A decade ago, in 2014, NATS launched Vocapedia, which served as a trusted online resource for professionals in voice-related fields from singing teachers to speech-language pathologists. Recently, Vocapedia has undergone a transformation into a true wiki format, now using the same open-source platform that powers Wikipedia.

In his Nov/Dec 2024 Journal of Singing article, “Vocapedia Reborn: A True Wiki Resource for Voice Teachers,” John Nix reviews the history of Vocapedia and discusses its new format. He encourages all voice professionals who enjoy and study the voice — voice teachers, collaborative pianists, choral directors, speech language pathologists, voice researchers, and others — to explore the revamped resource and contribute to the evolving database.

To make the transition to a true wiki format, NATS worked with WikiTeq, an external development team, to develop the wiki infrastructure. After testing several options, the subcommittee selected MediaWiki, which is the open-source platform on which Wikipedia is based. Features of this platform that are attractive include easy content search, intuitive forms for adding and editing content, and minimal need for maintenance. In designing the site, content was separated into two types: "article” for short, topic-focused, original content (see Articles) and "resource” for existing resources, such as external websites and multimedia (see). All existing Vocapedia content was transferred into the new wiki as the “resource” content type. 

For Vocapedia to grow and flourish, we need to leverage your expertise as singers, teachers of singing, speech-language pathologists, conductors, collaborative pianists, and voice researchers. Vocapedia is an ever-expanding resource, and like all wikis, it remains a work in progress. If you fail to find the resource you need and wish to submit a request regarding particular content you would find useful, please send a brief email outlining your request to vocapedia@nats.org. Alternatively, if something is missing and you can contribute content (including the required evidence and references), create an account and use the Contribute link on the new site to submit it for review.