A Day in the Life of an SLP with Marci Rosenberg - The Vocal Advancement Podcast - #016

As voice teachers, we regularly help our students with multiple vocal challenges — but few of us probably deal with the range of clients this week’s guest has.

As a speech language pathologist and clinical singing voice specialist, Marci Rosenberg works with anyone who uses their voice professionally in front of an audience — from singers to preachers to lawyers to sports announcers — at the University of Michigan Vocal Health Center.

Specializing in repairing injured voices, Rosenberg’s work in vocal health has helped her see that no two patients are alike and everyone deserves to be treated holistically. As such, she tailors the vocal exercises she teaches to match each client’s psychological state so they gain the maximum physical, spiritual, and mental benefits from her treatment.

In this episode, Marci reveals the most common vocal issues people come to her clinic with. She shares her views on mistakes singers make when trying to rush through their vocal exercises. And she emphasizes the value of moving toward your goals slowly.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. How a field trip to a voice clinic led Marci to pursue a career in speech language pathology 12:22
2. The number of diverse clients a speech language pathologist can see in a day 20:41
3. How collaborating with patients and getting them to do the bulk of their voice work helps Marci manage her large workload 23:16
4. Why addressing a patient holistically helps them better than just focusing on their vocal folds 23:55  
5. The most common vocal issues people are now seeking help with 25:19
6. How COVID-19 has created entirely new populations of patients for clinics to accommodate 26:25
7. Why taking a person’s performing and psychological needs is essential when tailoring voice lessons 28:33
8. Common mistakes singers make when using straw exercises to improve their singing 32:10
9. How focusing on the process of your voice lessons leads to better results than rushing through voice exercises 41:40

Learn where Marci will be lecturing and presenting next by following her on her website.

Marci’s IVA webinar “To Sing or Not to Sing? The Performer’s Guide to Managing Illness and Performance Demands” offers practical strategies for singers to manage their voices when they become ill. Download the recording to hear her insights.

See Marci demonstrate effective ways to use vocal straw exercises by checking out the video version of this podcast on YouTube. Don’t forget to comment, subscribe, like, and follow us!  

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