Everyone has heard stories of great singers who claim never to have had singing lessons, & so some people ask why so much emphasis is placed on proper training. Firstly, most professional singers have had several years of training - there are very few natural singers who are without faults. secondly, many natural singers prefer to understate the amount of help they have received over the years to get where they are, as it helps their image as being incredibly talented, & this helps record sales. Thirdly, a lot of natural singers have grown up in incredibly musical & encouraging households, so they have actually learned singing, but in an informal context through osmosis & experimentation.

The other question to consider is that maybe a lot of 'natural' singers would be even better singers if they underwent some training. Often they wait until their bad vocal habits have practically destroyed the voice before seeking help, & it may be too late by then. But these days we are witnessing the re-emergence of many singers in later life who have renovated their voices through formal training in their 40s & 50s.

On a practical level, if you had such natural talent as to not need training, then why aren't you up there making your fortune already? If it's because not every note sounds fantastic, then you'd better get training now, so you won't have problems later. Longevity is very important in the music business. It's easy to get an opening break when you're young & beautiful, but if you can't deliver the goods in terms of musical quality, you're success won't be lasting.

How much can the voice be improved through lessons?

For most students the potential is fairly limitless - provided they have the dedication to practice & to stick to lessons for long enough. All you need is steady improvement that builds on previous improvements to eventually build a voice that is of a professional quality. I don't mean everyone can sing as well as Celine Dion or Barbra Streisand, but who has to? You don't have to be the world's best in order to please an audience.