Singing Teachers Talk

What’s the story behind one of the best-known vocal products on the market? In this episode, Alexa is joined by Maria and George from Vocalzone to uncover the fascinating history behind the century-old family business, and why its distinctive pastilles have become a backstage staple for performers around the world, including Tom Jones, Katherine Jenkins and Michael Ball.  
They also get into some of the debates that have divided singers and singing teachers over the years- including the ever-contentious question of menthol - tackling myths, misconceptions and strongly held opinions around vocal care. Expect fascinating history, practical insight and plenty of brilliant behind-the-scenes stories along the way. 

WHAT’S IN THIS PODCAST?  
1:55 The history of Vocalzone 
5:37 What’s it like working with family?  
7:45 What are the Vocalzone products?  
11:32 Safety checks 
16:54 What do Vocalzone products actually do?  
23:34 The menthol argument 
28:10 The other ingredients: myrrh tincture & peppermint oil 
31:46 How to properly use the Vocalzone pastilles  
38:07 What should singing teachers understand about Vocalzone?  
 
About the presenter HERE
 
RELEVANT MENTIONS & LINKS 
Vocalzone, Saviours or Destroyers?  
Line Hilton  
 
ABOUT THE GUEST 
Vocalzone is a vocal care brand with a history stretching back more than a century. Originally formulated in 1907 by William Lloyd for legendary Italian tenor Enrico Caruso, Vocalzone’s distinctive throat pastilles first went on sale in 1912 and have since become a familiar part of the toolkit for singers and professional voice users around the world. 
Today, Vocalzone produces a range of pastilles, teas and throat spray designed to support hardworking voices, utilised by everyone from singers and actors to broadcasters, teachers and public speakers. With its roots firmly in the performing arts, the brand continues to combine its remarkable heritage with a focus on the needs of modern voice users. 
Website 
Social Media: @vocalzonehq 
🎁 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 | Stay Updated

What happens when being a singer becomes more than what you do, and starts to define who you are? In this episode, Alexa is joined by vocal coach Claire Cannon to explore the connection between burnout, identity and life in the performing arts. They unpack the idea of identity foreclosure, the pressures of tying self-worth to success, and why burnout is about far more than simply feeling tired. From external validation and industry expectations to the importance of developing a sense of self beyond your work, this conversation offers plenty to reflect on for singers, teachers and anyone whose passion has become their profession. 
WHAT’S IN THIS PODCAST?  
3:04 What is burnout?  
12:29 Burnout and the self-employed  
19:41 Identity foreclosure  
26:01 How long does it take to feel burnt out? 
29:31 Language and identity  
38:15 Burnout and peer pressure 
 
About the presenter HERE
 
RELEVANT MENTIONS & LINKS 
Singing Teachers Talk - Ep.72 Become a Vocology in Practice Authorised Teacher with Claire Cannon & Kaya Herstad Carney 
Vocology in Practice 
Mental Health UK Burnout Report 2026 
 
ABOUT THE GUEST 
Claire Cannon is a professional vocal coach, mentor and performer based in Cheshire, UK, working with aspiring and professional singers both in person and online. 
 
A graduate of the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA), Claire holds a Diploma in Song and a Degree in Performing Arts (Music). She began her teaching journey with BAST in 2014 and has continued to develop her expertise in vocal pedagogy, achieving a Certification in Contemporary Vocal Coaching, becoming a Vocology in Practice (ViP) Authorized Instructor, Vocal Health First Aider and Mental Health Informed Practitioner. She also holds a Level 2 qualification in counselling and a master’s degree in Vocal Pedagogy, specialising in efficient, evidence-based approaches to vocal health and occupational wellness. 
 
Alongside her coaching, Claire brings more than two decades of professional experience across live performance and session work. Her professional credits include multiple single releases as lead vocalist and co-writer for electronic dance group ‘Flip & Fill’, as well as recording the female vocals for the Emerald Storm international tour. 
 
Through her private studio, Claire Cannon Voice, and her work in higher education, she specialises in developing healthy, resilient and authentic voices that can meet the demands of a career in the music industry. Claire has a particular passion for musical theatre and enjoys working with performers on repertoire selection and audition prep. 
 
Claire’s approach considers the whole performer, combining vocal technique with wellbeing, psychology and artistry. She believes effective coaching should help singers not only develop their voices, but also understand their instrument, build confidence and develop an authentic identity that can support them throughout their careers. 
 
Website 
Social Media: @clairecannonvoice 
🎁 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 | Stay Updated

What’s really happening inside the larynx when we sing? In this fascinating episode, Alexa is joined by laryngologist and singer Dr Jennifer Rodney - aka Singing Surgeon MD - for a rare look inside the voice in action. From vocal registers and tension to vibrato, breathiness, vocal fry and more, Jennifer brings vocal anatomy to life - and even scopes herself live to show us what’s happening in real time. Whether you’re a singer, voice teacher or simply fascinated by how the voice works, this is an episode you won’t want to miss. Listen to the full episode, or head over to YouTube to watch the live demonstrations.  
WHAT’S IN THIS PODCAST?  
3:19 Who does Dr Jennifer Rodney see in her clinic?  
5:44 The difference between rigid and flexi laryngoscopy  
7:46 Does flexi laryngoscopy hurt? 
10:51 Live scope! 
42:26 Why can some people sing well when others cannot? 
44:36 Does ‘everyone’ have a laryngeal abnormality? 
46:33 What does Dr Jennifer wish singers knew more about? 
 
