News Items
Vocal Alchemy Studios is proud to have 4 outstanding performers in King Kong Live on Stage
Congratulations & Chookas to:
- Travis Khan
- Samantha Dodemaide
- Josh Feldschuh
- Sophie Carter
All the very best for your season!
Jess Wins Big!
Glenn Hill
Winner 2013 Rob Guest Endowment Award
It is with great pleasure that Vocal Alchemy announces Glenn Hill as the winner of the 2013 Rob Guest Endowment.
Glenn won $10,000 to further his study overseas.
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THE BROADWAY VOICE 2013 with Tim Smith
Attention SINGERS, DANCERS, ACTORS and TEACHERS…2-day/14-hour singing workshop with
Industry Professional and International Vocal Coach TIM SMITH.
Be sure to act quickly to secure your place at THE BROADWAY VOICE workshop. These intensive vocal workshops are a massive injection of self-growth as an artist and singer, no matter what style you sing.
This is your opportunity to begin 2013 with a flying start with unlimited technical and artistic potential…and with a 100% money-back GUARANTEE it’s 2 days you can’t afford to miss!
| Sydney Tues 8 & Wed 9 Jan | places available |
| Melbourne Mon 21 & Tues 22 Jan | SOLD OUT |
| Melbourne Thurs 24 & Fri 25 Jan | places available |
The Broadway Voice 2013 - Singing Workshop includes:
- practical and interactive 2-day workshop -14 hours total - perfect for singers, actors, dancers and teachers
- separate sessions on legit, contemporary and mix voice
- demonstrations, explanations, group and individual exercises covering belt, contemporary, legit and mix voice
- actor/singer-based approach to performance – learn how to use which techniques when
- learn and incorporate BROADWAY advanced techniques including cry, twang and anchoring
- specialised sessions that bring all techniques covered into one practical and simple technical approach
- EVERY participant receives individual instruction throughout the workshop and during the 4-hour masterclass sessions
2 different ways to experience THE BROADWAY VOICE:
PERFORMER - for those wanting to participate in the full, hands-on workshop experience.
OBSERVER – for those wanting to watch others go through the workshop experience.
Testimonials:
2012 Workshop footage:
BOOK NOW click here:
MORE DETAILS BELOW:
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SYDNEY:
Date: Tue 8 & Wed 9 January |
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MELBOURNE:
Date: Mon 21 & Tue 22 January SOLD OUT |
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MELBOURNE:
Date: Thurs 24 & Fri 25 January |
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"I belted a top F!"
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WORKSHOP OUTLINE:DAY 1
10.00am-1.00pm The Framework of the Voice - technical and artisitic
Primal State, Variable Breathing for Legit and Contemporary Voice, Open Breath/Open Sound, Ego vs Vulnerability, Perceptible Effort in Singing, Singing Direction – To The Audience or Away From The Audience, Laryngeal Elevation and Depression, Vocal Fold Onset – 3 types, Fundamental Components of Vocal Sound, False Vocal Fold Retraction, Voice Registers and The ‘Break’, Variable Posture in Singing, Basic Vocal Acoustics
1.00pm-2.00pm Lunch
2.00pm-4.00pm The Legit Voice – The Mechanics and the Art
Primal State – SOB, PLEAD, BEG and SIGH, Legit Vocal Posture, Classical Breathing and Support – appoggio, Legit Vocal Registers, Passagio and ‘The Break’, Low Larynx Position and Technique, The Vertical Italian Vowel, Free Resonance, Thyroid Tilt and Arytenoid Adjustment, Vocal Fold Function, Singer’s Formant – The ‘Ring’ (Squillo)
4.30pm-6.30pm You Sing Solo Masterclass
Solo Masterclass with Tim on vocal technique, song interpretation and technique application, audition preparation, your time to have any vocal problem diagnosed and fixed.
