Hello there. My name is Sandra Laney and I’ve been taking lessons from Kerri Boyle at 5-to-1 Music Studios for four years now.
My journey stared when I was a young girl. I have always had a desire to sing and sang with a sister in church a few times but it didn’t go so well. Therefore, when Jr. High came along and choir was an option I signed up; that was short lived. There were so many who signed up they had to limit the number and I was not one of those chosen. I ended up in music theory which I had no interest in but should have paid closer attention to.
Years passed; life went on and after divorce I recommitted my life to the Lord and actively started participating in church activities in 1996. One of those activities was singing on a praise team and in a duet. This lasted until 1999 when I moved up to the West Valley area and eventually started attending EV Free. There I was actively singing on a praise team, in a sister trio and participating in choir. During all these years I still had a desire to become better at my craft. God honored that desire in a very interesting fashion.
Two years previous to beginning lessons, I met Kerri at church. Over the course of those two years, she would periodically ask if I was interested in taking lessons. I wanted to take lessons, but it seemed I was always lacking the funds to do so.
On November 22, 2009 (I will never forget the day) I lost my voice from sheer over use. I was singing in choir, on a praise team, practicing with a trio for Christmas and actively pursuing an activity which had me talking a great deal. Two weeks later I found the root cause was swollen vocal chords and nodules on the vocal chords. The diagnosis was absolutely no talking from December 2009 to March 2010 of the next year. This was devastating to say the least, as I was scheduled to sing a solo in the Christmas program and sing with my sister trio.
During my quiet months, the Lord go through to me that I needed to give Him control of my life and follow where He wanted me to go. He helped me to understand if I was going to completely heal my voice and be able to sing again I needed help.
When I had my final consultation with my ENT, he gave me the go ahead to talk normally again. He said while I had nice pink no-nodule vocal chords, my voice was still very rough and I would need assistance in getting my normal voice back. I mentioned a voice specialist a friend had sent her daughter to. He keyed right into that idea and when I left I had a referral letter to a voice specialist at LDS hospital.
Before embarking on the voice specialist path, I did some research. I called and actually talked with the specialist and got some information. If I went that route, I would see exactly how my vocal chords looked, how the air flow comes and goes in the larynx and go through whatever therapy was required. That would really be awesome but the down point was the cost. I had a high deductible insurance and was looking at expenses well over $2,000. That’s when God revealed there was a different route to be taken and I needed to contact Kerri; a degreed professional in voice. It was literally voice specialist vs the voice teacher with the four year degree.
I called Kerri and we talked for quite some time. I explained what was going on, the options the doctor had given me and asked if she could help. The answer was yes without hesitation and thus began the process and the transformation. The voice teacher won out over the voice specialist. The next step was a consultation so Kerri could assess where I was at. Then she explained it would be a process of learning to crawl, learning to walk then learning to run.
This was not an overnight transformation. We started out with humming for approximately three months and then I was allowed to sing. It has been a steady work in progress since then developing breathing into the back; proper air flow; muscle memory in diaphragm area; placement of air flow in your mouth; and “hearing”; all techniques that take time, persistence and are vastly rewarding.
During this journey I have laughed and cried with Kerri, and God has been in the middle of it the entire time. This “voice” thing has not come easily but it has been worth every laugh, frustration and tear. I am astounded at the sound I now make, and my desire to learn and grow at the gift God has given me is just as strong today as it was years ago. It may sound funny, but I am grateful for the lost voice God allowed. It helped me find the teacher I needed to not only help heal my voice, but to bring me to the place I am today. It’s been a lot of hard work on both our parts, but it has, and will continue to be, tremendously rewarding.
If you are looking for a voice teacher, I highly recommend Kerri Boyle. She has a very unique, soft and encouraging method of teaching. You will end up astounded by what you learn and how you sound. Your reward will be blessing others with your presentations. That’s worth every penny and all the time!
Sandra Laney
Over the past 2 1/2 years, I have studied with Mrs. Boyle, learning classical vocal technique. Before I began, I thought that I had a good voice that only needed a bit of polish. Oh! How wrong I was!!
Through these past years Mrs. Boyle and I have worked real hard which all started with teaching me to rebuild good vocal habits down. We started from the foundations of what makes good sound and how to apply that to my singing. I was amazed that by following just what Mrs Boyle taught me I slowly was able to remove the poor vocal habits I was using, which by the way I didn't even know I was doing, with good vocal habits. Now, I don't even remember the way I used to sing!!
The result was I grew to love singing even more and decided to major in voice for my career choice. I auditioned for a couple of Universities Music Voice departments and decided to attend Westminster University. I was not only accepted into their Voice Performance program but offered a nice scholarship which I am so excited about. I was also grated acceptance with a scholarship to attend Westminsters Music Summer Camp 2014. Each of my voice auditions were successful because of the opportunities to practice performing at several events Mrs. Boyle made available such as her Music Recitals. No longer to I suffer from stage fright because I can't wait to Sing my songs for an audience!!
Mrs. Boyle is more than a teacher. She is a confidant, mentor and friend. She and her music are both wonderful, and while I am excited to be moving on to the University Music Program, I will miss them both!
No matter what happens, I will always remember this small studio in the mountains, with the piano and Mrs. Boyle waiting for me, 'Eager' to teach me Music!!!
Mrs. Boyle has taught me Piano for a long time and given me more confidence in my music abilities. Now I enjoy playing the piano! I also enjoy that I can read music much better now! Mrs. Boyle's constant encouragement has helped me to become who I am today and I always look forward to coming each week to my piano lessons with Mrs. Boyle!
I have never thought of myself as particularly musical, but Mrs. Boyle showed me I was wrong. Every piano lesson she would tell me how musical I am. I had wanted to read music for a long time time but didn't know where to start. Mrs. Boyle guided me seamlessly through the process making it seem eay every 'step of the way'. I am much more confident on the keyboard than the clueless kid I was before who plunked keys discordantly away!
My friend at school takes piano lessons from another teacher and she said she is so bored; I told her that am NEVER bored coming to my piano lessons!
I really like Mrs. Boyle and think she is a fantastic teacher. I didn't know any piano before taking piano lessons from her and have already learned to read music. I have had fun learning Christmas songs that my friends and family can sing while I play the piano. I already finished several piano songs. I love the way I earn a polished rock for every song I complete. Mrs. Boyle gave me a glass jar to hold my rocks in so I show everyone how much I'm learning. I am so excited on the days I have my piano lesson with Mrs. Boyle!