With the Women's World Cup coming to an end and an historic Lionnesses' win on the cards, summer sport fever is hitting here in the Out of the Ark office. Don’t forget the Cricket World Cup still has a way to go and we’re prepping our strawberries and cream for the inaugural Wimbledon tennis tournament, we simply cannot contain our excitement. To put our enthusiasm to good use, we thought we’d see what we could learn from the world of sport. One word sprang to mind:
TEAMWORK!
Teamwork is vital whether you’re playing in a rugby match, playing in a symphony orchestra or singing in your local choir. It’s all about working together to accomplish a common goal. In the case of singing, perfect timing and harmonies help to create an unforgettable performance every time - even if it’s just in rehearsal! When it comes to singing, it’s all about working together. So what can we learn from the sports field?
1. Warm Up!
To prevent injury, and get the body prepared, warming up is an essential part of any team event. The same is true of our vocal cords. Vocal cords are really quite interesting. Take a look at our previous blog post, World Voice Day 2018, and read all about the wonder of vocal cords to help children to understand how they actually work. Don't forget to warm up before any singing to get the best sound from your vocal cords. Sing™ Warm-ups has a fantastically varied collection of songs to help you do just this.
2. Listen!
In all sports, it’s important to listen to your teammates and to what is going on around you. The same is true for singing. To keep in tune and stay in time, listening to what and how everyone else is singing around you is an essential part of creating a great sound.
When singing in a round, different groups of singers must listen to the other groups around them to ensure all singers stay in time with the music, despite singing different lyrics and often on different beats. Try singing Sing Yourself A Happy Song from Spring Assembly Songs with three different groups of singers. Our Words on Screen™ player is excellent for teaching and learning round singing as each group’s lyrics highlight in a different colour. Have a look at our example below:
3. Look!
Visual cues are just as important in singing as they are in sport. Always keep your eye on the ball by following your conductor. It’s very important to focus on your choir leader to achieve a great team result.
For a fun lesson on the role of a conductor, watch this short clip from Sesame Street. It may seem a little young for your age group, but it’s very informative and fun!
4. Help Each Other!
The essence of teamwork! In order for a group to perform at their best, everyone needs to work together. Whether this takes the form of giving each other practical advice, moral support or anything else, it’s key to think of others and not just yourself! Apart from the occasional solo, singing is about community so each individual needs to put the whole team first.
5. Be Organised And Prepared!
All top sports teams have rigorous training schedules and plan everything down to a tee. Whilst you can probably disregard the endless physio sessions and such for a singing lesson, it’s always important to plan. Just like sports teams have tactics, it’s important that all of your singers know when to come to rehearsals and what to do. Try and avoid setting choir rehearsals at the same time as football training, or dance practice – you’re likely to have a much greater turn out if you do.
How about setting the choir a challenge to really encourage participation, using our SING-O-METER. How many songs can you sing between now and the end of term?
Singing in a choir is one of the most fulfilling experiences of someone’s childhood. These pieces of advice that we’ve learned from the wonderful world of sport will help them reap the benefits of singing plus the social benefits of being part of a fantastic like-minded group of people. Make this not just a summer of sport, but also a summer of singing!
Written by Fred Stiddard - Sales & Marketing Assistant, Out of the Ark Music Team.
COMING UP!
No one likes to say goodbye, so why not sing it instead? Find out our favourite leavers' songs in next week's blog!
