The Ministry Of Children's Choirs

Through participation in choirs, children are introduced to the meaning and significance of worship, learn the musical resources used in the worship of a given congregation, and serve the community as worship leaders. This article reflects on this important ministry and suggests how such choirs may be established.

What is the purpose of the children's choir in the worship life of a parish? The answer to this question will have profound influence on both the children and the parish. One parish may establish a children's choir primarily because other parishes have them, and the music program seems incomplete without one. Another parish may see a children's choir program as a means of outreach—a way of involving children and families who have not been active before. Still another may use the children's choir primarily as a presenter of the popular musicals—either staged or not stagedon special occasions. But these approaches may risk "?missing the mark?" of a primary focus for the choir. Children are often capable of far more maturity than we as adults imagine. For them to see the choir as a means of serving the Lord and the church in a very special way—as leaders of the weekly gathering of the parish family in worship—is probably the best motivating force for their participation. How can such a focus be implemented? First, the publicity and recruitment involved in beginning a children's choir or in starting a new season for an established group should be appealing, but not misleading. The social aspect—the fun of participation—is not to be neglected or understated. But children need to know that they are also being given an important job to do. They are to be teachers of the congregation, in a sense; and thus are aware from the start that good training and hard work will be necessary. Does this mean less fun? On the contrary, it means much more because of the high standards and goals for which they strive. On the other hand, a children's choir director could be so carried away with lofty goals that the individual child would lose importance and the social and fellowship aspects of choir, so beneficial to the growth of the child, would be crowded out of the picture by a no-nonsense policy from the time the singers enter the rehearsal room until they leave. The basic qualification of a children's choir director is a love for children, shown in concern for both the individual child and the developing relationships within the group. Social activities should occasionally supplement the rehearsals to achieve such balance. We must also help children to develop an appreciation of quality. The following words by Robert Hovda (from Signs, Songs and Stories [Silver Springs, Md.: Liturgical Conference, 1974]) are an important reminder about quality:

Perhaps it is even more important when dealing with children, because children are open and in the process of formation. Children still have a chance of achieving a greater appreciation of beauty, authenticity, craftsmanship, skill, color and shape, texture, etc. Most adults are profoundly affected by our culture's general insensitivity and even blindness with regard to quality .… If many of us adults have been deprived of this kind of sensitivity, we owe our children an opportunity—by every means possible, including liturgical celebrations—for a broader and richer development of their human faculties.

We should insist on a relentless faithfulness to Zoltan Kodaly's reminder: "?Only the best is good enough for a child.?" But this may not be easy. A child may enter a choir program at age nine or ten—a child whose musical environment has been limited to television and pop radio—and be expected suddenly to appreciate the great musical heritage of the church. Imagine the confusion in the child's mind. This music is a foreign language, no more easily understood than a literary work in a strange tongue. How can the choir director provide a bridge to understanding and appreciation? An Early Start Suzuki and Kodaly have both insisted that musical education begins at birth, or before! It is time that the church take seriously the "?mother tongue?" learning method practiced by Suzuki and his teachers and students throughout the world. As an infant learns the native language by constant listening and repetition, so our children can learn the musical language of the church by constant exposure from birth. Children can "?sit through?" a liturgy without feeling excluded, if some of the music is familiar. Perhaps we need to place recordings of such music in the homes of infants for repeated (yes, even daily) listening. (In my own parish, such records are given as gifts at baptism.) The new Alleluia Series published by Augsburg (studies in bible, worship, music and the arts from age three to junior high) has a recording for each student to take home. Parishes using the three-year lectionary will be especially interested in this series, since it follows that three-year cycle and may be used as enrichment for expanded choir rehearsals. In addition to familiarizing children with the musical language of the church, such recordings can help them discover what the child voice is meant to sound like; and thus they will begin to imitate good quality singing. Of course, such benefits can occur only if the recordings use the best children's voices. (One that has been used for this purpose is "?Great Hymns for Children?" sung by the Westwood Choristers and available from Westwood Lutheran Church, 9001 Cedar Lake Road, Minneapolis, Minn. 55426.) Good Church Music A children's choir with a nucleus of those exposed to church music since infancy will make the job of maintaining quality much easier. But we cannot all be so fortunate—at least not at the beginning. We must meet our singers where they are, as they are, and lovingly guide them into the great wealth of church music that is their heritage. I believe that this can be done without compromising quality, but no one can claim the task will be easy. There is never quite enough time to search for just the right materials for each group. There is good music of every style—including the style most familiar to the novice choir member—but in some styles it is harder to find. Composers such as John Rutter of England and Hal Hopson in the United States—to mention only two—have written quality music for treble voices (unison, as well as two-part) that is easy and in a style familiar to all children. Choristers Guild is one publisher dedicated exclusively to this goal. How do we distinguish such music from the masses of "?junk tunes?" that flood the market in the name of giving children "?what they like?"? First and foremost, look for craftsmanship in both text and music. Texts may be childlike, but never childish. What does the text say? Does it reflect good theology? Does it have something new to offer, or is it simply a combination of rhymes and clichés designed to fit the tune? What is unique about the music? It need not be complex, but is it well put together? Does the melody sing well and wear well? Is the rhythmic treatment interesting—even exciting? What about the accompaniment? Perhaps by now, we have had enough of simplistic broken chord accompaniments and may expect more. One composer will take the easiest way out with such accompaniments, while another will make a real counter-melody out of what could have been a monotonous pattern of broken chords. The more a director studies and sorts in the selecting process, the more easily the wheat is separated from the chaff. As the choir learns to sing well in familiar styles, the director may begin expanding appreciation for other types of church music. One goal of a year's repertoire should be a well-balanced diet of church music. Thematic Planning There is another important factor in selecting repertoire for the children's choir—and, in fact, for all choirs. With the consideration of quality and balance must go the thematic needs of the liturgical year. More words of Robert Hovda from the article quoted earlier need to be considered:

… we have no "?fillers?" in a well-planned liturgical action. No part or element is introduced simply because we have to pass the time. We do not "?throw in?" a song because someone likes it, or interpose a gesture because it is familiar, or include a dance because we have a dancer … Anything that is to be part of a liturgy must pass the tests of quality and appropriateness.

The sight of a child's eyes widening as the words sung by the choir are quoted in the homily or sermon should be enough to convince a skeptical choir director that the children really do care! They have committed themselves to be servants of Christ and the church. The music they sing is also a servant—a bearer of God's Word. To enlist them in this service and then obscure its relevance by cloudy or nonexistent relationships to the theme of the day is to say we didn't really mean it.

Every choir director would do well to have all music and biblical or related texts filed according to the lectionary year. While many Sundays may remain with empty files for a long time, others will fill quickly with many possibilities. Chanting of the proper verses and psalmody should receive top priority. Even when a "?general?" anthem is used, care must be taken to avoid a conflict of moods. If a certain anthem doesn't fit in, postpone it and teach the congregation a new hymn instead. The Teaching Choir How can a hymn be taught? At least two ways come to mind, with many variations possible for each way. The congregation may rehearse the hymn before the service, with the choir singing it through first and then a "?cantor?" leading the congregation in repeating it with the choir. In most situations, it would be too much to expect the light children's voices to actually "?lead?" the people. Their leading is best done by alternations—either stanza by stanza or phrase by phrase. This sort of teaching may also be a part of the liturgy, without previous rehearsal. Let the hymn be played through first—either by the organ or another instrument. Then have the children sing the first stanza, having heard the melody through twice. The organ may support them with melody only, if the tune is difficult. The choir may then do another stanza alone, with the congregation again following them. Let this hymn be included in the liturgy for several weeks in a row, if appropriate, so that learning can be reinforced. An organist working closely with the director will find other ways of presenting the tune during this period, whether in choral preludes or simply by using the hymnal setting as a prelude or voluntary. The Voices In addition to teaching the choir the music for their service in worship, the director has at least two other obligations to the singer. These involve the skills needed to do the most effective work as a choir. The first of these is the proper use and development of the voice. Children's voices have the potential of creating the most beautiful sound imaginable. But they cannot achieve this without help. A big part of this help is in simply exposing them to the best sounds of children's voices. This is why recordings are so vital to the choir director, since these sounds rarely occur in the child's natural environment. While some parents will respond to the need of putting such sounds into the home, many will not. Therefore the rehearsal room must also feature good children's choir recordings. These can be played as the children enter the room or be given more attention as an integral part of the rehearsal. One rule to follow strictly in the latter alternative is while a recording is being played, no one talks or whispers. Boy choir recordings are especially useful in making boys aware of how they can and should sound, in contrast to the "?macho male?" voices some will try to emulate. Films such as Walt Disney's Almost Angels are readily available and will do much to accomplish the same thing. But the director's own work with the choir is even more important in establishing good vocal quality. Beginning with downward vocalization from head tones in the upper part of the treble staff—sirens, "?yoo-hoo,?" and other helps to discover "?head tone?"—and then striving for even color throughout the range (but as Helen Kemp says, "?the lower, the lighter?"), children will soon sense for themselves what sounds beautiful and what sounds "?ugly?" or "?angry.?" Maintaining tall, but relaxed posture, with "?loose?" neck and jaw; breathing deeply and striving for a "?tall tone,?" with mouth opening more vertically than horizontally; and working for phrases that climax on upper tones—these are only a few of the helps that will keep the voices growing in the most natural and beneficial way. It is beyond the scope of this article—if, indeed, at all possible—to present a comprehensive guide to the child voice. The conscientious director will attend workshops and observe the best local groups in rehearsal, as well as read as