Singing Teachers Talk

• Ep.240 Inside the Master’s Degree: How Postgraduate Study Can Transform Your Teaching & Career with Kaya Herstad-Carney

  Thinking about taking your teaching to the next level, diving deeper into your specialist interests, or even writing a degree of your own? In this episode of Singing Teachers Talk, Alexa is joined by educator, performer, and MA creator Kaya Herstad-Carney, who pulls back the curtain on what a master’s degree in the performing arts really offers. From choosing the right pathway and understanding learning outcomes to balancing study with real life, Kaya shares how her own master’s shaped her career, the unexpected opportunities it opened, and what she’s learned from writing not one but two MA programmes. Whether you’re a singing teacher, performer, or creative professional considering postgraduate study, this conversation is packed with insight, encouragement, and the honest realities behind levelling up your education.WHAT’S IN THIS PODCAST?2:27 Why did Kaya do a masters degree?5:37 What is the advantage of studying for an MA?10:10 How to choose an MA course19:19 Juggling a part time MA21:46 What If I’m not very academic?26:11 Writing an MA degree34:22 Marking degree assessments39:07 Common errors in MA submissions41:13 Making your MA decisionAbout the presenter HERERELEVANT MENTIONS & LINKSWaterBear The College of MusicSinging Teachers Talk - Ep.154 Managing Imposter Syndrome, Low Confidence and Overwhelm as Singing Teachers with Alexa TerrySinging Teachers Talk - Ep.222 The Rise of AI: What It Means for Singers & Teachers with Rachael DrurySinging Teachers Talk - Ep.226 The Rise of AI: Practical Tools and Strategies for the Singing Teacher with Rachael DrurySinging Teachers Talk - Ep.56 Taking the Academic Route with Debbie WinterVoice Study CentreArts CouncilABOUT THE GUEST Kaya is a higher education leader, vocal pedagogue, and award-winning artist. From September 2025 she becomes Head of Education (Online) at WaterBear College of Music. With an MA from LIPA/Hope and Fellowship of the HEA, she specialises in student-centred learning and CCM vocal habilitation, and has taught at ACM, LIPA, University of Liverpool, and BAST Training. She sits on the Vocology in Practice Advisory Board, researches voice, wellbeing, and sustainable careers, and performs internationally as a singer-songwriter, including with John Grant and Ringo Starr.SEE FULL BIO HereWebsiteInstagram: @kayamusic🎁 Free Resource: Get your copy of How to Assess the Singer’s Voice with Confidence — a practical guide to help you understand what’s going on in any singer’s voice. >>> DOWNLOAD HERE At BAST Training, we help singers turn their experience into a meaningful teaching career. Building the confidence, knowledge, and real-world skills to teach with confidence, clarity, and compassion. “The BAST Advanced Foundation has given me more than the tools I need to teach — it’s given me confidence, a community, and a future.” Jess McGlinchey, UK Start with the foundations >>> ENROL NOW basttraining.com | Updates | Email Us | Free Group

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• Ep.239 10 Common Barriers to Being a Singing Teacher. And How to Overcome Them with Line Hilton

