My philosophy
You might have been told that you can’t or shouldn’t sing the songs you want to sing because „you’re not the right voice type“, „your voice doesn’t sound good“ or „you’re just not naturally talented“. On the other hand, you maybe have
heard the phrase „Anyone can sing anything“ before. I believe that far more people than we might think can learn to produce far more sounds than we might think, and it is my mission as a vocal coach to provide aid to as many of those
interested as possible. In fact, most of the time it’s not me who teaches someone how to do a new sound, but the student who rediscovers sounds that they have abandoned before, and I’m just there to assist them with their searching.
It is my job to help people to help themselves, and thus it is my goal to make myself redundant and empower students to be self-responsible, self-determined and self-confident singers.
My fields of work
I teach all styles of singing – including pop, jazz, and classical, but I specialize on rock and metal techniques like belting, mixing, distortion and screaming. My pedagogy is influenced by evidence-based and student-centered methods without genre bias like Complete Vocal Technique (CVT) and Estill Voice Training (EVT), as well as my own experience and research as the vocalist and vocal nerd I have been for over a decade. Since 2021, I have been part of the German teacher’s association (BDG) and in May 2024, I have successfully completed the Estill Figure Proficiency certification (EFP).
Basics
Breathing, pitch, range, dynamics, tone, freedom, consistency…
Style
Phrasing, vibrato, sound colours, registration, soft vocal effects…
Rough Vocal Effects
Distortion, screaming, throat singing, extended technique…
Songs
Interpretation, songwriting, performance technique…
Improvisation
Riffs & runs, scatting, scales and tools, approaches and mindsets…
Professional Development
CVT and EVT pedagogy, vocal effects, anatomy & acoustics…
Testimonials
Here’s what some students and colleagues say about me:
I love having lessons with Toni. He is encouraging and understanding. His knowledge of voice is formidable and he doesn’t subscribe to any „method“, remaining open and using all tools available. I trust him with my voice and frequently refer other singers to him for his expertise.
Aliki Katriou
Greek-English metal vocalist and singing teacher
As someone who’s been singing for over 20 years I sometimes fall victim to the delusion that I’ve learned all there is to learn about singing. In a very short time with Toni, I’ve discovered new parts of my voice that I didn’t even know I was looking for. Toni has both technical expertise and useful teaching visualizations in spades. I would highly recommend him to singers of all styles.
Jesse Nolan
Singer of Californian indie electro soul band „Caught A Ghost“
Toni not only has a profound knowledge of vocal effects, he can also demonstrate all of them over and over again in an impressive way. His workshop is super well-structured and he shares his wisdom generously. In one on one teaching sessions, he approaches his students without hierarchy and is always deeply invested. He keeps feeding the singer cues until they can successfully produce the desired sound – the benefits of both a large repertoire of exercises and an individual approach to the artist. Vocal health, or as he calls it: sustainability, is a top priority. There is never a feeling of risk of injury. It was an inspiring day! See you again.
Susanne Eggert
German Vocal Coach and actor
I have known Toni for a few years and I really recommend him as a vocal coach. We have talked about singing a lot and exchanged ideas – I’ve even had him on my YouTube channel. He checks so many boxes that a good teacher should. For example, Toni is a great singer, he is really passionate about figuring out how to sing, and really cares about the progress of his students and them truly UNDERSTANDING how to make the progress they want. 10/10
Gregory West
Vocal coach and YouTuber from California
Toni has helped me a lot in discovering my voice. His way of teaching vocal technique is rather unique, all my classes with him are straight-to-the-point and focused on problem-solving and evolution. I can truly say his method is a game-changer.
Florin Giuglea
Musician from Romania
I’ve been in touch with Toni for a couple of months for work purpose and I have always been sincerely impressed by his extensive knowledge and his desire to share it in a very comprehensive way. He teaches expert things with simplicity and efficiency, and the way he builds the pedagogical relationship always preserves the interest of the student. I have learnt a lot by exchanging thoughts with him and think he’s a top notch vocal instructor.
Arnaud Ménard
Rock singer and vocal coach from France
Before my band’s first song release, I contacted Toni. Even in the few lessons I had with him, I learned a lot and the input was really great – as my band and I could hear directly during the recording.
Corinna Kurschatke
Metal vocalist from Germany
Toni is a one of a kind, incredible vocalist. His vast catalogue of vocal effects are of very high quality and consistent. He is also a very talented instructor. He has a great ear and many approaches to help you on your journey. Highly recommend!!
Stuart Pendle
Vocalist from England
I have had the privilege of working extensively with Toni and watching him work with others in a group learning setting. I very much admire his ability to patiently but efficiently teach new vocal coordinations to students. His explanations and demonstrations are always tailor-made to the specific student’s level of understanding. If you have the opportunity to work with Toni, don’t pass it up!
Philippe Castagner
International opera singer
Well-grounded instruction without dogma – Toni always provides several strategies to achieve the sound I want.
I go out of every lesson with more knowledge and motivation.
David Drechsel
Musician from Germany
I have taken distortion lessons with Toni and have loved working with him. He is so knowledgeable and can demonstrate all of the techniques masterfully, which I feel is a huge deal. I absolutely recommend Toni Linke.
