Seth Riggs (born September 19, 1930) is an American singer, actor, and

vocal coach A vocal coach, also known as a voice coach (though this term often applies to those working with speech and communication rather than singing), is a music teacher, usually a piano accompanist, who helps singers prepare for a performance, often al ...

. He has created the vocal technique "Speech Level Singing","Singing seminar scheduled Aug. 28", ''The Herald-Palladium'' (August 20, 1999), p. 6. and has worked with performers such as

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, Pop musi ...

José José José Rómulo Sosa Ortiz (17 February 1948 – 28 September 2019), known professionally as José José, was a Mexican singer and actor. Born into a family of musicians, José began his musical career in his early teens playing guitar and sin ...

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...

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and

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Early life, education, and career

Riggs started singing when he was about 7 years old, and joined the Washington National Cathedral Boys' Choir as a 9-year-old. Riggs has been a vocal coach since 1949, when he was serving in the Navy as a gunner. He "received his music education from

Peabody Conservatory of Music The Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University, The Johns Hopkins University is a Private university, private music school, conservatory and College-preparatory school, preparatory school in Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded in 1857 and ...

and

Manhattan School of Music The Manhattan School of Music (MSM) is a private music conservatory in New York City. The school offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition, as well as a bachelor's in mu ...

", and also received a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in drama from

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...

."Voice Conference At COD, Feb. 1-2", ''The Desert Sun'' (January 29, 1974), p. 13. After receiving the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the Peabody Conservatory, Riggs gave a masterclass which

Richard Cassilly Richard Cassilly (December 14, 1927 – January 30, 1998) was an American operatic tenor who had a major international opera career between 1954–90. Cassilly "was a mainstay in the heldentenor repertory in opera houses around the world for 30 y ...

attended, and afterwards asked Riggs to help him with his voice. Riggs studied voice with teachers including American baritone

John Charles Thomas John Charles Thomas (September 6, 1891December 13, 1960) was an American opera, operetta and concert baritone. Biography John Charles Thomas was born on September 6, 1891 in Meyersdale, Pennsylvania. He was the son of a Methodist minister of ...

and Italian tenor

Tito Schipa Tito Schipa (; born Raffaele Attilio Amedeo Schipa; 2 January 1889 in Lecce16 December 1965) was an Italian lyric tenor A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice ...

, and in New York City with Keith Davis who was at the time teaching the majority of singers on Broadway. Riggs conducts workshops and masterclasses around the world together with his wife,

Margareta Svensson Riggs Margareta Svensson Riggs (born Ulla Margareta Elisabeth Svensson; April 22, 1968 in Varberg) is a Swedish singer, pianist, songwriter, actress, voice teacher, vocal coach and television personality. Early life Already as a five-year-old, Svensson ...

SLS (Speech Level Singing)

Riggs created SLS that blended singers’ head voice and chest voice while applying SLS (speech level singing) techniques that benefited

, and numerous others. In 1995 SLS's CEO,

Dave Stroud Dave Stroud is an American vocal coach, vocal educator, and lecturer who has worked with Justin Bieber , Justin Timberlake, Arnel Pineda, Billy Crystal, Mike Posner, Natasha Bedingfield, Demi Lovato, Michael Jackson, and Kelly Clarkson, among o ...

, developed a teaching platform, which was implemented in 2000, requiring all of SLS's vocal teachers to undergo lessons and testing from one or more of seven SLS master classes and would be tested and approved if they were to be associated with Seth Riggs.

Personal life

Riggs is married to singer

Margareta Svensson Margareta Svensson Riggs (born Ulla Margareta Elisabeth Svensson; April 22, 1968 in Varberg) is a Swedes, Swedish singer, pianist, songwriter, actress, voice teacher, vocal coach and television personality. Early life Already as a five-year-old, ...

, The two met when Svensson came to Seth Riggs for singing lessons in 1995. In 2008, they became a couple, and four years later, in 2012, they married and their daughter Samantha was born.

Bibliography

* ''Singing For The Stars – A Complete Program For Training Your Voice'' (1992,

Alfred Music Alfred Music is an American music publishing company. Founded in New York in 1922, it is headquartered in Van Nuys, California, with additional branches in Miami, New York, Germany, Singapore, and the United Kingdom. History In New York City ...

) * ''American Idol Singer's Advantage: Male Version'' (2008, Hal Leonard Corporation)

References

External links

* *
Understanding the Speech Level Singing Method, by Seth Riggs
{{DEFAULTSORT:Riggs, Seth 1930 births Living people American vocal coaches American male singers People from Rockville, Maryland People from Los Angeles