What age should I start voice lessons?

What is the best age to start voice lessons? 

Recently, I wrote a blog post on when is the right age to start piano lessons. Since I tackled piano lessons, I figured I would go ahead and address the same question for voice lessons. Most piano teachers would probably give roughly the same answer I gave, (you can check out that post here What age should a child start piano lessons? ) but I feel like this question is going to get a wider variety of responses, depending on which teacher you ask. And honestly, my answer has changed since I first started teaching. Just understand that there is probably a wide array of opinions regarding this.

So, the first thing we need to talk about is the voice change during puberty. We often don’t really think about girls going through a voice change, but they do. It just isn’t as drastic as the boys, so sometimes it goes unnoticed. Every child is different, but we can expect most girls to experience this change starting around age 10 or 11, and it might last a year or two. Boys generally go through the voice change later than girls, often starting as late as 14 or 15 years old. Even with the boys, sometimes it isn’t really noticeable. My own voice changed gradually over a period of a couple of years, and I (thankfully) never experienced the cracking many young men struggle with. Regardless of gender, the voice change is the time in life when our voices are the most vulnerable. Our larynx (voice box) is growing during this time. For girls, as much as a 25% increase in size and up to a 50% increase in size for the boys. 

For this reason, I won’t do “serious” vocal training with a young person until after the voice change. I often compare music to sports, and I look at it this way: I wouldn’t take a prepubescent child into a gym and put them on a serious weight-lifting routine. Their muscles are growing. Their bones are growing and aren’t completely hardened. (I’m sure there are some out there who would disagree with me on this gym analogy…) If I wouldn’t do that, I’m not going to do the equivalent of that in singing.

Many activities in voice lessons don't fall under "serious" vocal training. I firmly believe in the importance of acting while singing, even during recitals, as it's a crucial skill for young singers. Developing ear training from a young age is essential. Furthermore, musicianship, the ability to read music, and building confidence in public singing are vital skills to develop. Throughout the years, I've had numerous young students and frequently suggested to them and their parents to divide their lessons between piano and singing. Even if they don't become proficient pianists, understanding the basics greatly aids in reading music.

Whenever I have someone interested in voice lessons for a child, I like to have a conversation with them about expectations. Generally, I can assess from that conversation if I will be the right fit for them. If they are looking for a teacher who will take their 8 year old and get them on America’s Got Talent, then I am not the right teacher for them. There are teachers out there who will be the right fit for that, but that is not me. As long as the parents/student have the same expectations as I do as to what we can expect to accomplish, then I am willing to take a child before the voice change. I will say though, that generally speaking, we don’t need to do just voice lessons for six years before an expected voice change. Split lessons with voice and piano? Sure. If all you want to do is voice lessons, however, come see me at age 9 or 10 for girls, and 12 or 13 for boys,