Welcome to The Vocal Precisionist

Hi! I’m Sarah, a singer and voice teacher. I’m forever curious about vocal technique and view singing as both a microcosm of life, and a reflection of our whole self. My hope is to make vocal technique more accessible, in part by making these connections.

Here is what I know: As singers, we are entitled to both beauty and ease. The proverbial grind, however seductive, never results in our most exquisite vocalizing, or satisfying expressions of self. Our work as artists can be deep without being depleting. I promise.

I’ve observed in my students and colleagues that the common foil to obtaining ease is perfectionism. As someone who used to wear the label “Perfectionist” as a badge of honor, I invite you to join me in calling bullshit (even just a little bit) on this masochism. We can choose mindfulness over freneticism, intention over ambiguity, authenticity over comparison—what I would encapsulate as choosing precision over perfection. In this way, a “Vocal Precisionist” is an aspirational alter-ego for any recovering perfectionist.

Precision is also the mental clarity and balance that begets the same in our vocal technique. The phenomenon of a small observation or adjustment having a huge impact. The miracle of our darling walnut-sized vocal instrument and the intricate mind-body system that supports it—for the specific purpose of beauty and expression.

A Precisionist not only rejects perfectionism but communicates clearly and with economy. Vocal technique is complex. The ability to speak about it in a proportioned and precise way spares it from becoming complicated (or exclusive). When writing about aspects of vocal technique here, I will not attempt to cover the full breadth of voice science and pedagogy (no matter how much they beguile me behind the scenes). Instead, I will strive to mirror how I would distill and lightly unpack the essential information for my students.

Singing is a fluid skill. It is innate to our humanity and has infinite potential. The satisfaction you experience with your singing is directly proportionate to how curious you are about it, and how this curiosity drives the integrity of your work. The Vocal Precisionist blog is for any curious singer or voice teacher. Will you join me?