With a small but attentive audience of family, friends and sponsors occupying the plush red seats, the group sat primly on their chairs, like kids in a classroom, awaiting the 20 minutes of individual coaching they had successfully auditioned for, no doubt wondering whether the British visitors would turn out to be of the same stripe as fellow countryman Simon Cowell, the acid-tongued judge of ?American Idol? fame.

They need not have worried, however, because the visitors made it clear that they were there to share their passion for music, to help the aspiring singers, and to leave them a little more accomplished than before.

Joining Nicholas Heath, resplendent in suit and shiny patent shoes, were Alicia Fashae (understudy for all of the female roles in the company?s production of ?La Boh?; Paul Badley (who was Parpignol in the opera), and pianist-coach Susanna Stranders.

Each of them would listen, correct, praise and encourage in that wonderfully British blend of candour and politeness, the aim of which was to effect a small but distinct improvement in each singer?s technique.

First up was Amber Smith, a 19-year-old Bermuda College student with just one month?s formal voice training behind her. Perfectly groomed in a bouncy black skirt, lime green top, long boots and pearl necklace, she stood with her arms behind her, and delivered her classical piece from ?Romeo and Juliet? in Italian with a wistful look and a sweet, light voice.

?Do you know what you?re singing about?? Ms Stranders asked kindly. Well, yes and no, it seemed, so the lively pianist filled in the missing details about the depth of emotion in the words, and asked Amber to bring that out.

With further input from the visitors, the teenager ultimately delivered a stronger, more pleasing and confident performance.

How clever these visitors were.

Next came Krysten Smith, whose piece by Handel was also sung in Italian. In tight jeans and a modish top, she too favoured the hands-behind-the-back stance as she started out. Flicking through the pages of her music, she delivered ?front and centre?. It was clear that she too had a promising voice, but was not alone in needing to work on her vowels and consonants. Mr. Badley asked her to think of herself as a ?sausage machine? through which all of them must pass with equal smoothness, and he advised Krysten to practise her vowels ?a lot?. She also learned that ?c? and ?t? were ?less explosive? in Italian, and to loosen her jaw she needed to imagine she was brushing cobwebs away from her face.

In terms of breathing correctly, Mr. Badley advised her to think of her diaphragm as the ?engine room? and showed her a technique to better use it. ?Breathe in and really ignite a phrase,? he urged.

?Air is food to a singer,? Ms Stranders added. ?Everything needs food. Stand straight and use your ribs?.

Krysten took direction well, as a result of which a more impressive voice emerged, and with it the confidence to sing from memory.

Australian Alison Evans, dressed in black with a white pinafore overlay, sang from the 1947 opera, ?The Black Swan?. Kneeling to begin her performance, she rose slowly and moved about with anguish and emotion. Using her rich, strong voice to clear effect, her long dark hair at times enveloping her, she cut a somewhat dramatic figure. However, Mr. Heath found the self-choreographed presentation ?too busy?, and the two discussed how to tone it down. ?Less is more,? he advised ? a phrase which would crop up elsewhere. At the end of her 20 minutes, Alison?s reprise was more professional.

Also dressed in black to match her flowing tresses, dark eyes sparkling like her chandelier earrings, Marcelle Clamens delivered a soaring performance of a very difficult aria from the opera ?Don Giovanni?. To the uninitiated, it seemed quite electrifying, but the experts found room for improvement.

In one of her delightful analogies, Ms Stranders told the singer to think of her voice as a swan, singing gracefully along the surface, while beneath it the feet ? i.e. the orchestra ? was working hard to propel her along.

?You need to be on the front of the beat instead of the beat driving you,? the pianist said. In his evaluation, Mr. Heath said the way Marcelle used her arms reminded him of ?that man on the roundabout?, but he also understood that her voice was a dramatic instrument, and the arm movements were a part of who she was. Nonetheless, he said, if she was in an opera on his stage, he would evoke the ?less is more? rule.

As with some of the other singers, Marcelle learned how and when to face an audience for better effect, and following her final, dramatic sing-through she did so well that Ms Fashae bestowed a spontaneous, congratulatory hug and a ?Well done?.

Finally, there was the lone male in the group, Graeme Henderson. Coming from a very different genre, he chose a song from the musical, ?Beauty and the Beast?, in which he had recently had a starring role.

He learned from Mr. Badley that ?vowels are controlled by the tongue within a loose jaw?, while Mr. Heath spoke of ?finding that moment to energise your voice in a particular manner?, and told him there were exercises he could do to achieve this.

The singer was taken through a vowel exercise which clearly helped, leaving him pleasantly surprised. ?I?ve never done that before,? he said.

Ms Fashae had but one point to make in the limited time at her disposal. ?At no time should singing hurt,? she stressed.

Acknowledging that different teachers did not always communicate in the best way with their students, she urged Graeme to ?find a mutual platform? with his own teacher, and also recommended that he ?have the courage in (his) own little space? to experiment. Mr. Heath told him singers should not be afraid to ?speak the sound out so you can get the feel of it?. ?Words are very important, particularly in music theatre,? he advised. Again, the difference in Graeme?s final performance proved that he too had benefited from the expert coaching.

Of course, no voice can be changed significantly in 20 minutes, but the participants were clearly appreciative of the opportunity to work with people who really knew their stuff and were more than delighted to help.

?It was very interesting, even though classical music and Italian are not my genre,? is how Amber, who sings in church and also likes pop and rock, summed up her experience.

Alison said she loved aspects of all genre of music, with opera, musical theatre and cabaret being particular favourites. She had been singing ?off and on? for a decade, and enjoyed the professional help.

Marcelle termed her opportunity ?very exciting?.

?These people have a lot of experience which they are willing to share, and it was also an opportunity to make connections,? she said.

Although this was the opera company?s first outreach programme in Bermuda, Mr. Heath was clearly delighted with how it went, and expressed the hope that, on future visits, the programme could be expanded.

?It was very exciting and immensely rewarding to be working with people on the Island and share music with them,? he said.

?Cultural exchange is what we are about. Now that we have broken the ice I hope it will encourage more people to share it next time. Music is about sharing. It?s been fun.?