How To Teach Voice Lessons Online
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- čas přidán 29. 06. 2024
- Teaching Voice Lessons Outline, especially in light of the recent Corona Virus outbreak.
TEACHING VOICE LESSONS ONLINE by BILLY GOLLNER
www.bgvocals.com
CHOOSING A PLATFORM
BEST OPTIONS (Recommended in this order)
I currently have students who prefer to use each of these platforms.
ZOOM
Zoom is the most reliable of all the video conference softwares. It gives both you and the student the option to create a video recording of the lesson (and an audio recording), you can share the screen (showing sheet music, CZcams videos, audio recordings, etc.).
More importantly, you can easily adjust your audio to prevent sound issues (which is the biggest challenge with teaching voice lessons online). Zoom is free for all one-on-one sessions for an unlimited amount of time. For group lessons lasting more than 40 minutes, you'll need to pay for a monthly subscription fee.
FACETIME
FaceTime is a really great alternative to Zoom. The downside is that it is only available on students with Apple devices, there is no way to adjust the audio (although it is exponentially better than Skype), and there is no way to directly create a video recording of the session.
SKYPE
Skype is generally used as a last resort. The software can be EXTREMELY glitchy. It can be very difficult to add contacts, sometimes Skype erases all your contacts with no explanation, the video and audio are often quite laggy. Skype works for voice lessons but the quality of the teaching and learning experience isn’t on the same level as Zoom or FaceTime.
GOOGLEHANGOUTS
GoogleHangouts is used an absolute last resort. Sometimes when students who prefer Skype have glitches, our backup is GoogleHangouts. The audio and video quality is quite poor but good to use on the fly when Skype is having problems.
AUDIO BEST PRACTICES
In order to prevent delay, you must understand that delay is caused mostly from sound coming in and going out at the same time. Therefore, it is highly recommended that both the student and the teacher wear headphones during the lessons. This will cut audio glitches and general audio issues down by 90%. Any headphones will work fine. Just a reminder, that both you and your student must wear headphones during the session.
It’s also great to use an external microphone, I recommend the Blue Yeti USB Microphone, it’s easy to use, sturdy, reliable, and inexpensive. Using an external microphone will improve your audio quality.
WIFI BEST PRACTICES
You need to be using the fastest Wifi possible when teaching your lessons online. If possible, plug your computer directly into the Wifi router. If that’s not possible, be as close to the Wifi router as possible while teaching. You will want to communicate this to your student as well. If the Wifi speed isn’t fast enough, there will be lag on either end.
If things are lagging on either end, both you and the student will have to close all windows or apps using internet on all the surrounding devices (as these will cause the Wifi speed to slow down for the online lesson).
If you are concerned that your Wifi might not be fast enough, you can run a speed test by going to: speedtest.net
Anything lower than 60 Mbps is going to be unstable and (borderline too slow) for online lessons.
TEACHING ADJUSTMENTS
Go Slower
There will be lag, the best way to combat lag is to go a little bit slower than you normally go. Speak a little bit slower, demonstrate exercises a little bit slower than usual.
2. Play very simple accompaniments.
Demonstrate an arpeggio or nine tone scale and then just give students the chord, or a starting note for the exercise. Don’t attempt to play along with them - this will cause delay and will not synch up with the students singing. This will disrupt the student’s learning experience and make them question the value of online lessons.
3. Understand that there will be minor technological glitches and be patient, laugh them off. Stay zen!
4. Have students sing along with accompaniment tracks that they play on their end.
However, the track should not be playing from the same device they are using for the video interface. Some programs like Skype will cause the sound to cut out completely if you play music through the computer the student is using for the lesson. Outsource the accompaniment track to a phone or other external device.
5. If you are wanting to accompany students, keep it painfully simple.
Do not play any sort of fancy accompaniment, play very basic chords and simplify the accompaniment as much as possible.
Hi everyone, it's been brought to my attention that Zoom is now free for unlimited amounts of time for one-on-one lessons and you only need a pay-for account if you are using Zoom for group lessons.
Can you do a online singing lessons from Boston ma area United states looking around . I haven't signed in 10 years but I am getting back into it.
