Frequently Asked Questions

No. I’ve heard “I’m too old” from singers in their 20s and singers in their 80s, so I’m not sure it’s really about age.

There seems to be an idea that “proper singers” find singing easy, are full of confidence, and take a direct route from the womb to musical success by the age of 25. Many of the adults I coach once dreamed of singing, but life took them in another direction: family, paying bills, tending to their health. The desire to sing didn’t go away.

Some routes into the music and theatre industries do have timelines and practical realities. But those aren’t the only ways to have a fulfilling musical life.

Singing is art, and art is about telling stories. The more life you’ve lived, the more stories you have to tell.

If you love to sing, you should sing.

No. You can develop a skilled, well-trained voice in the style you actually want to sing.

“I don’t want to sound like an opera singer” is something singers often tell me when they first enquire about coaching. Sometimes a little apologetically, as though they’re worried they might offend me.

Fortunately, I’m not an opera singer. Nor am I easily offended.

But I understand the concern. Classical training is still sometimes seen as the default, but it isn’t a compulsory first step. Pop, rock and musical theatre make their own demands on the voice, with different vocal qualities, phrasing and stylistic choices.

My online coaching is for adult contemporary singers. We work towards your musical goals and the sounds you want to explore.

A trained voice doesn’t have to sound classical. It should help you sound more like yourself.

You might have an idea of what a “real singer” looks like: someone who finds singing easy, practises every day, never doubts themselves and always sounds fantastic. If that’s the standard, it’s hardly surprising you don’t feel like one.

I hear “I’m not a real singer” from people who have been singing and training their voices for years. They’ll even tell me they’re “not trained”, as though the work they’ve already done somehow doesn’t count.

But what exactly is a real singer? Is there an exam you have to pass? A certain number of gigs? A minimum number of hours you have to practise each week?

If there is, nobody told me.

There have been times when singing has been joyful and easy for me, and times when my relationship with my voice has been much more complicated. There have even been periods when I haven’t sung much at all. And yet, I always come back to it.

Singing is a pastime that can be enjoyed and a skill that can be nurtured. You don’t have to reach an imaginary standard before your experience counts.

If you enjoy singing and choose to keep coming back to it, I think you’re a singer.

In my experience of working with singers, it’s very rare for someone simply to have an inherently “weak” voice. More often, their voice hasn’t yet developed the coordination it needs to feel and sound strong.

You might run out of breath a lot, find that your higher notes sound breathy or thin, or struggle to get more volume. It’s easy to interpret this as “I just don’t have a strong voice” or “Maybe I don’t have enough lung capacity.” But that feeling doesn’t necessarily tell us what your voice is capable of.

Building vocal strength takes a specific approach: finding exercises that work for you, then practising them consistently so that you build strength and coordination over time.

Your voice may be working harder than it needs to. For example, if you’re pushing for volume, using more air than a sound needs, or carrying unnecessary tension in your body. How much you use your voice and your general health can also play a part.

In coaching, we explore your vocal coordination, breathing patterns and vocal health history to understand what may be contributing and find ways to make singing feel easier. The Initial Fit session gives us time to explore your experience and identify useful next steps, including specialist assessment where needed.

Confidence can help, but it isn’t always the whole answer. If part of a song feels difficult or unreliable, telling yourself to “just go for it” may not give you the tools you need.

“It’s all in my head” and “I just need to get over myself” are things I hear often in lessons. But there can be a feedback loop: something in your voice isn’t coordinating as it needs to, so singing feels effortful or unstable. Your brain quite reasonably doesn’t trust it, and that shows up as hesitation, frustration and self-doubt.

Carefully chosen exercises, practised consistently over time, can help you build more reliable coordination. As your voice becomes easier and more predictable, you have something concrete to base your confidence on.

You don’t have to wait until you feel confident to develop your voice. Confidence will develop through the process.

“Isn’t that cheating?” “Am I allowed to do it that way?” “Shouldn’t I do it the proper way?”

