Amanda Sloan

Amanda (she/her) is a lifelong musician and multi-instrumentalist who has written and performed original music, played keys in experimental bands, sung in musicals, and composed music for films and audiobooks. As a trained vocal instructor, she has been teaching students of all ages, genres, and abilities for 10 years. She believes teaching is a great way to make a difference in people’s lives through something she loves.

What age were you when you first started taking music lessons?
11 years old
Tell us about an early music lessons experience that helped shape you as a musician or teacher:
This is not a super early lessons experience, but when I was 20 and had already been taking Piano for several years, I got to take a few lessons with my dad‘s piano teacher, a highly regarded Russian pianist, who was very blunt about whether or not I was playing well. I learned more from her in three lessons Than I had in years, and I believed her when she complimented me because she didn’t compliment easily. Note: as a teacher, I do make sure to compliment students, ha ha.
What are your favorite bands or musicians?

I like a huge variety of artists, but here are a few I have loved over the years: Bach, John Coltrane, Radiohead, Sonic Youth, Deerhoof, La Femme, Parliament.

Do you have a highlight of your music career so far that you would like to share?
Not a specific highlight, but a lot of cool milestones that I had not previously thought I would achieve. Since I started out playing classical music, it was a big deal for me to learn how to improvise and make things up with a band, and I wound up playing in an experimental band in Seattle, where we would improvise our entire shows. Then I wanted to become a songwriter, and after struggling with that for a bit, I went on to write and perform original music for eight years. Now I am trying my hand at soundtrack composition and TikTok music videos, and it’s really fun.
Describe your ideal student.
I don’t know if I have an ideal student because everyone is so different, but I do like students who are willing to try new techniques and be vulnerable, especially during Voice Lessons. Usually students who listen and apply the techniques I’m teaching progress really quickly. I also like when students have a clear idea of what they are hoping for from lessons so we can work towards an achievable goal.
Describe what your students should expect in their first few music lessons.
With Voice lessons, we will spend the first few lessons learning the basics of healthy singing, including breath and vocal registers and siren warm-ups, combined with having a student sing a couple favorite songs of varying difficulty levels, so we can apply the techniques in real time.
 
For other instruments, it’s similar in that I like to introduce a combo of technique and applying it to actual songs as soon as possible.
Why did you want to become a music teacher?
I became drawn to voice teaching after completing a series of group lessons at the transformational voice Institute in Portland several years ago, and realizing that not only do I have a flair for teaching, but also it is a great way to make a difference in peoples’ lives through something I love, music, which is meaningful to almost everybody. This is played out time and time again with almost every student I’ve ever taught, regardless of age or instrument.
Want to take lessons with Amanda? Follow this link to get started!