Great Choral Study Interview

James McLaren |

Numbers of people becoming involved in British choirs have been
falling for some years; a new study of the state of the choral
scene will assess just how drastic that decline has been.

Researchers from the Great Choral Study will aim to “investigate
the current and future trends, opportunities and challenges facing
British choirs”.

“Major questions are being asked throughout the choral community
on the future of choral singing – is the television-driven
popularity of choral singing the first signs of a rebirth of our
choral tradition or simply a blip in the ongoing decline of a great
tradition?”

Leading Welsh choral conductor, John Hywel Williams MBE, a
recognised authority in choral singing, is an expert advisor for
the British Research Team and whose long and established choral
career makes him no stranger to the evolving trends in choral
singing.

“While choral singing was a pillar of community life years ago,
this has faced great competition in terms of competing social
activities, changing work habits and the redefinition of community
and home life dynamics.

“All this has had a profound impact on the positioning and
popularity of choral singing within the community and across the
land. With choral singing and ‘the Land of Song’ a key component of
the image of Wales, to understand the trends and challenges for
choirs and the future of choral singing is of great interest to
Wales as a country.”

We caught up with The Great Choral Study’s Jeremy Williams to
ask a few questions.

Do you think that the likes of Only Men Aloud are genuinely
fomenting interest in lower age groups?