Voice Teacher, Performer, Music Director, Songwriter
Adam Williams is a performer, vocal coach, guitarist, music director, and singer songwriter based in Roanoke, Virginia. Adam is a recent graduate of James Madison University where he received his Bachelor’s of Music in Vocal Music Education. Since graduating in May of 2023, Adam opened up his own private voice and guitar teaching studio, as well as being hired onto the music staff at Hollins University. Adam’s students have gone on to win scholarships to undergraduate music programs, perform leading roles in musicals, be selected for the All Virginia Chorus, and be accepted into competitive choirs. As a teacher, Adam specializes in teaching students how to healthily and skillfully sing in many genres. He loves to teach Pop, Classical, Musical Theatre, RnB, Rock, Belt, and Jazz! Adam combines a focus on foundational technique with experimenting in the lesson - finding what sounds and sensations best work for each student. Adam believes each student learns and feels singing differently, and he loves the process of learning how each student develops a relationship with their voice. Adam will be pursuing his Master’s Degree in Voice Pedagogy at the Voice Study Centre this Fall.
Adam has been an active performer since starting his degree at James Madison University. In 2019, he was brought on as a Young Artist with Opera Roanoke. He completed a summer intensive with the organization, and he performed in recitals and concerts as a featured soloist. Adam has performed with renowned groups such as The King’s Singers and Tenebrae, he performed with the New England Symphonic Ensemble at Carnegie Hall, he performed a guest artist recital at Radford University, he was a performer for the Emmet Cahill concert tour in 2023, and he is a frequent featured artist at the music festival GardenFest in Maine. Adam is also an accomplished recording artist. He helped create two albums and an EP, and he is also featured on two singles, another EP, and he has his own song out called “Healing”. Adam regularly performs solo, and you can catch him in venues around the Roanoke and New River Valley.
As a teacher and performer, Adam’s intention is to explore and evoke the therapeutic potential of music. The pressures that face musicians can lead to hyper self-criticism, perfectionism, and crippling performer’s anxiety. As a teacher, Adam shifts the focus to learning how to be a good storyteller, how to fully express oneself, how to be fully present with our bodies, how to breathe deeply, and how to be self-compassionate, because music making is very vulnerable, and the courage to make music deserves appreciation. Adam has found singers naturally sing beautifully and with good technique when their minds and bodies feel safe. As a performer, Adam strives to be fully in the music, leaving listeners feeling revitalized and lighter after performances.
In his spare time, Adam loves to meditate, travel, explore the outdoors, exercise, and explore contemplative wisdom, religions, and spiritual practices. His work to lead a peaceful and compassionate life inspires his teaching and performing. He hopes to bring moments of presence and beauty into the lives of his students and anyone who hears him make music.