Serious musicking: choral pedagogy in ‘low-threshold’ choirs

ABSTRACT

The voice plays a paradoxical role – it is inclusive because everyone has one, and it is exclusive as it is used to falsely separate ‘singers’ and ‘non-singers’. A new choral movement has emerged, with a low threshold for participation and inclusive practices, where one of the early offerings was Everyone Can Sing (ECS) in Norway. As a low-threshold choir, it focused on solid vocal training as well as the advanced features of the music. This study investigates to what extent this blended choral pedagogy is realised and differs from more traditional choirs. A quantitative analysis of ECS singers (N = 495) was done, comparing it with a more experienced choir (N = 81) and elite choirs (N = 106). The results show that a blended approach in low-threshold-choirs is possible and that attention to musical refinement grows with experience. The article positions such low-threshold choirs within key choral pedagogic positions.

KEYWORDS:

• Choral pedagogy
• singer identity
• choral proficiency
• new choral movement

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Statement of ethical procedures

Participants were invited to fill out the survey form via their respective choirs. The researchers did not have direct access to participants. Participation was voluntary and those who did not want to participate could choose to opt out by not using the invitation link or defect during or upon completion. The survey form did not contain any personal data or other information that could identify individuals. The survey was carried out on www.nettskjema.no, a national on-line platform administered by the University of Oslo. The security features of the platform provide complete confidentiality. The security features satisfy the criteria set by SIKT – Norwegian Agency for Shared Services in Education and Research. Oslo Metropolitan University, as the primary affiliation of the corresponding author, has an associated agreement with SIKT that implies a delegation of ethical approval when the conditions of SIKT are met. https://nettskjema.no/?lang=en; https://sikt.no/en/about-sikt.

Additional information

Funding

This study has not received any external funding.

Notes on contributors

Dag Jansson

Dag Jansson, PhD, is a professor of arts management at Oslo Business School at Oslo Metropolitan University. He runs the Arts Management Programme, where he also teaches leadership and organisation. His research focus is aesthetic leadership and conductor education. He is also a choral conductor.

Erik Døving

Erik Døving, PhD, is an associate professor of organisation science at Oslo Business School at Oslo Metropolitan University. His research topics include learning and acquisition of skills, strategic human resource management and leadership.

Anne Haugland Balsnes

Anne Haugland Balsnes, PhD, is a professor of music at the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Agder. She is also Vice Dean for research and leads the PhD program at the same institution. Her research focus is singing in choral, educational, religious and health contexts. She is also a choral conductor.