Question: How long does it take to develop a good singing voice?
Friday, August 1st, 2008. . . provided there’s a lesson a week, and I practice daily?
Answer: I think I know what you mean. You are not suggesting that youngsters are incapable, because of their age, of having a good singing voice. But once the voice has changed in puberty, how long…
First let’s establish what “normal” is since I may take exception to what another voice teacher refers to as normal. While some children as young as 7 and 8 take private lessons, the advantage to private lessons NORMALLY begins when a girl’s and boy’s voice has undergone its adolescent change. Therefore, a girl may normally begin voice lessons productively at about 16 or 17, and a guy is usually closer to 18 (a freshman in college).
Second: To have a “good singing voice” means that the instrument already has good potential and that the “raw material” to eventually produce a fine musician singer is present. It is possible for a naturally gifted singer to have the raw material and not take any voice lessons at all and still have a good singing voice. However, I’m going to assume that you mean “and also knows how to use it and wants to develop it professionally” implied in your question since you use the word “develop”.
During the next four or so years (past the ages named above), the voice in each gender is going through its biggest phase of development. In fact, the voice continues to mature for several years in each case. It is during these first four or five years that vocal lessons help the young singer to establish good singing habits: ways of listening, habits for respiration and breath support, production of tone, articulation, etc. – until a settled reliable technique is established.
Assuming the best: that there is a competent voice teacher and a diligent voice student, by age 20 – 21 the young singer will NORMALLY have developed a good singing voice – one s/he can count on that is resonant, expressive and pleasant to listen to.
Many professional singers retain for decades the same voice teacher with whom they developed and come back to him/her for an occasional “refresher” lesson when things temporarily don’t seem to be working well.
Four years – minimum – is normal depending on the goals of the singer. Singers who go on beyond their college career to graduate school obviously continue to study, and as often as not, with a new teacher (meaning, with a teacher they’ve never studied with before). However, if a solid foundation has been procured during the college years, they can spend the greater portion of their time learning repertoire, rather than on “how to sing”.
I hope this sheds some light on your question.