Howdy Choralians – I hope you are all fit and healthy and surviving the global pandemic…
What a busy few months this has been – we certainly are living in a new era. In my world, Epworth is finally calming down and my hours are returning to normal which is a huge relief, to me at least. We feel like we are ready and prepared for the 2nd surge – if / when it comes. I hope Sara and John Howell are similarly feeling a little more relaxed!
On that note, several people have asked about when Chorale will start up again.
With restrictions relaxing from 01 June we will see more evidence of COVID-19 appearing in the community, so I’m sorry to say that in the current circumstances I still don’t think it is safe for us to be singing in a group together face to face and definitely not in such confined quarters as our little church.
I’ve attached an interesting article from the Age which Russell sent me last week which explains why – but the main points are:
1) Key entry points for COVID-19 is through the mouth and nose, and singers spread a lot of droplets – we were joking about it at our last rehearsal – little did we know….
2) Not that one likes to mention such a vulgar topic, but with the exception of a few, the Chorale membership does happen to be the target age range most at danger from this virus.
3) To function as a choir, singers are better off standing in close proximity. Singing with 1.5 metres between people is difficult because the bond created between the voices is not just about sound, it’s also about vibration.
Yes it’s true I was born in the 70s… but it’s not just hippy mumbo jumbo – part of the reasons choirs blend is they not only listen to people singing near them with their ears, they have a responsive reaction to the vibration of their neighbours sinuses and sternum, in their own head and chest. If you don’t believe me, get your partner to sing and you touch their forehead, the bridge of their nose or their sternum – you will feel the vibrations (good, good, good, good vibrations sorry I couldn’t help myself )
Some of you may even remember several years ago when we sang with the rises in the hall – a row on the stage, a row on a rise and a row on the floor. It was a disaster, because we couldn’t hear each other and each choir member felt isolated.
The article below also talks about “Couch Choir” and singing via videoconferencing (e.g. Zoom). Please note that you require a lot of mixing equipment, technical skill and time to make that work. Unfortunately I have none of those at the moment!
It also suggests we could sing in a “chasm” or a “carpark” to achieve the resonance to hear each other, which is a nice idea. However, you know how I feel about singing outdoors generally, I must admit a carpark really doesn’t sound appealing and I don’t know of any “chasms” around here, with or without central heating….
Soooo….
Right now I feel the safest thing for us to do is wait and monitor the community transmission rate over the next couple of months. If by the end of July the surge has not happened, then we have good reason to consider starting up rehearsals again *perhaps* in August, if we can secure a larger venue like the hall. I’m sorry it’s not better news, however I think the risk outweighs the pleasure we would get from singing together.
Think of this as taking long service leave from choir after 10 years!
Choirs confronting COVID tragedies find their virtual voice
Singers are highly attuned to the dangers of respiratory illness because of its impacts on the voice. Despite this natural hypervigilance, there have been numerous stories of super-spreading at choir rehearsals.
On March 8, a 130-person choir performed a Bach St John Passion at the Concertgebouw in the Netherlands. One of the singers and three partners of choir members died of coronavirus, and 102 people associated with the choir fell sick. On March 10, Skagit Valley Chorale in Washington held a rehearsal. At the time there were no known cases of COVID-19 in town, but there was hand sanitiser at the door, no music sharing, and no one appeared to be ill. Of the 60 choristers, at least 53 became ill and two have died from COVID-19 complications.
German churches are reopening but regulating public singing after 59 of 78 singers at a March rehearsal of the Berlin’s Protestant cathedral choir were infected with coronavirus.
What might be going on? Speculation centres on the aerosol and droplets released during singing. Singers inhale more air and exhale at greater air and moisture volume than speakers, producing six times the airborne droplet and aerosol amounts. However, Professors Christian Kahler and Adam Finn argue that these super-spreader events are anecdotal and further research is required. Flute droplet emissions are actually higher than those of singers, yet orchestras have not reported super-spreading.