  Thinking about becoming a singing teacher but not sure what’s holding you back? In this episode, Alexa and Line break down the most common barriers aspiring singing teachers face. Learn how to get started with what you already know, build confidence step by step, choose the right training, and grow your teaching practice with clarity and purpose. If you’re ready to take the next step in your singing teaching journey, this conversation will help you move forward with confidence.  WHAT’S IN THIS PODCAST? 0:31 How did Line become a singing teacher?  4:22 I don’t know enough & imposter syndrome 11:26 There’s too much choice 18:26 I don’t have the piano skills 23:37 I don’t have confidence in my own voice  28:25 I’m just not qualified  31:26 What about money?  36:51 My schedule is already busy  40:59 I don’t know how to start a business  46:10 What if I hurt a student’s voice?   About the presenter HERE RELEVANT MENTIONS & LINKS   Line Hilton  Singing Teachers Talk - Ep.237 Beyond the Vocal Tract: How the Brain Shapes What We Hear with Ian Howell Hearing Singing - A Guide to Functional Listening and Voice Perception  Singing Teachers Talk - Ep.111 Essential Piano Skills for Singers and Voice Teachers with Brenda Earle Stokes  Singing Teachers Talk - Ep.158 How Music Theory and Keyboard Skills Can Transform Your Singing Teaching with Amy Walton  Singing Teachers Talk - Ep.88 Pros and Cons of Singing Teacher Qualifications with Line Hilton Singing Teachers Talk - Ep.229 Ways to Make More Money as a Singing Teacher with Zoe Stibi Singing Teachers Talk - Ep.227 Following Your Bliss: How to Align your Life and Business with Gemma Sugrue  Singing Teachers Talk - Ep.220 Time Management: Making Time When There Isn't Any with Line Hilton & Alexa Terry Chris Johnson 🎁 Free Resource: Get your copy of How to Assess the Singer’s Voice with Confidence — a practical guide to help you understand what’s going on in any singer’s voice. >>> DOWNLOAD HERE At BAST Training, we help singers turn their experience into a meaningful teaching career. Building the confidence, knowledge, and real-world skills to teach with confidence, clarity, and compassion. “The BAST Advanced Foundation has given me more than the tools I need to teach — it’s given me confidence, a community, and a future.” Jess McGlinchey, UK Start with the foundations >>> ENROL NOW basttraining.com | Updates | Email Us | Free Group

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• Ep.238 10 Festive Songs for Your Studio with Alexa Terry

  Alexa Terry unwraps ten fresh, fun, and fabulously festive Christmas songs to help singing teachers bring new sparkle into their studios, offering a mix of musical theatre treasures, modern pop tunes, heartfelt ballads, and powerful rock renditions that give both students and teachers a welcome break from the usual overplayed holiday hits. With vocal range guidance, technical teaching opportunities, and stylistic notes for each song this episode provides a studio-ready repertoire list designed to keep spirits high and festive performances inspired throughout the busy holiday season.  About the presenter HERE RELEVANT MENTIONS & LINKS ABRSM musicnotes.com ‘A Most Remarkable Fella: Frank Loesser, and the Guys and Dolls in His Life' by Susan Loesser  ABOUT THE GUEST Alexa runs a singing tuition practice in the South of England, and is a singing tutor at one of the UK’s leading performing arts schools – Italia Conti, where she also regularly panels auditions and assessments. Alexa is the host of the BAST Training Singing Teachers Talk podcast, mentors for the BAST Training Level 5 qualification, and has presented on topics of Musical Theatre repertoire, authentic Musical Theatre performance, and imposter syndrome for Vocology in Practise and The Sing Space.   SEE FULL BIO HERE  Website Instagram: @AlexaTerryVocalCoaching🎁 Free Resource: Get your copy of How to Assess the Singer’s Voice with Confidence — a practical guide to help you understand what’s going on in any singer’s voice. >>> DOWNLOAD HERE At BAST Training, we help singers turn their experience into a meaningful teaching career. Building the confidence, knowledge, and real-world skills to teach with confidence, clarity, and compassion. “The BAST Advanced Foundation has given me more than the tools I need to teach — it’s given me confidence, a community, and a future.” Jess McGlinchey, UK Start with the foundations >>> ENROL NOW basttraining.com | Updates | Email Us | Free Group

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• Ep.237 Beyond the Vocal Tract: How the Brain Shapes What We Hear with Ian Howell

