VOCAL COACH - Jessica Ford

July 03, 2008 - Dreams Do Come True in Music City
Media - PrivateLessons.com interview with Ghena
Jessica Ford moved from California’s Bay Area to pursue her passion in Nashville. Here she became a PrivateLessons.com Member and developed a thriving full-time studio as Nashville’s premiere vocal coach. We sat down with Jessica to talk about her recording career as a singer-songwriter and her work as a vocal coach.
TESTIMONIALS:
--------------------------------
Im very grateful to have found you. Its great talking and working with someone that understands. I love the passion in your teaching and i look forward to the future.Thank you for your help see you in 2 weeks James "Rocks"
-------------------------------
We made a tremendous break through the last lesson whether you realize it or not. I have been singing in that placement you showed me and it has made everything so much more effortless and it sounds so much fuller and ressonant.
Thank you for that. Jim Tiller Maxx Records
--------------------------------
You are such a lovely woman! You have blessed Jill so much with your belief and encouragement in her! You, also possess the ability to speak the truth and that is more refreshing than I can tell you. I hope your weekend is filled with blessings and joy.
We will see you very soon.
Sincerely,
Debbie and Jill
--------------------------------
"Working with Jessica Ford not only improved our vocal range and tone but even improved our stage prescense! But most importly for us, Jessica really helped us stregthed our harmonies and as a country duo, we believe that our harmonies define who we are as Wild Honey. We never thought vocal lessons could be so much fun! So thanks Jessica!!! We love you!"
Ruthie & Victoria
"WILD HONEY"
--------------------------------
When I decided to take my singing to the next level. I knew the 1st thing I needed to do was get a vocal coach. At my 1st lesson with Jessica we hit it off right away. Since then my singing has improved greatly. I have learned the tools that I will take with me throughout my singing career. I now am a great singer with the proper techniques instilled in me and access to the right connections to help improve my career. I can't wait to see where she takes me next.
Zipporah Banyay
--------------------------------
I cannot say how much I have enjoyed working with Jessica. Her talents extend far beyond just being a great teacher, for she is a beautiful person on the inside and out who is not only gifted as a songwriter and vocalist herself; but it is Jessica’s true genuineness and passion she has for helping her students succeed that make working with her so inspiring. She has helped me obtain a sense of focus and determination to achieve the vocal ability and technique that I strive for while challenging me and encouraging me every step of the way. I honestly can say that I end my lessons with Jessica feeling motivated, positive, and excited for progress we have already made and the possibilities ahead!
Joelene Renee --------------------------------
I've been taking voice lessons with Jessica for over 2 years and am thrilled with the changes I've noticed in my voice since I started! She is very helpful and always makes sure I understand everything she is teaching me, and always works hard at helping me take my performance to the next level. I could not be happier with the results I've gotten from my lessons with her!
Anna Logan
--------------------------------
DON'T YOU EVER LET ANY BODY TELL YOU THAT YOU DON'T KNOW YOUR WORK.....Jess I can't believe the way that Buttons voice has grown...The thing is she is having a ball while learning...Julia, Adrienne and myself are so DAM PROUD OF HER...We are proud of you because you know Buttons couldn't hit a tune in a bucket when she first started coming to you...now I don't mind if someone ask her to sing...now she knows when something doesn't sound right...GIRL you worked your magic on my BABY...
There are days most of the time when Buttons sing we cry....Jessica THANK YOU SO MUCH not just for working so hard with Buttons but just the joy that you have given my FAMILY...
We will never be able to thank you for that you have done...You have done so much for us and still keep a SMILING FACE....OK OK OK I am not going to get all cry babyish on you but we do appreciate you so much...Jess you're not just Buttons Coach but you are family, friend and more..Anything that I have ever ask you to do you have done it...Since the time that we have known you, you have really been there for us...
