we can all make music

training curriculum

The training we offer community-based singing leaders covers these areas:

music

active and experiential teaching, aural and visual transmission techniques, song-leading and basic conducting, harmonising, part and round singing, improvising, rhythm and movement, vocal and body percussion, creative and engaging warm-up activities, body-work for singers;

repertoire

arranging, composing and song-making, collecting and swapping songs, accessing and appreciating unfamiliar genres, teaching songs in languages unfamiliar to the participants, communicating song background and appropriately honouring cultural sources, program choice and design;

group work

handling and encouraging diversity of cultures, backgrounds, abilities and ages, handling change and difficult encounters within groups, preventing burn-out and managing self-doubt (one's own and that of participants), fostering mutual respect and dealing with intolerance, developing effective welcome and farewell processes, giving and receiving constructive criticism (within the group and among peers), methods for achieving group focus and engagement, facilitating the group's reflective processes and identity development, maintaining the group's openness to newcomers;

organisation

team work and smooth operations, setting up a new group, achieving a sustainable group, food preparation and handling, promotion, insurance, copyright and venue preparation (creating the free and fearless space);

cognition

systematic thinking about the place and context of this work, understanding and honouring the legitimacy of singing circles, how group singing fosters community, becoming conscious of what culture is, what values underpin the work and the function of leadership.