A great tool to learn how to sing better

First, you might ask yourself, “How can I learn how to sing better without a live vocal coach?” Well, I asked myself that, too.

See, I’ve been singing all my life and I am currently a worship leader at my church. It is my firm belief that music has many health benefits, in addition to worship. But, I noticed that as I got older, my voice got a bit lower. Now, I’m no longer able to hit notes that I could when I was in my 20’s. It also frustrates me that I have trouble finding and singing harmonies. That’s because as a soprano, I have always sung the melodies and no one has ever taught me how to sing harmony.

I want to do better.

But, I don’t have the budget to hire a vocal coach, so I looked for other options, including an online coach. I didn’t think a self-paced course could really work, so when I heard about The Vocal Gym by Throga, I was a little skeptical. But, a friend of mine encouraged me to take a look, so I did.

Seven dimensions of singing? Who knew?

It’s embarrassing to say that, even though I sang in choir, ensembles, and bands my whole life, I never heard about the seven dimensions of singing, on which The Vocal Gym focuses. But, after I took the assessment, boy, I felt humbled! I knew I had trouble with harmonies, but there were other things I had no idea about. I suppose I had been compensating for those weaknesses through bad habits. Now, those bad habits were laid bare. Time for some work!

As I got started, I found that The Vocal Gym is really unique. This program isn’t about trying to hit notes per se. (Although you do sing notes, of course!) Instead it’s about developing the physiology of your voice–strengthening muscles and structures and instilling certain habits and mindset. As I worked through lessons, I had many aha! moments. And, big bonus, The Vocal Gym personalized the course based on my vocal assessment! So, exactly those lessons I needed appeared in my portal! Just like this vocalist below, I didn’t know what I didn’t know and as I said I had been compensating for my weaknesses for years! This program showed me how to strengthen those areas and improve my singing.

Learn how to sing better from an expert!

I was very impressed that The Vocal Gym was developed by a renowned vocal coach, Richard Fink IV. The Wall Street Journal deemed him the “world’s leading online vocal coach” and he is also a 3x Guinness World Record holder for the world’s longest held note.

No amateurs here trying to teach singing with a piano and scale exercises. Been there, done that. No, this is the real deal.

And, bonus, The Vocal Gym keeps busy homeschooling schedules and needs in mind. Not only does it personalize lessons, but it offers them in bite-sized portions. These include video and interactive activities and quizzes. You can stretch each lesson out over a few days. And, there’s no skipping around! Students must progress through the self-paced lessons in order and parents can monitor progress through the parent portal. You can’t learn how to sing better if you don’t build your skills precept upon precept, right? I love that.

But, they didn’t stop there. The Vocal Gym offers 150 hours of lessons and application activities to fulfill state high school elective requirements for one credit hour. The application lessons are key to meeting this requirement, but are optional to the actual instruction. You decide if and how much you want your student to do.

How to make the most of The Vocal Gym

Now, those who benefit the most from this program are those who truly want to know how to sing better and can be honest with themselves about their current ability. The program outlines this in the rules and guidelines for the course. After all, your teen won’t learn how to sing better if he doesn’t follow the rules outlined in the program. So, the success of the program rests on the self-motivation of the person taking the course. I would say that it is helpful if the student has at least a basic music background, but not entirely necessary.

So, while I was skeptical about an online program to learn how to sing better, The Vocal Gym by Throga is a solid choice. I am working through it myself and seeing my vocal skills improve. Watch out! I might just release some indie worship songs!