Bonus Episode with Rob Cates: Our voice speaks of who we are
If ever a discussion exemplifies why I’m so fascinated about process, the conversation you’re about to hear is it - the voice. What started as my desire to remove some of the taboos around vocal health and singing teachers (this was just meant to be a short bonus episode) turned into a far deeper conversation.
Rob Cates is an elite vocal coach professional, one of only a handful vocal coaches accredited by Vocology in Practice in the UK - he teaches commercial artists, musical theatre singers, actors, Gospel singers both in the UK and internationally. He also coaches various choirs and regularly leads workshops and training events.
I’ve known Rob for nearly 10 years and I don’t know anyone who understands the voice like he does and is also so passionate about it, you’ll hear that passion come through in this interview.
Rob shares so many nuggets, so many pearls of wisdom. We talk about the complexity and uniqueness of the voice, how the sound of the voice changes according to not only location, but neighbourhood to neighbourhood and street to street! We talk about how the instrument of the voice is inseparable from the person themselves - we talk about vulnerability, how mental health and trauma impacts the voice, we even talk about Usain Bolt and how sport’s psychology has impacted vocal research!
Guest: Rob Cates
Title: ‘Our voice speaks of who we are'
Artist on Playlist: Jon Thurlow
Mentioned by Rob: Example of Judi Dench singing ‘Send in the Clowns’
Example of belt - Jennifer Hudson singing ‘Golden Slumbers/Carry the Weight.’ (listen between 2.04-2.14 for great belting)