I know you can’t please everyone, but when I plan a singing workshop I try to make sure I won’t be teaching anything that any of the singers already know.
An impossible task, but I have a low boredom threshold and feel I need to keep singers interested.
I have so many new songs I’m dying to teach that I’m always introducing brand new repertoire.
But singers often want something familiar. They want to feel comfortable and not be learning all the time. Sometimes they just want to have a good sing.
The secret is to balance the new with the familiar. If you lead a regular choir, make sure you revisit a few old favourites at the end of each rehearsal. Constantly introducing new repertoire can be tiring and unrewarding.
It’s a little harder with one-off workshops.
I like to us this analogy. Imagine that you invite some friends over for a meal. They live a long way away, so the last time they visited may have been two or three years ago. Because they don’t come often, they’ll probably remember what you served last time, even if you don’t. They might get a bit bored (or think you have a very limited repertoire of meals!) if you serve the same thing every time they visit.
It’s similar with one-off workshops. A participant might not have been to one of yours for several years, but they may still remember the songs they learnt last time. They could well be disappointed if you teach exactly the same repertoire again. Which is why I try to keep records so singers learn something new each time they come.
That most one-off workshops will consist mainly of new repertoire. The trick is to make sure singers still get to have a really good sing. I do that by limiting the number of songs I teach, making sure we sing through everything again at the end, and including one song that’s quick and easy to learn.
older posts
You might find these other post of interest too.
We’ve come to sing, not to learn!
Trying to please all the people all the time
Sometimes old is best – finding the balance between new and familiar
Chris Rowbury
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