We Can All Make Music.
Singalongs
How singalongs differ from singing circles
There's
no question that singalongs are great fun and that there are many similarities
between what happens in a singing circle and what happens at a singalong,
particularly since the chief focus of both is the collective pleasure of its
participants. There is considerable
overlap in the skills required for successful leadership, the repertoire used,
the places where they happen and indeed, in leaders and participants of
singalongs when compared to singing circles.
This
being the case, we realise there are differences between the two forms of group
singing (at least from our perspective!) and these differences are quite
important. Here are a few of them:
|
Singing circle |
Singalong |
|
Spatial |
|
|
Circular configuration with
everyone facing inwards (and usually standing - and moving - most of the
time). |
Often replicates traditional
performance set-ups with the leader(s) “on stage” and with
participants present, almost like an audience
we’re people are often seated. |
|
Repertoire |
|
|
Constantly changing. |
Usually consists of old
favourites. |
|
Complexity |
|
|
Uses lots of parts and rounds. |
Uses Unison singing. |
|
Leadership |
|
|
Of course there's focus on the
leader(s) but they are part of the circle. |
Very high entertainment and
performance pressure and focus on the leader. |
|
Transmission |
|
|
Tunes and lyrics are usually
learnt by ear, cumulatively, line-by-line in a call and response fashion
which makes the “learning” a singing experience in itself. |
Lyrics are often clearly visible
(eg, projected or viewable on a white board) or distributed in songbooks and /
or are well-known and requested by participants. |
|
Instrumental
accompaniment |
|
|
More not than often. |
More often than not. |
|
Participant
relationship |
|
|
Lots of personal eye-to-eye
contact between leader and participants and between participants. |
Very little interaction between
participants; the major thing happening is between the leader and an
un-differentiated audience |
|
Participant
expectations |
|
|
That they may know no-one and
still be welcome. |
Often occurs among established
groups of people whose reason for being together has nothing to do with
singing. So, pre-existing and complex
social relations fill the space. |
These
differences don't make one form of singing “better” than the other,
but it is apparent that there are slightly different ends being sought by their
participants. The singing circle model which
we embrace is designed to find and celebrate harmony among a random group of
diverse people who don't have a shared repertoire.
CMV - making a
sound world together.
©
Community Music Victoria Inc.