The Voice Skills Approach To Voice Analysis And Action Planning
Thursday 11th May 2023, 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM (London Time)
In this talk, Christina will describe the approach and the Voice Skills Framework and participants will have the chance to practise perceptual analysis on a short video, where the ‘client’s’ spoken voice issues are likely to be relevant to their sung voice. She will then demonstrate and lead an exploration of core exercises for each of the 8 voice skills parameters.
Christina’s book, Voice Work: Art and Science in Changing Voices (2009) has become a core text for voice practitioners since it addresses the theory and practice of voice work with both normal and disturbed voice.
The Voice Skills approach is central to the book. Developed over many years of practical work with speakers and singers, it is based on Christina’s definition of the ‘Free Voice’, based on 8 core aspects: Body, Breath, Channel, Phonation, Resonance, Pitch, Loudness and Articulation. This will be strong and flexible in both personal and professional contexts and will not tire during speaking or singing – nor will it react under stress during a demanding rehearsal, show, presentation or long social evening.
The Voice Skills Framework uses these aspects in a simple-to-use perceptual voice listening tool which helps to illuminate what is ‘going on’ in a voice, and points a voice practitioner towards appropriate directions for voice work. This system of listening and analysis has been widely taught, both in the UK and in other countries and is used by many different voice practitioners.
Christina Shewell
Christina Shewell, MA, FRCSLT ADVS is spoken voice teacher, and speech/ language therapist with long experience in voice work with a wide range of clients, in both voice therapy and voice development.

Attend this course for as little as £22 as part of the Voice Professional Training CPD Award Scheme.
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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.

Thursday 1st May 2025
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Thursday 8th May 2025
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Thursday 15th May 2025
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Thursday 22nd May 2025
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Thursday 29th May 2025
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
(London Time)
Trauma-Informed Voice Professional Certificate with Dr Elisa Monti

Dr Elisa Monti
This five-part certificate course is designed to help participants learn the theory and practice of trauma-informed approaches. The concepts and activities included are tailored to meet the needs of voice specialists who want to acquire more specific tools to navigate the space with their students and colleagues.


Tuesday 6th May 2025
3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
(London Time)
Mindfulness and Voice: Exploring the Intersection through Peer-Reviewed Literature

Catherine Brown
Despite strong interest, only a handful of peer-reviewed studies have examined the relationship between mindfulness and voice. Emerging research indicates that mindfulness can help voice users learn to respond to stress more effectively and may help them manage performance anxiety. In this course, we will examine several types of peer-reviewed literature: a) mindfulness studies that indirectly relate to voice work. b) We will review research that examines mindfulness as it relates to voice-adjacent fields (e.g., music performance anxiety and stammering/stuttering). c) We will look at the few published studies that have directly investigated the relationship between mindfulness and voice and d) we will examine directions for future qualitative and quantitative research.

Tuesday 6th May 2025
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Wednesday 7th May 2025
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Friday 9th May 2025
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
(London Time)
Acceptance & Commitment Coaching for Beginners: An Overview and Guide for Using it to Address Common Performance-Related Problems of a Psychological Nature (3-part course)

Dr David Juncos
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy or Coaching (ACT) is an empirically-supported psychotherapy & coaching intervention for a variety of common issues facing student and professional musicians from across the world. Some of these include performance anxiety, perfectionism & self-criticism, procrastination, and work-related stress & burnout.