Totally life changing!
TLDR: I'm 40 and have essentially been a quiet wallflower. Taking singing lessons has increased my comfort and confidence in so many areas of my life. Presentations and public speaking is better, standing in the spotlight is easier, and receiving attention is not panic inducing. Not to mention the fact that I can reliably hit notes and carry a tune!
Long story version:
I inherited a piano last year, and started looking for a piano/singing teacher in order to try to utilize it... after a lot of incomplete attempts to get started, I ran across Sing Like the Pro's and found the website with an intro class.
In my first lesson, I was unexpectedly terrified; I was sweaty and shaky, and nervous. Alexys was so kind and understanding; he shared with me how singing was an experience in being vulnerable, and I burst into tears. It was shocking to me how much learning to sing would teach me to learn to make noise, and how little comfort I had with "being loud".
Alexys is gentle and intuitive about the things that get in my way, the unexpected issues, like the fact that just making a loud sound that doesn't match my idea of "pleasant" was a barrier for me. I discovered just how afraid I've been of drawing attention to myself, of how intense my fears of public embarrassment, etc. really are. And somehow, the lessons, the practice is making a change I didn't even know I needed.
I started in August of 2018, and since I have improved amazingly in my singing. I went from not really knowing how to sing at all (not singing along with the radio, not doing karaoke, really anything) to being able to actually sing a whole song in tune and sounding like I know what I'm doing. The process was almost exactly like learning to play an instrument, learning the forms, the scales, how to make sounds, and practice to build the muscles, the breathing, etc. I always believed that singing was a talent, and that maybe I would get to be passable. My original goal was to be able to sing along with music or with a group and not be frozen with humiliation. I have so much grander goals now!
The really amazing part? I'm becoming a new braver person. I quit my job where I felt mistreated and undervalued. At my new job, I'm considered to be direct, edging toward blunt. I have always been the nice one who picks up the extra work, stays late and is a doormat. read more