Workplace Singing? You're hired!

On Monday we headed to Pimlico to sing but, rather than attending our usual rehearsal halls, we stopped just short at St Saviour's Church to take part in a vocal CPD workshop for choral facilitators, run by the London Youth Choir.

It was lovely to be in a room full of people just as passionate about group singing as we are. In amongst sharing skills and ideas with peers, we were tutored by Greg Beardsell and Rachel Staunton, two of the brightest lights in choral leadership.

The workshop reinforced the value of engaging our mind with our breath, voice and body and those around us when singing, not just as a vocal tool but a social one; levelling the group and casting out external worries, focusing you on the task and sharing in the same exercise. 

All of this is at the forefront of our work with Starling Arts and how we nurture communities, whether new or existing, to be creative, confident and supportive of one another. 

Following an excellent rehearsal with our choir Corvida last night - excellent because our singers not only sang and performed brilliantly, but engaged in all of the above qualities - I returned home to watch the latest episode of The Apprentice. Focusing on Corporate Away Days, the two teams had to devise a day of team building and motivational exercises for major clients, the winner being the team who provided not just a profitable session for themselves, but a satisfying and useful session for their client. The exercises chosen - wine tasting, cupcake decorating, archery, etc - may have been fun in their own right, but what surprised me, and indeed Lord Sugar, was how the majority of candidates seemed to link these tasks so tenuously to the business objectives set-out by the client. 

Away Days are about team-building, leadership, confidence, focus and communication, all qualities which can be developed through group singing. Starling Arts offer bespoke sessions which provide just that for businesses (click here to find out more). Delegates need no prior experience to sing, just a voice! And regardless of the vocal quality, the personal satisfaction and achievement that comes from group singing is at the root of why it works; perhaps The Apprentice candidates should have got in touch with us? 

Next month a new book by Stacy Horn is to be published. 'Imperfect Harmony: Finding Happiness in Singing With Others' charts Horn's time with a community choir she joined after her divorce. In a recent interview with Ari Shapiro and guest Daniel Levitin (author of 'This is Your Brain on Music'), Horn quotes a paper she read which explained how "Group singing and performance can produce satisfying and therapeutic sensations, even when the sound produced by the vocal instrument is of mediocre quality." Once again, you don’t need prior experience (or Adele's vocal cords) to sing together, and it is exactly this point which I hope will fend off any skeptics who might favour wine-tasting or chocolate making over a good sing when it comes to corporate away days.  As Daniel Levitin highlights in the interview, there are proven neurochemical rewards gained from group singing, principally the release of oxytocin, the 'friendship chemical'. Friendship is the cornerstone of a strong community, be it a choir, business, school or society.

See the power of group singing in action at our concert Abracadabra next month, and get in touch if you would like Starling Arts to sing with you and your workplace. 

- Anna

The Musical Theatre Voice

Emily reflects on the musical theatre voice in the mass music market

I was intrigued by the results of this poll in this week’s edition of The Stage newspaper:

Could a performer trained in musical theatre ever win the TV Talent show The Voice?

Nearly half, 48.1%, said No.

I’m shocked that so many answering this poll - especially given The Stage's readership of people working in the theatre industry – believe that someone whose training has been in Musical Theatre has a handicap. Does this type of vocal training somehow put singers at a disadvantage in a mainstream competition, against many other singers who may not have had any training at all? Or is it merely the public perception of the 'musical theatre voice' that leads the critics to question the musical star's ability to win? 

It’s clear that success in Musical Theatre hasn’t traditionally led to success in the pop world (although we can name many pop stars who’ve made the opposite move from the charts to the stage). On last year’s series of The Voice, millions of viewers watched Kerry Ellis, arguably the first lady of musical theatre in the UK, fail to catch the attention of the ‘coaches’. Her album Anthems released in 2010 didn't set the pop charts alight. Her disappointment might reflect that the musical theatre ‘voice’ isn’t one that naturally appeals to the mass pop market. Kerry admitted in the show’s interview footage that her decision to audition was ‘a risk’, but one that ‘could really change things’ for her. But as Tom Jones gave feedback that Kerry had obviously already made it with her successful career in musicals, he seemed to question that with such an impressive list of leading roles, there couldn’t be much Kerry be searching for with her singing. 

Being a leading lady in the West End (and indeed Broadway!) would appear to be the pinnacle of a successful singing career, so what attracts singers already working on the stage to try for a TV show like The Voice? The resounding phrase used by the successful musical theatre singers auditioning for this year’s series has been a career as a recording artist.

Alex Buchanan, who has been appearing in Thriller Live, had the coaches battling for him, with Jessie J victoriously gaining him as one of her ‘artists’. However, according to the show’s BBC website, Alex has never had any training and sings Michael Jackson rather than Andrew Lloyd Webber.  So perhaps the musical theatre purists might argue he isn’t in the ‘trained in musical theatre’ category – perhaps Alex has a better chance as a result!

