I’ve always loved to sing. I grew up surrounded by music of all kinds and it wasn't long before I knew I wanted to make a career in music. I find teaching voice as exciting as singing itself, maybe even more so. I've been teaching for over 30 years (full time for 20 years). I am obsessed with learning more about how our voices work and making sure I create a safe space for my singers to explore their personal artistry.
Renée Heath (née Hoffman) is a Southern California native who began her studies in voice at the age of 15. She began teaching part-time in 1992 and founded the Renée Heath Vocal Studio (formerly the Renée Hoffman Studio) in 2003. Many of her students have gone on to study music performance, music education and have performance careers. She spent several years on the vocal faculty at the Orange County High School of the Arts (OCSA) in the Opera Conservatory (now the Classical Voice Conservatory). She was the vocal director at Braver Players Musical Theater Foundation in Costa Mesa, CA until her move to Texas in 2017. She recently moved back to California and is so happy to be home!
Renée’s teaching philosophy is that singing is a journey. And every singer has their own path. She believes confidence and joy come with time, practice, and patience. She wants her students to celebrate all their successes along the way, no matter how small they may seem. The study of voice is very much a road to self-discovery.
Renée truly believes there is always more to learn. Evidence based vocal science has become an obsession and she continues her studies in vocal science and pedagogy to this day. Yes, she still takes voice lessons!
Renée holds a Master of Music in Vocal Performance from the New England Conservatory in Boston and a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from the University of California at Santa Barbara. Upon completion of her master’s in music she moved to New York City where she worked in opera and musical theater traveling from Arkansas to Santa Maria Switzerland and many places in between. She is also an accomplished recitalist specializing in the songs of Hugo Wolf, Johannes Brahms, Richard Strauss, Gabriel Fauré, Aaron Copland. She spent a summer at the Tanglewood Music Center where she studied with Phyllis Curtin, Margot Garret and Barbara Bonney. Her current favorite music to sing is anything Sondheim!
Mrs. Heath is a member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) and the Los Angeles National Chapter.
Outside of music, Renée LOVES, dancing lindy hop, being a dog mom and spending time making good food & drinking wine with her awesome husband, family and friends.