Claim Your Voice And Sing

Top Pro

$45

Starting price

Zip code

Interested musical styles

Lesson length

Student age

About

ATTENTION: - I'M OFFERING A SPECIAL: IN PERSON OR ONLINE, 4 1/2 HOUR LESSONS FOR 1/2 PRICE $20 EACH. WHAT WOULD NORMALLY BE $180 IS NOW $80. In person lessons must be fully vaccinated. My regular rate is $45 1/2-hour, $80 hour. There's never a contract. People want to study singing for so many reasons. You've sung all your life and want to sing better. You'd like to be able to audition for a better chorus or a part. You were told you were tone-deaf when you were 5, and haven't dared make a sound since, or if you have, people have laughed at you. Those are all good reasons. My job is to take you wherever you are, whatever you hope to achieve, and help you sing better whatever that is. The lessons themselves can be done online, or in person within New Jersey only. New Yorkers usually don't want to come to NJ, but you could take lessons online. If you're apprehensive doing lessons online, please read my reviews. Quite a few of them are from online students. There's never a contract. You can try one lesson and see what you think. Your health is the most important thing to address in lessons. People come to me with chronic sore throats from strain, limited ranges, breaks. We fix these things, and you sound great and have fun. I don't let 12-year-olds sound like they're 30. I care, and I'm good. The human voice is the most wonderful toy I can imagine. As a teacher, I get to play in everyone's toy box. It's all fun. I love helping someone who thinks they can't sing on pitch sing on pitch. I love working with people who've sung all their lives and just hope people won't laugh at them. I show members of the chorus that they're soloists, and no one's laughing. I love working with beautiful, strong, healthy voices that just need a little help to fly. I love it all.

Overview

Current Top Pro

Hired 250 times

Serves Caldwell, NJ

Background checked

52 years in business

Business hours

Sun4:00 pm - 8:00 pmMon10:00 am - 9:00 pm

Payment methods

This pro accepts payments via Cash, PayPal, and Zelle.

Social media

Facebook

Top Pro status

Top Pros are among the highest-rated, most popular professionals on Thumbtack.

2024

2023

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2017

Services offered

Interested musical styles

Pop

R&B

Musical theater

Jazz

Work location

My customers travel to me

I work remotely (phone or internet)

Projects and media

3 photos

Projects and media

3 photos

Reviews

Customers rated this pro highly for work quality, professionalism, and responsiveness.

Exceptional 5.0

142 reviews

98%

Read reviews that mention:

Lisa K.

2 weeks ago

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Hired on Thumbtack

My lessons have been very productive and informative. I enjoy her specific instruction on breath support and singing in a straight line. There are no ups and downs, just straight forward notes. Brilliant!

Details: 45 - 64 years old • Yes, the student can read music • 0 - 2 yrs of formal training • Pop • Country • What the teacher recommends • 30 minutes • Remotely (phone or internet)

Claim Your Voice And Sing's reply

Thank you so much! You've learned a lot, and you'll keep getting better.

Singing Lessons

Vinay G.

Jul 24, 2025

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Hired on Thumbtack

Incredibly knowledgeable and a very personable teacher. She is very perceptive to the nuances of your singing and typically has instant solutions that change your perspective and your singing. Plus, we always have a good time during our lesson, thanks for caring!

Details: 18 - 25 years old • Yes, the student can read music • 4+ yrs of formal training • Pop • R&B • Jazz • What the teacher recommends • I'm flexible • At the pro’s location • My home, venue, etc. • Remotely (phone or internet)

Claim Your Voice And Sing's reply

Vinay, Thank you so much for this. It has all been my pleasure.

Singing Lessons

Ruth B.

