Voice Coach

 


VOICE COACH/TEACHER – Private instruction

COVID-19 UPDATE.

JANICE IS CURRENTLY CONDUCTING VIDEO VOCAL LESSONS ONLY ON ZOOM, FACETIME OR SKYPE. She is currently accepting English-speaking beginner and intermediate students ages 11 and up from across the U.S. and the globe.  Mature adults, male and female, are a specialty.  Payments can be made via Venmo or PayPal.

Scheduling is flexible and rates are competitive, with no “upfront” payments required. Her vocal techniques and focus are on pop, jazz, blues, musical theater, R&B, classic rock and performance. Please email Janice at info@janicegerard.com for more information; put Voice Coaching in subject line. If you are interested but not yet ready to commit to lessons (but may be some time in the near future) and want to be on a waiting list, please email her with your request.

Teaching Testimonials for Janice Gerard

“Janice has been a wonderful voice instructor for my daughter. I have enjoyed listening to my daughter’s progress. Janice has a wonderful, caring personality and is great with kids of all ages.”

Sarah Muszalski

“It is my pleasure to write a letter of recommendation for Janice Gerard, voice coach/teacher extraordinaire. I have been her student for six months and she has made each lesson enjoyable, instructive and entertaining. Janice possesses a keen knowledge of how to draw the best from you. You will be pleased and surprised with the amazing results. Her experience affords expansive music material from classic rock and standards to pop, and she will even coach you on a specific song – think “The Voice”. Book a lesson and enjoy.”

Jayne S., Huntington Beach, CA

“I’ve only been a student of Janice’s for a handful of sessions, but she’s already had a profound impact on my singing.  She does a great job of adapting her sessions to your personal needs and providing a welcoming atmosphere.  I think that is really critical considering how vulnerable one can feel when their voice is failing at full volume.

Prior to my sessions with Janice, I had no proper vocal training.  My introduction to singing was yelling in punk rock bands.  Over the years, I grasped a vague sense of how to carry a note and shifted my focus to acoustic music.  By the time I booked my first lesson with Janice, I had been playing regularly for about 5 years.  But my voice always felt restricted.  I was sure 15+ years of improper singing and 5+ years of construction site yelling had done irreversible damage.

I voiced these concerns at our introductory meeting, and the first thing she did was guide me through exercises that taught me how to use the muscles surrounding my diaphragm.  She explained how this can help you to project a clean voice past imperfect throat and vocal chord conditions.  My inexperience and the eccentric nature of the exercises made me feel silly and ridiculous at first.  But I could see their purpose, and Janice did an excellent job of making me feel comfortable with just letting loose and belting out the notes.

By our 2nd meeting, I could already hear significant progress during the vocal exercises.  Janice heard the progress too, but she also heard all the areas in which I still needed improvement.  She introduced several new exercises (a couple off the top of her head) to address specific problems I was having.  And everything seemed to have an immediate corrective effect.

A few days later, I played a couple 1 hour acoustic sets at a local pub.  Several of my friends and family who’ve been listening to me for years made a point to remark on how much better my voice sounded than ever before.  After just 2 sessions with Janice.  Needless to say, I’m beyond satisfied with the progress I’ve made and excited to see just how far she can take me.  I can’t recommend her highly enough.”

Danny Osborne

 “Janice thinks I can learn to sing and she almost has me convinced. I plug away each week because it’s just plain fun doing those silly exercises, singing and laughing (at myself mostly.) I’ve always wanted to be able to sing, and if Janice believes I can do it — I’ve decided to just go with it; she’s the expert and who am I to question her! I think she’s tapped into the performer in me!”

 Cathy Parsa

“I became aware of Janice when I saw her knock “out-of-the-park,” a rousing rendition of Led Zeppelin’s “Rock & Roll.” To say that I was blown away would be an understatement. And little did I know that I was watching someone who had already done a European tour! To the uninitiated, her teaching methods may seem unorthodox and downright silly, but guess what – IT REALLY WORKS!! I can hear real improvement in my singing capabilities and better control of voice mechanics  – as long as I stay within my range. I just can’t wait for my first in-person lesson. Janice is a bonafide professional. It will be time and money well spent.”

Jim Nathan, online vocal student

“Janice — Thank you for all your help in my singing journey. You have been an amazing teacher! My boyfriend was skeptical at first, but now he is supporting my singing because he heard me hit notes he never thought I could hit. Plus, my Dad is so excited, he is building me my own sound proof booth in my home so I can practice more freely!”

Sandra Alcaraz

“I’ve enjoyed singing for years, but never really had a clue what I was doing, how to take care of my voice, or how far I could go.  With Janice’s coaching, I’ve come so far!!! Lessons are great fun, too. I can’t recommend Janice highly enough!”

Clare Josey

“I am one of Janice’s students, and I love working with her because she is always constructive, patient, encouraging and supportive when coaching me. She will correct you in a kind manner and will be completely honest with you. She is very conscious about not letting you strain your voice and will always find a way to help you hit the note.

She has taught me several voice warm-ups and breathing exercises which have helped me with my range, note accuracy, breath control and vocal health and techniques.

I have had no singing experience in my adult life — only when I was in Jr. High and High School choirs and that was limited but have always wanted to sing on stage with a band. It’s on my bucket list, so I decided to take lessons and it has been one of the best decisions that I have made.

Janice is also very flexible and understands when something comes up and you need to reschedule and will find another date and time for your lesson — she has been very flexible. If this is a dream of yours also, I encourage you to give her a try and I’m sure you won’t be disappointed.”

Sharon M. Cooper

“I started taking voice lessons with Janice about a year ago. I had no musical experience other than loving to listen to music. I thought it would be fun to learn to sing! Janice has helped me with projecting my voice, identifying the keys best for me, and most of all being confident in singing. She works well with adults that are starting later in life. I think she knows my voice better than I do!  Since studying with her I have sung on jam sessions with others on Zoom and have been able to sing with my husband while he plays his instruments. My goal is to be able to someday sing with a band and with Janice’s help I know I will be able to do that. She is an awesome vocal coach!”

Patty M. Kirsch