Body wisdom for vocal performers and educators: What the heart and lungs can teach us about sustainable and joyful vocal practice!
Thursday 18th June 2026, 9:00 PM - 11:00 PM (London Time)
Join Mark Seton as he discusses his recent research with creatives (260 participants) on the challenges of work and relationships, and how many are seeking to be more empowered in their personal and professional lives, as well as more embodied and enduring in the midst of rapidly changing life and work. This foundational and interactive workshop takes us on an embodied journey into how the actual heart functions and its crucial partnership with our lungs. In this course we’ll learn from their collective wisdom how to remain healthily ‘opened’ and ‘closed’ at the same time, to breath in and breath out, allowing time for both refreshment and recovery between each beat of our hearts, and each drawing of breath.
"Both circulation systems – blood and air – participate in an essential partnership. The heart is the pump for the blood that carries oxygen to wherever it’s needed in the body, while the lungs ensure that the oxygen is there to collect and that the resultant carbon dioxide is there to expel. But, importantly, the heart needs permeable boundaries and moments of rest and recovery to be sustainable, while carbon dioxide provides the chemical signal to trigger each breath cycle. What is often regarded as a ‘waste’ product is what keeps the breath cycle going, and it is on that exhaled breath – what we release and no longer need for ourselves – that we speak, sing, cry, laugh, whisper and connect with others.
Both our ‘open-heartedness’ and our open breath, model a willingness and capacity to practice empathy and emotional awareness, a capacity to treat both one's self and others with respect and compassion, being approachable towards partnerships and collaborations, and being adaptive and open-minded. In short, we can actually honour and celebrate our shared human vulnerability as a gift to each other. In this session we’re going to playfully explore 3 ways – embodiment, empowerment and endurance – of practicing self-care AND other-care that support our innate open-heartedness and vulnerability."
🏷️ Price £30 (UK VAT inclusive)
🎥 Recording automatically sent to all who book (even if you cannot attend live)
▶️ Rewatch as many times as you like
📜 Certificate of attendance available
Dr Mark Seton
Dr Mark Seton is an Honorary Research Associate in the Discipline of Theatre and Performance, The University of Sydney and a lecturer in Excelsia University College’s School of Creative and Performing Arts, Australia. He was awarded a Churchill Fellowship in 2009 to conduct a study tour of actor training healthcare practices in the UK. Arising from this study, the Equity Foundation, in collaboration with the University of Sydney, initiated an internationally ground-breaking Actors’ Wellbeing Study (AWS) in 2013.
Attend this course for as little as £22 as part of the Voice Professional Training CPD Award Scheme.
Learn MoreSorry, this is an archived short course...
We have plenty of upcoming short courses coming soon. See details of some of them below or look at the full list of short courses.
Friday 6th November 2026
3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
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Dr David Cane
Hosted by our very own Dr David Cane, this two-hour session offers a timely and reflective opportunity to explore disability and neurodivergence within the voice teaching studio. Grounded in the field of critical disability studies, it will be of particular interest to voice professionals who wish to foster a more inclusive, reflexive and accessible practice.
Thursday 12th November 2026
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
(London Time)
Kodaly and Dalcroze - inspired Learning for Choir Leaders!
Amy Bebbington
Enhance your choral leadership by grounding vocal direction in physical, experiential movement. Drawing from the pioneering methodologies of Zoltán Kodály and Émile Jaques-Dalcroze, join Amy Bebbington for this practical and highly engaging session exploring how kinaesthetic gestures can revolutionize the way you lead singing.
Monday 16th November 2026
5:00 PM - 6:00 PM
(London Time)
Introduction to Postgraduate Academic Skills (IPAS): Online Information Session & Q&A
Debbie Winter
Interested in developing your academic skills or exploring a pathway onto our MA Voice Pedagogy? Join our free online information session to learn what IPAS involves, how it works and whether it's right for you.