New Adult Community Choir - Friends of Lyrico
There's a funny thing that happens to us as we get older. We tend to stop doing things simply because we enjoy them. Our calendars fill up with work, kids, appointments and responsibilities. It's like the activities we choose somehow need to accomplish something. We exercise because it’s good for us or volunteer because someone needs help. When was the last time you did something just because you really liked doing it?
I sang in choirs when I was younger, first in high school and then with the U of A Mixed Chorus and our beloved Bob de Frece. And then life moved along, as it does, and somehow years passed without choir being part of it. I still sang of course, mostly around the house as I did chores (oh I love to belt out some good broadway tunes!). But there is a very big difference between singing along to something on your own, and standing in a room full of people making music together. I missed that A LOT. And apparently, quite a few other people did too!
What If Choir Could Just Be... Choir?
When we started talking about creating Friends of Lyrico, we wanted it to be a little different. There are some wonderful adult choirs in our region, but joining a choir can come with a level of commitment that simply isn’t possible for everyone. Weekly rehearsals, performances, travel, fundraising, and the expectation that you will be there consistently can make choir difficult to fit into an already busy life.
So we wondered what would happen if we removed some of those barriers: no audition or requirement to be able to read music. Rehearsals every other week, and perhaps most importantly, an understanding that sometimes you’re going to be late. Sometimes you’re going to miss a rehearsal because life is going to get in the way. Simply come back next time! We landed on the idea of casual but committed, which I think describes what we are trying to create rather well.
Then We Actually Tried It
Of course, an idea can sound wonderful until you put 15 or 20 people in a room and see what happens, so we gave it a try! We held our first Friends of Lyrico rehearsal in Sherwood Park this September under the Direction of the fabulous Rose Mellor.
I think there were some nerves in the room at the beginning. There certainly were for me.
It had been a very long time since I last tried to sing piece of choir music, and I quickly discovered that my brain was a bit slower than it used to be. I remembered doing this much more easily at 20!
We worked through the music with Rose leading us to find our notes and our parts. People started getting more comfortable. She made it very clear that mistakes are welcome, and gradually, we started sounding like a choir. There is a particular moment when you’re singing in harmony and suddenly hear all of the parts lock together. Your own voice disappears into the bigger sound all around you and the magic begins. I haven't found any other experience quite like it.
By the end of our first rehearsal, people who had walked into the room as strangers were laughing together. We had made something beautiful, even if it wasn’t perfect, and I think most of us left feeling pretty darn good about it. Not bad for one Wednesday night!
You Don’t Have to Be a “Singer”
One of the things I really want people to understand about Friends of Lyrico is that you don't need to decide whether you're good enough to join us. Choir isn't a room full of soloists who happen to be singing simultaneously. The whole point is learning how to use a collection of very different voices to make one sound.
If you have never sung in a choir before, Rose will teach you what you need to know. If you can’t read music, you won't be the only one. If you sang years ago and have forgotten half of what you knew, welcome to the club! If you’re nervous about walking into a room where you don’t know anyone, that gets remarkably easier once everyone starts singing.
There Is Another Reason Friends of Lyrico Exists
The lovely thing about all of this is that enjoying ourselves actually accomplishes something useful too. Friends of Lyrico is part of the Lyrico Youth Choirs Association, a nonprofit organization that has been providing choral music opportunities for young people in our community for more than 40 years, previously known as the Elk Island Regional Honor Choirs Association.
Running those programs costs money, and we want to keep youth registration fees as manageable as we can for our families. Grants, sponsorships and fundraising all help, but they fluctuate considerably from one season to the next making it very difficult to predict. Friends of Lyrico gives us another source of support that we can rely on much more easily.
Our membership fees first pay the costs of running the adult choir. A portion of the proceeds can then help support Lyrico’s youth programming. So we get to sing because we love singing, and doing that helps make it possible for another generation to discover why choir is worth being part of in the first place.
This Is Only the Beginning
We have some plans for Friends of Lyrico, but intentially have not made too many. We hope to sing somewhere around Christmas because, really, having a choir and not singing Christmas music seems like a missed opportunity! Then in May, we plan to join Lyrico’s Junior and Senior Choirs for their year-end concert at Festival Place. If you have a child in one of our choirs, this is a special opportunity for you to sing alongside them as well.
Everything in between is still taking shape, and that means the people who join us this year get to help find our direction as founding members. Five years from now we may look back at the slightly nervous group of people who walked into that first rehearsal and marvel at how it all started. For now, we’re going to get together every couple of weeks, learn some music, laugh at ourselves when necessary and see what we can create.
If you’ve been missing choir, come back. If you’ve always wondered what it would be like to sing in one, come find out. And if you’re the person singing far too enthusiastically alone in your car, you might as well come sing with us!
Rehearsals are held at the Sherwood Park United Church (no affiliation) located at 20 Fir Street, Sherwood Park. Drop in at our next rehearsal to check it out, or jump right in and fill out a registration form. All the details can be found here. We would love to sing with you!
