Helena Nolen
San Diego Children’s Voice Academy
PRIMARY - Voice, Children’s Choir
Discover the Joy of Singing with Helena Nolen
San Diego Children’s Voice Academy at Barefoot Studios
Whether your young singer is just starting out or ready to take their vocal skills to the next stage, Helena Nolen brings passion, expert technique, and a welcoming environment to every lesson.
We believe music is for everyone — and building a strong, healthy vocal foundation opens the door to a lifetime of musical confidence and self-expression. Through engaging, personalized instruction focused on proper technique, pitch, and performance, Helena helps students find their unique voice and fall in love with singing.
Ready to help your child soar? Contact us today to schedule a lesson with Helena and start their musical journey!
REQUEST YOUR LESSON TODAY!
You can also call or text 858-859-1191 and we’ll get back with you in 24 hours.
Helena Nolen’s Resume
Instruments Taught
Primary - Voice (Classical, Musical Theater)
Secondary - Piano
All Styles and Genres - Classical/ Opera, Musical Theater, Jazz, Pop
Education & Experience
Dr. Hoi Lam Ip (Helena) holds a Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) in Vocal Performance from Arizona State University (2015), where she studied with acclaimed American tenor David Britton; a Master of Music (M.Mus) in Voice from the University of Texas at El Paso (2010); and a Bachelor of Music (B.Mus) with Honors — Voice major, Piano minor — from the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (2008), where she also earned a Performance Diploma in Voice (2005). Her credentials further include LTCL and ATCL Performance Diplomas in Voice with Distinction from Trinity College London, Grade 8 Certificates in Voice, Piano, and Music Theory with Distinctions from ABRSM, and a Teacher Certificate in Electone Piano Improvisation from Yamaha, Japan. Her doctoral dissertation, published via ProQuest (2015), explores Chen Yi's song set *As in a Dream* and the merging of Chinese and Western musical idioms.
She is the Founder and Musical Director of San Diego Children's Voice Academy (2026–present), and has served as Musical Director and Performance Coach at 3 Arts Musical Institute and various schools since 2018, directing junior Broadway productions including *Cinderella* and *Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat*. She is Rehearsal Accompanist at San Diego Chinese Christian Church (2025–present), and previously served as Master Class Lecturer and Vocal Adjudicator at Hong Kong Baptist University's Music Department (2017), Voice and Piano Instructor/Accompanist at East Valley School of Music in Arizona (2016), Musical Director, Vocal/Acting Coach, and Pianist at Opera Hong Kong — artistic coach and rehearsal accompanist for major summer productions including *The Magic Flute* (2013) and *The Music Man* (2012), Voice and Piano Class Instructor at El Paso Community College (2011), and Teaching Assistant and Class Voice Instructor at the University of Texas at El Paso (2008–2010).
Her honors include the San Diego Performing Arts League Star Award (2024, representing Genesis Opera Theatre) and the title of Global Champion at the Miss Chinese Talent International Competition (2017, representing Miss USA). She is an 11-time Open Class First Prize winner at the Hong Kong Schools Music Festival and Hong Kong Youth Singing Festival, including the Barbra Fei Art Song Trophy, the Warren Mok Opera Trophy, and the Musical Theater Trophy. She was a dual Second Prize winner at the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) Auditions, Graduate Division, Rio Grande Chapter (2009–2010), a Finalist at the 3rd International Madama Butterfly Concours in Nagasaki, Japan (2009), and received the Outstanding Teen Award from the Hong Kong Playground Association (2002).
Performance Credits (2003 - present)
- Papagena (The Magic Flute) and Zora (Magdalene) — Genesis Opera
Theatre, San Diego (2024)
- National Anthem soloist, GOP Presidential Debate — broadcast live on
CNN (2012)
- National Anthem soloist, City of Oceanside Chinese New Year celebration (2026)
- Featured concert soloist, Thanksgiving Concert, San Diego Chinese
Christian Church (2025)
- Mignon (lead role) — world premiere, Arizona Original Chamber Opera (2017)
- Cio-Cio-San (cover), Madama Butterfly — El Paso Opera
- Susannah (lead role), Susannah — UTEP Musical Theater Company
- Featured soloist, Madama Butterfly East Meets West Salon, Phoenix
Museum of Arts (2016)
Teaching Credits (2008 - present)
- Founder & Musical Director — San Diego Children's Voice Academy (2026–present)
- Musical Director & Performance Coach — 3 Arts Musical Institute /
various schools (2018–present)
- Rehearsal Accompanist — San Diego Chinese Christian Church (2025–present)
- Master Class Lecturer & Vocal Adjudicator — Hong Kong Baptist
University, Music Department (2017)
- Voice & Piano Instructor / Accompanist — East Valley School of
Music, AZ (2016)
- Musical Director, Vocal/Acting Coach & Pianist — Opera Hong Kong (2012–2013)
- Voice & Piano Class Instructor — El Paso Community College (2011)
- Teaching Assistant & Class Voice Instructor — University of Texas at
El Paso (2008–2010)
About ME
Hi, I'm Helena! I'm an opera singer with a Doctor of Musical Arts in Vocal Performance — and, most importantly, a mom of three little girls (8M, 3 and 5 y.o). I founded San Diego Children's Voice Academy (for 3-16 y.o) because I believe every child deserves the joy of singing in different languages, and that music is one of the most beautiful ways for children to learn languages, build confidence, and express themselves.
My teaching blends classical vocal training with play, movement, and imagination, especially for young beginners. As a mom myself, I know what parents hope for: a teacher who is patient, joyful, and truly sees your child. In my studio, children don't just learn to sing — they learn to shine.
Methods Used
Understanding your own voice is very important to me. Many people think vocalizing and warming up is just about covering as many vowels and consonants as possible, or singing as high or as low as possible. To me, it's all about involving your body — every single muscle is involved when you sing. You are standing, sometimes moving, and it's about engaging everything from as big as your leg muscles to as small as your facial muscles: your masseters, your tongue, your lip muscles — learning how it feels to sing those notes. Words and syllables, vowels and consonants, are there to help you project your voice and to help you understand the space inside your mouth and your nasal cavity — and everyone is different. I'm not teaching you. You are teaching your muscles to remember what healthy singing feels like, and a warm-up vocalise is your tool.
Teacher’s Philosophy
At San Diego Children's Voice Academy, I arrange and adapt art songs composed before December 1929 in Italian, German, and French, and weave them together with my own original dialogue — staging them as one complete theatrical work, a true Gesamtkunstwerk. Music is the key that draws the message out from within, and bringing different languages together in a single production tells the world that we are all one.
Multilingual voice training at a young age is like teaching children sports. Every muscle in our body grows accustomed to routine — including the muscles of our mother tongue. When children learn to sing and speak in different languages early, it gifts them the flexibility to master both language and singing later in life. Their muscle memory will never treat a foreign language as something strange; it will feel familiar — making singing effortless and joyful.
Lesson Rates
Group Classes - $40/hr
Private Lessons - $100/hr
Schedule
Sundays 12:00–5:00 PM (group class 12:00–3:00, individual lessons 3:00–5:00)