Most singers know they should warm up before singing — but what exactly should a warm up contain?
I’ve written before about why warm ups matter— see The singers who didn’t like warm ups (and what became of them) — but it’s worth looking more closely at what actually makes a warm up effective.
When singers join a non-auditioned choir, they are usually expected to choose the voice part that suits them — without any help.
Over time, singers in community choirs can begin to wonder if they’ve chosen the right part. Here’s a simple way of carrying out a vocal range test with the whole choir.
The second Friday in January is known as “Quitters Day” — the point at which most people abandon the goals they set in their New Year’s resolutions.
Apparently, only 9% of people successfully keep their resolutions and 23% quit in the first week. So how can you real, lasting progress as a singer or choir leader?
A new year and a new choir season don’t just bring change — they also bring choice.
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This is often a moment to pause and reflect: what’s working, what’s not, and what might benefit from being done differently. For choir leaders in particular, it’s a chance to plan rather than simply react.
It’s the start of a new year, a time when people make new plans and take on new challenges.
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For singers and choir leaders, that often means dealing with change: new people, new spaces, new songs, and unfamiliar ways of doing things. Change can be exciting, but it can also feel unsettling.
It’s that time of year when drinking a little more than usual suddenly seems normal.
Which is fine — until Uncle Geoff starts telling inappropriate jokes or Mum stumbles and sends all the roast potatoes flying across the floor.
Looking for a last-minute Christmas gift? Why not introduce someone to singing?
Unlike a box of chocolates or a pair of socks, singing lasts a lifetime.
I’m sure you’ve noticed that it’s that time of year again — the time when so many choirs are busy with Christmas concerts.
But will you be doing the same old Christmas songs that you wheel out year after year? The songs that your audience expects?
House was an American medical drama starring Hugh Laurie as Dr Gregory House.
House used to say “Everybody lies.” Not necessarily consciously, but everyone does it — including singers in choirs.
Many choirs perform outdoors during the winter, especially in the run-up to Christmas.
Here are some tips to help make the experience as pleasurable as possible.
A couple of things this week reminded me how important mistakes are when learning something new.
One was performer, song leader and composer Brendan Taaffe’s substack: The most important thing you can do is fail”, and the other was a workshop I attended on Voice, Body and Rhythm with Helen Chadwick and Tania Bosak.
I’m attending a three-day workshop this weekend and I’m feeling nervous.
It’s a common feeling when stepping into the unknown. But I’ve been to countless workshops before — so what’s going on?
There was a choir I needed to contact recently. I knew their name and where they’re based, but I couldn’t find their contact details anywhere online.
Is your choir easy to find and contact?
If you don’t have a mailing list for people interested in your choir or singing workshops, you’re missing a trick.
It’s the easiest and most powerful way to recruit singers.
Sometimes I teach a song at a workshop that some singers already know.
Invariably it will be a different arrangement. So how can singers approach re-learning a version that has only slight variations?
I was trying to come up with an idea for this week’s blog post, but everything I thought of I’d already written about!
For a moment, I started to worry that I’d run out of things to say about choirs and singing. Surely that can’t be true — can it?
When I lead a one-off singing day or weekend, I’m always amazed at how many songs I’m able to teach — and how quickly singers pick them up.
This is in stark contrast to weekly choir rehearsals which are often harder work and far less productive. So what’s going on here?
Quite often, something happens that means a singer can’t attend a singing event they’ve paid for.
I used to deal with each situation individually, which caused me a lot of stress and anguish. That’s where a clear cancellation policy comes in handy.
After teaching songs to a group of singers, I often get feedback that it was hard to concentrate because so many people were talking.
It always surprises me, since I don’t usually notice. So what’s going on here?
Any half-decent choir will help singers improve their skills week by week.
But sometimes that alone is not enough if you really want to develop and grow.