In Australia, there has been an explosion of interest in community singing over the past 10 years, but most choirs stopped rehearsals as soon as the advice about social distancing came out. The peak body representing choirs and their conductors, the Australian National Choral Association, has more than 1000 members, but any calculation based on those figures is still likely to be a wild underestimation of choir singers. All are now without an important social and artistic outlet. The effects on wellbeing of singing in a community choir are comparable to participating in sport. Speaking to America’s National Association of Teachers of Singing, otolaryngologist Dr Lucinda Halstead proposed a tough course of action – a ban on choral singing until there is a vaccine or a treatment with 95 per cent efficacy, estimated at between 18 to 24 months away. Australia’s virus profile is different to the US. However, until the science is clear, safe singing may require larger spaces and protocols than are possible in practice.
Many choirs have moved rehearsals online and created highly edited videos of their isolation performances. Live-streamed rehearsals without specialised equipment can produce a delay of between 15 and 100 milliseconds. Try to sing a song together with your friends on Zoom and you will experience this hilarious and frustrating problem. Brilliant visual creations produced with clever video editing can hide this lag.
Virtual choirs allow members to practise, maintain their community when social isolation is a real danger, improve mood and immune responses, and support musicians by paying conductors. But they are not for everyone. Some don’t warm to meeting online or to conductors with limited time.
As social restrictions ease in Australia, choirs will be keen to meet in real life again. Enhanced distancing measures for singers should be considered to minimise aerosol, droplet and touch transmission. It may mean limiting the number of singers and using internal spaces with natural airflow (no air conditioning or re-circulated air) or outside spaces with natural air circulation.
Choirs could be innovative with their locations. An environment with natural resonance, such as a beautiful outback chasm, could create special experiences without sacrificing sound quality or health. Or a city car park after dark. The safest course may be to wait. Medical advice is to avoid singing in close proximity until either further scientific research has been completed or the pandemic is well controlled. Choristers need to be close to blend their voices successfully. Choirs are close-knit communities. Their need to meet and sing in groups weighs heavily against the possible health risks.
Dr Narelle Yeo is a senior lecturer in voice and stagecraft at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, University of Sydney. An earlier version of this article first appeared in the Conversation, republished under a Creative Commons licence.
What a busy few months this has been – we certainly are living in a new era. In my world, Epworth is finally calming down and my hours are returning to normal which is a huge relief, to me at least. We feel like we are ready and prepared for the 2nd surge – if / when it comes. I hope Sara and John Howell are similarly feeling a little more relaxed!
On that note, several people have asked about when Chorale will start up again.
With restrictions relaxing from 01 June we will see more evidence of COVID-19 appearing in the community, so I’m sorry to say that in the current circumstances I still don’t think it is safe for us to be singing in a group together face to face and definitely not in such confined quarters as our little church.
I’ve attached an interesting article from the Age which Russell sent me last week which explains why – but the main points are:
1) Key entry points for COVID-19 is through the mouth and nose, and singers spread a lot of droplets – we were joking about it at our last rehearsal – little did we know….
2) Not that one likes to mention such a vulgar topic, but with the exception of a few, the Chorale membership does happen to be the target age range most at danger from this virus.
3) To function as a choir, singers are better off standing in close proximity. Singing with 1.5 metres between people is difficult because the bond created between the voices is not just about sound, it’s also about vibration.
Yes it’s true I was born in the 70s… but it’s not just hippy mumbo jumbo – part of the reasons choirs blend is they not only listen to people singing near them with their ears, they have a responsive reaction to the vibration of their neighbours sinuses and sternum, in their own head and chest. If you don’t believe me, get your partner to sing and you touch their forehead, the bridge of their nose or their sternum – you will feel the vibrations (good, good, good, good vibrations sorry I couldn’t help myself )
Some of you may even remember several years ago when we sang with the rises in the hall – a row on the stage, a row on a rise and a row on the floor. It was a disaster, because we couldn’t hear each other and each choir member felt isolated.
The article below also talks about “Couch Choir” and singing via videoconferencing (e.g. Zoom). Please note that you require a lot of mixing equipment, technical skill and time to make that work. Unfortunately I have none of those at the moment!