DAY 2
10.00am-1.00pm The Contemporary Voice – The Mechanics and the Art
Primal State – ATTACK, ANGER, UPSET and CRY, Twang, Glottal Onset, Compressed Vowels, Pressure vs Flow, Exhale Technique, Chest Breathing, Anchoring - body, neck and face, Elevated Laryngeal States Including SUPER elevation, Combining Twang and Glottal Sound, Auxilliary Vocal States, Contemporary Vocal Resonance
1.00pm-2.00pm Lunch
2.00pm-4.00pm The Mix Voice/The Blend Voice – The Mechanics and the Art
Primal State – the actor/the self, Mixed Vowels – vertical and horizontal, Variable Vocal Support and Breathing – balancing the legit and the contemporary, Emotional Laryngeal Adjustment, Mixed Vocal Onset – the continuum, Thyroid Tilt vs Horizontal, Twang/Squillo in the Mix,
4.30pm-6.30pm You Sing Solo Masterclass
Solo Masterclass with Tim on vocal technique, song interpretation and technique application, audition preparation, your time to have any vocal problem diagnosed and fixed.
STRICTLY LIMITED to 15 PERFORMER and 20 OBSERVER places at each workshop.
COST:
Performer Participant $350 inc GST
Observer Participant $200 inc GST
(Vocal Alchemy FULL Subscribers and Groups [5 or more] only $300)
This is your opportunity to work LIVE over a whole 2 days with Tim Smith – MD of the recent MAMMA MIA! Australian tour, Assistant MD on Billy Elliot, Vocal Coach on The Lion King in Australia and China, Founding Head of Music Theatre VCA, Vocal Lecturer at BAPA, MD of Caroline O’Connor’s Bombshells with MTC, Member of ANATS etc.
…understand and learn how to sing with MIX VOICE, a Broadway necessity for shows like THE ADDAMS FAMILY and GHOST THE MUSICAL
One class with Tim Smith is worth ten classes with anybody else.
Amanda Muggleton - ACTOR/SINGER
…unlock and master the secrets of the BROADWAY BELT used extensively in musicals such as WICKED and HAIRSPRAY
Tim's knowledge on vocal technique is astounding. And his ability to convey the information just as strong.
Michael Cormick - SINGER/ACTOR
…learn the techniques to move easily from LEGIT voice to BELT in one song as featured in shows like LES MISERABLES and DR.ZHIVAGO
To all my singing-acting-dancing friends… Check out Vocal Alchemy. I did a workshop with them today in Sydney. His techniques are amazing. I took lessons with him when I was 21 and it changed my voice forever. Amazing Stuff!!!
Natalie Brown – SINGER/ACTOR/DANCER
…learn and practice advanced LEGIT techniques, necessary for musicals like MARY POPPINS and LOVE NEVER DIES
I would have to say Tim Smith is the best teacher I have had the good fortune to work with in forty years of professional performing life.
Helen Noonan-ACTOR/SINGER/WRITER
…explore and practice advanced CONTEMPORARY techniques, necessary for musicals like ROCK OF AGES and LEGALLY BLONDE
OH WOW! I have just come back from a vocal workshop run by an amazing guy called Tim Smith from Vocal Alchemy…. Oh My God …. It was brilliant – very funny guy too!” Take a look at “Vocal Alchemy”… things the singing teachers either don’t know or don’t teach.
Barbara Singleton – ACTOR/SINGER
STRICTLY LIMITED to 15 PERFORMER and 20 OBSERVER places at each workshop.
COST:
Performer Participant $350 inc GST
Observer Participant $200 inc GST
(Vocal Alchemy FULL Subscribers and Groups [5 or more] only $300)
Register now to avoid disappointment!
Click here to book now: sing@vocalalchemy.com.au
100% Money-back GUARANTEE!
If at the conclusion of the 2-day workshop you’re not totally satisfied, you’ll get your money back, no questions asked!
For more info: sing@vocalalchemy.com.au
March 2012
OMIGOD you guys! Huge congratulations to Lucy Durack who has been cast as Elle Woods – the lead in the forthcoming Australian production of LEGALLY BLONDE. This is wonderfully exciting news for us all here at Vocal Alchemy because Lucy is a client of ours. That’s right, Lucy Durack is one of Tim’s students here at Vocal Alchemy!
