Meet Jenny

Studio Owner & Certified Voice Teacher

I founded Encore Vocal Studio out of a lifelong love of singing and a desire to help others discover what their own voices are capable of.

I began piano lessons at age four and voice lessons at twelve, and I’ve spent more than 30 years singing, performing, teaching, and developing my own voice.  Along the way, I studied with many different voice teachers. Those experiences shaped not only the singer I became, but also the kind of teacher I wanted to be.

MY VOCAL JOURNEY

As a teenager and young adult, my vocal training was exclusively classical.  While that training gave me an important foundation, it was incredibly limiting. I wasn’t taught to explore the full range of my voice or how different vocal registers and techniques could be used to sing different styles.

As I got older, I became increasingly frustrated with my voice and its limitations.  I wanted to sing contemporary styles, but didn’t know how to make my voice work in those styles without trying to force it into something it wasn’t. 

That led me to studying contemporary vocal techniques and retraining my voice.  I learned how to develop and coordinate different registers of the voice and how those coordinations could be used to create different sounds and stylistic choices. For the first time, I began to understand just how versatile the human voice can be. That experience completely changed the way I thought about singing, and eventually, the way I would teach it.

I never want a student to feel that there is only one “right” way their voice should sound.  I want singers to understand how their voices work, develop healthy vocal technique throughout their entire range, and have the tools and confidence to explore everything their voices are capable of.

experience & education

Over the years, I’ve performed as a soloist for events and in musical theatre, ensembles, and choirs. I’ve competed in state and national vocal competitions and traveled through the United States with vocal and theatre groups. I’ve also spent many years serving as a worship leader and vocal trainer for large churches. 

I earned my bachelor’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology from the University of Oklahoma in 2003, where my studies included speech, language, voice, and fluency disorders. This background gave me a deeper understanding of the intricate workings of the voice and continues to influence my emphasis on healthy, efficient vocal technique.

I later continued my vocal education with Justin Stoney of New York Vocal Coaching and completed the New York Vocal Coaching Voice Teacher Certification Program, becoming a Certified Voice Teacher. 

MY APPROACH

I believe every voice is unique, and voice training should be too.

There isn’t one sound that every singer should be trying to achieve. A young singer discovering their voice needs something different from an adult who has always wanted to sing. A musical theatre performer has different goals from a worship leader, and a contemporary singer will need completely different vocal coordinations from someone singing classical repertoire.

That’s why I tailor lessons to the individual singer – their voice, their goals, their experience, and the music they want to sing. Together, we work to develop healthy technique, expand range, strengthen and coordinate the different registers of the voice, improve control, and build confidence.

Most importantly, I want students to leave lessons with more than improved technique. I want them to understand their own voice, trust it, and have the freedom to use it to sing the music they love.

 If you’re interested in moving forward with voice lessons, please fill out the form below, and I’ll be in touch with you soon. I look forward to helping you reach your vocal goals.