Is there a singer in all of us?

A Charles Darwin University (CDU) Lecturer in Vocal Studies is proving that with the right skills almost anyone can learn to sing. 

Paolo Fabris has recently used his nearly 30 years of expertise to train local Hot 100 Breakfast Show host Lauren “Davo” Davidson to live out her dream of singing in a competition at the Fred’s Pass Rural show. 

Ms Davidson turned to Mr Fabris, who has been lecturing at CDU for 16 years for training, with the lecturer saying success is in part accepting and liking your voice.

“With singing you need to first become familiar with your voice and learn to love it. The hardest thing to do is listening and accepting your voice and you must have a sense of critique,” Mr Fabris said.

“You also must focus on developing your muscles; it is like going to the gym everyday but working your vocal muscles and developing different postures to help project your voice.”

“It is also important to learn the different vocal structures and which ones make specific sounds so you can modify and adjust as you need.”

Once you have the above techniques, Mr Fabris says it is then all about connecting with the audience.

“In singing you need to have an artistry; you need to be able to read the room and create performance magic,” Mr Fabris said. 

“That is about finding a link and connection with the audience, it is rare that this happens but when it does it is magical,” he said. 

For Mr Fabris one of his passions is musical theatre, having directed and stared in several productions including Footloose, Jesus Christ Superstar, Sound of Music, Fame and the Lion King. 

He is excited to see Darwin’s musical theatre scene exploding. 

“There are some big productions starting to happen in Darwin such as Evita and some new theatre companies beginning which is really great to see,” Mr Fabris said. 

“Here in Darwin, we do need to see the artistic level start to rise, but we have limited resources, and our productions can only run for a short time but things are really starting to take off and I am so happy about that.”

In addition to his work at CDU, Mr Fabris is currently working with the Darwin Chorale as musical conductor for the new production “Heros and Villains” which will run from 5-13 July with performances taking place at CDU’s Theatre. 

He is also leading new Musical Theatre classes run by CDU’s Academy of the Arts specifically for teenagers and adults with an interest in learning more about the craft of musical theatre. 

CDU’s Academy of the Arts offers several courses across a range of areas including the Arts, Screen and Media and Music.