Deke Sharon presents "Understanding A Cappella"

NATS Conference attendees wanting to get their experience off to a great start may want to take advantage of one of the event’s Pre-Conference Workshops. Scheduled for Friday, June 22 from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., these highly interactive sessions focus on the most current topics in our profession. The fee is $55 per ticket, in addition to the conference registration. Registrants for the 2018 NATS National Conference can add tickets for the one of the Pre-Conference Workshops during the registration process.

The Pre-Conference Workshops have been expanded to five concurrent sessions, offering more choices for the diverse membership of NATS. Topics include breath support, music’s power to unite communities, voice science technology, working with transgender singers, and the popular A Cappella movement.

Register and add a Pre-Conference workshop to your itinerary!

The 2018 Pre-Conference Workshops include:
Breath Bootcamp with Deborah Birnbaum
Breathing is our most natural function. This interactive workshop will enhance your understanding of breath support through a variety of techniques. Those attending will have the opportunity to participate in group floor work and have a hands-on experience to help integrate new concepts into their teaching. A master class is also included where principles presented will be seen in action. Dress comfortably.

Harnessing Music's Superpowers to Heal, Change and Unite
Presenters: Erin Guinup, Andre de Quadros, John Nix, and G. Phillip Shoultz, III
Music is powerful and our skills as musicians can be applied to make a difference. There are millions of Americans who have limited access to music making and would greatly benefit from the skills we teach. This workshop will explore the practical considerations of creating a musical project for social justice, community building, and for other non-traditional applications.

Potentials of Modern Technology in Voice Teaching
Presenters: Johan Sundberg, Brian Gill, and Filipa Lã
Join voice scientist Johan Sundberg, Brian Gill and Filipa Lã as they lead us on an exploratory adventure of some of the real-time feedback possibilities available to today’s voice teacher. They will guide us on exploration of breathing behavior using Respitrack, breath pressure using the Subglottal Pressure Monitor, voice source analysis by inverse filtering using the Glottal Enterprises MSIF, and spectrogram using the Wavesurfer software.

Teaching Outside the Gender Binary: Working with Transgender and Non-Binary Singers
Presenters: Loraine Sims, Liz Jackson Hearns, Brian Kremer, and Rachel Inselman
This workshop will provide an introduction to the special considerations needed to provide an inclusive, gender-neutral learning environment for transgender or non-binary singers. Refine your basic vocabulary of terminology specific to this population and help to create an awareness and sensitivity for their needs. Medical and psychological considerations will be included and we will be joined by a medical professional.

Understanding A Cappella with Deke Sharon
Many of our students participate in A Cappella groups at school or professionally. Join the father of the modern A Cappella Movement, Deke Sharon as he shares with us some of the structure and techniques of A Cappella and helps you understand how you can serve this population as a voice teacher. We will have two local A Cappella groups in attendance to work with Deke to demonstrate for you.