Both of my children (ages27and 19)have trained for years with Candace Ford. With much help from…read moreCandace's coaching and support both are on professional career paths. One has signed a record deal with Sony, and the other accepted and attending a top 10 university for Music Theater, and just closed her first professional Music Theater production ( her vocals earning her the lead). Candace has been pivotal in their careers. Candace is an amazing, knowledgeable and caring vocal coach and a wonderful human being. There is a strong emphasis on vocal health for which my kids and I are very grateful. I wish I could give her more than 5 stars! SHES THE BEST!

Vocal sessions with Bobette Jamison-Harrison are amazing. I've taken several sessions with her,…read moreand she has helped me with storytelling, voice control, understanding, correct usage of my voice and placement. In regards to selection, she has helped me to understand correct songs for my voice, and has challenged me to be bold and direct in my approach. If you are considering singing seriously, she is definitely a professional that I would highly recommend and I can't wait for my next session with her.

Just Clown'N Music Vocal Coaching is the absolute best! As a long time student, I have learned the…read moreimportance of vocal exercises and why they play such a vital role in your vocal health. Bobette is exceptional in directing through vocal techniques and proper breathing, establishing tone and volume control. ANY vocalist would be blessed to experience her coaching. She truly cares. -Sharetta Morgan Harmon

I went to Melissa for vocal lessons based on all the positive reviews I read here on Yelp, and…read moreafter working with her, found them to be 100% accurate. I was looking for a vocal coach that could help me, an inexperienced singer, prepare a song for a musical theater camp. Melissa was patient, supportive, upbeat and full of great suggestions. I never felt less-than even though she has the credentials to work with the highest level singers. I highly recommend her for anyone looking for a great vocal coach.

In the field of psychology, a "therapeutic alliance" encapsulates the relationship a…read morepsychotherapist and their client has to reach agreed-upon goals. When I reminisce on my voice relationship with Melissa--from autumn of 2019 until now (January 20th of 2025, as this is being typed)--the connotative strength of the word "alliance" accurately reflects the effectiveness of her pedagogical methods. Before I began working with Melissa, I intended to study with Lynn Helding, a renowned voice professor and pedagogue at University of Southern California. While a spot wasn't available for me in Lynn Helding's schedule, she referred me to Melissa, who was Helding's protégé as a USC DMA candidate at the time. If the concept of "when one door closes, another one opens" is to be embraced, then I will use the example of my path being directed to Melissa as evidence the concept is true. When I lived in San Gabriel Valley from autumn 2019 to February 2020, I would drive at least one hour to Venice from Alhambra for lessons with Melissa on a weekly basis, never regretting the time commitment (via another Yelp account, I wrote my first review for her on January 6th, 2020). As someone with a penchant for analytical thinking, I immediately benefitted from her extensive vocology research knowledge that would be applied to warmups and aria rep. Furthermore, my singing practice has always been spiritually rooted, and Melissa also engaging in music as a spiritual experience leads to her imparting memorable aphorisms that nurture my vocal growth; without her impactful communication skills, I wouldn't have been able to write the essay "Contemplative Consequences from a Decade of Singing" (https://web.archive.org/web/20220517012057/https://www.ruminatemagazine.com/blogs/ruminate-blog/contemplative-consequences-from-a-decade-of-singing). After I moved back to Bellevue, Washington due to COVID-19 lockdowns, I continued to train with Melissa via Zoom. Although I was nervous about doing lessons on screen, she ensured that the quality of the experience would be the same, even trying out different devices (ex. Google Hangouts) to figure out which would work best. The care that Melissa puts into her teaching was also demonstrated by her hosting monthly Zoom studio classes, in which her students would gather together for 2 hours in a weekend afternoon to perform for each other. I began studying with Melissa as a classical countertenor/sopranist at the age of 24 & a half 1/2, but her students represent a spectrum of ages and genre interests, such as CCM (contemporary commercial music). She currently works as an assistant professor of musical theatre at USC, in addition to singing in the LA Opera Chorus; if you're looking to improve your vocal technique in any way, I certainly recommend contacting Melissa now, before her availability becomes more limited. Though I took a three year hiatus from voice lessons to focus on my writing, I have retained my singing stamina because of Melissa's lasting pedagogical influence. Today, after my first lesson in three years with her, I experienced rejuvenation in my body, mind, and spirit, as her wholehearted commitment to developing potential in her students has remained apparent. Melissa: thank you so much for your vocal allyship. Through whatever is to come in the future, I know I will always be thrilled to continue growing with you singing.