In preparation for her Australian and overseas auditions, Lucy has been flying down from Sydney regularly to spend time in the Vocal Alchemy studios with Tim. On numerous occasions Lucy and Tim worked with the show’s Musical Director Kellie Dickerson, preparing for more auditions and evolving her technical approach. And just recently, Tim and Lucy spent another session with the International Music Supervisor for LEGALLY BLONDE, Richard John who came all the way from England! (Actually he was visiting family in Perth but then flew to Melbourne to work with Lucy and Tim.)
You may know that Lucy gained national attention for her portrayal of Glinda in the Australian blockbuster production of WICKED. What is required for the role in LEGALLY BLONDE however is an entirely different vocal sound and setup. To help prepare her for this change, the Australian and English producers contacted Vocal Alchemy to help prepare Lucy for the demands of the role.
And so it began. Lucy has worked incredibly hard between sessions adjusting her singing technique and was ultimately rewarded with winning the role after travelling to London for her final audition at the end of 2011.
Watch Lucy at the Australian launch of LEGALLY BLONDE.
Once again, huge congratulations to Lucy Durack, a Vocal Alchemy client on winning the coveted lead role in LEGALLY BLONDE.
July 4, 2011
Vocal Alchemy has just returned from the inaugural European workshop/promotional tour, giving workshops in Ireland, Scotland, England and France! We also ran separate SING WITH TIM sessions for new subscribers and followed these up with private voice sessions in each city we visited. The Vocal Alchemy Team worked very hard during the whole tour and we’re already making plans to return to the UK/Europe in six months to support new subscribers and to offer more free workshops promoting the website.
Our friends in Wexford – outside of Dublin - organised and hosted our 3-day visit to Ireland. And what a delightful bunch of people were the Irish! We sang, laughed, sobbed, laughed, cried, sobbed and belted our way through workshops, small group sessions and private lessons as we gave them all the Vocal Alchemy treatment! We learnt some “Irish” whilst there, but it’s too rude to put here on the website!
Edinburgh was next and after a 5.00am start to the day we flew our way across the Irish sea in preparation for that evening’s workshop. We had teachers and Masters graduates from the The Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (RSAMD) amongst the workshop participants and once the Scots got over the fact that Australians are really just “a bunch of convicts” - a good time was had by all! Whilst there we had singers who had been learning privately for 10 years sing higher than they ever had before – a huge achievement during the workshop.
In London we worked at PINEAPPLE STUDIOS in Covent Garden which was Dominique’s favourite workshop location – huge thanks to Giles and his team there. We gave 2 workshops at PINEAPPLE and followed the both of these with SING FOR TIM small group sessions, the second one of these at the THE LONDON ACTORS’ CENTRE. (Which had wonderful air-conditioning on the hottest day London had experienced for the whole year! 3 weeks earlier Laura had to but a cashmere cardigan because we were all freezing in Edinburgh!) The Londoners were huge fun and it was also heartening to see a number of familiar Aussie faces in the crowd too.
The Parisians warmed to the VA Team almost immediately and I can honestly say that the workshop here was a fascinating experience for all of us. We had the services of a wonderful translator who helped smooth every step of the way for Franco-Australian relations. Private sessions followed this workshop too and I now know the French words for sob, sigh, plead and beg! (sangloter, soupirer, implorer, prier)
Huge interest for Vocal Alchemy was shown everywhere we travelled and we hope to be returning to UK/Europe every 6 months to support our subscribers and to further promote the workshop.
Tim
sing@vocalalchemy.com.au
April 23, 2011
When I was Coordinator of Music Theatre at the VCA, the last class of the week was on Friday nights at 10.00pm!!!! I couldn’t ask anyone else to be teraching at this time so I took the last class of the week. Knowing the students were always at the end of their patience by then, I was careful about what activities I scheduled for that class. Over time it became fondly known as TIM’S RAVE and from time to time I’ll be sharing some of those ideas with you here at VA.