@@mchellemchelle9120 hi Michelle, yes, I am currently accepting new students. Feel free to send me an email to: billygollnermusic@gmail.com to set up a lesson. Look forward to working with you -Billy
I just did my first zoom lesson and it was a great success! Take that COVID-19!!! Thank you so much!
Great video! Please make sure you monetize this. I would be more than willing to watch an ad so you could profit off of this content you are so generously giving out.
What does monetizing a video mean?
Sarah Carlin allowing CZcams to run an advertisement somewhere in the video so that he could profit off of the number of views this video is getting.
@@alexandrianicole3874 ooo i see, thank you :D
As a first time online teacher, your advice and tips were incredibly helpful. Thank you so much!
I am getting ready to embark on a semester of teaching Zoom lessons every other week at a university. This has been tremendously helpful- thanks!
almost a year later after you post this video i find myself coming here because i have a student doing a trial lesson with me virtually tomorrow and i found this video to be very helpful! thank you!
Thank you for this!! I've been feeling a bit overwhelmed about how to make the switch--but this helps a lot! Thank you for being so transparent about your set up and process. It's so so appreciated!
I've been teaching online for a year now. Exclusively since COVID and I must say you really taught me some things that will really help me. Thanks!!
This is legit so useful. I teach English online and this is super useful for that!
Billy, I cannot thank you enough for posting this. I have been wanting to offer remote lessons for a long time and never had to, well now as many others watching this I have to, Oy Vey!! You are truly a life saver!
Thank you so much, Billy! This was so helpful. I was really nervous about trying to start online lessons and your video helped ease my anxiety. Thank you! 🙏🎶
You are a hero!!! Thank you so much you answered pretty much all of my questions. Now I'm just hoping that my students' parents are going to be proactive about putting the rig together. Thank you!!
Thank you for the information and especially for keeping it concise. You're helping a lot of people!
THANK YOU SO MUCH OMG I NEEDED THIS FOR TODAY AND I WAS FREAKING OUT bless you!
Thanks, SO MUCH, Billy! This was SUPER HELPFUL!!!!
I just started teaching online again, and this was just the refresher I needed. Thank you!
Thank you for this Billy! I have been using Zoom and have been wondering how to overcome the distortion of sound when my students lip trill - you took me further into Zoom - awesome!! And I'll be updating my equipment now to include a USB mic. Your explanation was excellent and to the point.
thank you so much for this, Billy! You've given me some confidence to do this!
Fantastic video! super helpful. I've been teaching online and in my studio for sometime and zoom is a great platform. Thank you again for you info. Many Blessings.
Fabulous Billy! THANK YOU! This is so helpful! I'm going to share it with many other teachers and students, who I know will be equally grateful for your assistance, and for taking the time to share your expertise.
Thanks, Jocelyn. Appreciate your kind words :)
So helpful, BIlly. Thanks. I've done two days worth of voice lessons now on zoom. Your tips are so handy and make so much sense. THANK YOU.
Fantastic!!! I teach online all the time, lately it has been so crazy. Great to see some of your tips! Accompaniment is the biggest issue. Best when they have accompinement on their end for the sound issues.
Thank you, Billy. You are truly a GOOD teacher! I really needed this info. Just getting started online, and technically compromised!
Thank you so much! I have a large studio of singers now switching to elessons so this was EXTREMELY helpful!
Getting ready to teach my first virtual voice lesson next week. This was super helpful; thanks!
Thank you so much for this. I have been struggling to teach online lessons but this is a game changer. Thank you again for this helpful information.
Thank you SO much for this video! You are a lifesaver!!
Thank you! This is so incredibly helpful!
This information was very helpful! I made it through my first week of online teaching, but will adjust this coming week to follow your suggestions. The hardest part is the delay and sound. I made some mistakes, but I hope to dial in my lessons next week.
Thank you Billy!
GREAT help!! Thanks so much!!
This was awesome. Thanks for sharing this video. I'm doing a voice lesson tomorrow online so hope this will help me with that!
Thank you for sharing this info! You are very generous!! ❤️❤️❤️
This is incredible. Thank you so much for this advice :)
Thank you for being so generous!
Thank you for posting this!
