Our society measures singing in terms of its entertainment value. Just look at all the reality talent shows on TV these days e.g. The X Factor, America‘s got Talent, etc.

These shows and so many other variations on the same idea are basically all about judging and individualism. Week by week, a group of singers is reduced down to a single individual.

Historically speaking, this reflects a very recent view of what singing is and what it’s for. Singing has always been, and still is in many cultures, a community activity, with no emphasis on individuality and none of the tendancy to single anyone out for judgement.

We’re the Opposite!

As a complementary service to the established critical way of approaching singing, we aim to offer you a completely different approach. Among the cheif differences between our approach and the traditional, established approaches are:

• We’re more interested in the group than the individual. We don’t want single you out for your singing voice or for any other reason. Although we encourage and support you all the way, we know that it’s totally up to you to bring your uniqueness to singing, without any judgement from us.
• We’re all about singing with no judgement whatsoever. We don’t concern ourselves with what makes ‘good’ or ‘bad’ singing, we engage in singing purely for the fun of it.
• We are not interested in singing for entertainment value (i.e. what do others think of my singing?) We’re all about singing for its own value. Apart from the many benefits of singing (listed above). this re-evaluation of singing as a good thing in its own right, regardless of anyone’s judgements, is very healthy. Such thinking can be beneficially applied to every area of life. The more we go beyond our judgements of ourselves and others, the more carefree and happy will our relationships and experiences be.

I know we keep saying it on this website but we feel it’s worth risking over-stressing the point that we don’t teach you how to sing. We’re only interested in getting you to sing with the voice you have now, which is likely way more beautiful than you might think— what I mean is, if you have any reservations about singing out freely, your full, or in other words, your real voice is quite likely to be a very pleasant surprise for you

Singing for Happiness

Singing is good for lifting mood. A 2003 study showed that oxytocin (the body chemical associated with love and bonding) increased significantly in amatuer and professional singers after a singing lesson; singers also reported increased energy and relaxation after the lesson.

Singing and the immune system

Contemporary research suggests that group singing and even listening to choral music improves emotional health, promotes better social bonding and boosts the body’s immune systems. Singing releases endorphins into your system and makes you feel energized and uplifted. It releases the same feel-good brain chemicals as sex and chocolate!

Singing reduces high blood pressure

A 76-year old woman was brought into hospital for a critical knee operation. However, her blood pressure was too high for the surgeons to operate. She asked if she could sing some of her church hymns to help her relax. After singing 6 hymns her blood pressure dropped 30 points. Related research has found that singing is highly beneficial in reducing blood pressure, and reducing stress.

Singing and Speech Disorders

New research has found that stroke victims who had lost the ability to speak, were able to form intelligible words after several sessions of singing and combining notes to words.

Snoring and Daytime Sleepiness

A 2008 study found that regular singing helps with snoring. Researchers compared the severity of snoring in regular semiprofessional choristers with non singers. Regular singers turned out to be significantly less likely to suffer from snoring and daytime sleepiness.