Notes of a Retired Church Choir Conductor

   It so happened that I can no longer do what I like to do most.  I will not go into the reasons of my retirement; suffice it to say that it has nothing to do with singing.  These notes are addressed mainly to those who sing in male choirs.  However, I do not rule out the possibility that those who sing in other types of choirs will also find some of the ideas expressed below to be useful.

   In no way do I claim to be an authority on the subject.  On the contrary, by submitting these ideas for public discussion, I would like find  out where I am right and where I am wrong.

   Among all the definite disadvantages of my unwished for hiatus, there is one advantage: I can listen to other choirs and by comparing their work to  what I used to do I can point out common mistakes and look for ways of remedying them.  Perhaps these thoughts simply lie on the surface, perhaps they have not been developed properly, but when viewed as a whole, they seem to suggest interesting findings, which may be helpful to others

   Here is the very first thing to be understood.   Accept the following as an axiom, when you are reading these notes, otherwise the rest of hypotheses will not be fully valid and justifiable.

   Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises unto our King, sing praises (Psalm 46, 7)

   Comprehend Where you are and Whom you are singing to.

   Let the epigraph to this thought become the foundation of all your singing for the rest of your life.

   After that, it becomes quite unimportant what audience you are singing to.  Conductors who adjust to a certain population layer, are wrong: “In our church we often have the educated, we also have the famous, and the influential. that is why for our repertoire I will choose pieces that are particularly beautiful,” or, “we only have old women in our church, so what’s the difference what to sing.”

   In this respect, everyone is equal: people burdened by their intellect are equal to those whom these intellectuals call “simple folk” in everyday life.  That is why I will often resort to the word “man”, simply signifying the person, wanting to be in church.

   Man comes to church not to enjoy your singing.  If he wants to listen to someone sing, he may go to a concert, or turn on the radio.  Nevertheless, if we “try” hard enough, our bad, careless singing may harm anyone’s prayerful state of mind.

   Man comes to church because his spirit and soul are in pain, and an air on the theme from the church service will not heal his wounds.  What’s more, some people will be disappointed by the service, and perhaps will never come back.

   Man comes to church to meet God, and nobody has a right to interfere: not old women by their comments, nor the priest by his behavior, nor the choir by its singing.  The only thing we can do as choir members is help him by creating an  appropriate spiritual atmosphere, by soothing his anxiety and not inciting his passions.

   There is another mistake that could happen to a choir at any stage, whether it has been in existence for only a month or twenty years.  Choir members become friendly with each other.  There is nothing wrong with that, friendships even help to make singing easier, and more coordinated.

   But sometimes (although not always) it makes one forget the most important component of the church singing, the fact that all the hymns are sung to no one but God.   The choristers come to church to meet each other, and to make music together, to enjoy the choir’s harmonious singing, and the beauty of the performed pieces, if not to socialize.  Such singing for singing’s sake is absolutely unacceptable. Singing in church should be separated from any personal relationships outside the church.

Copyright 2004, Saint Nicholas Orthodox Church