ILana Martin is the founder of the Vocal Workout Singing School in New York. She has worked with some of the best in the business like the late Whitney Houston, Celine Dion, Brian McKnight, Barry White, Patti LaBelle and Alicia Keys. She has also toured with Barry White and Patti LaBelle as a backup singer, and coached Sean “Diddy” Combs!
ILana says, “the human voice is like a snowflake.” The Vocal Workout Singing School is her “baby…my child and I love the results I get from powerful artists all the time who tells me how instrumental this technique has been.” ILana spoke with us about her background her school.
GGM: You began giving out private vocal lessons while you were attending Berklee. How did you manage your time between those and your classes there?
Martin: It was easy.
GGM: Everyone who’s ever toured as a singer or musician has had his or her share of stories. Can you share with us one or a few of those from your years of touring?
Martin: There was a time we finished a Barry White concert in Paris, and Prince was having a concert in that city on the same night. We all went afterward to dance at a cool hot spot, unexpectedly Prince showed up sometime later, took the stage, and the entire audience, climbed on tables dancing to his impromptu performance for hours. Talk about “Guitar It Up”!!!
GGM: When you started Vocal Workout, was it successful from the start, or was there a lot of struggling to get the school going early on?
Margin: It was easy, also. The teaching was fun and exciting.
GGM: What percentage of your students at Vocal Workout would you estimate are female, and of those, have you had any who are also guitarists?
IM: I have been lucky. About 60% of my vocalists are young women, and at least 10% play excellent guitar.
GGM: One of your vocal tips mentions drinking room-temperature water, as opposed to hot or cold, to help a person sing more clearly. Would that tip be based on the experiences of you or anyone you’ve worked with, and can there also be a scientific basis behind it?
IM: It is scientifically proven that anything too hot or too cold swells the vocal folds, even if slightly, so drinking liquids at room temperature is preferable.
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To view ILana’s previous articles on our site, see below:
Tips on How to Utilize your Breath while Singing
For more on Ilana Martin and the Vocal Workout Singing School, click HERE.
Source and Photo Credit: Reprinted with permission by Guest Writer ILana Martin
