Mindfulness for Singers

This is an 8-week mindfulness course tailored to singers, singing teachers, SLT’s and voice rehabilitation specialists.

This course is currently closed for enrollment but you can join the waitlist for the next cohort in 2025.

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What is Mindfulness for Singers?

This mindfulness course has been specifically designed for professional singers, voice students, vocal coaches and teachers. It is also an optional module for VRS students. During this course you will learn practical mindfulness exercises targeted towards voice users which can be then be tailored to your own coaching or teaching requirements. You will also gain a practical and theoretical awareness of the evidence-based effects of learning mindfulness on singers and musicians.

There is good empirical evidence that learning mindfulness can help participants learn more skillful ways to deal with music performance anxiety, but there is also evidence that it has a wide range of positive effects on music lessons, solo practice, ensemble rehearsals, and during performance (Czajkowski, 2018; Czajkowski & Greasley, 2015; Czajkowski et al., 2020).

How does the course work?

£197 (or 2 payments of £100) for 7 weeks of video modules for you to work through at home.  We recommend allowing one hour per week to complete these.
Students are supported with downloadable audio files (especially created by Annie for home practice) plus a reflective log book and optional extra reading material.
In addition to the video modules, students are invited to attend a 90-minute live class with Annie (online). This will occur in Week 7 and is a performance practice session where students can put their mindfulness skills into the context of  performance. Please note that it is not compulsory to sing in these sessions, you can be an active listener and take the opportunity to ask questions.
This course also counts as 15 credits towards the VRS pathway.

Dr. Anne-Marie Czajkowski

Anne-Marie became a singing teacher and performer after leaving post-graduate vocal studies at the Royal College of Music. Since then she has become a mindfulness practitioner, completed level one MBCT training with the British Mindfulness Institute, and gained her PhD studies in the field of Applied Psychology of Music at the University of Leeds studying the effects of mindfulness on singers and instrumentalists in more depth.

Anne-Marie also has 20+ years vocal teaching experience from nervous beginners and those with learning difficulties up to University first study and Diploma standard students. She currently runs a lively private singing teaching practice at Leeds Conservatoire and Garforth Academy and has recently been appointed as a Teaching Fellow in both the Music Psychology and Music Performance Departments at Leeds University.

Anne-Marie has also recently published the following peer-reviewed journal article reporting the results from the Mindfulness for Singers study she did for her PhD: Czajkowski, A.-M. L., Greasley, A. E., & Allis, M. (2021). Mindfulness for Singers: A mixed methods replication study. Music & Science, 4.

Your Mindfulness Coach

Meet Dr. Anne-Marie Czajkowski who has 20+ years vocal teaching experience from nervous beginners and those with learning difficulties up to University first study and Diploma standard students.

*Click on image to learn more

Who is this course for?

This course is for everyone. Just bring your curious self, and a willingness to learn and develop.

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If you have any queries regarding this course, please email: vrs@vocalhealth.co.uk

Course content overview

Week 1 – Present Awareness (videos 1-3)

Week 2 – Body and Mind (videos 4-6)

Week 3 – Suffering (videos 7 and 8)

Week 4 – Perception (videos 9 and 10)

Week 5 – Widening Awareness (videos 11 and 12)

Week 6 – Exploring Difficulties (videos 13-15)

Week 7 – Performance in Practice – live session on zoom

Week 8 – Summary (videos 16-18)

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Mindfulness to…

Help with learning

  • Singing lessons: Learning technique, creativity, dealing with teacher and lesson pressure, self worry, inadequacy, dealing with criticism.
  • Singing technique: Practical body sensation understanding – self awareness of physical sensations.
  • Singing Practice: Practicing singing technique, quality time management, creativity, words learning, memory of what teacher said, frustration, dealing with self criticism.
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Help with performing

  • Anxiety/Nerves: Not running from them and having strategy to deal with them.
  • Primary and secondary suffering: Types of primary suffering (tummy queasy/headache/sore throat/shakes etc); Types of secondary suffering (feelings of not worthy, emotion of fear etc)
  • On stage: Being aware in present moment to be creative; Being aware of performers / conductor / props / audience; Performing on stage – entry to flow state.
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Help with career stress and daily life

  • People: Networking/getting on with others/dealing with conductors and concert promoters and fixers and agents.
  • Stress and Anxiety: Audition nerves, job related stress, paying bills; Relaxation from intensity of job stresses.
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Help with sleep/relaxation issues

  • Dealing with critics comments, criticism, other singers.
  • Better immunity to colds and flu
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Research

The course has been studied in two research projects and details about this research and published reports are available at www.mindfulnessforsingers.co.uk.

This enrolment for the course contains requests for your permission to collect and process your data for the duration of the course and it asks you to consider your mental health situation before taking the course.

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