The LoVetri Institute

Somatic Voicework™ The LoVetri Method

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Upcoming Activities in the Fall

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Jeanie is looking forward to her next teacher training weekend in October in the Baltimore/DC area. There will be an open session in early October in the Baltimore/DC area and a Teacher Training and Support Group weekend on October 5, 6, 7 and a day of private lessons on October 8. The open session will be on Friday evening, October 5, from 7:00 to 9:00. Those interested in attending should contact Jennifer Suess for further information.

Work continues on Jeanie’s upcoming book. Dr. Karen Hall, the Editor, is hard at work organizing the book that will be published by Compton Publishing in 2020. She is looking forward to seeing them again in January, 2019, when she returns to Australia to teach at her Institute in The University of Southern Queensland in Toowoomba. The launching of our online teaching platform has been a great success. There will be more online courses offered in September, if you’d like to receive an email about early registration for the next round  of online courses, click here.

We hope everyone is having a great summer and keeping cool!

Somatic Voicework™ Testimonials

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“I have worked with Jeanie LoVetri and Somatic Voicework™ for twenty years and have found her method to be incredibly efficient and scientifically sound. I have been able to consciously work on technique while continuing to develop my artistry and my personal style. I credit Jeannie with the freedom I feel when I sing.”

Luciana Souza, Grammy Award winning singer and songwriter.

“As a working jazz singer, I have been hired to sing with a tap dancing troupe one week and the next week sing soprano in a jazz opera. The LoVetri Method of Somatic Voicework™ has been an invaluable resource in the functional development of my instrument and has helped me steadily increase the power, clarity and nuance of my voice. No jargon, just nuts bolts information on how the voice works. Get there and thank me later! “

Kate McGarry
Grammy Nominee
Faculty, Manhattan School of Music
State Dept.Jazz Ambassador 2009 -2011
Downbeat Critics Poll Winner Rising Female Vocalist 2016

“I have studied with Jeanie LoVetri and taken Somatic Voicework™ courses and continuing education workshops for over ten years. As an artist, vocalist and educator, I can say without hesitation that her work has immeasurably changed my life, my singing, my teaching and my perspective on artistry. Jeanie and the work are incredible!”

Lisa Thorson
Jazz Vocalist, Composer, Arranger, Lyricist
Professor of Voice, Berklee College of Music, Boston MA
www.lisathorson.com

“Studying Somatic Voicework™ with Jeanie LoVetri has changed my life as a singer and a singing teacher. At my first SVW™ workshop, I felt as though a window had been thrown open, and suddenly I could see my way to finding the “something” I’d long felt was missing. The depth and breadth of Jeanie’s knowledge are unassailable, and she passes that knowledge along with the utmost humanity. I have just one regret, which is that I didn’t start working with her sooner.”

Andrea Wolper, New York
Jazz Vocalist, Songwriter, Teacher
www.andreawolper.com

“As someone with background in classical (Juilliard, BM, MM) as well as Level III The Lovetri Method, Somatic Voicework, and a 20 year career as a jazz singer, I can attest to the great benefits of understanding the function based technique that Jeanie teaches for Contemporary Commercial Music. This technique has given me the tools to sing and teach authentically in the jazz world, and I would highly recommend making the investment of time and energy in SV if you’re serious about a career in jazz or any other form of CCM.”

Rondi Charleston
Jazz Singer/Songwriter
www.rondicharleston.com

“Jeanie LoVetri’s Somatic Voicework™ has given me the tools to navigate between different styles and extended vocal techniques, and taught me how to teach with clarity and understanding of the human voice. Her approach is clear, concise, empathetic and invaluable for any jazz singer today. “

Theo Bleckmann
Grammy™ nominated singer, composer and arranger.
Professor of Jazz Voice at Manhattan School of Music.

“Jeanie LoVetri’s groundbreaking training methods put the singer’s actual voice and what she or he wants to achieve front and center. Her sincere belief that you can make any sound you want in a healthy way is guided by over four decades of research and experience teaching singers of all styles. Ms. LoVetri welcomed me into the world of voice pedagogy and showed me how to develop my voice to realize my dreams as a singer. It has literally taken me around the world and introduced me to so many wonderful people, and I am forever grateful.