Thank you! Really appreciate your insight and guidance!
I love you.... you're so clear, so serious.... great!!
Thanks, Paulo. Appreciate your feedback :)
Thank you so much! This is so helpful!
Thank you so much for this! You are a life saver.
Any ideas as to why my kids are clear on my end on zoom, but I am a garbled mess? I did the " test" for the mic and it was still very staticky. I do not have an external mic, but have ordered one. Thank you in advance. Your video has been by far the most helpful.
Thank you, Billy! Very useful. 😃🌷
Thank you so much for this helpful video!
What a useful tutorial - I feel much more enthusiastic about the following zoom lessons. Thank you,
Thank you for this valuable information! You're the best!
You're very welcome! Please let me know if you have any questions, I tried to make the video as quickly as possible and I'm afraid I might've missed some points. :)
Thank you! Very helpful going into this new situation at school.
Yeah, it's super intense and I know how big the learning curve is to make online lessons work. I'm trying to look at the silver lining and how great it will be that people will still be able to create art during this difficult time.
Thank you so much for helping us.
Very Good Information! Thanks!
This was so helpful. Thank you.
Have been using Skype and ready to switch to Zoom. This was so clear and concise! Thank you, Billy, for doing this for your fellow voice teachers! 😊
Hi Vaughn, that sounds great. I also just heard that Zoom is also free for all one-on-one lessons for unlimited amounts of time. You only have to pay for an account for group lessons lasting more than 40 minutes :)
Oh, that’s awesome and timely! I was just getting ready to log in and pay the fee for the first month! Thank you!
Very informative, thank you!
Excellent advice!
Great video. So generous. Thank you!
Thanks, Juliet. Glad you found it helpful :)
very useful thank you so much!
This is so helpful. Thankyou.
Thank you very much for this video. I will try it very soon.
Thank you thank you thank you!!!!
Thank you!!!!!
Thanks for your advice :)
Thank you so much , this is really helpful , I've switched to teaching on line but I've experienced awful sound and delays at times ! , this really helps . Can you only adjust the audio when your in a Zoom meeting ?
Thank you so much for this
THANK YOU SOOOOOO MUCH
A big thanks sir,
THANK YOU!!!!!!!
Thanks for this! Very helpful :-)
Zipporah Peddle you’re very welcome :) Hope all is well
Thank you.
Thank you!
Thank you for your video! Very helpful. My question is, can I use wire-ear buds (also student) or does it need to be headphones like the ones you are using in your video?
I just love youuuuuu
sooooooo helpful!
Thank so much for this! I have a couple group voice lessons I do. In this case, should I forget about using a backtrack accompaniment for the students to sing to?
Nechama Leah Dahan e-mail the tracks to the students in advance and have them play the track from their end
Useful tutorial, I'm guessing things have changed a bit in two years? Would you say this is still pretty much on point with the tech side of things, or is there something new that's a must!!? Thanks
Other than inevitable delay issues, have you or anyone experimented with connecting your keyboard directly to the computer so it's not picked up by your microphone, thereby possibly creating less distortion or noise cancelling, and you are able to (slowly) accompany the singer better?
Tim Elliott I’ve used a midi keyboard before and shared the sound via share-screen through logic. But it wasn’t that much better compared to using a USB l/external mic
Thank you so so
much 🙏🎙🎹❤️🌎
Thank you so much for all your tips. I am sure you can see the appreciation from so many people.
I am still wondering, does my student needs a microphone as well and I cannot play the piano on my end? So they would need to play the instrumental through a different way on their end? What about group vocal lessons? I would need to play the music, that they can sing to it. Any tips to do that?
Sorry for so many additional questions.
This is great! Thanks for sharing. Do you have any advice for advertising your online lessons? I have a private studio and unfortunately only a few have continued lessons through Covid. Am trying to figure out other advertising best practices online (other than google ad words)?
Thank you- that was great!! Have you tried Jamkazam by the way?
This is really really helpful. I don't get what the dislikes are for. Stay safe!
thank you
Thank you SO much Billy! This is fantastic, so organized and useful. I also feel so proud to see you showing such an expertise with complete generosity! One question: is there any max number of participants when you're using this for the classroom? I thought you had a number limitation when you do SVW™ online class.
