Tone Deaf? Join the 'Can't Sing Choir'
Maybe you’ve mastered the art of knitting, dabbled in painting, or even tried your hand at pottery. But when it comes to making music, specifically singing, people think ya’ either got it…or ya’ don’t, as Mama Rose in Gypsy famously barks.
However, recent research shows that there may be more to singing than just innate talent. Like other arts from quilting to sculpting to writing code, it turns out that hard work is usually the key to success and not just a natural gift.
(Photo: londonchoralfestival.co.uk)
Enter the “Can’t Sing Choir” at Morley College in London. The college program aims to teach those who think they’ll never hit the high notes — or any notes at all. Instructor David Dellaire says the course peels it back to the basics. The choir teaches would-be singers the skills that people don’t usually get when they join a choir. For most, people are “just expected to show up and sing and not actually learn the techniques,” Dellaire says. “With the ‘Can’t Sing Choir,’ I teach the students how their diaphragm and lungs work and actual knowledge of how the voice functions.”
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But a lot of people remember hurtful personal experiences of being told they could and would never sing. A study at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois found “children who have been told they can’t sing well are even less likely to engage with music in the future and often vividly remember the negative experience well into adulthood. Being called “tone deaf” can have devastating effects on a child’s self-image,” the researchers wrote in the study.
Dellaire agrees wholeheartedly and even tailors his technique to help combat this, including getting people to socialize amongst the group to “break down any embarrassment that may be bubbling inside.”
So, don’t believe that “tone deaf” nonsense! Dellaire thinks absolutely anyone can learn to sing. “If you have a good ear, you can learn what you’re doing wrong.” And hopefully, what you’re doing right.
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(Photo: manchesterwelsh.org.uk)
So if everyone can sing, what are the actual nuts and bolts of learning? If you want to learn to paint or learn to knit, you could pick up a book, or search a YouTube video. But singing seems to be something Siri can’t help you with. The BBC aims to help potential singers with a few tutorials on their website. But it seems to boil down to listening to yourself singing (try recording yourself) and being brave. The BBC continues, “your voice is like any muscle – it gets tired, needs exercise, and needs rest, especially if you are making it do things it normally doesn’t do.”
But don’t expect to just burst out into Nessun Dorma or a scene from “Sister Act” right out of the gate. Dellaire says that the “Can’t Sing Choir” is all about the fundamentals of singing; students are taught to sing in unison and as they progress will learn how to build up their voice and have confidence to hold a line, but it’s important to start with the basics and not get distracted from the technique.
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(Photo: tauntonmusic.co.uk)
One-to-one singing lessons may be a way to go for the more serious. Dellaire recalls a particular student who couldn’t hit any note. He was surprised when the student approached him after class and asked if he was singing in tune. After a private lesson, the student was matching pitches but still couldn’t go above a certain note. With some additional tutoring, Dellaire was able to help the pupil, and prove that anyone can sing. He echoes the BBC, saying that vocal muscles, like any other muscle in the body, hold so much tension and just need practice to release. It’s all about teaching “the body and muscles the right way to do it.” And at the end of the day, as any maker will tell you, the key to success is practice, practice, and then…some more practice.
Interested in joining a choir? Check out choir.meetup.com to find a choir meetup group in your neck of the woods.
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