She is honestly the best vocal coach I've worked with. She teaches real art, not just exercises,…read moreand you can feel how much she genuinely cares about your progress. Every lesson leaves you with knowledge you can actually use.

Micayla De Ette is as good as it gets as a singer. She can give Mariah Carey, Christina Aguilera,…read moreWhitney Houston, and Aretha Franklin a run for their money! Not only that, but she can teach! I should know. She's my voice teacher. I've always loved music and singing. From the time I was a little girl, I would sing along to all the Disney movie music from The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast. In high school, I was in musical theatre, and I was a singing narrator in "City of Angels." That said, I never had a singing lesson. I just tried to repeat what I was taught. I was a copycat with no training, and it worked okay. Then, I met Micayla. She was leading the worship service at Faith Tabernacle Church in West LA, and my husband and I were completely blown away! She has so much passion, soul, and conviction. I thought, "She HAS to be somebody famous!" So, one day after church, I approached her about teaching me to sing so I could sing to my husband on our wedding day (which, by the way, was 2 months from that day). She had me sing something for her on the spot to determine how much help I was going to need. Thankfully, I am an okay singer on my own, and she agreed to work with me. Within the first 2 weeks, I already noticed a change in my voice ... and in my confidence. It was amazing! We went through the basics at the beginning. We exercised my diaphragm. She taught me how to breathe. She showed me the proper posture. She also evaluated my range, and it turns out I have a 3&1/2 octave range (Micayla has 4&1/2. Mariah Carey has 5.) We discussed resonance. She taught me how to properly warm up my voice. She gave me advice on how to care for my voice. She taught me to stop straining my throat. These are just the basics ... and then, she taught me how to really sing. Teaching is difficult, but Micayla is so creative and so good that it seems completely natural to her. She really pushes me outside of my comfort zone and gets me to go to the outermost boundaries of my voice. She is helping me build confidence, and I'm so incredibly grateful for that. What I appreciate the most about the lessons, though, is that they are specially crafted for me. It's not a cookie cutter, textbook lesson. She works with my range, my voice, my confidence, and the music I like and want to sing. Needless to say, my song at the wedding was a huge HIT! My husband was very emotional, and everyone there, including my closest family and friends, was totally blown away. Most people who really know me know I love music and that I did musical theatre, but hardly anyone who knows me knows that I can sing. I was incredibly nervous to sing in front of a crowd on my wedding day, but when I saw my husband's face and his reaction, it was all worth it. Micayla helped me make my wedding day truly special and personal. In fact, I was so impressed with her lessons that I signed up to continue learning from her! Trust me when I say she is worth every penny. If you have any other questions, check her out (her voice speaks for itself): www.facebook.com/micayladeette www.youtube.com/user/kayladeette www.soundcloud.com/micayladeette *P.S. She's available to perform at any function, and she can literally sing ANY type of music. It's pretty incredible.

Lauren Carter is an amazing vocal coach. I have been working with her and have transformed from…read morean off key hopeless singer to someone who can carry a tune and has the confidence to sing in public. She is patient and encouraging and highly recommend her.

My daughter has been working with Lauren for almost a year now. My little girl was diagnosed with a…read moreSpeech and Reading Disability and her psychiatrist recommended speech lessons as well as singing and piano classes to help her improve overall. With Lauren's expertise in singing and piano, and her calm patience, my daughter is speaking more fluently now and belts out songs all day long. Lauren is a pleasure to work with and my daughter just loves her. If you have small children who enjoy singing and want them to learn piano, Lauren is the best!