For a pro account, you can have up to 100 people. For the free Zoom, it's only free for one on one lessons.
@@BillyGollnerMusicBut that has changed through the new Covid situation, right? I have heard it should be for free.
Thanks for this really informative video! What's the best way to directly plug my laptop (PC) into my router? And what kind of cable is best?
Professional Voice Care Center | Karen Sussman Hi Karen, you’ll want to get an Ethernet cable and an Ethernet adapter. Both can be bought on amazon. They have an Amazon Basics version of both which should work great.
Billy, Thank you! I made notes to use with my online teaching and will pass this along to my students. On Zoom you didn't mention clicking "Advanced" after disabling the microphone. I have been clicking "Advanced" and then check "show in-meeting option to "Enable Original Sound." I also unclick "Disable echo cancellation" on the same page. Is this the best practice?
Thanks Billy!! are you using your Yeti for the sound for this video? It sounds great :)
It's my iPhone at the beginning and the Yeti during the Zoom tutorial :)
Great video! Do you have any experience of using microphones with phones and tablets with Zoom? Or do you only use a laptop? I've been running into trouble with finding compatible devices.
Ashley Pankow I only use my laptop. The audio quality on phones or laptops is designed for speech and not singing.
Thank you so much Billy. This is so generous of you! I appreciate all your advise on set up etc. and have one question in particular: do you know what kind of cable to use to plug directly into the router box? Sounds like you have experience with this. A picture would be so valuable if that is possible. Again, many thanks for sharing your knowledge!! Voice teachers unite online!!
Meredith Borden you’ll want to use an Ethernet cable and you’ll likely need an adapter to get it to plug directly into the computer. If you look up Ethernet cable adapter on amazon, the Amazon Basics brand version of both should work perfectly.
@@BillyGollnerMusic Thank you again! I appreciate how direct and to the point your video is. You've really helped out a lot of singing teachers (and others too, I just shared your video with my colleague at Berklee College of Music!)
Hello, this was really helpful....I wish I’d seen it a few weeks ago!!!! One issue I can’t get past is in zoom...when my students sing high or maintain a note it becomes very quiet and also there is a robotic quality... help!? I’ve gone to Skype for now but the picture quality is better with zoom :(
Hi Billy! Thanks so much for this detailed demo. I was wondering... many earphones come with their own mics built in. Do you know how this works when you’re using ear phones to listen but an external microphone for students to hear you? How do you know which receiver is sending the audio to your students? Thanks!
Chloé Hurst Hi Chloe, that’s a great question. If you’re using Zoom, you can go in under -preferences -audio settings and adjust which microphone is picking up your sound.
Thank you so much for sharing this! It comes at a crucial time. Question: What type of cost effective headphones do you recommend with good audio quality?
Sarah Viola Wilson Any headphones will work great, even basic earbuds. I use Bose headphones, they also sit comfortably on my ears but any cv headphones will do :)
@@BillyGollnerMusic Great advice as usual, but just one caveat - bluetooth earphones give very poor and unstable results with Zoom etc, compared to wired ones.
Fantastic video, very helpful for starting to teach online! Thank you!I was a little concerned about the level of white noise...it wasn't there at say 5:53 but by 6:32 it is quite strong. Is that because compression is off?
Antonia Pigot great question. That’s because my computer was overheating randomly. You’re hearing the hiss of my computer.
It never makes this sound (of course the one time I’m recording on it) haha :)
Great 🌝 thanks for the explanation! Thank you again for all your help!
Thank you Billy, Great and clear explanation of how Zoom works. Especially in this time now, I need to try this and I will. One question: Would it work to use karaoke on youtube in the share mode? Thank you so much! Best regards!
Jeffrey Zuhdy you would be better off to have the student play the karaoke track on their end either from another device or through their computer with their headphones still in
Hello Jeffrey, last week, one of my students tried to sing with a karaoké video on CZcams using the share mode on her side. It doesn't work when the teacher shares the music, but it is fine when the student shares with the teacher. I hope this will help! 🙂
Thank you, Billy, for sharing this video. I would like to ask if we need to connect the keyboard to the computer or is it sufficient enough that it will be heard already by the student? Thank you! =)
I just put my blue yeti overtop of my keyboard and it picks up the sound really nice between my voice and the keyboard directly :)
Thanks so much for this! I have a question about scheduling which you may or may not be able to answer. I need to schedule consecutive lessons with no break in between each class. Should I allow them to "join before host" so that they're already up and ready when I switch over? Or will that not work because you can't have simultaneous meetings?
