Vocal Instruction
Private Lessons:
Private lessons are an opportunity to develop the singing self. Students benefit from a well-rounded course of study which includes warm-ups and vocalises as well as repertoire study and performance skills. Lessons are tailored to each student. Private study can be long-term or short-term depending on the student's goals. The private voice student could be the aspiring high school singer, the professional singer who would like to solve some phonation problems and work on new repertoire, the church choir singer who would like to improve, or the mother who would like to sing to her child but feels too self-conscious to do so. Less than 1% of the population is tone deaf. Nearly everyone has the ability to sing, it's just the extent to which their abilities have been developed which varies.

Beginner:
A weekly 30-minute lesson is usually sufficient for the beginning student.

Intermediate:
As skills and repertoire demands increase so can the length of the lesson (45-minutes/week)

Advanced:
Students with significant singing experience will benefit from a weekly 60-minute lesson to accommodate their increasing repertoire and stamina.

Vocal Coaching:
Vocal coaching is designed for the student who is already performing (or on the verge of performing) but needs some "tweaking". This is often short-term and focuses on certain repertoire or vocal difficulties. For example, this student may be a singer who gigs several nights a week but has certain aspects of their voice or performance that they would like to improve (even Madonna and Steven Tyler have vocal coaches) or they may want a sounding-board for new material before putting it on the stage. Coaching sessions can last anywhere from 30-minutes to an hour depending on the needs of the student.

Rates for lessons/coaching:
60-minute lesson = $60.00
45-minute lesson = $45.00
30-minute lesson = $30.00

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My Vocal Journey
As a young singer, I had the natural gift of song but I lived in a rural area and did not have access to vocal instruction. Still, I was quite successful as a performer despite my lack of training and won several awards and honors. Upon graduating, I was admitted into Music School and the fourteen years of study that followed were quite a journey - frustrating, exhausting, enlightening, but most of all, rewarding. Now I share my knowledge of the voice and my journey as a singer with my students.

I have been a voice instructor in Austin, Texas for twelve years. As a doctoral student at UT Austin I spent much of my time studying the pedagogy of voice (a.k.a. how to teach voice effectively) under the direction of Darlene Wiley. I have studied the voice as a vehicle of speech as well as song and have used technology to study it further. Toward the end of my tenure at the university I became involved in the live music scene in Austin. It was a return to my roots, as my early singing experiences were in jazz and popular music. While I am aware of the inherent differences between popular and classical singing, I also know that the building blocks of singing are the same for both.

"I came to Larisa to improve my singing and to help coach me along as a professional singer and songwriter. Larisa's teaching and guidance has been so effective. I'm already noticing improvement in my techinque from the exercises she's given me. The exercises are not just the standard "my teacher made me do it so I'm giving it to you" fare -- Larisa has been through it, and you can tell she is teaching what has really worked for her. That kind of confidence, experience, and wisdom is exactly what I believe makes a great teacher. She is really inspiring. To listen to her sing and watch her perform, I can see she really knows her craft."
- Kathryn Gosnell, singer-songwriter

"I had the fortune of spontaneously having a voice lesson last year while visiting my daughter in Austin who is a student of Larisa's.  Now it has become a priority and anticipatory part of each trip.
Larisa is a very creative teacher: she easily identifies one's vocal challenges, has a large repertoire of solutions; challenges yet is very supportive and affirming.   She shares her knowledge in a very easy-going yet dynamic way.   We have also worked a variety of musical styles.   She has helped kick start my own vocal instruction business I have here in Wisconsin.   Can hardly wait for my next visit to Austin! "
- Marita Kelter, 56, vocal instructor, Wisconsin