Vocal, Conducting & Diction Coach

I have been teaching singers and conductors for some thirty years. At the University of California, Berkeley, I supervised the vocal performance program and often coached my choral singers in one-on-one sessions. I also taught aspiring choral conductors in classes and workshops. In all areas of music-making, I believe that eye contact, and a connection to breath, imagination, and sense of self are vital.

Feel free to contact me for an in-person or Skype session. I am happy to teach individuals and groups at all levels.

Voice

As a vocal coach, I tailor instruction to each singer’s vocal type and goals. My most important priority is to provide a foundation that enables students to continue singing their whole lives, whether professionally or recreationally. Some of the singers I have coached perform professionally on opera and concert stages, in early music ensembles, in contemporary experimental vocal ensembles, in symphonic choirs, and in the film studios of Los Angeles.

I am happy to teach singers at all levels in weekly or occasional sessions:

• Total novices trying to learn how to match pitch

• Young singers wishing to explore their voices

• Older singers wishing to recover flexibility and range; I seem to have a knack for helping singers over 50!

Testimonials

Marika is an amazing vocal coach. She coached me one-on-one in German for my San Francisco Symphony Chorus audition excerpts, and with her help, I was able to get into the Symphony Chorus on my first try. Marika has also helped me learn Russian diction for Tchaikovsky opera arias and with Ukrainian diction for the Ukrainian Christmas carols we sang in Chamber Chorus. Marika has a keen eye for details and is truly gifted at bringing out the best in her students.”

—Celeste Riepe, Berkeley, California

When I first started working with Marika, I believed that I was tone-deaf and would never be able to learn how to sing in tune. I was ashamed of singing in public, and was afraid of being overheard singing to myself. Marika has been able to lure out an ear for music and a singing voice that I didn't know I had. She never wastes a minute of lesson time, but constantly works skillfully - and joyously. On top of that, she is an extremely kind and wise human being. She can turn my shyness and awkwardness into a sense of comfort and ease in my own body. She has enabled me to find joy in my own voice.

—PhD student in the sciences at University of California Berkeley

For over twenty-five years I had been struggling with extreme and debilitating vocal problems. I met Marika at a point when I had more or less given up on being able to sing freely and without the fear and crippling self-criticism that resulted from what came out of my mouth. With incredible insight—her musical ear is remarkable—with discernment, patience and even compassion, Marika untangled my long-standing and profoundly bad habits and anxiety and gave me tools to use. I’ve experienced a transformation through her instruction and I am profoundly grateful to her.

—Fr. Lawrence Margitich, Orthodox priest

Conducting

My most important priority is to create a sense of connection to the conductor’s body-mind-imagination and a similar connection between conductor and ensemble. Some of my conducting students are leading performances on professional stages or directing ensembles at prestigious colleges, high schools, and children’s choirs around the world.

I am happy to teach students at all levels in weekly or occasional lessons:

• Young musicians desiring basic conducting technique

• Professional musicians who would like to try conducting

• Advanced conductors seeking guidance in choral works

Testimonial

Marika Kuzma has been my conducting teacher for the last two years and I can't begin to detail all the ways her incredible instruction has impacted my work on the podium.  She is a very fine musician with endless amounts of experience, insight and patience. In that time, we have covered a wide range of orchestral and operatic repertoire. In my experience, the clarity and expressivity she seeks in her students pays off on the podium.  Having just made my west coast debut with West Edge Opera, orchestra members frequently expressed to me their pleasure at being shown not only tempos, dynamics and phrases, but also seeing the nature and quality of the sound in the stick.  No higher praise for a fledgling conductor...and their teacher!

—Christine Brandes, Conductor, Soprano, Professor of Voice and Opera at San Francisco State University

Diction

To me, singing with a native accent is as important as singing in tune!  Since I grew up bilingual (Ukrainian-American) in a multi-ethnic neighborhood and I’ve lived in many countries, I have a keen ear for language. I am particularly adept at teaching German, Russian, and Ukrainian diction. Artists from around the world have commented on my ability to inspire authentic-sounding pronunciation from solo singers and choirs. I've coached diction to singers ranging from Natasha Bedingfield to Chanticleer to the San Francisco Symphony Chorus and have been a consultant in theater productions as well.

Testimonial

Marika has been an invaluable resource for me on multiple occasions where I needed German pronunciation support. She is extremely knowledgeable and is a wonderfully clear, supportive, and patient teacher and coach.

—Jessica Berman, dialect instructor and coach, U.C. Berkeley, A.C.T, and Berkeley Repertory Theater