Karina Carr I’ve never had it cause any problems but you can always set up the waiting room function or just don’t click the enable join before host option :)
Is your keyboard sound coming from the keyboard's own speakers or do you route the keyboard through the computer somehow? Thanks so much for this video!
It's coming through my iPhone at the beginning and the Blue Yeti mic later when I do the Zoom tutorial. The hissing is my computer overheating (which never happens), not the microphone :)
Thank you, this is so helpful! I’m using Whereby have you come across this for voice lessons online? Maria (London, England)
I haven't tried that. But if it works for you and the sound is clear, I would stick with what is working :)
Hi Billy! Thanks for your helpful video. A few headphone questions: Do you plug your headphones into the Yeti, or into an interface? Is there anything to be gained if only one side of the lesson (teacher or student) uses headphones? Are headphones just as useful all platforms, or just Zoom?
Hi Bob, these are great questions. Regardless of which interface you're using, headphones are going to be beneficial. Both parties wearing headphones is the ideal scenario. However, if only the teacher is wearing headphones, that will be okay (there will be more audio issues on the student's end, in that case).
I plug my headphones directly into the Blue Yeti microphone and there is a volume knob to adjust the volume on the Yeti for my headphones.
@@BillyGollnerMusic Thank you! I have two of those Yeti mics, and never used the headphone jack. I'll give it try tomorrow.
Thank you so much for sharing! Would anyone be willing to let me observe an online lesson. I'm looking at teaching virtual choir for the foreseeable future and would love to get some ideas for virtual group lessons, etc. Thanks for considering!
Hello, great video! I was wondering if the student also needs a microphone? Of course along with headphones.....and in that case the student can sing with a karaoke in the same pc?
this is a good question that I wanna know too. :)
It helps with the audio quality if they have an external microphone but it’s less necessary for the student to use an external mic.
For the karaoke track, have the student play it through an external device (not through the same device they’re doing the lesson with)
Or ask the student to try the share mode for the sound. Also, on my side, that makes a huge difference when students add a microphone. I'm then able to hear some subtleties in their voice. :)
Thank you so much for this video! Our teachers are all switching to online lessons for now, and the number one question is how to accompany the students...because of the delay... Any more ideas? Send them the track, have them sing along while you listen, or any other ideas?
The teachers cannot accompany the students online, there's too much delay and will significantly damage the student's learning experience. Have the teachers send practice tracks in advance and have the students play it on a separate device from the one they are completing the lesson on.
@@BillyGollnerMusic Thank you so much for taking the time to reply! Much appreciated!
Hi, Thanks a lot for this useful video. I'm setting up for teaching voice lessons online with Zoom but I'm having a few problems. I'm using a Macbook Pro and a Blue Snowball Ice mic and playing piano while singing but the voice keeps cutting out or sounding distorted for the person listening. I've tried different audio settings but the problem persists. Any advice welcome. Thanks a lot.
Simplify your piano playing as much as possible, don't try and play an exercise along with a student, just play a basic chord or starting note, etc.
Also, don't try and accompany the students, have them sing along with practice tracks being played on their end.
thank u. very useful video! I am singing teacher. What is about jamkazam for playing and singingat the same time (you and your student) without delays? I never tried it.
There are lots of services that claim you can jam in real time, there is always some type of delay. It's possible these services have improved since I last tried them but they didn't work well for me.
BG, Your video is fantastic! the pace, the information, and particularly the resolution quality of your image. Are you using an external camera? or just the Mac. I am also teaching vocals on Zoom and is a problem because it is voice and drones and to groups. Basically, Call and Response is impossible. Any tips? facebook.com/
Silvia Nakkach for groups, you can only have one student singing at a time. Mute everyone and just trust that the response is coming through even though you can’t hear it