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The Choir Flashmob

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Well, it’s sort of like a choir:
 
 


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  2. Hi Janine and thanks for the response.
     
    To me, it looked more like a musical than a choir but I’m always surprised when a few words of mine inspire such passion!
     
    I issue you this challenge, Janine . . . you write the blog, I’ll put it up for everyone to see.  I’m not sure that I agree with you about the need to "present the treasured works of the choral canon in a relevant and transforming way" but I would love to see people discuss it.
     
    philip
     
     

  3. Holy freeking jezuz this has got to be the single WORST piece of video editing I’ve seen in a long long time. Cripes, just try to leave the camera alone for FIVE FREEKIN SECONDS.  One cut per second means that NOBODY outside the astoundingly self-indulgent editor will be able to watch the entire thing all the way through. Too bad. It looks like a ton of work went into this and then it’s all ruined by a stupid editor. Sigh.

  4. Creating a situation in which a song might be sung — then empowering each singer with a compelling purpose for singing the song — is the basis of the approach that I use when I work with choirs. It’s amazingly easy, and instantly transformative because it taps into authentic human behavior that we all use on a daily basis. "Give me my bike back!" is a compelling objective, and if I were rehearsing this Queen classic in a standard rehearsal space, I would start by doing something like the following:
     
    1. Have the singers use their imagination or real life experience to "flesh out" the bike they’re talking about. What kind of bike? Color? Specifics? What do they like about the bike itself? (30 seconds)
    2. Talk to their neighbors about the joys of riding this particular bike — and why they really want to ride it NOW. (30 seconds)
    3. Have the singers create the scenario where in somebody took their bike and they want it back, OR they’re trying to encourage somebody else to ride a bike. (20 seconds)
    4. Using that scenario, have the singers "Face the Director," looking at the director and using their imagination to see them as that Other person in their scenario (15 seconds)
    5. "On the count of three," all singers SPEAK to their Other (the director), saying anything and everything to get the director to either give them their bike … or ride the bike (depending on their particular objective). As they speak, they use their bodies to describe what they’re talking about and get the Other’s attention.
    6. As they get into this, the director gives the downbeat, and the singers go right into the song, continuing their connection to their Objective, their Other, and their scenario — and continuing their physicalization of their objectives as well.
     
    This basic process can be done with any song, and can turn even the most inexpressive and disconnected singers into a vibrantly engaged and engaging choir. They’ll sing a lot better, too.
     
    All my best,
     
    Tom
     
    Tom Carter
     

  6.  Phillip!  What do you mean SORT OF like a choir???  It is a choir in the best form!  It is RELEVANT!!  Relevance is something we, as choral conductors, would be wise to put at the TOP of our lists in our concert planning if we want the choral arts to MATTER.  We should have an ENTIRE BLOG on our ChoralNet site devoted to brainstorming on this topic alone and taking it one step further…. How can we present the treasured works of the choral canon in a relevant and transforming way?
     
    SORT OF???  Good grief.  Kudos to the artistic director in Brussels who put that one together!
     
    Janine

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