Our Team
Devin Dolquist (he/him)
I hail from Denver and have been a proud Twin Cities resident since 2019. I have always loved all things singing, especially choir, a cappella, and musical theatre. Growing up, I sang often but my voice always felt disconnected to who I was. As a result, I explored instrumental music and went to DePauw University for a bachelor's degree in general music, specializing in bassoon. I began taking singing lessons at 21 years old when I came out as a trans man and began taking testosterone - I was terrified of going through a big voice change alone, and I spent hours reading scholarship, watching videos, and trying new things with my voice.
Driven by my own experiences feeling isolated while taking T and experiencing an extreme voice change, I earned a master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology from the University of Minnesota. There, I studied and practiced gender-affirming voice therapy, vocal rehabilitation from voice disorders and injuries, upper airway disorders, and swallowing disorders at the Twin Cities’ Lions Voice Clinic at Fairview and the Park Nicollet Specialty Center in St Louis Park. During my studies, I created a teaching tool for voice therapists which exemplifies the many different ways that a transmasculine person can sound in their speaking voice. This project has been published in the American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology and the Journal of the Acoustical Society of America.
Seeking to learn more about my own voice and teaching singing outside of a clinical setting, I earned a second master’s degree from the University of Minnesota in vocal performance, and now perform in choirs, musicals, and cabarets around the Twin Cities. Through my studies in music, I became familiar with singing and teaching classical, musical theatre, and contemporary styles of song. I further developed my knowledge of vocal pedagogy with an emphasis in changing voices, such as trans singers like myself, people experiencing menopause, puberty-related changes, disability-related changes, and age-related changes. My goal as a voice teacher and educator is to bring each student a level of awareness and understanding of their own voice, so that they can go into their communities and share what they have learned with others.
I start each new student - whether they are seeking lessons for their speaking voice, singing voice, or both - the same way. Our first hour together is a sample lesson where we will discuss your vocal history and goals for your voice. I will ask questions related to how you feel about your voice, what you want your voice to sound like, and what you want your voice to communicate to others. Each student, including those with no singing-related goals, will do some singing vocalization exercises in order for us to explore every possibility that your voice is capable of. We will adjust your goals as we meet them and learn more about your voice - goals might include preparing for a choral or musical theatre audition, gaining access to your higher or lower ranges, learning about the acoustic and linguistic cues that cause listeners to gender a voice a certain way, or developing different speaking voices for different social situations, among others.
My teaching style is based in exploration and centered on your feedback. Many of our lessons will involve navigating through new movements, sounds, and styles with an ongoing conversation about your emotional and physical comfort. I believe that trying new things allows us to discover what our voices can do - and once we know what our voices can do, we can make choices about how to present our voices in any situation.
Klo Vivienne Garoute (she/her)
Born in Germany but raised in the southern U.S, I have sung since I was very young. Growing up, I was an enthusiastic choir nerd, and writing music became an outlet for me. I attended Berklee College of Music, where I studied jazz, arranging, audio production, video game scoring, and vocal pedagogy.
A large portion of my time throughout my life has been poured into singing in and leading vocal ensembles, choirs, and a cappella groups. I developed a deep love for voice as well as an insatiable desire to understand everything I could about it and how to navigate voice teaching and learning.
When I began transition, I felt nervous about navigating my identity as a singer. Up to that point, I had primarily sung bass II. My speaking voice rested low, and I had internalized pervasive messages that singing "outside of my range" would damage my voice. After I learned voice transition was possible, I knew I wanted to sing higher voice parts, but I was met with a substantial lack of institutionalized resources about how to do so in a sustainable and gender-affirming way. With the help of numerous mentors, lots of research, and many hours of practice and trial and-error, I came to be most comfortable regularly singing alto or mezzo-soprano.
Pursuing a master's degree in Choral Conducting, I moved to Los Angeles and attended University of Southern California. There, I remained an avid singer, studied choral performance, vocal pedagogy, and vocology, and began more in-depth research of gender-affirming singing voice transition. Eventually inspired to dedicate myself more fully to voice teaching and research, I transferred to the Speech-Language Pathology Prep Program at California State University, San Marcos. I later moved to Minneapolis, where I now direct Calliope Women’s Chorus and frequently perform in choral groups.
I began teaching gender-affirming voice lessons in 2022 at the online studio TransVoiceLessons in 2022. In my teaching, I care most about giving clients the tools and outlooks they need to self-sustainably accomplish their voice goals. My approach is centered in helping clients develop agency in their vocal journeys; I focus on prioritizing experiential learning, breaking down goals into measurable and approachable steps, providing roadmaps to short and long term skill development, and equipping clients with the knowledge to work through misconceptions and misinformation.
Trevor Lemon-Todd (they/them)
My earliest memories are of singing. When I become overwhelmed with my emotions, I'd find a corner to sit in, where I'd create songs that helped me make sense of how I was feeling. I'll never reach the artistic heights I did at the age of 3, mumbling melodically about not wanting to take a nap. As I entered high school, music was how I grounded myself and continued to find life worth living through strife and grief. On days where I didn't want to exist in the world, the need to make music got me out of bed. I moved from my hometown of Lee's Summit, Missouri to attend Saint Olaf College to study music performance, with the goal of helping to make methods of safe self-expression available to more people.
Thinking my voice was suitable but not worth sharing, I originally intended to work in a classroom or choral setting. My college teacher, Anna Mooy, quickly showed me that my voice was not the inflexible animal I'd long thought it to be. She helped me understand the value of every voice's unique qualities. Through hard work and intentional practice, she helped me learn of the possibilities for a career in singing. I have since proudly lived as a performer, and have sung for audiences at Minnesota Opera, Guthrie Theater, Theater Latté Da, and more. It's been my pleasure to debut roles in world premiere productions, go on tour with old classics, and help to continue timeless traditions.
I believe everyone deserves access to a freeing artistic endeavor. The world is more beautiful with more of us singing, and it has long been my goal to help others find that truth. As I began my teaching practice in the twin cities, I found that many trans and gender nonconforming people struggled to consider themselves as "singers." Often, these singers were struggling to find teachers who were not just willing but enthusiastic to work with a voice that did not fit the mould passed down by outdated ideas of vocal pedagogy. I was fortunate to be hired as a guest artist at the University of Minnesota, where I met Devin as he was pursuing his masters degree in music. Devin introduced me to Klo with the idea of creating a space to encourage more trans singing, and CVC was born!
I believe many singers work backwards. They have a sense of a sound they believe is "right," and they morph and contrive their instrument in an attempt to meet this ideal. I challenge my singers to explore singing with their voice freed from inhibition and preconceptions of "right." We explore a process of singing that is repeatable and intentional, with an understanding of the function of their instrument. It is my belief that this frees singers to explore more colors in their vocal palette, expanding their vocal identity beyond what they first thought possible.