Duane Parkinson: At the age of 35, I've always loved to sing.....anywhere really. I am keen however to develop what ever ability God has given me to do the best with my voice that I can. A few years back, Daniel did some singing at a church event of ours. When he came back recently I decided that the time was right to have lessons. I felt very comfortable that Daniel would be able to guide my vocal development and that he would understand some of my vocal goals. We share a love of similar music and for that   reason I knew that I'd relate to him as a teacher as well as a friend. This is my first year of formal lessons and I love that sense that is both humility at the thrill of making a (hopefully) good sound and the personal satisfaction of doing something well. I love seeing the sense of enjoyment in the face of someone listening to a song. I love it when I have it in my mind to achieve a particular sound and it "comes off" exactly how I'd planned. My singing is mostly in a church setting these days. Previously I've done some band work and occasionally have a bit of a sing at work, much to the amusement of my staff. I guess that you could say that my immediate goals are to develop more strength in my voice and to solidify the abilities that hopefully are already there. In the future I'd like to do some recording. Not so much for CD sales or anything like that, more for personal satisfaction. I expect to continue being heavily involved in the music team of my church and making ongoing vocal contributions there.

Rochelle Cotgrove: Hi my name is Rochelle Cotgrove and I am 35 years young. I have been attending lessons with Djarts since September last year. I was highly recommended to Djarts by my sister who also attended lessons with Daniel. I started lessons because I wanted to improve on my tone, technique and vocal control. I have found my lessons to be a fabulous help in my position as Worship Leader at COC Bridgeman Downs. It has increased my vocal ability and has been an awesome help in my confidence. My goal this year is to work toward a solo performance at our end of year Christmas Concert and I feel I am well on my way to achieving that thanks to Daniel! See you next lesson!!

Natalie Tucker: Hi, I'm Natalie Tucker, I'm 32 & Mum of three precious children 'almost' 8, 6 & 2. I started vocal lessons with Daniel in Toowoomba this year as I felt God calling me into ministry. With worship [as] one of my passions I want to be equipped to use my voice. Also, two of the most moving moments in my life were singing with my siblings for my Granddad on his final day & later at his funeral. I'd like to honour my Granddad & Grandma whose legacy is our shared faith in God and passion for music by seeking to glorify our Heavenly Father with my voice in years to come. For now, I'm learning & developing skills I hope to use for ministry within the church & the wider community.  I believe the opportunity to study with Daniel was a blessing given to me for this time & I am truly grateful.

Wendy Fyvie: My name is Wendy Fyvie and I am a Church Singer in Cairns. I am 58 and have been singing, also in choirs and nursing homes, for 20 years. When I heard from a friend about Daniel's Contemporary Voice Seminar [Cairns 2004], I was very keen to attend and learned more than I'd ever heard about before, particularly the anatomy and our voice as an "instrument" to be looked after. I subsequently signed up, without any hesitation, for ongoing private lessons with Daniel [in Cairns]. Singing in Church is a privilege and I just want to sing my best, and see the congregation responding to our music in a way that shows their spirits lifting as we worship together in song.

Kylie Hoopert: I am 29 years of age and have always wanted to sing and perform. I started in my parent’s garage where they set up a small playroom where I performed and recorded on cassette tape my own very unusual and unique sounds. I find singing brings so much joy and also is a great way to relax after a stressful or trying day. I started with Daniel at Djarts after obtaining a card from him whilst I was camping out for the Australian Idol tryouts in Brisbane about 2 years ago and have been with him ever since. I had tried a few different teachers by this stage but no-one ever listened to the style I wanted to sing and tried to keep me stuck to the same program they offered everyone else. Daniel and the team at Djarts listened to me and what I wanted and have helped me to expand and improve on my vocal ability. I would like to later this year try out for a stage show and maybe down the track perform in a band. I give karaoke a go from time to time and find it is always fun and very rewarding when I perform well; it also gives me some experience performing in front of a crowd. Singing is my passion and what a dream come true it would be to someday have that be my work.

