[HANASHIR:10744] Volunteer Choir Role

[Rosalie Boxt <cantorboxt...>]

In terms of Ellen Lerner's question about the role of the choir, and the 
balancing act between cantor, choir, and congregation, I have a few thoughts.  
While choosing music and trying to represent text, nusach, participation, 
moving and uplifting music, opportunities for meditation and reflection as well 
as opportunities for joy and release, my philosophy is fairly straight-forward. 
 Firstly I choose music that has moved me in some way, by experience or by 
hearing.  My choir in general sings two kinds of music -- liturgical (we sing 
one friday night every month) and "other", anthems, moments in the tefillah, or 
special songs for special events.  They sing the fully congregational stuff 
like Sulzer's Shema, and Aleinu and the like.  But if I choose a new liturgical 
setting with 4 parts and more interesting harmonies, I try to choose pieces 
with congregational refrains and use the choir as songleaders.

I tell my choir before every service, "This is prayer.  We are not performing 
for the congregation, we are facilitating prayer.  Don't worry about your voice 
and how we sound.  Just sing, enjoy yourselves and help our friends and 
congregants feel as moved and uplifted by the music and the worship as you do."

They of course often sing things the congregation cannot join in, but they sing 
in an accessable way, relaxed and easy-going, so the congregation is allowed to 
sit back and enjoy, meditate, or the like.  

I'll give two examples.  My choir recently learned Craig Taubman's Shalom Rav.  
We've only done it once, and I know after a few more repeats the congregation 
will get the melody.  But I'm not worried if they don't ... they enjoy 
listening.  I teach a lot of things to the congregation, or even sing through a 
chorus once so they hear it, and can join in.  But with this I didn't teach it, 
we just sang it.  Over time they'll catch on to the beautiful melody.  

The second is "Breathe on me, Breath of God", a Contemporary Christian Gospel 
song by a group GLAD.  Totally listening.  The congregation was riveted.

And when we did Robbie Solomon's Yismechu, a rather large piece, again, while 
the chorus is in 4 parts, I sang a long melody, nodded when people tried to 
piece it together, and we will continue to do it.

I do chazzanut, daven a little, and we will do Yiddish and the like for special 
services.  

So yes, the choir is used to facilitate worship, to involve the congregation, 
and to show diverse musical styles and melodies that I can't give justice to 
solo.  

Ellen asks is this millennium going to be the friendly use approach to 
religious practice?  I say yes, but not as a "new trend" but instead as a 
recognition that prayer is of the people and belongs to the people not to us.  
This does not mean that all music must be "sing-along".  The two discussions 
are separate -- user-friendly does not equal sing-along every moment.  But if 
people are moved by worship an participate in their own ways, singing along, 
humming, meditating, singing in choir, then we as sh'lichei tzibur have done 
our job.

Warmly
Cantor Rosalie Boxt