[A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog From the Front of the Choir]
The last time I was in a room with a group of singers was nearly six months ago. 
If I had known then that I wouldn’t be singing like that for the foreseeable future, would I have behaved differently?
The last time I directed a choir for a performance was seven months ago. My next choir performance was due three months ago, but it never happened.
If I had known at the end of my last public performance that it was unlikely to happen again for a very long time, if at all, would I have behaved differently?
It’s so easy to take something for granted, especially if it happens regularly and is always on offer.
Choir rehearsals are like that.
We love to sing together and enjoy seeing our friends each week. But sometimes it can be a struggle: we might be tired or feeling unwell. Sometimes life intervenes and we need to miss a week. But that’s OK, there will always be another rehearsal next week.
Until there isn’t.
It’s become rather hackneyed, but there’s a lot of truth in the phrase: “You don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s gone.”
It’s only when choir rehearsals aren’t taking place or you’re not performing any more or you can’t meet up socially with your fellow singers that you realise how important it is to you.
I’m sure we all value our experiences of singing together. But how often do we consciously express or note our gratitude? To each other, to our choir leader or just to ourselves?
When the pandemic is over and we’re eventually back to singing together, I’m going to try harder not to take it for granted. At the end of each rehearsal and performance I’ll try to take a moment to really appreciate what has happened.
How about you?
Chris Rowbury
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