Another notable musical star making it to the ‘battle rounds’ this year is Liam Tamne, a recent Enjolras in Les Miserables, and alumni of both Wicked and Hairspray – who seems set on achieving his dream of becoming a recording artist. Tamne trained at Laine Theatre Arts - will this prevent him from being victorious in The Voice? Will.i.am look-alike Matt Henry is another musical theatre contender, with an impressive biog listing a number of roles and covers. Is there more than the call of a record contract that makes Liam and Matt want to hang up their jazz shoes for a place in the pop charts?

I can only speculate, but I’m sure attractions include: writing your own music; the creativity that replicating the same performance for up to 7 performances a week doesn’t fulfill; a very different kind of limelight; money; the next notch up on the fame level; swopping the dusty back stages and shared dressing rooms of the West End for fancy greenrooms and riders might be on the list. Perhaps it’s just a curiosity of making a different kind of music that attract auditionees – after all, many West End performers grow up with theatre schools and ‘Am Dram’ – pop doesn’t have the breadth of ‘training’, so it’s easy to see why so many musical singers stick to what they know.

Not every voice is a ‘recording voice’ capable of world fame, but I just can’t see a good reason why a singer originally trained in musical theatre can’t put their hand to a successful career as a ‘recording artist’. Musical singers are often the most flexible type - straddling different style for every show, and using strong vocal technique to get them through several shows a week. Whether a singer who has trained in musical theatre will win The Voice or not stands to be seen, but I hope that there is some success for these singers, who are brave pioneers, flying the flag for the talent in the musical theatre world. 

- Emily 

We’d love to hear your thoughts - can a musical theatre singer win The Voice? Leave us a comment below or tweet us @starlingarts

How Can I Keep From Singing?

I've just finished watching the last episode of The Choir - Sing While You Work, and I'm crying; the closing rendition of all four choirs performing 'How Can I Keep From Singing' proves why singing in a group is such an uplifting, moving, motivational and brilliant thing to do.

As a choir leader, I'm a big advocate of programmes like The Choir for showing people that choirs don't have to be religious or made up of middle-aged, middle-class folks and boy choristers hiding behind hymn sheets. Choirs are for the soul. While the TV series frustrates me sometimes (the continuity errors, singers seemingly plucking song ideas out of the air and music miraculously appearing, not showing the long slog before songs begin to sound anywhere near good and the vocal arranger only getting a mention in the closing credits...), it also inspires me, reassures me that we do a good job at Starling Arts and reminds me why we started up the company - community.

If our new feature, Starling of the Week, has proved anything, it's the diversity of the people we have singing in the Starling community. Be they doctors, teachers, consultants, charity fundraisers, gas engineers or students, all our singers come from very different day jobs and backgrounds to be united in song. We're now like a family, with people house sharing, dating, working and holidaying with people they've met through the choirs. For me, that's the best thing about it - the singing is just a bonus. 

However, while we've set up a community, what I admire most about all of Gareth Malone's TV shows is that he goes into existing communities to unite people who don't know one another and that they share this communal identity. Whether it's the military wives, the people of South Oxhey, school kids, teachers and now work places, he has proved how a more tangible identity, such as a choir, can only compliment and strengthen the affinity and loyalty one has with their community and each other's lives. 

Gareth and his four work place choirs. Picture source: www.bbc.co.uk

Watching the four work place choirs in action was quite overwhelming. Many of the singers had never sung in public before joining their respective choirs, and to have the chance to be on stage and take part at the International Eisteddfod is quite the experience! I was with the judges when it came to choosing the winning choir, Severn Trent Water, and not just because they wore Starling's trademark black and teal! 

Performances always seem to bring choirs together even more - the singers have to, literally, face the music as a team. But it's the rehearsal space where the community grows that is something magical to be a part of, and I really hope this series has encouraged other work places to start a choir, or find someone who might help them to do so (apply within..!)

Alongside the series, I've been reading Gareth's new book Choir: Tears, Triumphs and Transformations, which has helped to fill in some of the gaps the TV show leaves out for purists like me. Most importantly, the book acknowledges the struggle and pressure a choir leader is under. Organising that many people is hard work, and even if music comes naturally to you, good leadership and musical ability don't necessarily go hand in hand. It's fascinating to see the learning curve and journey Gareth's been on in the last six years, and it's something I know Emily and I share also. Like Gareth, we pour hearts and souls into our choirs, and need them, and singing, as much as they need us to lead them.

Last week, I also cried watching another singing related TV show, Sing For Your Life. Led by Cat Southall, the programme documented a choir set up with and for cancer patients and studied whether the positive mental attitude and benefits of singing would help their cancer treatment. While the medical research was rather left to one side in the film, the programme proved, like The Choir, how bringing people together to sing can be so rewarding and empowering and was all the more poignant with this group; that the patients could share their prognosis, treatment and outlook with other people going through the same ordeal was one thing, but that they could sing, be uplifted and find strength in song to overcome or deal with some of this pain was incredibly overwhelming. 

All this brings me back to Starling Arts. The final question we ask in Starling of the Week is simple: 'Starling Arts is...?' and both Sing While You Work and Sing For Your Life reminded me of one of our yet to be published responses - 'Starling Arts is... therapy'.

