Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Tonal Tuesdays - You'll Never Sing Alone

Well the title is a bit deceiving, I agree.  Music is a communication tool.  It is but one way to connect thoughts, feelings, history, beliefs, and so much more.  Because music can come with words or not, one musician or hundreds, actors on stage or off, costumes and lighting or street clothes and dark corners, it is a hard animal to pin down.  They say that love is the universal language but I truly believe it is MUSIC.



Music can be a seemingly solitary activity.  You can play or sing or listen by yourself.  However, no matter how alone you are, there is always someone there with you.  The composer, the publisher, the performer, the instrument maker and Sometimes, you have to work hard to find that audience and then you have to really make certain you are communicating.

The music needs to "speak" to your audience.  I used to get the Canadian Opera Company to come to schools in my area to do workshops.  Now, you wouldn't think that opera would be a format enjoyed by 12 to 14 year olds but presented the right way, they love it.  The members of the  Canadian Opera Company were adept at telling the story of one of the operas they were performing that year.  They brought fun props and had the students help them act out the story then would add few phrases of music.  By the end, the students understood the story and were ready to listen to a scene and truly enjoy it.  Now, that is real communication.

Music is a joy whether you are the creator or the receiver.  As a choir, we strive to tell a story and most importantly, respect the audience to whom we sing.  We never sing alone and would love to have you there.

We will soon be adding some MP3's for you to hear.  Stay tuned.

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2 comments:

Colleen said...

Here, here! We've talked about this topic before. I really can't see why music would leave anyone feeling alone. Music is not a solitary art in the way that say painting might be. And as you say, there are many people behind a piece of music besides the performer themselves. So music is quite communal really.

Embro Thistle Singers said...

You are so right. I truly have a hard time understanding why anyone would feel isolated in their music unless they chose to feel that way. Then, why would anyone make that choice?