  This week, Alexa chats with the brilliant Ian Howell to explore how we really hear the singers we work with. From psychoacoustics and functional listening to timbre, bias and intention, Ian unpacks the hidden processes behind vocal perception—and how understanding them can transform the way we teach. A deep, fascinating conversation for any singing teacher wanting sharper ears and smarter tools. WHAT’S IN THIS PODCAST?  1:53 What is psychoacoustics?5:28 How is sound perceived by us?12:38 What impacts the way we perceive sound?20:46 Separating function from bias25:48 Belt scenario35:36 How do singers hear themselves?40:59 How to listen and observe with skill1:05:27 The relationship between intent and perception1:15:15 Using spectrograms1:19:57 The way Ian teachesAbout the presenter HERERELEVANT MENTIONS & LINKSHearing Singing - A Guide to Functional Listening and Voice Perception by Ian HowellJohan SundbergThe Acoustics of the Singing Voice by Johan SundbergScience of the Singing Voice by Johan SundbergIngo Titze‘Goodbye Yellow Brick Road’ by Sarah BareillesJeannie LoVetriFeldenkraisSinging Teachers Talk Podcast - Ep.63 Developing a Singer’s Self Awareness and Clarifying Intention with Robert SussumaCornelius ReidVoce VistaAdvice for Young Musicians by Ian HowellStructure of Singing by Richard Miller ABOUT THE GUESTDr. Ian Howell is the Founder and Chief Educator of the Embodied Music Lab, offering professional development and consulting for musicians and teachers. He is the author of Advice for Young Musicians (2023) and Hearing Singing: A Guide to Functional Listening and Voice Perception (2025). From 2013–2023, Ian served on the voice faculty at the New England Conservatory, directing the graduate voice pedagogy program and leading research in the NEC Voice and Sound Analysis Lab, where he and his students presented widely and contributed vital work during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.SEE FULL BIO HEREWebsite🎁 Free Resource: Get your copy of How to Assess the Singer’s Voice with Confidence — a practical guide to help you understand what’s going on in any singer’s voice. >>> DOWNLOAD HERE At BAST Training, we help singers turn their experience into a meaningful teaching career. Building the confidence, knowledge, and real-world skills to teach with confidence, clarity, and compassion. “The BAST Advanced Foundation has given me more than the tools I need to teach — it’s given me confidence, a community, and a future.” Jess McGlinchey, UK Start with the foundations >>> ENROL NOW basttraining.com | Updates | Email Us | Free Group

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• Ep.236 The Academic Path to Pop-Rock with Becky Morton

  In this episode, Becky Morton, Principal of Further Education at ACM and Alexa explore what the FE academic route can offer young singers stepping into today’s music industry. Becky shares curriculum structure with project-based training, and how this helps students to build both industry awareness and artist identity. The pair dig into why early professional habits matter, how the diploma pathway compares to traditional A-levels, and what young performers gain from learning to work with producers, bands and music businesses in a real-world environment. Becky also talks about current vocal trends, the technical demands of pop-rock singing, and how ACM is adapting its teaching to industry changes, including the rise of AI. WHAT’S IN THIS PODCAST?03:50 The role of Principle of FE at the Academy of Contemporary Music5:00 Benefits and challenges of an academic route into music10:13 A look at technique for pop-rock12:50 Defining the pop-rock aesthetic15:14 Artists to study in this genre18:16 How important is music theory and sight singing?22:54 2025 vocal and musical trends30:56 What Becky wishes every singer understoodAbout the presenter HERERELEVANT MENTIONS & LINKSACMUALSinging Teachers Talk - Ep.231 Evolving Vocal Trends: Training Functional Registration in Contemporary Commercial MusicSinging Teachers Talk - Ep.222 The Rise of AI: What it Means for Singers & Teachers with Singing Teachers Talk - Ep,226 The Rise of AI: Practical Tools and Strategies for the Singing TeachersISMSunoUdioFollow Becky’s Bands: The Likeness; Two’s Up; The Hooch TootsABOUT THE GUESTRebecca Morton, Principal of FE at ACM, is a professional musician, vocal coach, and musical director with 20+ years of experience. She has collaborated with artists such as Adrian Smith, Imogen Heap, and Alexander O’Neal, and toured as the solo backing vocalist for Hitomi Yaida across major UK and Japanese arenas. Her work includes recordings with Crispian Mills, Mattafix, cast albums, and dance releases with EMI and Hed Kandi. A vocal coach since 2002, she has supported artists like James Toseland and Marlon Roudette. Holding a Masters in Music Psychology, she champions passion, reliability, and excellence at ACM.SEE FULL BIO HEREInstagram: @acm_ldn🎁 Free Resource: Get your copy of How to Assess the Singer’s Voice with Confidence — a practical guide to help you understand what’s going on in any singer’s voice. >>> DOWNLOAD HERE At BAST Training, we help singers turn their experience into a meaningful teaching career. Building the confidence, knowledge, and real-world skills to teach with confidence, clarity, and compassion. “The BAST Advanced Foundation has given me more than the tools I need to teach — it’s given me confidence, a community, and a future.” Jess McGlinchey, UK Start with the foundations >>> ENROL NOW basttraining.com | Updates | Email Us | Free Group

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