At The Growing Musician my mission is to help you grow your authentic voice + artistic style through clear technique, musicianship, and self-expression in a supportive, safe, and joyful environment.
I value compassion, honesty, genuineness, openness, acceptance, mindfulness, cooperation, contribution, safety, and dependability.
Philosophy
It is my belief that we all can grow. Sometimes, our growth is fast and sometimes, our growth is very slow. We grow our entire lives. We start as small children and physically and mentally grow into adults. Our minds and hearts grow as we navigate life. We are always evolving and growing, even when we don’t realize it.
And in singing, we can certainly grow.
I believe in you and your ability to grow your voice. We all have a voice; we have had it since we were born. We use it in life to communicate and as a vehicle to express our emotions in the moment, every day.
As your voice teacher, I will help you grow your singing voice and find joy and confidence in singing and performing. Whether you are new to voice lessons, or returning, there is always a path to growth when we open ourselves up and let vulnerability lead the way. Singing is vulnerable and can bring up many feelings. Sometimes joyful and sometimes painful.
At the Growing Musician, you will find wholehearted support and a safe space in which to develop your true authentic sound and style. You will be inspired and challenged in a way that will help you uncover parts of your voice and self that you may have never known were inside of you. I am here to help you find the voice that may have been lost along the way and help you grow it!
Grown with care
I teach students from various singing backgrounds. Perhaps…
You are a singer who has been exploring singing whether through their school choir, community choir, community theater, karaoke hot spot, open mic nights… and are loving it!
You have discovered that your love for singing surpasses your current vocal ability and want to feel better and more confident in your voice and performing and to nurture your musical style.
You have goals, both new and old and are on a mission with your singing.
You love singing and always have and are ready for guidance from a voice teacher to help you best sing the songs you love.
Your goals may be to land a part in a musical, audition for a collegiate music program, or start a band and be the lead singer.
You are the singer who may have taken a break from singing for life circumstances. You are realizing that something is missing, and you want to come back to your voice and self.
I’m Katie Jillson.
At one time, I was where you are right now. I loved to sing and explore the piano and found myself drawn to music constantly.
At the age of 5, I began to learn piano. First with my mother and then with a piano teacher. My first piano lessons with my piano teacher Barbara Heath were lessons that would begin to pave the way to my life in music. Mrs. Heath brought joy, wonder, curiosity, and magic to music. Her kindness, patience, expectations, and love for teaching would resonate with me for my entire life.
As I went on through life, my singing voice began to emerge. As a shy student, I found belonging, power, and courage in my singing.
Voice and piano teachers that I would later study with throughout my life, would possess many of the gifts I was exposed to early on with Mrs. Heath. Teachers that encompassed the ability to see the love, desire, and creativity that human beings possess within themselves. Voice teachers that had the wisdom to know that technique and emotion were parallel and that they work together. Teachers that helped me come back to my authentic voice when I was playing the comparison game in music school.
The time spent with these many teachers in my life has not only contributed to my excellence at these instruments, but has taught me to continue to find joy, wonder, community, and collaboration within my life of music. They also taught me that learning and growth is lifelong.
I am a teacher who has two degrees from music schools. I have a BM in Vocal Performance from New England Conservatory in Boston, MA and an MM in Vocal Performance from Longy School of Music in Cambridge, MA.
I have studied, coached, and performed with a variety of voice teachers, voice coaches, conductors, and stage directors. I have performed in operas, oratorios, recitals, cabarets, lead church congregations as a church cantor, sung in choirs, and chamber ensembles.
I find the most effective way to connect with each student, through constantly looking through two lenses- the teacher lens and the student lens. What I know, I teach and what I don’t know, I will learn and then teach it.
I am a voice teacher who is always on a path of growth. Just like you.
5 fun facts about me!
I like singing in many styles.
I am an avid weightlifter and it helps me with the mechanics of singing.
I grew up on a vegetable farm in Maine.
My family has a sugar house and makes maple syrup in Maine. I always have to have real maple syrup. I might be a bit of a maple syrup snob.
I love all animals, especially cats, and my cats name is Luciano (yes, named after the opera singer) :)
-
![Green line drawing of berries and leaves representing testimonial for Dedham, MA voice teacher Katie Jillson]()
"Katie is an excellent teacher! She has been incredibly supportive in helping me accomplish my goals as a singer. She's knowledgeable, patient, a great listener, and clear communicator. Her accessible and clever explanations help me understand where and how I can improve. Katie puts me at ease and offers thoughtful, honest feedback with encouragement. What I appreciate most about my lessons with Katie is her whole-person approach to helping me achieve greater vocal freedom: she recognizes that the head and heart as just as important as the body in creating beautiful sound!"
- Jaqueline Reagan, Newton, MA
