Information About Jack - Bristol teacher -

(15 reviews)

Personal Description:

I am a full time musician. As well as teaching, I conduct choirs, play violin and sing in a function band and play drums, sing and write songs for my originals band - Masca. We are signed to Marshall Live and currently release music with London label Du Monde. I have a really broad experience of music which informs my teaching. I was a chorister as a boy, have sung in various musical theatre productions and small operas. I am classically trained and graduated with first class honours in Music from Bristol University in 2013.

After University I worked in China for several months, conducting a children's choir and teaching singing. When I came back I joined a signed band, played several UK headline tours and many other festivals including Glastonbury. I've recorded with lots of different producers including Stew Jackson (Massive Attack). I've sung in several small operas including one reviewed with 5 stars at the Edinburgh Fringe.

I have ten years experience teaching and coaching. I specialise in helping my students apply 'proper singing technique' to their own style of singing. I will help you find your voice and make sure it sounds as good, healthy and musical as it possibly can, rather than simply telling you what to do.

I qualified as a coach with The Coaching Academy in 2018 and specialise in the psychology of performance. I work with all my students to reduce nerves and bring out the joy of playing music. If you've ever felt like you've prepared well for a performance but then let yourself down on stage because of nerves or a negative mindset, then I'm the right teacher for you.

Tutoring Experience:

I currently teach singing at Bristol Grammar School and have taught singing privately for ten years. I conduct a choir in Bristol and in Bath and have worked in the past as a Community Singing Facilitator with Find Your Voice and various other charities.

When teaching in school, my students go from ages 5 to 18. My private students tend to be adults but the ages vary from teenagers to students in their seventies. I am totally comfortable working with students of any age or ability.

I do not expect my students to take grade exams, but I have plenty of experience submitting students for ABRSM, Rockschool and LCM graded exams. I also teach theory for ABRSM theory exams if you need support with this.

Tutoring Approach:

My lessons vary hugely from student to student, depending on what each student wants to work on. This can be anything from preparing for auditions for choirs, working on specific technical issues like resonance or breath control, songwriting and working on music production, teaching music theory, or just singing for fun and to build confidence. In our first lesson I will try to work out what you would like to get out of lessons and we will check in on these goals as we continue.

I like to work technically on the voice - I feel like improving a student's control over their voice and eliminating unhelpful habits and tensions is the best way to improve the musicality of a performance, rather than simply suggesting different stylistic ideas.

During my training as a classical singer I became frustrated with being told there was a 'right' way to sing. I strongly believe that the role of a singing teacher should be to help a student to explore their voice, to guide them away from techniques which might be damaging and to support them in developing their own style and artistic 'voice'. Ultimately my students end up with a robust 'toolkit' of techniques an understanding of their effects and the ability to apply them as they wish, rather than being confined to a single genre like 'rock' or 'opera'.

I keep my lessons fun and informal but I challenge my students because I believe that the best way to enjoy learning or developing a new skill is to see tangible and rapid improvement. If this sounds like what you're looking for then get in touch.