One of the topics I used to on was ‘What is good singing?’ (A limitless topic I know and one with possibly no clear answer, but I asked the question anyway and got the students throwing around ideas for the hour. By the end they always wanted to know what MY answer was, but I never told them…well almost!
If I ask you the same question I wonder what the answer would be? (As you can tell by my setup for this blog, I don’t think there really is an answer….but having adjudicated a number of singing competitions around the country, I can certainly tell you what good singing is NOT!!!!!!
But I don’t want to look at negatives here, I want to plant a few seeds of positive. When YOU listen to singing, what is it that you respond to? Is it best if it’s loud? High? Fast? Slow? Soulful? Energetic? Passionate? And so the list goes on….
I could rave about this topic for hours but the real value I think is in merely asking the question and getting you to begin thinking about the answer. With my students at the VCA we would explore all of these possibilities and more but where I was really heading was a simple definition that included almost every vocal style and technique. In other words, I wanted to avoid the answer being based on classical singing OR contemporary singing. That’s’ a difficult thing at first because those two opposing approaches have completely different voice agendas. In classical singing, any effort on the part of the singer should be hidden and the fundamental tonal aim is to sing from low to high, on every different vowel sound with a perfectly even tone. If you apply THESE criteria to contemporary singing then you’ll just be plain wrong. My contemporary criteria would focus instead on the audible perception of vocal effort and most likely have a change in tone as the voice ascended, becoming more ‘energetic’ as the pitch got higher.
So where does that leave us now? In a rather bemusing place I think if you’ve been following my argument so far. My answer-and I admit it’s not complete-is one based on ‘resonance versus effort’. What does that mean? Well, it means that in any vocal style, if the effort you’re making for the note is MORE audible than the resonant result, then I think you’re doing it all wrong! Even in contemporary belting there are specific techniques that ensure the effort matches the resonant result. If that’s out of balance though, we move into areas where the average audience member will begin to describe the singing as ‘yelling’ and then we’re definitely in trouble.
So as you sing in whatever is your natural style, check out your effort versus the resonant result of what you’re doing and you might find that your ‘good singing’ needs some work. Find answers and techniques that cover this at vocalalchemy.com.au
Tim
sing@vocalalchemy.com.au
April 7, 2011
Vocal Alchemy just gave its first group workshop to 15 full-time Music Theatre students at Patrick Studios Australia (PSA).
And what fun we had! All the participants received their free gifts - I won’t you what they are so your surprise isn’t spoiled when you come to one of our free workshops – and then we got down to 2 hours of serious work.
We kicked off with a short introduction from Vocal Alchemy’s ARTISITIC PRODUCER Laura Hamilton. Laura is a thirty-five year veteran of the Australian and International stage and has been involved in some of the biggest musicals ever produced in Australia. On top of that, she has held various positions as Choreographer, Resident Director, Company Manager and also worked the back office of big touring shows in positions alongside general mangers and executive producers so she really knows her stuff.
After Laura set the scene, I began with the participants. We learnt two short Vocal Alchemy songs as ‘source’ material and went from there. We explored all manner of things as a group from specific techniques involved with contemporary singing, to talking about ‘belting’ as a vocal approach to the classical overlay ‘sob’.
All of this was explored through the world of the actor/the artist which is of course central to the whole Vocal alchemy approach. We spent time on vocal exercises that got us all thinking about ‘state. This was further examined through an exploration of the question “How do you FEEL when you sing?” Of course this is a HUGE question and we only touched the tip of the iceberg here but nonetheless the participants all felt empowered by some new-found vocal techniques and certainly had their performing and singing worlds turned upside-down by some of the world-class ideas that are at the heart of the Vocal Alchemy video series.
It was a great FIRST WORKSHOP and I’m very much looking forward to further workshops around Australia in the next few weeks before we head off to Europe for the inaugural international tour of Vocal Alchemy World – the workshop tour that we are doing to raise awareness of the website and all the goodies just a click away for singers of every style and genre.
Vocal Alchemy - "Feel the difference"
April 2, 2011
Have you ever wondered about those voices that just rock your world? WHY they do? HOW they do? It doesn’t matter if they’re contemporary or not, if they rock your world, let’s just talk about that!
