilla" in The Bartered Bride, "an innkeeper" in Merry Wives of Windsor, and "Birdie" in scenes from Regina. Shalee's musical theater roles include "Dolly" in Hello Dolly, "Sister Hubert" in Nunsense, "Dominique" in Lucky Stiff, and "Rapunzel" in Into the Woods. She has been a lead singer for a Brazilian band. Shalee loves singing and acting in stage and film productions, and recording vocals and voice-overs for all types of projects for companies such as Brite Music, Franklin Covey, Voce Productions, NuWorlds Productions, InAChord Productions, and Southwest Airlines.

Coreen Sheehan

Coreen has toured professionally all over the world performing in bands such as the all-female AC/DC tribute band, Whole Lotta Rosies, and Tyed Dyed Junkies during her time in Japan. Her bands have opened for David Lee Roth and the Foo Fighters, and she performed background vocals on Richie Kotzen and Richie Zito's CD The Road. She has also performed with the Bricks Dance Company in Paris at the invitation of the Japanese embassy. Coreen continues to work with artists and bands, preparing them to record and perform worldwide.

Coreen was hired as a Music Consultant in 2003 for the VH1 television show You Rock, for which she prepared vocalists to perform in concert with artists such as Rod Stewart and the Barenaked Ladies. She has also been seen and heard in TV commercials in the U.S., Germany, Japan (MTV), and South Korea.

In 2002, 2003, and from 2005-2007 Coreen was nominated for the Best Rock Vocalist award in Los Angeles. She won the award in 2005, 2006, and 2007.

Bettina Sheppard

Bettina Sheppard is a classically trained singer and pianist and holds Master's degrees in music and composition. She has appeared in New York and regional theatres as singer, dancer, and actress and has sung classical repertoire in Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Symphony Space, and Riverside Church. She has directed and performed with numerous vocal groups from madrigal to rock, and created the harmony group Satin Dolls, a swing jazz trio who played in Radio City Music Hall, Westbury Music Fair, the Rainbow Room, and Trump Castle as well as recording for film, television, and a syndicated radio show. Solus, her CD of original material was released last year under her Welsh name, Brythonwen.

Bettina served as musical director for TraumNovela; 365 Days/365 Plays by Suzan-Lori Parks (Barrow Street Theatre and Public Theater); Forever Plaid; West Side Story; Copacabana (City Center); Deep in the Darkness; Baby, It's Cold Outside; Songs My Voice Teacher Wouldn't Let Me Sing.

W. Stephen Smith

W. Stephen Smith joined the Voice Faculty at The Juilliard School in the fall of 1998 after having served for eight years on the voice faculty at the Moores School of Music at the University of Houston. He has held a position on the voice faculty of the Aspen Music Festival and School since 1996 where he was honored in 2001 as a "New Horizons" faculty member. Additionally, Mr. Smith was on the staff of Houston Grand Opera as Voice Instructor for the Houston Opera Studio from 1990 to 2003. He is in great demand as a voice teacher for many professional and aspiring professional singers in New York City and around the world. After moving to Houston from St. Louis where he was Chairman of the Voice Department at the Saint Louis Conservatory of Music, he maintained a voice studio in St. Louis for three years. He was a member of the music faculty at Oklahoma Christian College for eleven years and has also been on the artistic staff at Inspiration Point Fine Arts Colony and the Cimarron Circuit Opera Company. He holds the Bachelor of Arts degree in Voice from Harding University (voice study with Erle T. Moore), the Master of Music degree in Voice from the University of Arkansas (voice study with Richard Brothers), and the Master of Performing Arts degree in Opera from Oklahoma City University where he was a voice student of the late renowned Inez Lunsford Silberg. Other teachers include Dr. William White.

Dr. Raymond Smolover

Raymond Smolover, director of voice seminars at the National Guitar Workshop and cantor emeritus at Congregation Kol Ami in White Plains, NY, has been actively engaged in voice research and education for five decades. He is the author of The Vocal Essence, Vocal Behavior Analysis and Modification (published in part in the International Journal of Research in Singing) and Developing Your Singing Voice. As a leading teacher of voice in New York City, he has taught a broad spectrum of opera, theater and recording artists, including Richard Kiley and Tony Randall, and has worked extensively with both young and mature voices. From 1968 to 1992 he served as executive director of the American Conference of Cantors.

With degrees from Carnegie Mellon University, Columbia University and Columbia University Teachers College, Dr. Smolover is a classically trained singer whose professional background includes leading tenor roles with the New York Opera Company, the New England Opera Theater and the Tanglewood Music Festival. He also has performed numerous concerts at Carnegie Hall and on television.

Jim Snidero

Jim Snidero is considered to be one of the top authors in jazz today. A resident of New York City for over 20 years, he has made numerous recordings as a leader, and has performed and/or recorded with many important jazz artists. Snidero is on the faculty at the New School University, is an active jazz clinician for the Selmer Company, and author of the best selling Jazz Conception and Easy Jazz Conception series, published by Advance Music.

In addition to his performance activities, Snidero has been a major contributor to jazz education as both a best-selling author and educator. The three "Jazz Conception" (Advance Music) book series' he has penned are some of the most widely-used text books in the world, firmly established as a cornerstone of jazz education. He is on the adjunct faculty at New School and New Jersey City University, commuted from NYC to run the jazz saxophone studio for the top-rated music program at Indiana University in 2006, and is an active clinician for The Conn-Selmer Company and Rico Reeds.

Diana R. Spradling

Diana Spradling has successfully combined teaching and research by bringing music and science into partnership in her book, Jazz Singing: Developing Artistry and Authenticity. In the fall of 2003, after more than three decades of teaching voice and vocal ensembles, she founded the Applied Studio Technology Laboratory at Western Michigan University and has spent the past four years acoustically studying the voices of jazz and classical singers. Every jazz vocalist at Western spends time in the lab developing a vocal profile with the help of a software program called VoceVista, designed at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands. This digital imagery resource investigates and analyzes sounds and degrees of technical facility of the singer in live and recorded situations. The information is recorded on real time spectrograms and indicates vowel definition, vibrato rate, degrees and consistency of legato, clarity of onsets and releases and resonance in the voice to name a few.