You know how some people have a Word of the Year that they like to use?
I’ve never done that before, but if I was going to start now I think I’d like to choose the word “stretch.”
I want to make this year the year that I challenge myself to live up to my potential. As a mom of young kids, I’ve spent the past 7 years buried under diapers and laundry and dishes. My kids are growing and getting a little bit more independent. I have a little bit more freedom now to focus on things I’ve wanted to do for a while.
One of the things I always wanted to do was learn how to sing. I don’t consider myself a very good singer. Like, at all. I’m also an introvert. I don’t love the idea of being “on” in front of other people.
But my husband is a musician and I partner with a full-time musician to help her write lyrics for her songs. It’s something I always wished I could do. I figured it would be a good idea to at least try to learn.
So a few months ago I started taking private singing lessons. The cool part for me was that I could do them over the computer in my own house after my kids went to bed. The cooler part was that I learned that I had a blog reader who was a voice teacher and she offered me some lessons.
Yes, I’ve been working with Rachel Morehouse taking virtual singing lessons.
Mostly just so that I can not sound like a dying cat while I’m doing this:
(Yeah, right. I wish I looked that cute and coordinated doing the dishes. In real life I can’t do the dishes without losing my kid.)
We do our lessons once a week in the evenings over a WebEx meeting.
I’m learning a lot more than I bargained for. Like music theory and chords and breathing exercises. Rachel is super knowledgeable and patient and kind. And this week she made me do a little bit of Pilates on camera for her so that I could engage my stomach muscles a little better. 😉
One of the reasons I never took lessons before is that I assumed they were going to be very expensive. Rachel’s lesson fees begin at $16 per half-hour lesson, plus the cost of music/materials. The only items needed to begin virtual voice lessons are a quiet space, a computer with a webcam and microphone, and a free download of the WebEx program Rachel uses for her video meetings. It doesn’t get much simpler than that!
Here’s a little bit more about Rachel from her professional biography:
Rachel Morehouse is the founder of and teacher at Rachel Marie Studio. Rachel grew up with music in her genes, being one of three children born into a family of traveling gospel singers. She began her early music education singing in church and around the piano at family reunions (“no joke, singing Christmas carols around the piano is an annual tradition…we were so Brady Bunch!”). As young as elementary school, Rachel’s love for teaching sprouted as she began teaching her friends how to have the confidence to sing in front of others in school talent shows. When she left for college, she decided to make music her career. Rachel earned a B.A. in Vocal Performance and Worship Music at Olivet Nazarene University in 2005. She studied voice under the tutelage of Dr. Neal Woodruff, who showed her how much more she was capable of, and introduced her to a love of Classical music. When she began RMS shortly after graduation, Rachel knew she wanted to teach others what she had learned (and continues to learn), but not in a classroom setting. She wanted to have personal relationships with her students where she could encourage them and help them grow their talent exponentially. In recent years, Rachel slowed down her performance appointments because she has two little ones running around, but you can find her at her newest engagement, singing to the toddlers at Lakeside Christian Church on Sunday mornings (“And boy, are they a fun audience!”). After 10 years and 3 states, Rachel is even more passionate about her call to help others achieve their musical dreams – from toddlers to seniors and everyone in between!
If you are interested in working with Rachel, you can visit her website or check out her Facebook page.
Because I received free lessons, this is considered a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Rachel Marie Studio. All opinions are my own.
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