Short Courses & Events / Archive

Warming Up And Cooling Down: A Guide To Their Use And Impact On Function

Thursday 3rd November 2022, 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM (London Time)

  • There are exercises designed to facilitate a particular change in vocal function – the potential for a given exercise to work is contingent on the intention of the exercise, the instruction provided, and the singer’s understanding and implementation.
  • A teacher should select vocal exercises supported by either quantifiable research or validated by anecdotal practice-based evidence – this is true whether discussing vocal warm-ups or cool-downs.
  • The benefits of cool-down exercises following strenuous exercises have been well established – while voice pedagogy typically emphasizes the use of vocal warm up exercises, the efficacy of cool-down exercises has not been demonstrated.
  • Traditionally, exercise science includes a great deal of research on cooling down exercises after working out the body – cool-down exercises for singers have not yet been thoroughly examined even though vocalizes (warm-ups) for the voice have long been accepted as beneficial.  As a result, there remains varying opinions in the voice community as to the efficacy of cooling down after a period of strenuous singing.

This workshop will present information on strategizing a vocal warm-up and cool-down routine, how and why to choose particular exercises, the difference between a vocal warm-up and vocal exercises focused on function.

The workshop will also include research, supported in part by the 2012 Van L. Lawrence Fellowship, that examined the efficacy of cool-down exercises for the voice at the end of a heavy voice load

Dr Kari Ragan

Singer, singing voice rehabilitation specialist (SVS), author, and voice pedagogue, Kari Ragan holds degrees from the University of Washington (DMA), and Indiana University (MM, BM).

Sorry, 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.

Trauma-Informed Voice Professional Certificate with Dr Elisa Monti
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.

Mindfulness and Voice: Exploring the Intersection through Peer-Reviewed Literature
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.

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)
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.