Following a period of vocal difficulty in which I worked in more lyric tenor repertoire I found myself more ‘can belto’ than ‘bel canto’. I was extremely fortunate to have worked for some years with Kenneth L Nielsen and Manuel Luhan to readdress the coordination and freedom of the voice.

KENNETH L. NIELSEN

Ken had spent many years as a university lecturer, voice teacher, choral and orchestral conductor and had undertaken extensive research on laryngeal function. He originally studied conducting, but later worked as a repetiteur for the well-known vocal pedagogue Cornelius Reid in New York. 

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After more than 10 years in Reid's studio, Ken ran successful voice studios in Calgary, Vancouver and Florida, adopting and improving upon Reid's own voice-building ideals and techniques.

Having completed a BSc myself, I found the scientific aspects of the vocal process fascinating and was able to combine a new understanding of vocal science and specific/isolated vocal muscle training in association with my own vocal development.       

Ken was an extremely generous person and uncommonly patient teacher.  His philosophy was to respond to the sounds that he heard in each new lesson with voice exercises which would enable the student to achieve their goals, while also having a long term vocal development plan. Ken would rarely be tied down to a simple answer regarding voice production, but became more willing to discuss laryngeal function with me as I became more competent.
 

BIOGRAPHY 
Ken held degrees in Music from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. He studied conducting at the Hochschule for Music in Cologne, and with Herbert Weiskopf in Los Angeles, Josef Zosel in Wiesbaden and Karl Elmendorf in Bayreuth.   His teaching career included positions at several major universities: the University of Michigan; New Mexico Highlands University; the University of Alabama and the University of Calgary.  He retired as Professor Emeritus from the University of Calgary in 1988 and continued teaching voice and conducting privately in Orlando, Florida and Calgary, Alberta.    Ken was the founder and Musical Director/Conductor of the Calgary Civic Symphony, and the Debut Opera Company. During his seven-year tenure with the daCamera Singers in Edmonton, the choir won numerous awards and recorded exclusively with the CBC. Many of his conducting students are involved in full-time conducting careers in major opera houses around the world.  As a well-known pedagogue and voice scientist, Ken undertook extensive research on the Singing Voice at the University of Florida's Institute for Advanced Studies of the Communications Process in Gainesville, Florida.

 

MANUEL (MANNY) LUHAN

When Ken became too old to continue teaching, I continued studies with his adopted son Manuel Luhan, who brought some fresh insights to the principles of voice development. Manny needed to help singers who were in full-time work and needed to implement change quickly. He really worked the vocal muscles in a session and taught me how it is possible to give the voice a work-out while not over-taxing it. 

Manny was also a tenor and he never sat on the fence about how he felt about other singers and their technique - it was great fun talking with him about other singers and his experiences in Europe!

 

BIOGRAPHY

Born in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Manuel Lujan attended The New Mexico Highlands University in Las Vegas and gained a BMus from the University of Alabama and a Masters Degree in Vocal Performance from Florida State University.   He was on the teaching staffs of The University of Alabama, Florida State University and Brevard Community College in Florida. In 1969 he moved to New York and studied with Cornelius Reid, a well-known vocal pedagogue, and John Alexander, a leading tenor at the Metropolitan Opera.  In 1975 he moved to Europe where he sang with The Zurich Opera and for the Grand Theatre in Geneva, Switzerland.   Upon his return to the USA Manny lectured extensively on Vocal Technique and Voice Production at colleges and Universities and also at Mariachi Conferences in Tucson, Arizona, Las Cruces, New Mexico and San Jose, California.  Manny later developed one of the largest vocal studios in Orlando as well as working as Vocal Consultant for Walt Disney World for ten years. He taught noted singers such as; Linda Ronstadt, Vikki Carr, Christina Aguilera, George Lopez, Mariachi Cobre as well as acting as a Vocal Consultant to several record labels.
 

Ken died of old age in his eighties and Manny in his 70s from liver cancer. They will be sorely missed and fondly remembered. We hope to pass on their wisdom and teaching.