Emily Erkman
Singer and vocal teacher from Colorado
If you need a different view on voice and vocal technique – Toni has it.
If you want to discover all sorts of screaming and distortion – Toni has it.
Ivan Radkov
Rock singer and vocal coach from Russia
My pricing
These are the most common lesson options:
30 minute lesson
In this short format, we can work on a challenging phrase or explore a new technique. This option is also recommended if you are experiencing acute vocal problems and need an emergency aid.
60 minute lesson
This is the standard lesson format and ideal if you want to work on a specific song or technique in more detail. There’s usually enough time for a warm-up, exercises and setting things into a musical context.
90 minute lesson
This option is ideal if you are an experienced singer who wants to work on an advanced technique in great detail. It’s also a suitable format for fellow vocal teachers who want input on a specific topic.
5×60 minutes BUNDLE
This option is usually ideal for working continuously on one topic. Other possible bundles like 5×30 minutes
or 5×90 minutes can be arranged individually.
10×60 Minutes Bundle
This option has the best price-quantity ratio and is recommended if you want to continuously work on several topics. Paying by installments is possible and can be arranged individually.
REHEARSAl Room VISIT
If you live in or near Leipzig or have a rehearsal room there, we can arrange a 90 minute real life lesson. This is also ideal if you want me to help you prepare a concert or audition.
If you cannot afford any of these options, contact me and we’ll figure something out.
My conditions
I teach mostly via Zoom because of the
advanced audio setting possibilities there. It’s okay if you don’t have a good microphone or camera, but the more nuanced your audiovisual input is, the more nuanced my pedagogical input will be. Make sure to get familiar with Zoom and check your internet connection before the lesson so we keep potential technical difficulties down to a mininum. I will send you a link to the Zoom session shortly before the lesson.
You can either
book a lesson via mail (this option makes sense if you have any further questions that aren’t answered by
this tutorial on how to book a lesson) or reserve up to five slots in my
online calendar directly (this is the fastest way). The time zone displayed in the online calendar is
Berlin time. As soon as I see your reservation, I will delete the slot from the online calendar and add it to my personal schedule – make sure you have also added the appointment to your personal calendar so you don’t need to come back to the reservation calendar where the slot might not be visible anymore. My PayPal address is
toni.david.linke@t-online.de, your lesson is officially booked once I’ve received the money there. I will not always send an individual confirmation that I’ve received the money, your PayPal will show you whether your transaction has been successful – make sure you send the money to the right e-mail address as I cannot refund money that has been sent to someone else! If you have reserved a slot but I haven’t received the money yet on the day of the lesson, I reserve the right to cancel the lesson – while I do frequently send reminders to students, I cannot guarantee this individual service for everyone, so make sure you book your slots independently and on time.
If you’re sick or need to postpone the lesson for other reasons please tell me as soon as possible so I can make the slot available for other people again, you can just reserve a new slot in my calendar in this case. If you can’t
attend due to health reasons and don’t want an alternative slot but have already paid for the lesson, you will get your money back.
If you have to cancel within 24 hours before the appointment for reasons other than sickness, I reserve the right to keep the money as I’ve blocked some of my limited working time for you and cannot always give it to other students
on such short notice. If you miss a lesson without any prior notification, I will need to charge the full lesson fee from you for the same reason. Make sure to rule out any errors in time zone conversion to avoid accidentally
getting into that situation! Thanks for your understanding.
Now you’re ready to:
Reserve a lesson slot in my calendar!
Network
Here’s a number of colleagues that I frequently refer students to.
Aliki is a great technician for screaming and rough vocal effects in general. I really recommend watching her tutorial series on false cord and fry screaming (with episodes speficially taylored to beginner, intermediate
and advanced level vocalists) as well as experiencing her super fun (and quirky) personality in a lesson.
Aliki Katriou
Croatia / UK / Greece
Marcel is one of Germany’s top coaches for rough vocal effects (and rock & metal singing in general). Marcel and I are constantly exchanging ideas and experiences, and he has influenced my teaching of distortion greatly.
Marcel Steffen Weidenauer
Germany
Greg has gone viral by documenting his singing journey on YouTube in 2017, and since has only gotten better and better. His pedagogy is one of the most effective and nuanced methods of teaching belt & mix I’ve seen
so far, but he’s also really good at riffs & runs, rough vocal effects, whistle register… you name it.
Gregory West
USA
Marko and I have worked together for several years now, with the mutual goal of making rough vocal effects more accessible to singers of all styles and genres. He is super knowledgeable and very qualified as a teacher,
but perhaps even more importantly, kind and fun to work with.
Marko Osterholz
Germany
Arnaud is a top-notch power metal singer, a great screamer and a very experienced teacher of rock & metal styles. Especially if you speak French, I recommend checking out his YouTube content and working with him!
Arnaud Ménard
France
I’ve known Ivan for several years now, and have learned a lot from him when it comes to belting and distortion. Ivan is a certified Complete Vocal Technique coach, as well as an incredible rock singer and guitarist.
Ivan Mihaljević
Croatia
Tobias is a big vocal nerd and fluent in many styles and genres. Whether you want to sing rock, pop, soul, hip-hop, or perhaps even classical countertenor repertoire, Tobias will always try to help you find the most efficient
ways to do so.
Tobias Müller
Germany