"'American Idol' pretty much sequestered her, but she was not getting a lot of help from them," Kaelin says. "She could call when she had a free minute, and we would do phone lessons or warm-ups."

More than 20 of Kaelin's students have tried out for "American Idol," and almost all of them survived at least a round or two. "We don't really gear toward 'American Idol,"' he said. "The students are just looking for a place to perform."

He also has worked with SheDaisy, the Hughes Brothers, Kerri Strogh ("High School Musical"), the Taylor Family singers and the Saliva Sisters.

Predictably, when one of his students makes his mark on "Idol," Kaelin's phone calls increase. He gives individual lessons to 85 students in a tiny house that has been converted into a studio. He hired four teachers to help handle the load. He also trains students around the world via Skype, including students in Austria, Great Britain and New Zealand.

"It's just word of mouth," Kaelin says. "I've never had to advertise ..."

Kaelin has dabbled in the music business since he was a young boy, first as a local performer and later behind the scenes as a studio musician, arranger, producer, voice coach and songwriter. In one capacity or another, he has performed on more than 75 CDs, including seven of his own whose themes cover such genres as jazz, Christmas and LDS.

"In many ways, I feel like I've been preparing for ('American Idol') my whole life," he says.

· · · · ·

Kaelin was raised in a musical home. Bob and Melba Kaelin built an addition onto the back of their Salt Lake home to create a music room for their five sons. They filled it with two pianos, an organ, vibes, drums, guitars, a stand-up bass and lots of music. The only rule: The music had to stop at 10 p.m. to give the neighbors a measure of silence.

Bob and Melba were both musical, but growing up in the Great Depression left little leisure time or money for music study, much to their regret. Bob had a great singing voice and sang in choirs; Melba couldn't afford piano lessons, so she taught herself to play.

"They made sure all their kids had a chance to pursue music," Kaelin says.

They were all given formal music instruction, and the boys soon formed a family band. Dean, the fourth child, began singing at 3, performing in rest homes, churches and family gatherings. He began performing professionally with his brothers at 9, playing drums, guitar, stand-up bass and piano at school and church dances. He had to stand on a Coke case to reach the top of the bass. He played so frequently that he taped the ends of his fingers to protect them from blisters. He liked to collect instruments and "figure out how to play them." Eventually, he could play 15 different instruments.