It also suggests we could sing in a “chasm” or a “carpark” to achieve the resonance to hear each other, which is a nice idea. However, you know how I feel about singing outdoors generally, I must admit a carpark really doesn’t sound appealing and I don’t know of any “chasms” around here, with or without central heating….
Soooo….
Right now I feel the safest thing for us to do is wait and monitor the community transmission rate over the next couple of months. If by the end of July the surge has not happened, then we have good reason to consider starting up rehearsals again *perhaps* in August, if we can secure a larger venue like the hall. I’m sorry it’s not better news, however I think the risk outweighs the pleasure we would get from singing together.
Think of this as taking long service leave from choir after 10 years!
Choirs confronting COVID tragedies find their virtual voice
Singers are highly attuned to the dangers of respiratory illness because of its impacts on the voice. Despite this natural hypervigilance, there have been numerous stories of super-spreading at choir rehearsals.
On March 8, a 130-person choir performed a Bach St John Passion at the Concertgebouw in the Netherlands. One of the singers and three partners of choir members died of coronavirus, and 102 people associated with the choir fell sick. On March 10, Skagit Valley Chorale in Washington held a rehearsal. At the time there were no known cases of COVID-19 in town, but there was hand sanitiser at the door, no music sharing, and no one appeared to be ill. Of the 60 choristers, at least 53 became ill and two have died from COVID-19 complications.
German churches are reopening but regulating public singing after 59 of 78 singers at a March rehearsal of the Berlin’s Protestant cathedral choir were infected with coronavirus.
What might be going on? Speculation centres on the aerosol and droplets released during singing. Singers inhale more air and exhale at greater air and moisture volume than speakers, producing six times the airborne droplet and aerosol amounts. However, Professors Christian Kahler and Adam Finn argue that these super-spreader events are anecdotal and further research is required. Flute droplet emissions are actually higher than those of singers, yet orchestras have not reported super-spreading.
In Australia, there has been an explosion of interest in community singing over the past 10 years, but most choirs stopped rehearsals as soon as the advice about social distancing came out. The peak body representing choirs and their conductors, the Australian National Choral Association, has more than 1000 members, but any calculation based on those figures is still likely to be a wild underestimation of choir singers. All are now without an important social and artistic outlet. The effects on wellbeing of singing in a community choir are comparable to participating in sport. Speaking to America’s National Association of Teachers of Singing, otolaryngologist Dr Lucinda Halstead proposed a tough course of action – a ban on choral singing until there is a vaccine or a treatment with 95 per cent efficacy, estimated at between 18 to 24 months away. Australia’s virus profile is different to the US. However, until the science is clear, safe singing may require larger spaces and protocols than are possible in practice.
Many choirs have moved rehearsals online and created highly edited videos of their isolation performances. Live-streamed rehearsals without specialised equipment can produce a delay of between 15 and 100 milliseconds. Try to sing a song together with your friends on Zoom and you will experience this hilarious and frustrating problem. Brilliant visual creations produced with clever video editing can hide this lag.
Virtual choirs allow members to practise, maintain their community when social isolation is a real danger, improve mood and immune responses, and support musicians by paying conductors. But they are not for everyone. Some don’t warm to meeting online or to conductors with limited time.
As social restrictions ease in Australia, choirs will be keen to meet in real life again. Enhanced distancing measures for singers should be considered to minimise aerosol, droplet and touch transmission. It may mean limiting the number of singers and using internal spaces with natural airflow (no air conditioning or re-circulated air) or outside spaces with natural air circulation.
Choirs could be innovative with their locations. An environment with natural resonance, such as a beautiful outback chasm, could create special experiences without sacrificing sound quality or health. Or a city car park after dark. The safest course may be to wait. Medical advice is to avoid singing in close proximity until either further scientific research has been completed or the pandemic is well controlled. Choristers need to be close to blend their voices successfully. Choirs are close-knit communities. Their need to meet and sing in groups weighs heavily against the possible health risks.
Dr Narelle Yeo is a senior lecturer in voice and stagecraft at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, University of Sydney. An earlier version of this article first appeared in the Conversation, republished under a Creative Commons licence.