These are questions I hear a lot in singing lessons. It might be about using head voice, changing the key of a song, or making a sound that doesn’t match someone’s idea of how singing is supposed to work.

But who decided which ways count?

This idea that there’s a “proper” way to sing can leave us chasing an imaginary standard instead of getting to know and developing our own unique voice. I’ve caught myself doing it too.

Of course, we can develop our skills, explore different sounds and learn to use our voices more sustainably. But that doesn’t mean there’s one correct sound we should all be aiming for.

When we let go of the idea that our vocal choices are “right”, “wrong” or somehow dishonest, there’s much more room to explore what we can do and what we actually want to express.

So next time you wonder whether you’re cheating, ask yourself: “Who exactly am I cheating?”

Can breathing exercises really help my singing voice?

Yes. Developing adaptable breathing habits can be a key part of building vocal stability, ease and consistency. For some singers, this is a missing piece of the puzzle.

My approach is about helping you develop your relationship with your own breath: noticing how it changes and learning to respond to what you need, both in everyday life and when singing.

As a certified Buteyko Breathing Instructor, I can help you lay that groundwork. Some singers need time to develop breathing awareness and habits before exercises specifically for singing become useful. We start where you are and build from there, so the work has a purpose you can connect with.

Yes—tongue tie can affect the way your tongue, jaw, breathing and body alignment work together, which in turn impacts tone, range and stamina.

The good news is, with the right strategies, singers can adapt and thrive. I have been through this process myself!

You can read my blogs about it here.

Yes. Vocal coaching can help with many common singing problems, including vocal fatigue, difficulty reaching notes, running out of breath and a voice that feels weak or unreliable. We work towards practical changes that make singing feel easier and give you more choice in how you sound.

We look at the factors that shape your experience of singing: your health and vocal history, vocal coordination, breathing patterns, personality and musical preferences. Together, we explore how these interact, try approaches that fit you, and use your feedback to guide what we work on next.

Every singer is different, so there isn’t one exercise or approach that works for everyone. My role is to give you the tools, feedback and encouragement to build lasting improvements in ease, stamina and confidence.

Each session is personalised to your goals, your voice and what you need that day.

We usually begin with a check-in: how your voice has been feeling, what you’ve noticed in practice, and anything you’d like help with. We then use voice and body awareness work to help you notice sensations and explore how your voice responds.

Depending on what’s useful, we might work with vocal exercises, breathing, songs or performance preparation. We make space to experiment, and your feedback helps guide the session.

My coaching draws on evidence-based vocal pedagogy, with an emphasis on helping you understand what works for your voice and how to apply it independently.

You’ll leave with clear strategies to practise between sessions, building your skills, confidence and independence over time.

There isn’t a set number of lessons. Every singer starts from a different place, and your goals, practice, health and everything else going on in your life all play a part.

Vocal training involves understanding concepts, noticing sensations and building new patterns of coordination. Finding a sound once is different from being able to choose and repeat it reliably within a song—or a whole set. Those changes take time.

Frequent, effective practice helps. But the pressure to improve quickly can be the very thing that slows you down. Patience and curiosity give you room to explore, respond and change.

The singers I coach frequently expect too much of themselves too soon, but exceed their own expectations in the long term.

Are online singing lessons effective? Can you hear me clearly enough?

Yes. I’ve been teaching singers online for over 10 years, and many notice they improve faster than they expected.

Working online has allowed me to coach singers in UK, Malaysia, Australia, France, Italy and the USA—even people living on small islands or travelling in camper vans. It also makes lessons possible for people whose health needs make travel difficult.

With a suitable connection and audio settings, I can hear the detail I need to coach you effectively. What you tell me about how singing feels is also an important part of how we work together.

I use an external microphone and headphones so you can hear me clearly, and I provide simple tech guidance to help you set up your own equipment for our sessions.

All sessions take place online via Zoom, so you can join from wherever you’re based. You’ll need a stable internet connection and a space where you feel comfortable singing.

