Aaron R (from the band Bye Bye Blackbirds)

 

 

"Jeff is a great teacher - easy-going and patient, but also pushes you to realize your full potential.  I'd never studied voice when I started with Jeff, and was a little nervous and ambivalent about whether the lessons would really "work."  But after a few months, I can say without hesitation that Jeff's methods do work.  Highly recommended if you have ever even considered voice lessons."

 

 

 

Singer-songwriter Dave Armo

 

 

  "What separates Jeff Rolka from other voice instructors is his singular ability and willingness to listen to his students. Jeff likes the natural sounds of his students’ voices. His instruction is rooted in a methodology that embraces each individual voice, showing his students how to highlight the strengths of their voices while providing much instruction on the weaknesses. Additionally, Jeff pays close attention to the expressed ambitions of his students, making their goals his very own.

 

Inevitably, working with Jeff furthers the goals of the students while also catapulting their confidence to the requisite level for optimum performance."

 

 

 

Josh V (lead singer of The Illness)

 

 

"I’m a singer in a metal band, and I was dubious about finding a vocal coach who would understand my needs/wants within my genre. Jeff is the man. Not only does he understand what I am shooting for as a metal singer, but he is very patient and encouraging. No matter what your genre is or where your interests lie, Jeff can extend a knowledgeable hand to help you up to the next level."

 

 

 

Jack K

 

 

"Jeff has a great personality and makes you feel very comfortable. I had never taken a vocal lesson in my life but felt comfortable to sing in front of him without judgement. Though the lessons I took were only 30 minutes, I could actually hear the difference between the beginning and the end of the lessons. His method of teaching made me be really thoughtful about the way I breath, hold myself, and the subtle differences in singing."

 

 

 

Andrew Iacopini (from the band Cute Things)

 

 

"My experience with Jeff was life changing. I've been a musician my whole life. I come from a classical background but I'd never taken voice lesson before. My voice has always been something I wasn't quite sure about. After I met Jeff everything changed. Since the first lesson I felt really relaxed, confident in my talent and ready to dig deep into it.

 

Jeff made me feel at home since the first minute of my first lesson. With a blend of voice training exercise and polishing and perfecting songs and performance, Jeff's lessons are unique and straight to the core. He's always able to see through to your talent, understand what you want to do with it and enhance your strengths. In a year and a half I've been with him I've learned everything I know about my voice, and since that first day, I've felt more and more confident in what I can do with it.

 

Don't miss your chance to fully explore and understand your voice inside out. Let Jeff's talent and experience guide you through using your voice to its full potential, and you won't be disappointed."

 

 

 

George W

 

 

"I’ve had a bit of vocal training experience in the past, but going to Jeff was a revelation. No matter your style, he will listen to you carefully and tailor the lessons to you. The recordings of the session he sends you at the end of each class are invaluable!

 

Even after the first lesson, I knew there was something a little different about Jeff than some of the other coaches I’ve known in the past – most of which stems from his almost frightening technical know-how of how the voice works. Taking lessons with Jeff really hammers into you that there is a lot of science behind the art – that is, there is a lot to know about your own voice and all the mechanisms behind it. I invite you to try a lesson with Jeff and find out for yourself! You’ll know what I mean when he starts breaking down every element of your voice and vocal character. The amount of knowledge he has about how the voice operates is pretty incredible."

 

 

 

Mark Bornstein (lead singer of The Downfalls)

 

 

"I have been taking voice lessons from Jeff Rolka for over a year now and I can’t say enough about what a great teacher he is. As the lead singer in a rock band, I came to Jeff to learn how to more properly use my voice. After working with him for just a few weeks, I realized how much I didn’t know. My technique and control has improved dramatically in a very short period of time.

 

Each lesson is really fun: the first section is spent working on vocal exercises and then some time is spent working on songs. At the end of the lesson he sends you a recording of the session that you can take home and practice with. What I particularly like about Jeff is that he customized lessons based on my specific needs. So, for my lessons we work on vocal exercises that address my particular vocal issues (and I have a plenty of them) and then we also work on singing my songs which has been incredibly helpful.