 Blues, R&B, Jazz and Gospel singers beware, Dr. Trineice Robinson-Martin is joining Jeanie LoVetri this year at Baldwin Wallace University in Ohio to teach you how to make a soulful sound with optimal flexibility and freedom in your voice. Dr. Robinson-Martin wrote the book, “So You Want to Sing Gospel,” and received her doctorate from Columbia University’s Teachers College for her thesis on Gospel Voice Pedagogy. She brings a lifetime of experience singing all styles of African American music including Blues, Jazz, Gospel and R&B and has emerged from the Academy with a unique combination of skills to support the demands of singing African American styles including scoops, hollers, gravely sounds, shouting and whispering.

 Run, don’t walk, to the Lovetri Institute for Somatic Voicework™ to study with Jeanie LoVetri and Dr. Trineice Robinson-Martin and the other talented and generous faculty. You will be transformed.”

 

Eli Yamin
Composer, pianist, singer
Author of So You Want to Sing Blues
Co-founder of Jazz Power Initiative, a non-profit organization transforming lives through jazz arts education.

 

Spotlight on Leischen Moore

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You just wrapped up a successful run of My Fair Lady at Tacoma Musical Playhouse.It must have been very exciting to play the role of Eliza Doolittle, what were some of the vocal challenges taking on such an iconic role?

Eliza Dolittle has been on my list of dream roles as long as I can remember!  What soprano doesn’t want to sing those iconic songs and what actress doesn’t want to sink their teeth into such a meaty role! I have such vivid memories of watching Audrey Hepburn (and hearing Marni Nixon) as a young kid. These are songs that I have been singing my entire life! As an undergraduate music major, I even performed several scenes for my senior recital.
What I didn’t realize until I actually got my hands on the whole part was how difficult it is to blend a chesty, guttural dialect with such a soprano role! Eliza Dolittle has to navigate two different vocal worlds, the Cockney and the Received Pronunciation (RP) and then sing in them both! A cockney dialect can easily get very chesty if you aren’t careful and that isn’t a place where you can speak long and emotional scenes and then suddenly sing with a very head mix dominant sound. To be truthful, I was vocally exhausted after every rehearsal for the first several weeks.
Thank heavens for Jeanie, as with a single Skype lesson she was able to help me adjust my speech to be headier in the Cockney dialect so that it could easily lead into the singing. My voice was happy navigating through all those dialects and I was able to thrive through two show days and a case of acid reflux! Once again Jeanie saves the day!

[Read more…] about Spotlight on Leischen Moore

New Course by Brenda Earle Stokes: Piano Skills for Singers

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Brenda is beyond excited to announce her new online course “Piano Skills for Singers” is now live!
 This course is the culmination of years of teaching piano to singers, and I tried to put it together in the most concise and clear way possible.  This is the perfect course for anyone who has limited piano skills and wants to get moving on the piano and to develop the skill of accompanying yourself/your students using triads.
The course is available for 6 months of viewing for only $99.  You can watch the material as many times as you want within this 6 month period, plus there is a 40 page pdf that you can download which contains all of the exercises and a bunch of bonus material.
If you enter the coupon code “SVW” then you get the entire course for only $79!  This discount is available for anyone in our SVW community, plus any friends, students and colleagues that you think might benefit.  Please share around and make sure you let them know about the coupon code! Please click this link to register!  

Spotlight on Candice Donehoo-Pullom

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You are currently in The 5thAvenue Theatre’s production of The Hunchback of Notre Dame. This production has been very acclaimed and received lots of international attention, what can you tell us about the process? Can you shed light on the importance of diversity in the current musical theatre landscape?

