Mental health

The October issue of Choral Journal is online and features an article titled “Sound Teaching: Trauma-Informed Pedagogy in Choir” by William Sauerland. You can read it in its entirety at acda.org/choraljournal. Following is a portion from the introduction.

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Involvement in a music ensemble has been found to be beneficial for social, mental, emotional, spiritual, and neurobiological health; however, the scenarios above present snapshots of how trauma or post-traumatic stress can be incited during a choral rehearsal.

Though trauma might be commonly misunderstood as the suffering of only individuals who have endured severe emotional or physical abuse, mental health experts indicate trauma is more frequent and widespread.(1) An estimated 66-85% of people experience exposure to a traumatic event by college-age.(2) Described as “America’s hidden health crisis,”(3) trauma is a violation of “our beliefs that the world is a safe place.”(4) Considering the impact of trauma in the well-being of choral singers seems necessary and pertinent.

Discussions of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) have heightened awareness of trauma in our national consciousness. Trauma can be caused by the death of a loved one, a motor vehicle accident, loneliness, body shaming, or any adverse experience that causes a sense of danger or distress. Widespread adversities, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, race relations, and ongoing political divisions in the United States could all be sources of trauma. Choir directors might also be aware that stressors caused by social media, school bullying, and violence in schools can instigate a traumatic response in students. The introductory scenarios illustrate actions and behaviors that, in any social environment, have the potential to trigger trauma. The purpose of this article is to consider trauma-informed pedagogy (TIP) for choral teaching, not only as a framework for teaching singers with a history of trauma, but for the safety and well-being of all choral singers.

Even the most compassionate teachers may not be knowledgeable in how to manage and lessen the stressors singers bring to the choral classroom. Choir directors can have an awareness of the impact of trauma on choral singers and be equipped with strategies to mitigate trauma triggers and nurture more compassionate choirs. For readers who have suffered from an adverse experience, please note that this article might itself incite a traumatic response.

NOTES

1 – Christopher Menschner and Alexandra Maul, Key Ingredients for Successful Trauma-Informed Care Implementation (Center for Health Care Strategies, Inc., 2016): 2.
2 – Shannon Davidson, “Trauma-Informed Practices for Postsecondary Education: A Guide.” Education Northwest (2017): 5.
3 – M. Shelley Thomas, Shantel Crosby, and Judi Vanderhaar, “Trauma-Informed Practices in Schools Across Two Decades: An Interdisciplinary Review of Research.” Review of Research in Education 43, no. 1 (2019): 424.
4 – Vivian Barnett Brown, Maxine Harris, and Roger Fallot, “Moving Toward Trauma-Informed Practice in Addiction Treatment: A Collaborative Model of Agency Assessment.” Journal of Psychoactive Drugs 45, No. 5 (2013): 387.

The October issue of Choral Journal is online and features an article titled “Burnout Prevention for Conductors and Their Choirs” by Amelia Nagoski. You can read it in its entirety at acda.org/choraljournal. Following is a portion from the article.

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Burnout does not happen because we did not try to take care of ourselves. We are all trying, all the time, to be and do everything we can for our singers, for our families, for ourselves. When we are overwhelmed and exhausted, we are told it’s our fault because we did not take enough “me time,” as if what we needed was more persistence and discipline. Choral musicians can experience judgement, harassment, and prejudice within their own community because they do not have the right religion, body size and shape, sexuality, education, etc. We are all stressed, not just by the things we choose to do, but by the intolerance and injustice that are imposed upon us. Unfortunately, the music industry is more toxic than most.

This is why the cure for burnout is not self-care. No matter how many massages we get or vacations we take, we still live in a world that tells us we just need more grit; that if we don’t have what we want, we just haven’t worked hard enough. What makes this even more difficult and complicated is that every member of your choir lives in the world. They are walking into rehearsal fresh from a day of harassment, micro-aggressions, and news of violence against members of disadvantaged communities.

Then we ask them to sing. For most of them, it is a release and a comfort to use their voices, to connect with other singers, and to explore music that expresses a truth about human experience. It is necessary, therefore, to ask ourselves: Is our choir a place where they escape the oppressions of the wider world?

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Read the full article in the October 2021 issue of Choral Journal at acda.org/choraljournal

The October issue of Choral Journal is online and features an article titled “Remember You: Mental Health in a Life Dedicated to Choral Music” by Stephanie and Troy Robertson. You can read it in its entirety at acda.org/choraljournal. Following is a portion from the introduction.

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For many choral musicians, our profession is our primary identity. Our mental landscape is dominated by it. We, like artists and teachers in other vocations, repeat sayings that implicate the whole of our life, not merely part: “A calling, not a job,” “dark to dark,” “you don’t do it for the money.” When we reflect on our profession, it is with the lofty ambition to touch and change our singers’ lives as well as our own. The litany of activities this entails is well known: classroom teaching, ensembles, extracurricular ensembles, performances at night and on weekends, fundraisers.

For those of us who lead choirs in sacred spaces our work includes some of the most intimate moments in the lives of our choristers: new babies, weddings, sickness, funerals, moving into a new town, moving away from those we love, years and years of music and fellowship, rites and sacraments that cycle with the seasons of the year and the seasons of a life. How does this affect our mental health? In what ways do we face unique challenges, and how do we cope with such demands on our time and energy?

Moving Beyond Problem Admiration

To make meaningful changes, we must clearly identify the problem, but we must also move beyond discussing, defining, and considering the problem. The interventions described in this article are no substitute for clinical treatment. If you are struggling with mental health, the assistance of a counselor may be the best option. Types of therapists and additional resources are outlined at the end of this article. However, there are numerous interventions and applications that may be beneficial to put into practice independently.

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Read the full article in the October 2021 issue of Choral Journal at acda.org/choraljournal