 

I have met a number of other students of Jeff’s and they range from performing musicians to people who just love to sing their favorite songs at home, and they all seemed really happy about their lessons. Jeff definitely does not teach out of a book - which is good. He knows all of the basic singing techniques (yes, speech level) and seems to blend them where appropriate for me. Finally I will say this: Jeff is also about the nicest, sweetest guy you will ever meet. Even for me, as a performer, it’s difficult to work on your voice in front of somebody and put yourself out there, but with Jeff, I always feel really comfortable which helps A LOT!!! I highly recommend Jeff as a vocal coach."

 

 

 

H.Z.

 

 

"Jeff is an incredible voice coach! I had no training in singing but have always wanted to learn and Jeff was the perfect coach for such a beginner. He doesn't waste a minute of your lesson time and quickly tailors the lessons to your needs. I came in completely clueless yet Jeff made me feel completely comfortable, and, after just a few lessons, I know more about voice and singing than I ever could have expected.  He's also a really flexible, respectful, nice, good person, which makes any endeavor more pleasant! I highly recommend him!"

 

 

 

Praise for Jeff's Youtube channel

 

 

 

 

"Man it is beyond time to say thank you. I am slowly getting better from an illness that harmed my voice; I am in my fifties and was at a loss. Been doing this everyday, thank you my friend so very very much."

 

 

"Watching all sorts of vocal coaches on Youtube, I really have to say you are standing out. You don´t dance around the topic and  you give all the needed info. You give good encouragement, and the vids are not to short nor to long. Just sweet. Thanks a lot Jeff!"

 

 

"Dear Jeff, thank you from the bottom of my heart. I do your warm ups almost every day. I do many of them and I do for all ranges. I sang in my youth, I am 56, and a year ago I had a terrible accident with subsequent severe facial trauma. This included amnesia and the inability to speak.

 

I didn't think I would ever sing again, which is my passion. I tried to sing on my own and I couldn't. I read somewhere that if you can't sing, start on a hum. I did all your videos on a hum, then on ahh, ooo, etc. Now I can sing them all, and fairly well. I am actually singing in a club twice a week. I can't thank you enough for what you gave back to me, the love of my life is singing and now I am singing a few hours a day and I couldn't be happier. Again, I thank you from the bottom of my heart."

 

 

"Hey Jeff! It's me again, just wanted to say that I still do this every day and the change in my voice is astounding. My voice used to shake when trying to hit the higher notes but it doesn't anymore. Thank you so much!"

 

 

"This is awesome thank youuuu every time I need to warm up, I warm up with your videos and the results are great!"

 

 

"Thank you so very much, I lost a good part of my voice due to illness now I have been doing better thank you so much. I have been doing your videos everyday, I really love this one since I am rehabilitating my voice thank you thank you thank you!!"

 

 

"Awesome, and Jeff's Skype lessons are great if anyone was wondering. I've been taking them since September and my voice has really improved because he can tailor your learning to what your voice needs at that moment on its path... but I still like these videos for inspiration and variety for my practice, and even just for the aspects of theory they provide and make me think about music in new ways."

 

 

"I just wanted to let you know that you are my favorite vocal instructor on the internet! You really are much more informative than a lot of others consistently, and I appreciate you! Keep doing what you're doing."

 

 

"You may as well be the best vocal coach on YouTube. I have tried others in the past, but none of them really worked. I once learned that the key to success in any area is hard work and the right information. Persistence alone won't do because without the right knowledge it's impossible to know where to focus next. Some vocal coaches seem to keep that type of information for themselves. You, on the other hand, have no problem in transmitting it to people who, like us, are struggling to become better at singing. Most of us, like me, have no money to pay for singing lessons. This makes your videos really, really worthy and useful for us. Thank you! You may be helping us to make our dreams come true!"