Jul 17, 2025

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Hired on Thumbtack

I would chose all five options (asking what I liked the most) if the rating system let me! My experience with Rae has been nothing short of remarkable. Wonderful. Exciting. Painless. Magical. And, yes, safe and lots of fun. I came to Rae asking her to prepare me for a singing workshop after a long period of not singing a lot. She immediately embraced my goals and, in a flurry of lessons over about three weeks, helped me achieve and exceed them. I was absolutely amazed by the transformation in how I used my voice, and the increase in my confidence. Rae zeroes in on exactly what I need to be doing at any moment to improve my singing while always remaining super positive. I never imagined lessons could be so productive and so stress free at the same time. I think she has an exceptional ability to quickly and easily convey exactly what adjustments or corretions need to made and how to actually do it. This makes it possible to progress very quickly under her guidance. To top it alI off, Rae brings a rare set of personal qualities to her teaching. She exudes confidence and professionalism. She is enthousiastic, incredibly supportive and engaged. She is super-focused and yet, at the same time, amazingly flexible. She is sensitive and responsive to whatever I need in the moment. She is focused and efficient, but still tons of fun to work with. She is relentlessly positive. And all of the above just makes me even more motivated. She's a keeper!

Details: 65 years or older • Yes, the student can read music • 4+ yrs of formal training • Pop • Classical • Jazz • Musical theater • Gospel • What the teacher recommends • I'm flexible • At the pro’s location • My home, venue, etc. • Remotely (phone or internet)

Claim Your Voice And Sing's reply

WOW! I always love reading reviews and thinking "I did that?". It has been a complete joy working with you, and I'm looking forward to the future. Thank you very much.

Singing Lessons

Emily B.

2 weeks ago

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Hired on Thumbtack

Rae immediately helped me feel more confident and at-ease despite how nervous I felt to sing. She is a skilled professional with a wealth of experience, information and humor. I'm so glad I found her.

Details: 26 - 44 years old • No, the student cannot read music • No formal training • Pop • Rock • Classical • Jazz • What the teacher recommends • 30 minutes • Remotely (phone or internet) • My home, venue, etc. • At the pro’s location

Claim Your Voice And Sing's reply

Emily, Thank you very much. It was fun working with you and I look forward to working with you again. Rae

Singing Lessons

Mikayla C.

Dec 16, 2024

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Hired on Thumbtack

Rae creates a very welcoming environment and made me feel like it was okay to mess up, which made me feel braver when trying new things. She has extensive knowledge about teaching and personalized her lesson to me and my interests so that I could better understand what I was asking my voice to do.

Details: 18 - 25 years old • Yes, the student can read music • No formal training; some self-taught experience • What the teacher recommends • Pop • Musical theater • Country • Opera • Rock • Classical • 30 minutes • At the pro’s location • My home, venue, etc. • Remotely (phone or internet)

Claim Your Voice And Sing's reply

Mikayla, Thank you very much. I'm delighted that you can tell you made progress so quickly. This is going to be a wonderful journey. Rae

Singing Lessons

Credentials

Background Check

Rae De La Cretaz

FAQs

What should the customer know about your pricing (e.g., discounts, fees)?
First 4 1/2-hours are $20 a piece. After that, it's my regular rate: 1/2-hour $45 1-hour $80 I accept cash, check, Paypal and Zelle (Bank-to-Bank transfer including Chase Quick Pay) I DON'T work with children. Students need a reasonably mature instrument to study singing. Before that, they can take general music, sing in school, in choir, study instruments. They can destroy themselves studying voice too young. It varies on physical maturity, but the youngest I'm comfortable with is about 13-14. This is in the student's best interest. I make my full-time living teaching singing. I lose money when I send people away. This is my ethics. 1-hour lessons are great, but if you can't afford that, 1/2-hour is all the same things, just less of everything. I don't give 45- minute lessons, but I want you to be able to see my profile and choose. Lessons are a luxury item. Get as much luxury as you can. I don't use contracts or package deals. Try a lesson. You have to pay for that one, but you don't have to come back.
What is your typical process for working with a new customer?
The lessons themselves can be done online or in person within New Jersey. I do not currently service New York. We start wherever you are. No matter how much training you've had, you're new to me, so we have to go back to the beginning. We always do basic vocalizes. We review posture, pitch, diction, how to evaluate what you're doing. If someone has a strong background, we can progress to songs quickly. If you don't, it takes longer, but the journey always travels the same path. After however long is appropriate, if you can't read music, we work on that. We always work on the entire voice, not just one aspect of it. As you sing better, you stop straining, your range increases, you gain dynamics. It's all a package. You can't work just one aspect. It all comes together.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
I'm a graduate of Oberlin College, major in music, voice applied. Since then, I've taken private lessons for 30 years and am still in contact with my teacher.