This Show has been a truly amazing experience. ASL (American Sign Language) is an integral part of the show and it brings the story telling to new heights.
Our Quasimodo is a brilliant actor and hearing impaired. Where others might limit him, he exceeds beyond to new levels of communication. I feel truly blessed to be a part of this process not only for the storytelling but for the opportunity to learn more about ASL and the deaf community. This kind of inclusive incorporation of diversity in musical theatre is absolutely what we need to tell stories of all kinds to all people.

You are a Broadway veteran, you continue to perform regularly, and you teach at the Cornish College of the Arts (and privately); you walk the walk as a world-class vocalist and a teacher. Can you talk about the importance of voice teachers continuing to perform? And how does your constant immersion in the profession inform your teaching?

As I continue to perform and teach I cannot begin to express how important I feel it is to pursue both endeavors. I like to think of it as continuing to walk the walk. Relating experiences of current failure and success to my students is essential for trust and growth. I believe in being part of the fabric of art beyond the bubble I create.
I want to encourage my students to take risks but also have the compassion that comes from living through those same risks. Auditioning is the great equalizer. As an educator, I should be willing to take the same risks as my students.
[Read more…] about Spotlight on Candice Donehoo-Pullom

What is Somatic Voicework™ The LoVetri Method?

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Somatic Voicework™ The LoVetri Method is an organized method of vocal training for Contemporary Commercial Music (CCM) styles, (those styles that used to be called “non-classical) based upon somatic (physical) awareness and aural discernment. The training is presented in three Levels that must be done in sequence.

Level I is called “Basic Application” and includes the following: Introduction to functional principles of voice science and medicine. There will be a vocal health lecture Jan Potter Reed, Speech Language Pathologist, specializing in care of the professional voice. Its main objective is to instruct teachers how to keep the voice healthy for speech and singing. Level I addresses terminology, and its appropriate use, and the attitude, intention and appropriateness of the interaction tween student and teacher. Level I states that the teacher must have a clear intention for the vocal exercise when it is given. The teacher must know (a) either what is missing and needs to be added or (b) what is wrong and needs to be corrected, such that the student’s singing will somehow improve. It rests on vocal function, vocal health and on traditional pedagogy, but it is also meant to help singers be marketable. This level gives parameters for age-related groups of singers, and addresses lesson protocol and progress. There will be a presentation by Suzan Postel, dancer, singer, and Pilates Instructor, on body awareness, presenting exercises for greater connection to the physical aspects of singing. [Read more…] about What is Somatic Voicework™ The LoVetri Method?

What Is Underneath and Behind Somatic Voicework(tm) The LoVetri Method?

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Somatic Voicework™ seeks to bring the voice, the person, the emotions and the mind together. It seeks to illuminate the path of vocal artistry by conveying objective information about vocal production based on what is currently known and understood in medicine and science. It supports inter-disciplinary exchange. It is an open system. All premises are subject to improvement and personal adaptation. It honors and respects the styles of music called Contemporary Commercial and believes that all styles of music have value and worth.

Somatic Voicework™ rests on respect for the body and allows it to take its time adapting to various stimuli while new responses emerge. It works with compassion, allowing artists to face difficulties, overcome issues and recover abilities even in the face of a diagnosis of pathology or damage. It treats every singer, young or old, famous or unknown, talented or talent-not-yet-tapped, the same. It allows teachers to say, with perfect integrity, “I don’t know. Let me ask.” It recognizes posture and breathing, physical coordination and kinesthetic conditioning, aural acuity and visual feedback and asks only that singers address all aspects of singing function through reasonable, repetitive and consistent training.

Somatic Voicework™ teaches “whole people” not larynges or throats or vocal folds, not time slots (the Tuesday noon tenor, “what’s his name” or the “A# soprano with the wobbly middle voice, Something-or-other Smith”). It incorporates physical, emotional and personal stressors as being factors in living an artistic life and does not diminish singers for having to address these things while training and/or performing. It recognizes that we are not mental health professionals but we are all human beings and that life can sometimes be messy but it is always worthwhile. It teaches careful use of language and its impact on students and taking full responsibility for the learning process as the flawed but passionate people we all are.

