How long should someone take voice lessons? How long is it until one sees improvement?

These are frequently asked questions, but there is no definitive answer.  It varies for each person and each person’s goals.  The quality of the lessons, teacher, personal ambition and drive, and whether or not you and the teacher "click", will help you to improve the quickest and the best.  Each person has a different instrument, experiences affecting them, and starts at their own unique vocal place, so length of time to see a marked improvement varies.  Your voice is always changing and you are always able to learn new things as you explore more music!

Do you want a quick answer?  Expect to study for at least 6-9 months. Sure you will see some subtle improvement quickly when starting lessons, but it takes time to get in tune with your instrument (your body) and develop good techniques.  Muscle memory, which is a main component of singing technique, takes time to develop .  In time your body remembers how it feels to sing well.  You don't just take them for a month and expect to be the best singer ever. You need to continue to take vocal lessons.  –Sammy Divenhart   

Singing lessons should be ongoing to continue developing the voice as one gets older and more experienced.  Part of a voice teacher’s job is to help you find the best repertoire for you to sing. Even after one becomes an accomplished singer, he or she should check in with a voice teacher or voice coach periodically to stay on track and make sure that their sound stays healthy.

We hear ourselves differently than others hear us!  Think about it, when you hear yourself on the answering machine or on the recording on your cell phone, your voice does not the same to you as when you speak.  The structure of our bodies, our ears being on the side of our voice, and our resonators (open spaces in which sound bounces around) make us hear ourselves differently than the rest of the world.  This also affects how we hear our singing voice.

What we hear while we’re singing just isn’t true, so we are always dependent on someone we trust to take the role of our ‘outside ears’. Renee Fleming

Biggest Factors that impact how quickly a student progresses are:

-Quality of the lessons and teacher

- Personal ambition, drive, and dedication of the student to practice time

- Whether you “click” with your teacher (how well you understand one another and communicate)

In this three part series, I will discuss these factors in more detail and give examples of why voice lessons are an ongoing study!  Sign up to receive my blog to read the next segment!
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