Ellen Braunstein
While studying theater at Temple University, Sara Schmuckler pushed herself too hard singing the lead role in a production of the musical “Pippin.”
“I felt that I wasn’t good enough,” said Schmuckler, who sang in a tenor range that was wrong for her. She developed bronchitis and laryngitis. “I barely had any voice at all by the time the show opened.”
A visit to a speech therapist opened her eyes to a career in treating vocal disorders. But her theater background gave her the idea that a voice practice could be so much more than rehabilitation.
She started a solo practice, On Your Voice, to empower people with the transformative nature of what voice can do for them.
Schmuckler, 38, of Elkins Park, is now a fellow with Tribe 12, a leadership development program for entrepreneurial Jews in their 20s and 30s.
“On Your Voice” is the venture she is pursuing as a Tribe 12 fellow. Mentors and peers help her find her target audience, create professional contacts and run a small business.
The Tribe12 experience offers her a window into the Jewish community.
“It’s very vast but also quite small and interconnected,” Schmuckler said. “I feel connected and included in this Jewish network throughout the Greater Philadelphia area.”
Schmuckler specializes in training professionals and organizations in the art and science of effective voice usage.
“By providing tools for authentic expression, I aim to instill individuals and teams with confidence and empowerment that will help them grow as professionals and confident speakers,” she said.
On her career and personal journey, Schmuckler said, “I learned about my voice and how it functioned, how I could take care of it, bring it back and make it stronger than it had been before.”
Her education prepared her for her unconventional profession. After graduating from Temple with a theater degree, Schmuckler earned a master’s in communication and speech disorders at Towson University in Maryland. She received a certificate in communication disorders and sciences from West Chester University. And she earned a certificate of distinction in vocal pedagogy from Boston Conservatory at Berklee.
She now works part time in a more traditional role as a licensed speech rehabilitation therapist at Jefferson University Hospital in Center City.
In that capacity, she offers care for a range of conditions, including gender voice dysphoria, Parkinson’s-related vocal changes, post-stroke speech, cognition and swallowing disorders.
Schmuckler diversified her skills by starting On Your Voice, working as a vocal wellness trainer, educator and coach. She, herself, is a public speaker and singer.
“I help individuals develop long-term vocal wellness and voice optimization techniques,” she said.
Voice is important to her, and she has a strong passion for its potential.
“I’ve learned that the voice is so easily taken for granted until it is no longer working for you,” she said.
She understands the mechanics of the voice and how it can enhance both her career and the careers of others. And she knows the medical side of speech therapy.
The most fulfilling part of her job is seeing individuals discover the potential for creating a beautiful voice quality they never knew they had.
Frequently people approach her and express their confusion about what caring for the voice entails.
“You mean if something happens to my speech and I can’t talk well? Not being able to use your speech is different than your voice,” she said.
People don’t expect that a speech therapist would have their hand in this, she said.
“Not only do I educate people on what’s possible, I actually get to explore that with them,” Schmuckler said.
She encourages her clients to examine a hidden aspect of themselves that they never thought they could develop independently.
“When I see that moment of buy-in, it’s just the most beautiful thing,” she said.
Outside of professional pursuits, Schmuckler engages in crafting and choreography. She finds inspiration in adding personality and character to her home through crafts. She collaborates with local schools on musical productions.
Schmuckler, who grew up at Mishkan Shalom Reconstructionist Synagogue, is married to a technical theater director. They parent two young children, Talula and Thomas.
“Their developing voices and imaginative outlook on life continually inspires me,” she said.
Ellen Braunstein is a freelance writer.