Mellissa Baker: Hi! My name is Mellissa Baker and I’m 22years old. I started singing lessons at a young age because I wanted to become a “rock star”! I heard about Djarts from a University teacher here in Brisbane. I chose Djarts for vocal coaching because Daniel was highly recommended as being one of the best teachers in Brisbane. I have now been receiving vocal lessons with Daniel for the last four years. I love that my singing can be challenging and being able to perform to audiences regularly is the best feeling. I do most of my singing at country music festivals, as I am pursuing a career in contemporary country music. However I’m also manage and perform in a five piece funk/rock covers band that performs at clubs and pubs though-out Brisbane and the Gold Coast. My immediate technical and performance goals are to develop a larger range vocally and to perform even more challenging songs so that I can stand out from the crowd, and have a unique style/product. I have found Daniel to be a very inspirational teacher, friend and mentor. I have learnt a lot about the music industry from Daniel.

Jason Guy: The main reason I started singing lessons to learn how to preserve my voice.  I'd been eating a lot of jam and marmalade but that didn't seem to be having the desired effect.  At the time, my (indie rock genre) band had just released an EP and was planning an east-coast tour.  My singing style in the band called for the occasional bit of "screaming" and, although I could do this comfortably at rehearsals 2-3 times a week, I needed to be confident that I could sing for multiple nights in a row and not lose my voice.  Of course I realise now that most other bands use microphones and a PA to avoid this problem in the first place.  Although the tour went well, the band ultimately folded soon after due to lack of funding.  I have continued lessons to generally improve my singing technique in preparation for my next project.  Although I don’t have any definite plans at the moment, I am keen to do further recording.

James Hunter: is 15 years old and has been coached by Daniel since late last year. James heard about djarts from his piano teacher and was impressed by Daniels record of student acceptance into the conservatorium. From a very young age, James enjoyed watching a music video of Roy Orbison. (He in fact named his sister Leah when he was just 15 months old). Other musical influences have been John Lennon and the Beatles. He started taking singing seriously when some friends told his parents he could sing well. He attends Shailer Park high where he plays trombone and saxophone in the schools concert band and keyboards in the Stage Band. In august 2004 James performed with celebrated Queensland choir in the internationally acclaimed Opera African Sanctus. His immediate goal is to enter the Conservatorium and complete a Bachelor of Music.

Tamar James: Now at the age of 28, I have been singing for as long as I can remember, but had never taken the time to have lessons. I used to be almost a little bit proud about the fact that I had never had a lesson, but deep down I knew that my voice was pretty limited by the little knowledge that I had. I eventually got to the point where I knew that [if] I didn't invest in my gift I would be forever frustrated! It's been great being taken out of my comfort zone and facing some of my vocal 'fears' head on. I heard about Djarts when Daniel came to do a workshop with our creative ministries vocalists. He mentioned the fact that they were enrolling new students, and I had been thinking about getting some tuition, so I put my name down. I have now been with Djarts for about six months. I really love being able to convey an emotion just by altering my sound, in Church mainly, although I've done some studio work and backup for musical friends over the years. I also have had the honour of singing with Youth Alive and Planet Shakers for the last 3 years. Currently, my biggest goal is to improve my range, as well as to be able to get more consistency and strength out of my voice.

Martina Cross: Hi my name is Martina. I'm 20 years of age and have found a passion for singing. I started training with Djarts at the beginning of the year and have already started to hear a great improvement in my voice. I started singing because I love to perform and want to be on the stage involved in musicals. Since I started at Djarts, I have been in a musical 'Narnia' and am now involved in another musical at Brisbane arts theatre. I chose to train with Djarts because of its professionalism, its success with other students and Daniel’s easy going and friendly attitude. I love now that I can have the confidence to go to auditions, be on the stage and sing my heart out. I hope to develop my voice and breathing techniques more to get into professional theatre and maybe even one day be in front of the camera. Keep singing guys! Thanks.