Wednesday, December 2, 2009

voice project

i convinced james to join me in singing with a community-based choir called 'the voice project'. capably and enthusiastically led by jonathan and sian, we're rehearsing for a show in 2 weeks. all the music is taught orally in 5 parts---bass, tenor, alto 1 and 2, soprano---broken down into phrases and gradually woven together, part by part. johnathan and sian are both rich sources of vocal tips, as if they were playing the 'instrument' of the choir, sculpting the sound.

so far, there has been a curious absence of the typical dysfunctional 'i-whip-and-you-take-it-smiling' relationship between the director[s] and the members. i've wondered about the reasons why and it seems that it comes down to the philosophy of the group. a community choir serves its members, hence serving the community---emphasis on 'serve' as as verb. it's a project of teaching and learning not separated from the world. it's embodied, with a place...no need for the anxiety of wondering about place in the world to well up into other manifestations, like put-downs or backbiting!


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