I love working with Ani! She's helped me grow my skills & confidence so much in just a couple…read moremonths. I love how she encourages me to be creative with my singing and she's helping my strengthen my ear and my songwriting skills too. I definitely recommend Ani!!

I can't recommend Ani highly enough! I have been working with her every week for over a year. I…read moresought out Ani because, although I have always loved to sing, I was unhappy with my lack of confidence singing in front of other people. Ani has not only helped me build my confidence, but she's helped me improve my vocal range dramatically. She's always very encouraging and quick to highlight wins; I really appreciate how she has helped me find ways to challenge myself and grow. I am definitely a better singer for having worked with her, but best of all, I feel joy (rather than shyness and embarrassment) when singing in front of others. Ani has amazing skills as a vocalist, musician, and teacher. She also has fun, positive energy, and I always leave my lesson feeling happy and energized. She is the best!!!

Our teen granddaughter took Voice Lessons with Christine Lao through Raffia Music. Christine was…read moreeasy to work with and flexible if we needed a schedule change. She helped our granddaughter prepare for a theater audition and we saw her vocal skills and her confidence soar! She received many positive comments during her audition and the difference before and after voice lessons were noticeable! Highly recommend!

Love this studio!! Woman owned!…read more My daughter is now 7 and has been taking lessons here since she was 4. I took piano lessons from age eight until age 16 and wanted a place that could start my daughter sooner. Raffia Music Studio was the only one that would start my kid at 4, plus it offers so many other types of musical instruments, voice and performance training. I am a serious researcher. I have always made exhaustive lists weighing the pros and cons of any endeavor. After researching several studios, I decided this was the one! Consistency is key in becoming good. We've had the same teacher since we began 3 years ago. Srimal is not only a teacher, but performs regularly with a band around town. I appreciate when a teacher also honors their craft by doing it. Srimal is very patient. Works to get the best out of his students. Pushes them, but also meets them where they are. Every winter, there is a recital where you get to enjoy seeing all the students performing their pieces. I highly recommend Raffia Music Studio!

Jane Chen has been wonderful in helping my daughter improve her singing techniques and overall…read moreconfidence. Her voice lessons are taught in a very comfortable, supportive, and non-threatening environment, which really helped my daughter feel at ease while learning. We've noticed great improvement in both technique and vocal control, and my daughter genuinely enjoys every session. Highly recommend her to anyone looking for a patient and encouraging voice coach!

I'd always been interested in singing, but after hearing myself attempt to sing in the past, I was…read moreconvinced I was tone-deaf and felt discouraged. After my acting teacher recommended all actors do vocal training, I took the opportunity to try it. As an adult beginner with no real singing experience, searching for a place to start was intimidating, but I'm so glad I took the leap with this studio. Through the Vocal Foundation program with Stuart Wheeler, I've learned that I'm indeed NOT tone-deaf, and that with the right training and technique, I've been able to unlock a part of my voice that I've not been able to access until now. Stuart is a highly-skilled teacher, singer, and musician, with the ability to articulate complex musical terms in a way that easily clicks in my mind (and I'm not an easy person to teach!). He is a patient, compassionate instructor who provides a safe, fun space to learn and explore. I've enjoyed being able to choose the songs that we work on. My lessons have always been insightful and surprisingly empowering. In just a few months, I've gained much more control and confidence in my own voice, expanded my range, learned to be more mentally focused and present, and have sharpened my listening skills. I can now sing for pleasure without being so self-conscious. My vocal training has even helped improve my piano and guitar practice! The session rates are reasonable and the location/parking are convenient. I haven't had a chance to work directly with Jane but she has been lovely over our communications. Overall, I've gained so much from my training here and I look forward to continuing.