[A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog From the Front of the Choir]
Opportunities to sing with others, especially in harmony, are very rare when you’re confined to your house.
This could be a chance to discover the joys of singing on your own.
Like many of you I love singing in harmony. It’s something I’m really missing at the moment. But it’s just not possible unless you have some singers in your house during lockdown.
Many singers are going online, but as you’ve probably discovered, it will just be you singing whilst listening to a recording or the leader singing. Everyone else will be muted.
This can be a scary proposition.
Singers in choirs are used to being surrounded by other voices singing the same part. Under-confident singers can disappear into the mix.
But singing online means it’s jut you in a room by yourself (usually).
This can be great because it means you have total responsibility for getting your part right. There is nobody to hide behind. It can be an opportunity to find out whether you’ve been singing your part correctly all this time.
But some singers will find this off-putting. You might be worried about your housemates overhearing you. You might not like the sound of your own voice. You might find it a struggle to learn a new part without other singers around you.
It might put you on the spot, but there can be many advantages to singing on your own.
Here are some ways in which singing on your own can be liberating. You can either sing alone with just your voice, or sing along to a recording. or join in with an online session (where you’re on mute) or even sing along to an instrument (if you play one).
I’d love to hear about your own experiences of singing by yourself and how it is different from singing in a choir.
Chris Rowbury
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