About the presenter HERE
 
RELEVANT MENTIONS & LINKS 
Sin City Laryngology 
Jennifer’s Laryngeal Karaoke 
Singing Teachers Talk - Ep. With Nick Gibbins 
Vanderbilt University Medical Center 
Baylor Scott & White Health 
 
ABOUT THE GUEST 
Dr. Rodney grew up in Saint Petersburg, FL, and has sung professionally throughout her life. Her background in music led her to become a laryngologist. Dr. Rodney’s practice welcomes patients with voice, airway, and swallowing disorders. Her areas of expertise include medical and surgical care of disorders that affect the voice, professional voice, benign and malignant laryngeal lesions, and vocal cord paralysis. Dr. Rodney also has expertise in neurolaryngological disorders, such as spasmodic dysphonia. She works collaboratively with speech-language pathologists in The Voice Center to provide multidisciplinary care. She also enjoys training young physicians and has published many articles in the field of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery. In her spare time, Dr. Rodney enjoys singing, attending live performances, kayaking, traveling with her husband and spending time with her children. 
 
Social Media: @singingsurgeonmd 
🎁 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 | Stay Updated

As September rolls around and a new academic year begins, Alexa reflects on what it means to return to singing, teaching and learning with a fresh perspective. She shares some gentle reminders for singers and singing teachers alike about progress, curiosity, collaboration and being a little kinder to ourselves and each other along the way. 
Whether you’re heading back into the studio, starting something completely new, or simply wondering what you want to take into the new academic year ahead, this episode is an encouraging listen to help you step into September feeling inspired, grounded and ready for what’s next. 

About the presenter HERE
 
RELEVANT MENTIONS & LINKS 
Lori Sonnenberg  
Singing Teachers Talk - Ep.199 The Truth About Muscle Tension Dysphonia 
Line Hilton 
Gemma Sugrue 
 
ABOUT THE GUEST 
Alexa is the Deputy Head of Singing at one of the UK’s leading performing arts schools - Italia Conti, and she also runs a private singing tuition practice in the South of England. In addition, Alexa is the host of BAST Training’s Singing Teachers Talk podcast, and acts as both unit tutor and mentor for their level 5 vocational singing teaching qualification, as well as mentoring on their foundation course.[Text Wrapping Break][Text Wrapping Break]After graduating with a BA Musical Theatre degree, Alexa Terry donned her sailor’s cap and performed as a lead soloist on cruise ships travelling the Mediterranean, Caribbean and Baltic seas. She trod the boards in London’s West End as the protagonist in a new Musical Theatre project, studied as a librettist with Book, Music and Lyrics (BML), and has written for the likes of BritishTheatre.comas a reviewer. Alexa has also presented on topics of Musical Theatre repertoire, authentic Musical Theatre performance, and imposter syndrome for Vocology in Practice and The Sing Space; and at the BAST Intensive Weekend of Summer 2026, Alexa delivered talks in diagnosing and assessing voices and choosing repertoire to build technique. 
 
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 | Stay Updated

In this episode, Alexa and Line take a closer look at the familiar idea of the singer as a ‘vocal athlete’. Drawing on examples from across the performing arts, they explore what the comparison can teach us about the demands placed on singers, and where it might not tell the whole story. From training and performance to vocal health and wellbeing, this conversation invites us to think differently about what singers ask of their voices and bodies, and how we can better support them along the way. 
WHAT’S IN THIS PODCAST? 
0:24 When did you first hear the term ‘vocal athlete?’ 
3:36 The definition of ‘athlete’ and where it holds up for singers 
11:46 Where does the analogy fall down? 
25:37 A language debate 
30:50 The future of the term ‘vocal athlete?’  
 
About the presenter HERE
 
RELEVANT MENTIONS & LINKS   
Line Hilton  
The Vocal Athlete by Marci Daniels Rosenberg & Wendy D. LeBorgne  
The Singing Athlete by Andrew Byrne 
Singing Teachers Talk - Ep.232 The Vocal Athlete: Inside Touring Life with Mindy Pack 
Denosh Bennet 
Rob Stevenson 
Singing Teachers Talk - Ep.81 Teaching Famous Voices with Robert ‘RAab’ Stevenson 
Sport In Art with Jan Sebastian Tomsa 
Line’s substack article  
Singing Teachers Talk - Ep.150 Part Two: Finding the Best Posture and Alignment for Singing with Jennie Morton 
Singing Teachers Talk Ep.61 Measuring Vocal Load in Contemporary Musical Theatre 
Dr Steven Zeitels  
🎁 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 | Stay Updated