Voices that rock me are really of course people who rock me through their voices. I mean, when you speak it’s you right? When you sing it’s you too! Now learning how to sing better, that’s a whole other conversation altogether and one that is unique to you in all the world. It’s this uniqueness that at VOCAL ALCHEMY I help you explore in all the video lessons. Those of you who are subscribers will know what I mean from watching only the first lesson entitled “I love you”. In it we begin to explore the infinite ways those three words can be sung and what that means for everything you ever sing. If you can only do it one a couple of ways, then VOCAL ALCHEMY will be a perfect product for you and your singing will begin to be transformed after only the first lesson! Talk about immediate gratification!
Of course voices that rock do so for almost limitless reasons but there are lots of fundamental and related “singing/voice” things that are key components or recipe ingredients if you like that need to be in sync for the voice to rock! (More on cake recipes later!)
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We have HUGE plans for the expansion of VOCAL ALCHEMY. One of our primary aims is to offer live seminars over a number of days to VA subscribers and their friends. Imagine having 50 people in a room all of whom have watched the videos and done their practice. What we could then do! So the plan would be to do all the VOCAL ALCHEMY exercises again live and together and for me then to have the opportunity to hear each attendees sing solo if they wanted so I could further diagnose problems and fix them there on the spot. Everybody would win!
So please drop me an email at VOCAL ALCHEMY if you have question or requests about anything singing/vocal/performance related and I’ll do my very best to help you on your quest for the voice of your dreams!
March 11, 2011
I’m so excited for this first VOCAL ALCHEMY blog! My many students over the years have all been pestering me to write a book for many years but I was always reluctant. My ideas about singing evolve every time I hear someone sing. There’s always something for me to learn so I was afraid that once I’d written the first chapter, it’d be out of date! Now that I’ve got VOCAL ALCHEMY, I don’t need to worry about that at all. I can update all the time with blogs and new videos whenever I feel the need to share my latest discovery! YEAH!
And after all, that’s what my singing life has been since I was very young. A life of discovery, change and constant evolution. What I think about singing today is not what I thought 5 years ago and it won’t be what I’m thinking five years from now. It changes every day for me. An endless topic of fascination which is so cool because we don’t know everything about singing and we never will because of the human mystery part of the equation. Very cool-endless questions with no complete answers!
VOCAL ALCHEMY is the result of over 20 years of professional teaching, lecturing, singing and working. All the ideas I teach in the 32 lessons have been tried and tested in the real world over a very long time. My hope is that as you work your way through the lessons-AND DON”T BE IN A HURRY-you’ll feel and hear the improvement from the first lesson. If you don’t, do the lesson again and listen closer. Singing is a natural and complete part of our human selves and cannot be superficially improved with any lasting effect. Sing, listen, refine.
I want your relationship with VOCAL ALCHEMY to be interactive. Please email me with questions or requests for additional video lessons or information you need and I will do my best to respond. In addition-on the 3 and 12 month subscriptions- to that YOU CAN SEND ME AN MP3 OF YOU SINGING with a request for individual help (Sing For Tim). What I’ll then do is diagnose what you’re doing and help with pointers about which VOCAL ALCHEMY lesson can help make you better much faster. I’ll also give you additional pointers where necessary. And then if it’s really cool, I’ll put it on the website - you'll be completely anonymous of course - so other subscribers can then hear as people’s voices change before their very ears!
We have HUGE plans for the expansion of VOCAL ALCHEMY. One of our primary aims is to offer live seminars over a number of days to VA subscribers and their friends. Imagine having 50 people in a room all of whom have watched the videos and done their practice! What we could then do! So the plan would be to do all the VOCAL ALCHEMY exercises again live and together and for me then to have the opportunity to hear each attendee sing solo if they wanted so I could further diagnose problems and fix them there on the spot. Everybody would win!
So please drop me an email at VOCAL ALCHEMY if you have question or requests about anything singing/vocal/performance related and I’ll do my very best to help you on your quest for the voice of your dreams!
Tim x