Somatic Voicework™ is for those who want to dig deep. It is for those who are not looking for the “10 quickest tips so you can be on American Idol” or the “12 best ways to get really great high notes by next week”. It is not concerned with helping people get tenure, being smarter than people who want to squeeze the throat, position the larynx, vibrate the vocal folds on purpose or with proving that all voices should sing the same way in every circumstance.

Somatic Voicework™ is simple and complicated. It is easy to understand but takes a long time to master. It is available to anyone who wants to investigate it but can only be completely assimilated by those who use the concepts on their own voices over time in many ways. It is up to each individual how much or little the concepts in Somatic Voicework™ matter in their own lives but, as teachers, in order to be both ethical and appropriate, it is imperative that teachers know about all voices, and all musical styles, not just their own or the ones they sing.

Somatic Voicework™ is a method of vocal pedagogy that grew out of the life of Jeannette Louise LoVetri, known as Jeanie to her friends and colleagues. It is the result of decades of singing, training for singing, study, investigation, experimentation and thousand upon thousands of hours spent in voice lessons for almost 47 years. She shares the work with an open heart hoping that it will be valuable to others and perhaps help them avoid difficulty, struggle, sadness, frustration and self-doubt, all of which she had to endure to learn what is in the course. It is not presented as “the way” or “the best way” just one way. She invites you to make it your way, if that would be of use to you.

Maria Damore demonstrates a variety of vocal styles

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Vocalist Maria Damore demonstrates her ability to sing in a variety of vocal styles in this compilation of Kurt Weill songs from her 2016 concert in Reading, PA. She is accompanied by Lars Potteiger. Song clips include Pirate Jenny, My Ship, Speak Low, Youkali, Lost in the Stars, and, Mack the Knife. Maria has studied Somatic Voicework: The LoVetri Method TM, Levels I, II, and III, and teaches voice using these principles in her home studio.

Maria Damore, Vocalist, Actor, Voice Teacher
www.mariadamore.com

Maria Damore Voice Studio: www.mariadamore.com/voice_studio
You Tube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpcXGRfXTfdzRljuK7gmAoQ
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Maria-Damore-37902242591/

CD “Moonglow” available at:
http://www.mariadamore.com/moonglow_cd

A Vocal Wish List

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By Jennifer Spencer

I have many students from many different backgrounds that enter my classroom, studio, and rehearsal hall on a daily basis, and every time they do, I am reminded of what an incredible gift I have been given, and how I must be vigilant not to abuse this gift or diminish what they bring in each and every day. Each and every voice I come into contact with needs to be valued for the person that inhabits it, regardless of their sex, sexual orientation, race, marital or family status, gender identity or expression, sex characteristics, creed, age, colour, disability, political or religious belief. (The italicized text, which I freely admit to plagiarizing, comes from the welcome that is outside Canada House at the Olympics.)
My job is to make sure that each and every student leaves with a flexible instrument, body, and voice, able to make responsive vocal/physical choices that will allow them to operate in the world in a healthful way for the duration of their lives, after all, they are going to be persons operating in the world for a lot longer than they are being artists on the stage, in movies, or on TV.   Their voices and bodies need to work well and freely, not just on the stage, but also in their lives.

I want the students I work with to stand tall, balanced, and easy when they leave my classes and go into their lives. I want them to be able to use their voices in a healthy way from a physiologically truthful place, that allows them to go easily from speaking to singing with all other stops in between, and have voices/bodies that respond freely to a variety of life and artistic situations.

I want to provide them with experiences where they realize that they do not have to clench every muscle in their bodies to produce a spoken or sung sound or simply to inhale and exhale. I want to provide them with experiences where they realize their tongues do not have to be balls of cement sucked up to the roofs of their mouths, rendering them incapable of articulating their wants, wishes, and desires. I want to give them the experience of not having to clench their jaws as they move through their lives, and squeeze their voices and thoughts out as if those thoughts and ideas were the last scraps of dried toothpaste in a tube that one must use or else. [Read more…] about A Vocal Wish List