In some ways, I think we're always singing for our lives.

- Anna

Summersault

Last weekend, the members of our choirs donned their teal ties, jewellery and accessories. Teamed with black outfits, for two hours on Saturday and Sunday night, the stage of Toynbee Studios looked like a season finale of Glee. Unlike Glee, however, at Starling Arts our shows are, thankfully, without as much drama. No childbirth, declarations of love, corrupt PE teachers or celebrity judges appeared to upset the balance of our latest concert, Summersault. Not as far as we're aware, that is.

Without doubt, Glee brought the term 'show choir' over to the UK, and rather fortuitously launched on our screens at the same time as Starling Arts was born. Yet in the last two years, we've developed our own choral identity away from that brand, and with it a team of loyal musicians, technicians, singers and audience members who always come back for more, ready to support us. 

Over the last couple of years, we have produced several concerts with our choirs. From humble beginnings in a draughty church hall with an old piano, it's wonderful to now be able to fill the stage and auditorium of a venue like Toynbee with a band of talented musicians accompanying our wonderful singers, and a backstage and technical team giving it a slick, professional finish.

So, we thought we'd open up this week’s blog to those people, to see what Starling Arts and Summersault means to them.

Shalini - a choir member’s perspective

I've been a part of Forte since the choir was first formed, and I am continually amazed at how making music has brought people together and genuinely enriched all of our lives. Many of us joined the choir on the basis that we sort of liked singing in the shower and wanted to meet a few more people in London, but I don't think any of us realised how much fun we'd have, or the sense of achievement gained from performing in several successful shows, each one better than the last, and having the opportunity to develop and learn in a field completely different to our everyday working lives.  

Performing in Summersault in particular has been a highlight as the theatre was bigger than we've ever performed in, and I sang my first significant solo - I would never have had the confidence to do this a year or so ago, but with the encouragement and support of everyone in the choir, what had once seemed a terrifying experience became an exciting opportunity. It's hard work - we're all busy with our full time jobs so we have to squeeze singing in where we can, but it pays off when we're able to come together to put on such a great performance, have a lot of fun doing it and and hearing how much the audience enjoyed it. I can't wait until the next one!

Peter - the Sound Technician’s view

This was my third Starling show as sound tech, and from my point of view (how does it sound...) the best. At the previous two shows at the LOST theatre we had to have the band close to the choir which meant that the choir mics picked up the band too, and limited my ability to get an optimum balance. At Toynbee the band were a comfortable distance from the choir (but still visible to the audience), and I had no problem keeping the vocals heard above the band - and thanks to the CCTV monitor in the second row of the audience the singers could still see Anna conducting from the piano.

I am always overwhelmed by the talent of the performers and how nice they are, even forgiving us sound and light techies when we get something wrong. Constantly ‘riding the faders’ to optimise the sound balance I can’t keep my eyes fully on the choreography, but I am listening intently at all times, probably more intently than the audience who are feasting their eyes as well as their ears. The most moving number for me was “Children Will Listen”. And I had to restrain myself from singing along with “God Only Knows”...  

What the audience thought...

It is very difficult to give a reasoned, unbiased and dispassionate response to Summersault because love and pride gets in the way!

From its very beginning, the Starling choirs have always given polished performances, with the added 'verve' that the songs haven't just been sung, but actually performed too. This has improved concert by concert and Summersault proved that the choirs are now reaching newer heights in entertainment and ability.

One member of the audience said to me "...it was great fun" - the evident fact that everyone was having such fun increased the audience's enjoyment too.

Another (new to Starling) emailed me to say "I was REALLY impressed with the evening - great entertainment; well polished and enjoyable choreography to enhance the songs."

So keep on bringing the musical theatre classics - and new songs - to your audience, Starling, and we'll lap it up!

Cat - the Stage Manager

Having seen other Starling Arts shows, I was very excited to be involved in this concert as the Stage Manager. My main role was to make sure that all performers were in the correct place at the correct time to ensure that the show ran smoothly, and with over forty of them backstage and a maze of routes from one wing to the other, it can be a tough job! 

I had an amazing weekend working with all three of the choirs. The passion of the singers and of Anna and Emily at the helm is very inspiring to watch, and I felt proud to be involved with such a supportive company. It's a privilege to be part of the team.

Helena - another of our singers’ thoughts

After a few weeks of frantically concentrating on dance moves and tweaking harmonies, the day of the show always begins with a mix of trepidation and excitement. Concentrating on those kick lines and nailing the entrances and exits takes up the morning, but when showtime arrives it's time to let your hair down, get on with the performance and... enjoy 

It's such a wonderful privilege to be able to perform. To do it with such a fantastic bunch of like-minded people, making fabulous memories together, is an opportunity not to be missed. I loved every minute of performing in Summersault - thank you Starling Arts!

Our choirs are now taking a well-deserved for the summer while we head down to Devon to facilitate our Summer School production of Beauty & the Beast, but they'll all be back in September, with a rather exciting announcement ahead of Christmas, so watch this space...

Anna & Emily