If you want to become a vocal coach, you need to have passion for teaching and have an honesty and open communication style. Some students will benefit from a different teaching style than others, so you should be willing to experiment with your teaching style.
Independent, celebrity, and commercial vocal coaches generally prefer recording studios, while children benefit from teaching voice lessons in schools. Regardless of your choice of location, it is important to invest in your education and the things you’ll need to be successful.
Training the Singer
An effective vocal coach will teach you to balance your voice. Many singers overdevelop their chest, head, and mix voices. Helping your client find and optimize these parts of their voice can be a process, and no two voices are the same. So make sure you have the knowledge base of how to do that.
When teaching, you should keep in mind that your students are unique individuals, so a lesson plan should reflect this. Try to find out what each student wants to accomplish in the lessons, and make sure that everything you do to teach them moves them in that direction. Also, make sure to be positive and productive with your guidance, as harsh criticism only shuts down a singer and likely will lead to them leaving.
Skills You’ll Learn
As a voice teacher, you’ll need to learn the techniques to help vocalists achieve their goals. These skills can be learned over time with dedication and study. As a vocal coach, you’ll learn how to teach your students the proper use of diction and grammar, vocal technique, and stylistic singing. The skills that you’ll learn as a voice teacher will benefit you as a vocal teacher and singer.
Vocal teachers must be comfortable with working with singers of varying personalities and skill levels. Good coaches will demonstrate patience and analytical skills while motivating even the most frustrated student. They will work with their clients to assess their goals and structure individual lessons for each singer. This includes preparing their clients for auditions, competitions, and shows.
Costs
As with any industry, there are cheaper and more expensive options. The prices you charge should be directly related to the value you give. A good starting rate is $50-$60/hr in most areas, and great coaches can make much more than that. Just know that if you work for a studio, they usually take around half of that to cover the costs of marketing, administration, and virtual or physical real estate.