LOVE AND HUGS WE LOVE YOU BUNCHES AND BUNCHES, Barbara, Julia and of Course Buttons
-------------------------------- From: "Christian Trich" To: "Jessica Ford" Subject: Hello again...your teaching skills are paying off Date: July 6, 2008
Miss Jessica,
Not sure if you remember me that well, but i took some vocal lessons of you about almost two years ago. Well, I just wanted to thaink you for what you taught me...ive tried to continue with you showed me and have continued to teach myself. i still got a bunch more miles to go, but i think im better than i was... hope all is well. thanks again and i'll be sure to mail you the disc when it's done.
keep up the good work.
best, Christian Tritch
--------------------------------
Hi,
Just wanted to tell you that Rebecca loved you. She was so excited about how much you were able to bring out in her. She is her worse critic and such a perfectionist and i was so glad to see you help her just "let go". See you soon and thanks so much.
Lynda Referral from Bernard Porter, Artist Development
--------------------------------
The results I have experienced with Jessica Ford as my voice coach are truly phenomenal!
I have been taking voice lessons from Jessica Ford for over one year now. Prior to Jessica, I had struggled for many years to find the right approach to singing that best represented who I really am as an artist. I found out that most of my instruction was not helping me to come across in any way like my favorite singers that inspired me to sing: singers like, Stevie Wonder, Whitney Houston or Michael McDonald. The problem was not always just a stylistic issues either, it was functional. No matter who my teacher was, I never seemed to be on the same track like the singers who had the full, rich and powerful vocals that most of us admire and envy. What was so paradoxical was that I knew I had that capability. I just couldn't seem to get there with all the technical clutter I was being indoctrinated with by conventional voice instructors.
The various techniques I studied from other teachers included the classical approach, the speech level singing (SLS) approach and lessons from the renown, Rene Grant Williams of Nashville, Tennessee. Many of these classes were ridiculously expensive and while promising much, yielded nothing for me but bewilderment and frustration, not to mention a sound that gained little or no audience appeal. To put it simply, it was ineffective.
If you are like me, while some of these approaches work perfectly fine for probably a small minority of singers, for those of us who for whatever reasons just can't make it work, we come away feeling like we are just not meant to be singers or we just don't have the talent it takes. This however, is totally false for the majority of singers trying to find their right niche.
Jessica Ford can change all of that. She is in a class of vocal coaches all her own. She has a special gift of unraveling the complexity out of singing. Possessing a keen inner ear, with her positive personality, incredible range of precisely tailored vocal exercises and positive reinforcement, Jessica can help a singer find themselves among the various layers of false teachings, bad training techniques, and just plain absurd approaches that often obscure the real singer underneath. Although Jessica has a fundamental approach, which stresses deep diaphramatic breathing, Jessica does not however totally discount different approaches to singing. On the contrary, depending on your own unique vocal makeup, Jessica may even incorporate it into your development because it may accurately represent a true part of you, the singer. This is part of her incredible and flexible approach to singing, because whether it be a passage that is suitable for a speech level technique or a beautifully executed belt, Jessica can show you how to perfect it.
Through trial and error, I have found that Jessica is the best vocal coach in the music business. Whether it is just to get some help in the studio or to take full lessons, she can get you to your best performance.
As a practicing attorney in Nashville, Tennessee, I have also employed Jessica's breathing techniques and vocal training to help drastically improve my courtroom presentations and overall presence in the legal community. And the best part is that I always sound authentic and never phony. That's because Jessica is the only voice teacher I have ever met who has this awesome, uncanny ability to analyze who you are as a singer, intuitively know what your body needs to do at the precise time to make it happen.
The final result is that she brings out that real voice that is the true, authentic and powerful you.
James W. Tiller
--------------------------------
Hey Jessica,
I wanted to write you a note of thanks for helping my daughter Heather in the past months. You helped her record her CD for submission to the Musician’s Institute in LA and she’s now attending! Thanks for all your help. We would not have known about MI without you! Heather does want to stay in contact with you and may even move to Nashville one day.
Thanks again,
Jessica Hunter
--------------------------------
Hey Jessica,
The vocals went down great last week!! We are working on mixing, ect. I ant you to hear the first ones even if it's roughs! Thank you so much. You made such a difference in him. You have helped him not only in the studio but also live. I will be the first to tell any and everybody what a great job you do!!
, Julianne
Kane Entertainment / Management
--------------------------------
I just wanted to tell you that I've been rehearsing for a new cd i'm doing over the summer, and the people I've been playing with are absolutely amazed at how much better I sound vocally...I'm almost a singer now!! can't hardly believe it myself. but it's all due to your expertise. so thank you by the ton! when the cd is done ill be sure to send you one.
