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31 year old vocalist Ann Moss has been teaching voice for 9 years, first in Boston and currently in the Bay Area. Since moving to Berkeley in 2004, Ann has become a much sought-out vocal instructor among singers of all ages and experience levels. She holds two graduate-level degrees in Vocal Performance from prestigious institutions, and is a member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing. She has extensive performance experience in all areas of classical singing, and has had the honor of working with many of todays best teachers and musicians in master class and private studio settings. In addition to her career as a classical vocalist, Ann has performed and recorded over the years in various genres of popular music, including funk, folk-rock, and r&b.

Ann's students display a wide range of vocal backgrounds, experiences and goals. Since moving to the Bay Area, she has widened the scope of her teaching to include pop, folk, bluegrass, rock, and even punk and heavy metal singers, as well as classical and music-theater singers. She has become well-known among the vast population of singer-songwriters in the Bay Area as a great source for vocal training and performance coaching. Ann enjoys this sort of work immensely, and feels that it informs all levels of her teaching and artistry. "While my first love is working with classical singers, I feel that as the complex landscape of vocal music develops, it is in our best interest as music educators to remain in touch with the ever-changing scenery."

A few words about teaching style: Ann approaches each student as an individual and works with them to come up with a lesson format that best suits their needs. She is not a proponent of any one particular method, but rather chooses to draw from years of experiences as a student, vocalist and listener. These include classic Italianate vocalizes and breath techniques, vocal training in the Oren Brown school, voice and speech therapy work at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, the full-year course in vocal pedagogy as taught at the Longy School of Music, and many years of trial and error teaching students of various musical backgrounds.

ARTIST BIO

Soprano Ann Moss enjoys an active career in both her hometown of Boston and her new Bay Area home. Her stage roles include Blonde (Die Entfuhring aus dem Seraglio, Berkeley Opera) Nannetta (Falstaff, Berkeley Opera), Despina (Cosi fan tutte, UMASS Opera Theater), Patience (Valley Light Opera) and Dew Fairy (Hansel and Gretel, SFCM Opera Theater). She has performed in Master Classes with Jose Van Dam, Nathan Gunn, Graham Johnson, Martin Katz, Jake Heggie, John Harbison, Craig Smith, and Barbara Kilduff, among others. Ann resides and teaches in El Cerrito, studies with Sheri Greenawald, and coaches with Steven Bailey.

Recognized as a champion of contemporary song, Ann is frequently sought out by composers to co-create new works of music and takes immense pleasure in creating first performances. She has collaborated with composers such as Jake Heggie, John Harbison, Eric Sawyer, Graham Hair, Ruth Huber and Vartan Aghababian, as well as with students of Howard Frazin, Paul Brust, David Conte, Elinor Armer, and others. As winner of SF Conservatory's American Art Song Competition, she has participated in the 2005 and 2007 San Francisco Song Festivals, premiering a prize-winning works by emerging American composers. Last spring, she joined composer Eric Sawyer for the world premiere of Itasca, combining music, electronics, movement and spoken word, as well as the west coast premiere of his Vocalise for soprano and electronics at UC Berkeley's CNMAT. Recent contemporary music engagements include an encore of this program on the east coast, music for vocal quartet and strings in collaboration with the Ives Quartet, music for voices and jazz ensemble with the Eric Jekabson Nonet, songs by Jake Heggie at Noe Valley Chamber Music, and a memorial performance of UCBerkeley composer John Thow's song cycle On Love with Karen Rosenak. Upcoming engagements include two concerts with Bay Area's new chamber music ensemble Earplay, and a performance of the Rutter Requiem in LaFayette.

Ann holds a special interest in song recital design and performance. She won first prize in both Art Song and Age divisions of the 2005 California NATS Singing Festival, was a district finalist in the 2006 California NATS Artists Awards Competition, and took second place in the 2004 New England NATSAA Competition. In 2003, she co-founded Boston Art Song Collective, which continues to showcase innovative concert programming for diverse audiences.

Recent concert appearances include Bach Magnificat, Fauré Requiem, Handel Messiah, and Mendelssohn Lauda Sion in Boston, and Hindemith Die Serenaden, Strauss Brentano Lieder, Bach St. Matthew Passion and Cantata BWV51 in San Francisco. She holds a Post Graduate Degree in Voice from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, a Master of Music Degree in Voice from Longy School of Music, and a Bachelor of Arts from Hampshire College. She attended the internationally renowned Songfest program for two consecutive years.