Music is a powerful tool. Whether it’s a Bösendorfer piano, a Tenori-On (Google it!) or a Shekere from West Africa, music has moved and touched humans all throughout time. It tells stories (take a look at “Wade in the Water”, a song sung by African slaves who worked in the fields) and is true to its time (how does the Baroque period compare to the Romantic era?). Yet, evidence shows that the earliest instruments weren’t even created until around 40,000 years ago, and that even without instruments, humans had been creating music ever since they had discovered their voices. This ancient music was developed with humming, yawning or clicking sounds, and a beat was created by tapping or clapping. Human voices were also used for many different purposes in prehistoric times. Noises were created to imitate nature, lure animals or serve as entertainment. With the creation of instruments such as flutes or drums, human voices only became more powerful and our concept of music was born.
Fast-forward a couple ten thousand years to the Middle Ages. The human voice, the most powerful instrument, has become an essential part of sacred beliefs and many religious endeavours. The modern, Western choral music we all know and love today had its beginnings in Gregorian chants sung by monks. The singers would perform passages in unison, blending to create one, unified harmony.
Soon, music began leaking out of churches and into secular activities. Naturally, choral music lost some of its strict structure and sacred influence. Plus, music faced a huge shift in audience. Hundreds of years later, choir is still a huge part of our musical cultures and still plays an important role in church services or religious events. With the hundreds of studies proving the benefits of learning and reading music for student brains, it is common (and encouraged!) for schools to participate in choir programs, and there are various events and festivals throughout the year with a focus on celebrating student choirs (heard of Choralfest?).
“The majority of choirs worldwide are not professional; they are students, children, amateurs, church choirs, who maybe only sing once or twice a week.”
– John Rutter, English composer and conductor
Not only is choral music more accessible than ever, it’s also adopted a diverse sound and can stem from various cultural influences, despite its unique start in Middle Age Gregorian chants.
Check out some of these pieces that come from all sorts of backgrounds and tell all sorts of stories. Even with a clear difference in sound, you’re sure to find some similarities between all of these choral pieces.
So, where is the future of choral music headed? It’s certain that the strong history of sacred music is here to stay, but so are all the new genres and branches of it. No doubt, choral music will continue to influence people from all cultural, ethnic or religious backgrounds as choral music has always been a huge part of human history. This still leaves us with the question of how this music will actually change in the future. Have you heard of Eric Whitacre’s Virtual Choir? Whitacre, a composer and conductor, was encouraged to reach out to singers from over 185 countries and put together various pieces performed by over 8,000 singers worldwide. One example of the incredible results is this:
So there you have it. Choral music is here to stay, even in our changing world. Choral, and music in general, has always been a tool used by humans to communicate what words couldn’t. Simply put, music is a human language, and in combination with the power of human voice, only time can tell what our music will be able to accomplish.
Featured Image: http://krui.fm/2018/05/18/an-oldie-but-a-goodie-confessions-of-a-choir-kid/