Christian
--------------------------------
Well, thank you...you've successfully wooed my daughter. We met with another teacher -- the Belmont teacher recommended by my friend -- and I had her all signed up to do 4 weeks of lessons -- overlapping with her lessons with you -- so she could decide who she felt most comfortable with. On our way home, Savannah said that she doesn't need 4 weeks -- she really likes you -- feels comfortable with you -- likes the music you two are working with -- and likes the quiet, private setting you teach in. She asked me to cancel the lessons with the other instructor. And again, thank you. I am so excited for Savannah that she gets this opportunity -- to do something she enjoys so much -- and so thankful that she's found a teacher that she is so excited about.
Wendee Hilderbrand
--------------------------------
Jessica,
My daughter Rebecca Michele Baker took some voice lessons from you this past Feb. in preparation for an audition for a college scholarship. She did not make the ensemble in Feb. however since her admission this fall she has auditioned again and received a full tuition scholarship for her freshman year. I thought you would be interested to know this and we certainly appreciate you working with her last winter.
Sincerely,
Karen Baker
--------------------------------
Hi Jessica.
Thank you so much for the lesson today. I really enjoyed it and got a lot out of it. I look forward to working with you more on voice and performance.
Thanks!
Jenny Goforth
--------------------------------
I want to thank you so much for working so hard with her..She look forward to coming weekly...Buttons enjoy singing and we can tell a big difference in her voice...I have added several videos of her..Check them out...while I was taping her she told me that she wanted me to wait until she came to you on Thursday..Jessica we can never thank you enough for being patient with her..You make her feel good about her singing..Jess THNX 4 everything we will never be able to thank you enough..
Barbara, Buttons Granny
--------------------------------
Jessica,
It was great working with you. I was very impressed as to how you really heard my voice, and were able to help me come up with a way to utilize it. I have 32 songs that I have selected so far, and am going to work on some more later. I am really looking forward to working with you again.
Warmly,
Linda Zurlo
--------------------------------
Well Vanessa did the show Saturday AND SHE ROCKED!!! she hit the high spot just right, watch the video it is on her myspace and youtube.
Jim Hendell
--------------------------------
MY COACH JESSICA FORD IS SO FAMOUS
RIGHT ABOUT NOW I HAVE TO BE THE LUCKIEST 6 YEAR OLD IN THE WORLD... I AM LOVED SO MUCH..BY PEOPLE... MY COACH AND PIANO TEACHER JESSICA FORD FOR ONE..I JUST NEVER KNEW HOW POWERFUL HER NAME IS IN NASHVILLE...UNTIL LAST NIGHT WHEN I STARTED TO RECEIVE ALL THESE WONDERFUL E-MAILS WITH OFFERS AND TELLING ME SO MANY WONDERFUL THINGS ABOUT HER...NOT TO MENTION NOW THEY WANT TO WORK WITH ME.... YES LIL OL BUTTONS, MS. JESSICA'S SPOIL STUDENT..YES SHE LOVES ME & YES SHE SPOILS ME TOO...SHE ALWAYS SAYS THAT I AM A LITTLE SUPERSTAR GUESS WHAT I GUESS SHE'S RIGHT BUT I CAN'T GET THE BIG HEAD...BUT I ALWAYS TELL HER I WANT TO SING LIKE HER.... I EVEN TRY TO DRESS LIKE HER..AND MY GRANNIES GET THE BIGGEST THILL OUT OF IT..THEY THINK IT IS CUTE THAT I PICKED A PERFECT ROLE MODEL...I AM JUST TO BLESSED...BEAR HUGS TO MY MS. JESSICA...I LOVE YOU COACH...YES WE WILL STROLL DOWN THAT RED CARPET TOGETHER ONE DAY REALLY REALLY SOON...

--------------------------------
Hey there,

Thanks for the friend request! And even more thanks for your kind words at 15 Mintues Of Fame on Friday night, it really meant alot to us! I'm sure your extremely busy, but we're playing at The End in Elliston Place on Saturday night (31st May) if you fancied coming along. Once again, thanks for your encouragement on Friday night, it was a real boost for us!
Jon, Mark & Ry x KOLO BAND