Private Lessons
Voice Lessons
Your voice is the messenger of your truth. If you have a desire or a need to communicate your truth out loud in a way that feels good, these lessons will be a good fit for you.
In these co-created, one-on-one lessons, you will develop and refine vocal techniques that support the empowered and liberated use of your voice. You will learn a mixture of techniques, warm-ups and melodies that inspire the confidence to sing freely and without restraint. You will study breath control, resonance, vowels and tongue placement, dynamics, vocal health, and singing as a healing practice.
My students are songwriters, performers, actors, teachers, gentle souls and power houses. I work with teens, parents, young creatives, elder geniuses and seekers of all types. If you are deeply committed to music, are ready to prioritize your voice, and looking for a guiding hand, I’d love to hear from you!
SONGWRITING & Guitar Lessons
SONGWRITING
In working together, I will help you:
- Break through your mental blocks / write with clarity
- Craft your story lines / themes for lyrics
- Be more fearless with your poetry
- Write beautiful chord progressions and melody
- Learn what you need to know about music theory
Songwriting is very personal and can be a mysterious process. My job is to help you navigate the jungles of creativity so that you can see real progress and growth in your songwriting skills.
GUITAR
The guitar can be a companion, a guide, and a co-writer. These lessons are for those of you who are already comfortable with the basic basics, want to write or have written songs and want more skills and tools to accompany your songs as you sing them. (*Please note that I am not currently taking on beginner guitar students.)
Musical Healing
You and your voice are not two separate things. You and your voice, your music, are one. Your voice is your body, is the expression of your spirit, and it is the manifestation of your Truth.
We all experience ruptures in this awareness at times in our lives.
Music can show us the way back to wholeness, again and again.
In our lessons together, we will focus on reclaiming what has been lost or taken from our voices by the storms of life and we will take care to allow our whole self to sing and create - with love and kindness.
Music, songwriting and singing have always been my greatest source of relief from the turmoil in my life, my mind and the world. At the core of my teaching and my performance is a longing to share that gift of healing with others.
"I started working with Adrienne nearly 4.5 years ago because I wanted to liberate my voice... And now, having worked across both the technical aspects of vocalization through Western music, and the emotion and connection to the Divine through Persian music... expression is more fluid, expansive and clear. I'm grateful not just for Adrienne's technical mastery and ability to translate complex skills into tangible changes in my body, but more importantly for the invitation she creates through loving presence and laughter to bring forth heart -- in myself and others."
- Melissa L.
"Lessons with Adrienne are nothing short of therapeutic. What I appreciate is that she tailors the lesson to my needs and really pays attention to what my needs are. We set goals together and we work towards them. At this current point in time, I am working on a demo and Adrienne is helping me reach the notes and develop better breathing technique. Even after two years, my voice changes for the better every week that I go. Taking lessons with Adrienne is a very wise idea for someone who is serious about transforming their voice and really getting in touch with singing as more than just belting out a throaty tune."
-Denalda
"I love taking voice lessons with Adrienne. In every single lesson I feel she is truly present, creating a safe space to explore singing. Through her awareness, her listening, she coaches me through to find new spaces, as she helps me untangle bad habits and retrain myself. She is caring and patient but she is always pushing me to go further; this is therapy. I highly recommend her!"
-Mateo L.
"Adrienne helped me learn how to sing in a voice that is truly mine- not the singers that I try to mimic- so that I can offer my unique voice to the world. She helped me learn how to breathe and hold my body in a way that supports my voice to be more powerful without straining. I'm so much more confident..."
- Iris B.
"I have taken voice lessons before, but working with Adrienne was amazing! I love that she focused on technique, but also on relaxation and learning my favorite songs. Her voice is gorgeous but she is also a gifted teacher, an amazing combination. If you are an experienced singer and want to brush up or a complete beginner I cannot recommend Adrienne enough!"
- Anne N.
"I used to play guitar and sing when i was younger but I lost motivation and confidence for a long time. Lessons with Adrienne are so much fun and in no time I've gained my confidence back and have started learning new songs and techniques. Adrienne is patient, encouraging and funny - a truly wonderful teacher."
- Amy P.
"In the last six months Adrienne has managed to help me improve my voice and confidence more than I have been able to on my own in 25 years! With her encouragement, I have actually done my first open mic successfully. My voice is much stronger, I have greater range... She's also helped me to understand when to use my head voice, and just how far I can stretch the range of my chest voice. Plus, she's patient and fun. Look no further."
-Andie H.
Schedule A Private Lesson
My rates are:
$150 per hour
$100 per hour for kids and teens ($55 per half hour)
For dedicated students in need, sliding scale options are available.
More About My Teaching Background
After a lifetime of devoted study in the performing and musical arts, I have developed a deeply informed approach to teaching. As a music coach for over 20 years, I have made incredible breakthroughs with students, seen people through vast and deep shifts in their lives through the work we've done together and transformed my own relationship to music to be one of true empowerment and liberation. I am a patient coach and build trusting relationships with all of my students.
About my teachers:
I first studied guitar and songwriting throughout my teenage years and into early adulthood with Cindy Lowe in Oakland, CA. Cindy is the first teacher who showed me the value of private lessons. My weekly time with her became the sanctuary I needed to motivate me to write and create. I hope to provide that same inspiration and safety to my students that Cindy provided me as a young artist. In college, at Sonoma State University, I studied Indian Classical Vocals with Pdt. Laxmi Ganesh Tewari and fell in love with the musical form of Raga.
In 2012, I began my studies in Western Classical vocal technique from baritone and master teacher Zachary Gordin. I continue to study with him and am so grateful to be a part of this lineage of teaching. In 2016, I found myself in a new musical river, studying the Iranian Classical Vocal Tradition from master vocalist and teacher Mahsa Vahdat and am still swimming these waters with her today.
