Adolescence is defined as that period of time in an individual’s life when he/she leaves childhood and enters maturity. Psychologically and emotionally for some 
individuals that is a period of several years. Adolescence is also defined as the time of pubescence. For some individuals this is indeed less than a year…Therefore, adolescence must be defined as the changing years and it must encompass those grades as early as the fifth and as late as the twelfth.
Since every adult has personally experienced the travails of puberty, our students are better served when we are patient with their awkwardness, supportive of their sensitive natures, and empathic with the myriad ups and downs that are an inevitable part of emotional and physiological maturation. Vocal pedagogues, music educators and choral directors who work with adolescents face multitudinous challenges. Singing is generally not perceived to be an acceptable activity in modern American culture; indeed, among teenage males singing is viewed as effeminate and unmanly. In an age when sports figures are deified by the media and compensated with salaries that often exceed many millions of dollars, enticing adolescent males to participate in vocal ensembles can be daunting. Indeed, “Boys have to be convinced that singing is a worthwhile activity.”
Since every adult has personally experienced the travails of puberty, our students are better served when we are patient with their awkwardness, supportive of their sensitive natures, and empathic with the myriad ups and downs that are an inevitable part of emotional and physiological maturation. Vocal pedagogues, music educators and choral directors who work with adolescents face multitudinous challenges. Singing is generally not perceived to be an acceptable activity in modern American culture; indeed, among teenage males singing is viewed as effeminate and unmanly. In an age when sports figures are deified by the media and compensated with salaries that often exceed many millions of dollars, enticing adolescent males to participate in vocal ensembles can be daunting. Indeed, “Boys have to be convinced that singing is a worthwhile activity.”
Hence, an adult in a musical leadership position assumes the additional roles of erstwhile counselor, coach, cheerleader, and, occasionally even referee. Offering support to young singers who are experiencing pressure from their peers to participate in other activities—especially prevalent among boys—is necessary in order to ensure a successful ensemble. Once a young male has decided to participate in a vocal ensemble—either in a school, community-based organization or religious institution—the first hurdle for both the boy and the teacher/director is the audition. So heavily laden with misconceptions and anxiety is the word “audition” that perhaps substituting a more neutral phrase, such as “voice check,” is one way that a boy’s nervousness can be alleviated.