Choral Potpourri: Take a Chance

“Sometimes we stare so long at a door that is closing that we see too late the one that is open.” Alexander Graham Bell

 The choir year is winding down for most of us. The Academic year is just about finished and our concerts have been sung. For church choirs, the Big Holidays (other than Pentecost) and their special music have been put in the record books; we are about to enter Ordinary Time. What do you do with your choirs at this time of year?

Many school choir directors put on a movie or play Choir Jeopardy or Music Bingo, not really singing again after their spring choral concerts and that’s fine, I guess. But shouldn’t singers sing? ChoralNet is chock full of ideas for your middle school or high school choirs for the end of the year. When in doubt, look to our archives.

Is your budget completely spent? Try ChoralWiki or other online FREE resources and do something completely different; now is the time for experimenting. Instead of “marking time” until the end of the school year, sing something fun and different and new in preparation for the fall. You could try new repertoire, something you would never think to use for a concert but are itching to try with your groups. What could it hurt? Take a chance and sing through it; something could strike you or your choirs as being perfect for next year!

Do something to honor your graduating singers by dividing your choir into groups for your GRADS to conduct. The last day they are with you, have a mini concert for the choir during rehearsal time and make it a tradition. Or do it during your music department banquet. I am too late for this year, so start thinking about it for next year!

Often after Lent and Easter, our church choir’s membership goes down. Many of our singers think there is no need to be regular with rehearsal or Sunday service attendance since they’ve already sung the important music. The temptation to sleep-in or schedule a Sunday morning tee-time when the weather is finally nice or have a late Sunday morning brunch is always there. What to do?

The season of Easter lasts until Pentecost so schedule favorite Easter anthems from years past during that time. Have your choir vote for their favorite Easter anthems, limited to only the ones you’ve not sung this Easter, and then let them know the schedule of those anthems. If you want “Ted-the-Tenor” to stick around, tell him you’ll be singing his favorite arrangement of “Christ the Lord is Risen Today” on Easter 3, that should help!

Plan music around absences if you know who will be gone, when. Schedule a Men’s Sunday and a Women’s Sunday with music highlighting those sections. You might want to ask which Sunday would be best for each group. Don’t forget there are all sorts of graduations out of town at this time of year, too.

Several of the congregations I have served have made a Big Deal out of Pentecost. One congregation had a community Lamb Roast right after worship, inviting people from all over the neighborhood, and planted red geraniums used in their Pentecost service in front of the church. It was lovely and fun and not what I was used to. Another congregation encouraged me to start a liturgical dance group whose sole purpose was to be used in the Pentecost service. I was told to think outside of the box and I did, using Dancing Ribbons, in red and orange, as part of our presentation. The music in both cases was off the beaten path and my choirs wanted to sing it; I was able to keep a larger than usual choir going after Easter.

Instead of thinking of the spring as the end of the choir year, no matter what sort of choir you direct, start thinking of it as a bridge to the next. The pressure is off; this is your time to be creative and take a chance!