Your first step is a 90-minute Initial Fit Session (£160). In this session, I carry out a detailed vocal assessment and create a written report, so we can tailor the coaching approach to your voice and goals.

After that, ongoing coaching is available in different packages, depending on how often you’d like to work together and the results you’re aiming for. We’ll decide together what feels like the best fit for your voice, lifestyle, and budget.

You can read more about how I create packages here.

All you really need is a laptop (or desktop) and a stable internet connection. If you’d like to get the best possible results, I’ve put together some simple Zoom set-up guidance you can follow. Extra equipment like headphones or an external microphone can be helpful, but they’re completely optional.

We’ll begin with an Initial Fit Session. This gives you the chance to see if you enjoy working with me, and it allows me to understand your voice and goals. When you book, you’ll receive a confirmation email with Zoom details and anything you need to prepare.

To get the best out of your session, aim to arrive rested and hydrated, and check that your tech is updated in advance. It’s completely natural to feel nervous—many singers do! I’ll walk you through everything step by step so there is no need to worry.

You can read the studio policies below.

Thank you for choosing to work with Gemma Milburn’s Vocal Studio and trusting us with your voice. In this studio we celebrate individuality, collaboration and acceptance. We believe that talent is not magic, but a product of commitment and work. Everyone who wants to sing deserves to, and can be an exceptional singer with training and practice.

This is a boutique studio, which means that client numbers are purposefully kept low. We believe that you will get the best results when working with a coach who is:

a) the right fit for you ,and

b) who has the time and headspace to be fully present with each and every client.

Expectations

The art of singing is about so much more than the larynx, breath and lyrics. We hope that you will feel free to bring your whole self to your vocal coaching sessions. We believe that you get out what you put in and trust that you will approach your training with an open-heart and willingness to work collaboratively. As your coach I do NOT have all the answers, but use my expertise to provide a framework and opportunity for experimentation and exploration.

The studio is committed to acceptance and improving its understanding of people who have different life experiences than our own. Homophobia, racism, misogyny and any form of bullying is not tolerated.

Communication

We know that your training and growth is about much more than our time together in coaching sessions. For this reason Gemma aims to be open and available to you for voice- related advice outside of sessions if needed. Preferred mediums of communication are email, WhatsApp and Marco Polo. There will be no replies at weekends except in emergencies which thankfully are very rare in this industry.

Resources

It is strongly encouraged that you record your sessions and use these recordings to aid your practice. Please note that session recordings, Marco Polos and any resources we create for you are the studio’s intellectual property and you do not have permission to share them publicly. On the same note, The studio will never share content from our work together without your express permission.

Practice

Research has shown that when working with a vocal coach, the bulk of your growth will come from the way that you apply your training in between sessions. The studio promises to help you to understand how and what to practice, and it is up to you to commit to doing so on a regular basis.

Payments, Refunds and Rescheduling

You will receive bespoke terms and conditions depending upon the programme that we design for you, so specifics may differ from below (with your agreement.)

You are welcome to reschedule your session time at your leisure unless that session is less than 72 hours away. In this case you will not be able to reschedule the session and any payments will not be refunded. No refunds are given under any circumstances.

The studio does understand that things come up unexpectedly and if there is space to fit you in elsewhere, we will do our best. However the studio is very busy and this is not guaranteed. You are welcome to request an asynchronous session as an alternative.

Subscriptions

The majority of the studio's clients opt to work via subscription.

Please understand that your subscription syncs your payments with your bookings and will go out automatically at an agreed interval (usually every 4 weeks.)

If you cancel a session within the notice period of 72 hours, (or if the studio takes a holiday) the date of the next payment will be adjusted to reflect this. You will get an email confirmation every time the payment goes out.

You can cancel your subscription with 72hours notice, either via a button in the email, logging into the bookings system or by emailing gemma@gemmamilburn.com

We are thrilled to welcome you into the studio.