About CHRIS NOLAN
Chris is a specialist voice teacher working across both spoken and sung voice. He began his career in Singapore and the UK as a keys player and accompanist before moving into voice teaching, eventually becoming Head of Singing & Music at Mountview Academy UK, one of Europe’s leading conservatoires for Music Theatre training. Returning to Australia, Chris took the position of Coordinating Lecturer in Spoken Voice and Singing at the Victorian College of Arts. Chris has taught and guest lectured at other leading institutions including NIDA, the Royal Scottish Conservatoire, LAMDA, and the Royal Academy of Music. He often prepares actors for vocally demanding roles, (recently including leads in Beetlejuice, The Book of Mormon, Beauty & the Beast, Pretty Woman, Anastasia).
Chris holds a Master’s degree in the Practice of Voice and Singing from the Guildford School of Acting, and has undertaken graduate research on training dancers to sing. His professional development includes an Associate Diploma in Piano Performance, Estill Figure Proficiency certification, Vocal Health First Aid, and a current Graduate Certificate in Neuroscience and Education. He is also among the first certified Singing Athlete Trainers in Australia.
Chris’s broad skill set and evidence-based approach allow him to move seamlessly between spoken and sung voice work, tailoring his methods to the unique demands of each performer.
About MY Teaching
My teaching is evidence-informed - I stay across the latest research in both voice science and even more importantly, teaching approaches, so I’m not just relying on ‘how things have always been done’ when working with clients. What I bring into the studio is grounded in what we actually know about how voices work and how people learn.
My teaching is holistic- I don’t just shine a spotlight on the larynx - I consider the whole system. Our voices sit at the centre of breathing, swallowing, talking, and all of that matters enormously for singers. In a lesson it is not unusual for my students to be using weights or resistance bands, doing aerobic exercise, working on peripheral vision, or stretching out the tongue.
My teaching is student-centred. All of that knowledge and all of those tools exist to serve your goals and the sounds you want to make. Lessons are always a conversation - we establish and refine what makes you feel good as a singer, what you want to work towards, and we build from there.
