ROBERT EDWIN has gained international recognition as a singer, composer, teacher, and writer. He has sung Bach cantatas in church cathedrals and rock songs in Greenwich Village coffeehouses, recorded for Avant Garde and Fortress Records, and toured extensively throughout the United States and abroad.  He has performed in New York City’s Carnegie Hall and Town Hall, and has appeared with such outstanding artists as opera star Jerome Hines, jazz legend Duke Ellington, and actor-director Ossie Davis.  His TV and radio credits include several NBC Christmas specials as well as commercials for everything from politicians to hot dogs. His new CDs of original songs (Robert Edwin-Christian Songs and, More to Life-Robert Edwin Sings Songs by Crosby & Edwin) are available at www.cdbaby.com .

An ASCAP lyricist and composer since 1967, Mr. Edwin has written a wide variety of music ranging from hymns to music theater scores. He was a leader in the 1960s “Church Music Reformation” when his albums, Keep the Rumor Going and With Joy, and his Synergy Series of Worship Experiences became a reviving factor in the life of the church.

His diverse performing career is matched by an equally diverse teaching career. A leading authority on Contemporary Commercial Music (nonclassical) and child voice pedagogy, Robert Edwin preaches what he practices at his large private studio in Cinnaminson, New Jersey, where classical singers interact with music theater performers, rock and pop vocalists, child singers, and pageant contestants. His new DVD on child voice training, The Kid & the Singing Teacher, with CCC-SLP Barbara Arboleda, is available at www.voicewize.com. Also available is a chapter on teaching children to sing in the new book, Pediatric Voice Disorders (Plural Publishing).

Robert Edwin has served on the adjunct voice faculties of the University of Michigan, the New Jersey School of the Arts, Burlington County College (NJ), and continues to serve on the Applied Music Staff of Camden County College (NJ). He is a frequent faculty member of the Voice Foundation’s Annual Symposium: Care of the Professional Voice. A member of the prestigious American Academy of Teachers of Singing, he has led master classes and workshops in the United States, Canada, and Australia.

Mr. Edwin is a member and past Secretary/Treasurer of the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS). His column in the NATS Journal of Singing, "The Bach to Rock Connection" (1985 - 2002), was the first regular feature in the Journal dedicated to nonclassical voice pedagogy. He continues to shepherd the column, “Popular Song and Music Theater” as an Associate Editor of the JOS.   From 1996 to 1999 he also served as Contributing Editor for VocalEase, a magazine for choral directors.

Robert Edwin taught for over ten years in New York City under the aegis of the Helena W. Monbo Studio, a studio that included actress/singer Grace Jones, Tony Award winner Ernestine Jackson, and A Chorus Line original, Donna Drake. Past and present students from his New Jersey studio include Jennifer Piech, who created the role of “Kate McGowan” in the Broadway musical, Titanic; Josh Young, "Tony" in the 2005 World Tour of West Side Story; members of “The Fabulous Greaseband” and “Grey Eye Glances”; Kristen Alderson, who plays "Starr" on the ABC-TV soap opera, One Life to Live; and contemporary Christian recording artist, Paul Baloche.
 

TEACHING PHILOSOPHY
Serving as both a singing teacher and a coach since 1975, Mr. Edwin teaches an integrated method that includes voice technique (body alignment, breathing, phonation, resonation, articulation, audiation, register transitions, range extension), repertoire development (the right songs for the student’s voice, personality, and looks), and performing skills (stage presence, fear management, audition skills, mic technique, actor/singer coordination). His dynamic and personalized approach encourages students to discover and cultivate their own creative resources and to modify technical and behavioral traits that interfere with artistic expression.

PERSONAL
Born in Brooklyn, New York in 1946, baritone Robert Edwin comes from a professional musical family. His father, the late Edwin Robert Steinfort, sang in vaudeville and premiered the song, "Yes, We Have No Bananas" in the musical, Barney Google. His mother, the late Helena W. Monbo, was a prominent New York City singing teacher and his own personal teacher for over fifty years. Robert is married to Faith Sanderson Steinfort, a retired Language Arts teacher. They have two adult sons, Kurt and Matthew. Matthew’s wife, Ana, delivered the first Steinfort grandchild (John Patrick) on February 5, 2008.

LINKS
National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS)
www.nats.org
A 6,000 member professional organization
Robert Edwin is past NATS national Secretary/Treasurer, and an Associate Editor of the NATS Journal of Singing. He has been a member since 1981.

American Academy of Teachers of Singing
www.americanacademyofteachersofsinging.org
A forty-member academy of nationally and internationally known voice teachers.
Robert Edwin was elected a member in 2001.

New Jersey Chapter – NATS
www.njnats.net  
A state chapter within NATS
Robert Edwin has been a member since 1981 and is a Past-President of the Chapter.

PHOTOS

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