Schools have been quieter than usual since returning from lockdown, with restrictions on music lessons to limit the spread of Covid-19 indoors. But the rules on singing have now been relaxed and music can fill our schools once again.
Tes spoke to voice coach Mark De-Lisser about The Big Sing 2021, his national project to get children joining together this week to belt out the tunes.
What impact has lockdown had on singing groups?
Lockdown has meant that amateur singing groups have not been able to meet in the normal way. But we are still singing; I’ve just started putting my choir into the park. Singing is so important. People join the community choir to meet up with people, sing some songs, and boost their mental health and wellbeing.
In schools, when it comes to singing in larger groups, such as in a whole assembly, that is not happening yet. But singing in schools can now be done in bubbles, so they’re able to do it as a class.
What is the Virtual Big Sing?
The Virtual Big Sing came about last year in lockdown. We would normally hold our Big Sing event in a massive field in Norfolk with 15,000 kids, but in 2020 we did it online, with friends including Jessie J, Nicola Roberts, Kirsten Joy, Beatbox Collective, Kingdom Choir - and it was just so much fun.
This year, we decided to go a little bigger, getting people to sing live from Abbey Road Studios. And so, on Thursday 1 July, we’ve got nine really brilliant performers coming down: Nathan Evans, who’s the sea shanty guy; Rachel Wallace, who does musical theatre; Kirsten Joy, who’s the lead for Clean Bandit; RED, who’s a massive TikTok star at the moment; Professor Green; Gabrielle; Aston Merrygold from JLS, and MNEK.
And it’s all to celebrate the joy of singing and to make sure that the kids understand that singing hasn’t gone away. It is very much still here, and we want to celebrate that.
How can schools get involved?
They should go to the Norfolk Music Hub and sign up to get all of the resources, all of the songs, everything that you need is there. And then all you need to do is log in on the day and sing along.
There are nine songs to learn - some are more suited to primary, and some more suited for secondary - but you don’t have to learn all of them. Do what you can and just enjoy the performances.
Is it true some people can never learn to sing?
No. People believe that they can’t sing because society has given us a barometer: this is a good singer, this is a bad singer. But everybody has an ability. And you know what - it’s not even an ability. It’s an inherent part of us. You can have a tune, you can sing a tune, you can whistle a tune. Whatever it might be, it is within you. So don’t let anyone tell you that you cannot do it. Because you can.
I’m not going to go out and try to sell millions of albums but I enjoy my voice. And this is what I say to people all the time, I encourage people to enjoy their voice and their sound.
Most people that I speak to who say they can’t sing have had a trauma: something has happened in their past that has made them feel like they couldn’t sing. Maybe a teacher said, “Oh, no, choir isn’t for you” or “Could you sing a little softer?”. So, if that has happened to you, then it’s important for you to start working that through and talk about where that trauma came from, and the fact that it wasn’t true.
What would you say to children who are embarrassed to sing?
Don’t make singing prescriptive. When I’m teaching children, I very rarely do scales, because a scale says you must get to a point and, if we don’t get to that point, you failed.
Instead, I play with sound. I throw a sound at them, and they throw sound back at me and you just get them exploring their voices. These sounds can be consonants or vowels, or they can be really high or really low. There’s no right and wrong. And then over time, they get more confident using their voices. And then you can introduce some scales and some more technique. But start there, absolutely. Start and make it fun.
How can teachers who are worried that they’re not good singers still support children to sing?
You have to understand that you are quite a few steps ahead of your children. So, whether you like your voice or not, just use it. One thing to try is to just sing a melody, however it comes out of your mouth, just create the melody and let your children sing it back to you as a call and response.
Sometimes it’s important for teachers to explore their own voices so they don’t go into a classroom with that fear and having to try to teach something that they’re fearful of.
WATCH MORE: Mark De-Lisser gives more tips for teachers who lack confidence in their singing
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