much as possible on the subject. The more a director learns about the child voice, the more that director becomes aware of how much more there is to learn. Vocalizing can guarantee the exercise of the entire vocal range at each rehearsal, but another important factor is the selection of music which lies in the best part of the child's range. For too long children have been telling directors (and directors have believed them and told publishers) that they can't sing high. But directors must know better. A look at the great music of the church sung for centuries by children's voices will tell us that those composers knew that the loveliest and most effective tones of the child voice lie in the upper part of the treble staff, not the lower. The best writers for children today know this and will write accordingly. Avoid music that doesn't take the voice above its "?middle.?" It will do nothing for the ongoing vocal development of your group and will only encourage forcing "?gutsy?" volume on middle tones. That will inevitably result in the upper tones become pale and remote by comparison and finally the kind of "?break?" that plagues many singers. Look at the music carefully. Do most of the notes lie between middle C and the G above, with a few climax tones going to the upper C. That is not a good range for children's development of their voices. If the whole scheme were transposed up a fourth, with most of the notes in the middle part of the staff and climaxes on upper tones, good use of the voice would be encouraged. Reading Skill The second skill needed is in music reading—sightsinging. How many hours of rehearsal time can be saved by a group that has at least a nucleus of good readers! The learning process can be cut in half, thereby opening new doors to more exciting repertoire and more time to "?polish?" and go beyond simply learning notes and words to actually expressing them. It seems that most public school music programs today simply do not have enough time in their schedule to teach music reading. Someone recently made a comparison between the time spent in language reading and music reading in the average elementary school. How well would Johnny and Joanne read, if they had spent only as much time with their reading as they spent with music reading? Of course, the comparison is laughable and makes one realize how absurd it is to expect competent sightsingers from such limited training. Perhaps, we in the church have a greater motivation for teaching music reading, since we have a greater message to sing. A surprising amount of learning can take place if a few minutes of each rehearsal are devoted to sightsinging. The sightsinging flashcards created by Linden J. Lundstrom and now available from Choristers Guild (P.O. Box 38188, Dallas, Texas 75238) are an excellent resource for this purpose. They come complete with a teacher's guide for use for an entire choir year. The Alleluia Series mentioned above also includes sightsinging as a part of each lesson. Expanding Horizons Finally, then, what is the place of the children's choir in our liturgy? Except for its limitations as a strong vocal leader in congregational singing, its place can be the same as the adult choir. In fact, it is safe to say that many children's choirs are capable of greater enrichment of worship than adult choirs in the same parish. Children are often able to chant more easily than adults. (They haven't lived as long with metrical music.) Let them chant psalmody and other verses proper to the day as often as they can learn them well. Their teaching role in the congregation must not be neglected. Putting a children's choir opposite (in antiphony) an adult choir in a festival service can be most exciting. Their voices can soar in a descant to a familiar hymn. Anthems may be used as preludes or they fit into the service thematically. Accompanying instruments, selected carefully for balance with the children, can enhance the lovely beauty of their voices. Processions are effective, especially for festival services, but must be carefully rehearsed—especially for body posture and speed (children will nearly always walk too fast). As rehearsal time permits, a cantata for a special occasion may be possible. This writer has found that, given an opportunity, a majority of choir members in grades five through eight will elect to belong to two choirs, spending up to five hours weekly in rehearsal and other class work. The additional choir is given to more intensive rehearsal, and therefore more challenging music. The excitement of such possibilities seems to be enough reward for the extra time given. Even singers with severe pitch problems have seen them quickly disappear in this "second mile" schedule. Possibilities are truly limitless. The more comprehensive your program can become as it gradually takes shape and grows, the greater the satisfactions to your choir, to the congregation, and to you.