r/Choir

Hello!

I am taking over the reins for a community choir starting this next season, which I am very excited for.

What I'm looking for insight on is this:

How much music do you program, minute wise? With or without an intermission?

The previous director would take a 10ish minute or so intermission, and we'd usually be done in about an hour. (His last concert was longer, not unexpectedly).

I was thinking about changing that, and *not* having an intermission, but wanted some input as to what your experiences are.

Thanks in advance!

Hello! I recently joined a choir. I am actually a composer, so I do know music, read music (piano) and have some ear training (though that one is my weakest skill I would say).

On first rehearsal I could follow the lines relatively well, but struggled so much with the first notes, often relying on people around me to know where to start. How do you go about training this? Any advice for sight singing opposed to sight reading for piano? Any advice in general? Thanks!

This is the season for the spring concert, at least among community choirs. We did ours a few days ago. Audience turnout was disappointing, less than usual, despite a focused marketing campaign. I suspect this reflected the national mood more than the quality of our singing. Help me out with a reality check. How was audience size for your choir, this spring?

I direct and accompany a .25 person church choir. I play piano while directing, just to understand what doing. I have never sung in a choir myself, and have no education in choir conducting. I mostly landed the job for my piano playing but I do really enjoy the conducting aspect.

a new soprano joined in the last year and she has a loud voice, pretty fast vibrato, broadway-esque. Her singing is pretty good, on pitch and time, and overall I think her addition has made the choir sound better. however many members are very upset with how she sings and the lack of blending that she does. it’s to the point that other members have told me they are considering quitting the choir.

I’m asking for advice on how to approach this. Voice blending exercises, taking her aside and asking her to be quieter, potentially making her an alto? its tricky to me because singing gets so personal and I am also not a vocal expert in the way of explaining how to sing quieter without potentially hurting technique

EDIT: does anyone have suggestions of voice blending exercises?

Has anyone ever seriously considered leaving a choir they’ve been in for years?

I’m in two community choirs right now, and the difference in culture between them is honestly night and day.

In one group, the music is fun and challenging and there are good people there, but over time it’s become harder to stay motivated. Rehearsals regularly start late, there are side conversations, people come and go inconsistently, standards feel uneven, and new leadership (2 years) issues never really address them. I used to serve on the board and eventually stepped away because it felt like the same few people were carrying everything. I also stopped my administration and engagement on the private Facebook group because it felt I was posting reminders, notes, etc for just a few people.

Lately I’ve noticed I sometimes have to force myself to even show up, which honestly makes me sad after 5 years with the group.

Then I go to my other choir and the energy, preparation, accountability, and overall culture are completely different.

At what point do you decide a choir is no longer the right fit, even if you still enjoy singing and care about the group?

For many years, breathing for singing felt like a constant muscular battle to me. I was taught that good breathing meant constantly “engaging” or “activating” muscles, and as a young singer, I thought that was simply how singing worked.

Then one day, something clicked for me: We are all breathing experts from birth.

Breathing for singing is really just an elongated and coordinated version of something our bodies already know how to do naturally.

When we inhale, the diaphragm contracts automatically, the ribs move up and out, and the abdominal and pelvic muscles respond and release. We do not have to force these things to happen.

Then on the exhale, much of what happens is natural recoil. The ribs return, the abdominal and pelvic muscles respond naturally, and the cycle continues.

Wow. Thank you, amazing body!

Of course, many muscles are involved in breathing throughout this process. But I think singers often get into trouble when we start trying to micromanage every part of breathing instead of allowing the body to do what it already knows how to do, especially when confusing phrases and imagery get layered on top of it all.

I also think many teachers and conductors are simply repeating language they were taught themselves. Phrases like “breathe from the diaphragm,” “use more breath support,” “breathe in the belly,” or “squeeze your abs” are often taught with good intentions, but can leave singers feeling tense and disconnected from their natural breathing process. 

I feel like so many singers would breathe with more freedom and ease if we moved toward a clearer and more anatomically grounded understanding of breathing.

I’d genuinely love to hear your experiences with this too. What breathing advice helped you most — and what advice created more tension or confusion for you?

Hello from the City of Derry International Choir Festival!

We are an international choral festival based in Derry, Northern Ireland, welcoming choirs from across Ireland, the UK, Europe and beyond each October for performances, competitions, workshops and community events.

Ireland/UK Choirs applications open until the end of May, International Choirs expressions of interest are open for Festival 2027

Since 2013, the festival has grown into one of the leading international choir festivals across these islands, bringing thousands of singers and visitors to the North West of Ireland each year.

We thought Reddit might be a good place to connect with choir singers, conductors, music educators and choral enthusiasts from around the world — and to share a little of what happens here during festival week.

Alongside our international and national competitions, the festival includes:
• community choral trails
• informal performances across the city
• workshops and Big Sing events
• youth and school programmes
• visiting international choirs
• lots of music, conversation and atmosphere

We’d love to hear:
What makes a choir festival special for you?

And if your choir has ever travelled internationally — where has been your favourite destination to sing?

Greetings from Derry!

I have a choir director who has a very personal relationship with a lot of her student. She knows that I was sexually abused when I was 16. She also started giving me voice lessons and kept giving me songs that she said were about virginity.

