Rachel’s Blog

Back in the day, when I regularly took ABRSM graded exams on violin, an expression used to come up time and again on the exam report forms: ‘it was a convincing performance’. As a 12 year old I wasn’t entirely sure what this meant, though it sounded good. I now feel, having practiced as a community musician for a number of years, that I have a better understanding of this word in relation to music. Being committed to a performance, to a song, to an activity, means to believe in its worth, and to bear witness to that by leading the activity or song with an abandon that helps the people being led (or being played to in a performance context) believe that no other piece of music will do right now – this is the right piece of music for this moment. It helps the participants (or audience) trust the performer/leader that this music is of significance, and we’re not just passing the time.

As I look back over the notes made during the last few years, the learning points coming out of them seem to be time and again ‘be more confident’, ‘present this song/activity more confidently’, ‘speak more clearly and boldly about this activity’, ‘don’t be afraid to get up and lead from the centre of the circle’, ‘hold my nerve’ – this learning is not something that could be taught (apart from in theory), but something I just had to experience for myself. Being confident is a state, and whilst I can act confidently whilst facilitating, this is no substitute for being confident, because  without confidence how can the music be convincing?

I’m just home from a residential care home, having led a short ‘taster’ session. It was seriously challenging as well as being enjoyable too.

It is a fairly large residential care home, with a fantastic ethos – the activities co-ordinator frequently takes some of the residents to the pub! As with larger numbers of people, there is bound to be a greater diversity of people in terms of their abilities/limitations. Having previously met some of the residents, I wasn’t quite prepared (in terms of variety of songs/resources) to cater for the different levels that I found there. Although the session went reasonably smoothly, and part of the reason for this taster session was to gauge people’s needs, I was disappointed that I had not been able to engage with every person, and draw them into what I hoped to be an enjoyable and uplifting musical experience.

Having said this, many participants did enjoy themselves. Some were singing along and using percussion instruments to beat (or shake) in time. I think a small change of mixing up the people of different abilities would help enormously, as it would enable the less able people to feel more involved.

Key Learning:

• Take in more material than you plan to use, including songs of varying complexity, from the very simple, to the more difficult.
• Develop songs or activities to assess people’s different levels.
• Underline the importance of a tailored music session and emphasise the point of a taster session
• Don’t be afraid to ask staff for small changes in the set-up. They want the sessions to be positive, as much as you do.
• Enjoy it! Even if you feel like you are struggling, keep going, keep being enthusiastic, don’t give up.

A couple of weeks ago I ran a session which went really well. Looking back on the session plan – which is happily written in purple felt-tip – I could see why:

• I thought very carefully about each song
• I experimented with soundscapes, and vocal sounds, not just on songs and song-words
• Many of the songs used very simple guitar chords so I could concentrate more on interacting with the participants
• We varied dynamics, speeds – almost resulting in seasickness during What Shall We Do With the Drunken Sailor?
• I introduced simple descants over well-known songs
• Participants were encouraged to think of their own words for verses

All of these things, as well as other elements relating directly to the singing and the use of percussion instruments, I feel helped the participants feel more confident about their musicality and the range of sounds they can produce. So, why can’t they all be like this? As I gather new repertoire, inevitably, some of it might be a little shaky – it may take me some time to develop the activities around a song. The key is to keep things relatively simple and to rely on the range of emotions we can employ and convey with our voices.

Today was the third in a pilot series of ‘Singing for Fun’ sessions, so it’s more than time to reflect on how it’s going

Location

Singing for Fun is supported by Age Concern and is held on a Wednesday morning in Witney Methodist Centre. The centre is a fantastic example of how churches can really use their premises for social good. Tea and coffee are available cheaply (50p for a cup of tea) in the lobby area, so it’s a relaxed place to come and meet friends, without having to spend a lot of money on an expensive mug of something-you-can’t-pronounce.

People

The first week 8 people came, the following week there were 11 and this week, 10, plus two carers. In all, about 17 different people.

There is no minimum or maximum age on this project – anyone can join in, although because it is on a weekday morning, and supported by Age Concern, the average age I would guess is around 65. The people who attend are mainly quite ‘young’, but it is really great to see a mixture of people of varying abilities and mobilities.

Workshop Set-up

The sessions are set up in a hall with a circle of chairs – so everyone feels included, although occasionally there have been people who simply want to listen, and whilst they are invited into the circle, they sometimes choose to sit at the edge. I sit in the circle – with a low music stand. Participants have a booklet of the songs we will be singing, approximately in the right order. This saves time during the session because there is no handing out/taking in sheets, and it is simpler for the participants to follow.

The sessions run for an hour – although we don’t usually get started until about 10.25 (the advertised start time is 10.15), but as there is an exercise class at 11.30, I try and finish on time at 11.15. It would be great to try and start on time, so I have more time to introduce some more challenging songs…

…please read the next post for some more reflections on the workshop content and structure.

last Thursday I had so much fun leading a singing session with 20 65+ year-olds. It took place at a fortnightly coffee-club, run by a church in Dean Court. We sang old favourites, some old favourites with the odd twist, as well as some more challenging medleys of songs, the classic O When The Saints, layered with Swing Low, This Train, and I’m Gonna Sing, and the ‘Folkestone Sea Shanty’ which I picked up at the Arts and Heath Conference in Folkestone in September.

I think it went down well, and I’ve been invited back. I think I was able to stop singing at different points during the session and listen to the groups’ voices which was good, and I think possible mainly because they were 20 people present to support each other. I was particularly pleased that chatting afterwards, one woman, nearly 90 said ‘ I’ve never sung before in my life, but I’m too old to try new things’ – I was pleased she enjoyed the session and found it easier than she thought she would.

A few things I need to improve are:

• giving clear instructions – thinking more carefully in advance how to describe different activities.
• expanding the repertoire, although it was useful to cover the same repertoire with different groups
• thinking about how to include the men more. Out of 20 people, only 2 were men. I don’t feel the songs are at the wrong pitch, as many older women have lower voices and sing an octave below me, but I do feel they need encouragement and affirmation in a different way from the women. Answers on a postcard please.

And there was cracking cake. This generation really know how to bake!

…more crawling really, but at least I’m not standing still or moving backwards. It’s difficult to know exactly what to focus on in these early stages of developing a practice. My time is currently spent playing my instruments (piano, violin, voice) and choosing new songs and polishing up old ones (at the moment Billy Joel’s ‘New York State of Mind’ to fit into a holiday-themed session), as well as the trips to the library (conveniently located near my ‘day job’) and online research which led me to Freddie Mercury on YouTube on my search for the audit commission’s report about older people staying active entitled ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’ (more on that another time)… for now it is late and definitely time to go to the pub…