HEALTH BENEFITS OF SINGING IN A CHOIR
LOWERS STRESS LEVELS
A NATURAL ANTI-DEPRESSANT
IMPROVES MENTAL ALERTNESS
WIDENS YOUR CIRCLE OF FRIENDS
BROADENS COMMUNICATION SKILLS
HELPS WITH SLEEP
STRENGTHENS THE IMMUNE SYSTEM
BOOSTS CONFIDENCE
IMPROVES POSTURE
(Source: www.takelessons.com/blog/health-benefits-of-singing)
JOHN RUTTER: THE IMPORTANCE OF CHOIR
“Choral music is not one of life’s frills. It’s something that goes to the very heart of our humanity, our sense of community, and our souls…”
(Source & Watch: www.youtube.com/watch?v=pm-Pm1FYZ-U)
ERIC WHiTACRE – CHOIR: THE CORE OF WHO WE ARE
“Choral music has long been Eric Whitacre’s greatest passion, and the world would not be the same without it. In this video, Whitacre talks about why he believes choral music is so important and why he has chosen to dedicate his life to its advancement.”
(Source & Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FpM3DQEjTw)
HOW SINGING TOGETHER CHANGES THE BRAIN
“Tania de Jong AM makes the case that people singing together can change the brain. Pushing the idea that creativity is the strategic tool of the 21st century, she says how our voices have been silenced and that it’s not doing us any good. She explains how singing is a survival mechanism, how it makes our hearts beat together and can help heal strokes and depression…”
(Source & Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_HOBr8H9EM)
COMMUNITY CHOIRS GROWING
“The health benefits of singing have been well documented, but now it seems singing in a group can be even better for you. It is not just the physical and mental health benefits that are important, but the sense of belonging and community that come with them. Recent British research found choral singers reported a higher degree of wellbeing than those who sing alone. And one study even found people’s heartbeats and breathing synchronised when they sang together.”
“Robert Faulkner, an honorary research fellow at the University of Western Australia and director of music at Perth girls’ school MLC, said community singing choirs were catching on. He spent many years living in Iceland, where he said it was considered almost unmanly not to sing. I lived in north of Iceland and I find every guy almost is singing, they’re meeting together regularly to sing, to rehearse together, travelling sometimes an hour and half, two hours a week in the middle of an arctic winter to sing together,” Dr Faulkner said.”
(Source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-06-18/choir-singing-bringing-benefits-to-many/7520358)
CHOIR SINGING ‘BOOSTS YOUR MENTAL HEALTH’
“There is a growing body of evidence which claims that singing as part of a group can have a range of health benefits.”
(Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/health/news/10496056/Choir-singing-boosts-your-mental-health.html)
PSYCHOLOGICAL & PHYSICAL BENEFITS OF CHORAL SINGING
“Research has shown for some time that singing in a choir has tremendous benefits for physical and mental well-bing, leading some to campaign for it to be prescribed as a treatment for medical conditions. In addition, recent findings from a study suggest that there are specific benefits related to choral singing which are unique to this pastime.”
(Source: https://www.cmuse.org/psychological-and-physical-benefits-of-choral-singing/)
CHOIR SINGING IMPROVES HEALTH, HAPPINESS…
“…The physiological benefits of singing, and music more generally, have long been explored. Music making exercises the brain as well as the body, but singing is particularly beneficial for improving breathing, posture and muscle tension. Listening to and participating in music has been shown to be effective in pain relief, too, probably due to the release of neurochemicals such as β-endorphin (a natural painkiller responsible for the “high” experienced after intense exercise).”