She would say to me, "This song is about a flower and flowers are symbols for virginity." White dresses are too. The concept of spring also is. Everything is virginity. NONE of these songs talk about virginity, or even relationships. I don't get where she's going this but she always says "You understand virginity, right?"

Like yes I do, I was crying in your office about feeling like a chewed-up piece of bubble gum???

I'm afraid to confront her about it though, she had me re-audition for her choir and said "Technically you did perfectly but your attitude is a problem so I might not be able to take you back." Although maybe that would be a good thing because I'm going to lose my mind if I need to keep hearing about virginity. It makes me feel awful.

I’ve been teaching singing for a long time, and honestly, I think “breathe from the diaphragm” is one of the most confusing instructions people get.

Everybody says it. Almost nobody explains it.

The diaphragm is involved every single time you breathe. When you inhale, it contracts and flattens a little bit to help create space for the lungs to fill with air. That’s something your body already knows how to do automatically.

But the moment people start TRYING to control the diaphragm directly, I usually see tension show up immediately.

People start:

• tightening their stomach
• lifting their shoulders
• squeezing their neck
• forcing huge breaths

And then singing actually feels harder instead of easier.

What I usually encourage singers to focus on instead is:

• letting the ribs move
• allowing the stomach to release
• not taking huge breaths

A lot of breathing for singing is less about “trying harder” and more about allowing the body to move naturally.

Usually when singers stop over-controlling everything, the voice starts feeling much more free and easy.

Has anybody else experienced this kind of confusion with breathing advice?

It’s not even really a performance, I joined a community choir and they do this really low key/ low pressure, I’m not sure what to expect, I asked my boyfriend to come, he’s a professional musician/ singer and this is my first time. I told him it’s a hippie group. He’ll make a joke asking it’s there will be tarot reading there, I laugh I don’t think so. I’m nervous he won’t like it :( odds are this is just my anxiety talking. I’m really nervous

my throat has been slowly killing me more and more this past week, and my final choir concert is the 18th. i have to sing in a quartet and i'm like carrying my section in a song or two... and i can NOT sound like garbage

is there anything that would help leading up to & day of the concert? preferably not expensive or crazy lol

I want to join a church choir, but I'm 25. The other members are mostly in their 50s and 60s. Is it stupid to join because I'll be the only young person there?

I'll go first: my teacher cancelled a song that the high school seniors were going to sing because she didn't give us time to practice it

Im going to be auditioning for my first musical as a 22 year old female and my main issue besides not knowing my range is when i sing i tend to try and match the pitch of who is singing ao i dont really know how to sing karaoke style, like i feel i sing really well with a track but i cant seem to figure out how to get out of the habit of trying to match others pitch around me, any advice or apps that are cheap or free to help me?

I recently came across the National Children’s chorus, and I love their music and would love to be a part of it! The only things that I’m hesitating on are the tuition and the difficulty to get in. Do you think I could realistically get into this choir, and are there any other choirs like this I could audition for? I’m an underclassman in high school. I am an alto 2 if that helps (but really an upper mezzo/sop 2). should i bother auditioning? do I have a chance? I can post a clip later if necessary

My experience:

I‘m in my school‘s chamber choir (youngest there)

California All State Honor Choir

ACDA Western region honor choir

Haven’t auditioned for nationals yet but hope to for next year! Wish me luck 🫰

I’m doing research at the Royal College of Music on accessibility in professional U.S. classical music organizations (orchestras, choirs, opera companies, etc.). There is currently no research on the experiences of classical music performers with access differences in their places of work, so this research has the potential to be a big step forward toward a more accessible industry.

If you have anything you would like to share, please take the survey below! Or pass along to anyone you think might be interested! Anyone who has had a paid position as a classical music performer who has anything to share about access and inclusion in their place of work is eligible.

This survey has ethical approval through the RCM Research Ethics Committee (REC). Information collected is anonymous and confidential, and we won’t ask the name of any organizations.

Here is the link to the survey: https://forms.office.com/e/3rT5FWu7Cp

Please message me if you would prefer to see the survey in a different format. Thank you!

Classical music fans, and choral music fans: if you had to choose your favorite requiems, what would you be your top five all-time favorite and also if you have three that you absolutely do not like list those as well.

Favorites:

1. Duruflé Requiem
2. Brahms Requiem
3. Hindemith Requiem ( for those we love)
4. Fauré Requiem
5. Howells Requiem

Least favorites:

1. A. Lloyd Weber Requiem
2. Verdi Requiem
3. Victoria Requiem

so i’ve been using an 11-inch ipad for my choir sets but it’s honestly driving me crazy. the screen feels so cramped when i’m trying to read lyrics and harmony at the same time, especially from a stand. plus the overhead lights in our rehearsal hall turn my screen into a giant mirror, and my eyes are literally burning by the end of a 2-hour session. i tried those matte protectors but they just make the notes look fuzzy and don't really help with the dry eye thing. i keep seeing stuff about the tcl nxtpaper 14 being way bigger and easier on the eyes since it’s actually a matte screen. has anyone here actually used it for choir? is it actually glare-free under stage lights or is it just hype? really need a better music stand alternative because my current setup is killing me lol.

I’ve been thinking about learning how to conduct over the summer while I have some free time, but a lot of the online courses or YouTube videos are focused on orchestral conducting rather than choral conducting, so I said I’d ask here instead. So does anyone have any resources they’d recommend for learning specifically choral conducting?