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Diana R. Spradling (1993)
Vocal Pedagogy, Jazz

B.M. Florida State
M.M. Florida State

Diana Spradling teaches graduate and undergraduate jazz voice and vocal pedagogy at Western Michigan University. She is also the founding Director of the Applied Studio Technology Laboratory (ASTL), a state-of-the-art lab that acoustically analyzes sound and measures vocal behaviors such as vowel clarity, vibrato rate and width, presence and absence of legato, onsets, releases, resonance, nasality and laryngeal freedom to name a few.

Students who have studied with her during the last decade include several university-appointed jazz voice professors, seven Downbeat Award winners, two Monk Institute finalists, one Monk Institute graduate scholar, two JAS Aspen participants, on and off Broadway performers, members of national touring companies, recording artists, club singers, studio musicians, jingle singers, cabaret performers, and a Grammy nominee.

Spradling is co-founder of the International Association for Jazz Education's Sisters in Jazz program, a mentoring program to encourage and promote participation of young women between the ages of 15 and 25 in the Art of jazz music. She has also served three consecutive terms as the National Chair for Jazz and Show Choirs for the American Choral Directors Association. Spradling maintains active teaching, coaching and master class schedules and is the author of the new ground breaking textbook, Jazz Singing: Developing Artistry and Authenticity, published by Sound Music Publications.

Email: diana.spradling@wmich.edu