RYAN VAN FLEET
RYAN VAN FLEET
Baritone, Vocal Coach and Music Educator
About
Ryan Van Fleet holds two undergraduate degrees from the Boston University School of Music in Vocal Performance and Music Education. His musical journey started at a young age; taking piano lessons for several years before falling in love with the creativity and expression of the voice.
Ryan has extensive experience with Pop and R&B vocal technique through his work with contemporary a cappella. At Boston University, he directed a coed group for three years before joining an award-winning a cappella group at Berklee College of Music; Upper Structure. He also has significant experience in music technology, specifically in vocal editing and mixing. Tracks he has worked on have made it onto playlists such as "Best of Collegiate A Cappella".
As a classical singer, he has studied voice and opera with world-renowned faculty at the Tanglewood Young Artists Vocal Program, Boston University and the “Si Parla, Si Canta!” program in Arona, Italy. During his time at these programs, he sang character roles in opera scenes and took courses in Italian language and Alexander Technique.
As a private instructor in Voice and Piano, Ryan’s goal is to blend his passions for music education and vocal technique to provide a fun, yet challenging musical experience for his students. He loves to explore a wide variety of genres with his students and help them gain awareness of their instrument and how to use it. With self-expression and curiosity at the heart of his philosophy, he helps his students to become confident, expressive musicians.
Ryan has extensive performance experience in choirs, a cappella groups, solo art song performance and opera scenes. Additionally, he has directed a number of vocal ensembles at the collegiate, high school and middle school levels. Whether it be through performance, teaching or choral directing, Ryan aims to share the impact that music and singing can have in expressing oneself and fulfilling the souls of others.
Philosophy
I believe that at the heart of every successful teacher, there is a successful performer. However, that does not always mean every skilled performer is an effective teacher. Teaching includes an entirely different skill set that doesn't necessarily align with performance skills; working with children/students, explaining the material effectively, developing assignments ect. As a double major in vocal performance and music education, I often get asked "Oh, so is teaching your backup plan?" I always find myself reassuring the world that I'm passionate about teaching and making a difference in the lives of others. From experience, the best teachers I've had are not only effective teachers but incredible performers. I hope to continue to let the growth of my performance skills benefit my music teaching. In addition, I believe that every teacher should grow with each day and be life-long learners. Teachers who truly love what they do continue improving, learning, exploring new ideas and make each day a new opportunity to be the best teacher they can for their students.