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VINTAGE VOICES, VOCALESSENCE CHORAL PROGRAM FOR OLDER ADULTS, RESUMES IN-PERSON REHEARSALS

The joy and health benefits of choral performance for older adults is back—to delight of singers  

MINNEAPOLIS— JUNE 11, 2021—VocalEssence, Minnesota’s premier nonprofit choral arts organization, announces its popular Vintage Voices program is resuming in-person choir rehearsals for the first time since the outbreak of the pandemic. Senior choirs at Trillium Woods in Plymouth and Sabathani Community Center in Minneapolis are rehearsing for programs that will culminate this month with free public concerts. 

“To feel the warmth of the voices surrounding me, it makes me so happy,” said Gwen Fraction of the Sabathani Vintage Voices choir. “I feel blessed to be here with all of my friends.” 

Fellow Sabathani choir member Shirle​e Callender agrees. “This is our family! We call it a family, and we haven’t seen each other in over a year. So to be able to exercise and sing is wonderful.” 

The Vintage Voices program brings the many benefits—physical, psychological, and social—of choral participation to older adults. It removes barriers to engagement and participation by meeting seniors on their own turf—at senior living and community centers. Led by conductor Rob Graham, Vintage Voices integrates regular arts practice into the lives of participants with weekly rehearsals.  

“We are working hard to ensure singer safety and wellbeing are at the core of everything we are doing together in person,” said Rob Graham, VocalEssence Vintage Voices conductor. “All participating singers and program staff have been fully vaccinated. Prior to entering the rehearsal space, the singers do a temperature and symptom check, and use hand sanitizer. The choir now sings with masks on, and everyone maintains six feet distance before, during, and after rehearsal. Rehearsals break after 30 minutes of singing to allow the HVAC system to clear the air in the room. Singers are provided with mask brackets to help keep the mask fabric out of their mouths, which helps with breathing and enunciation!”  

The program continued in a modified form during the pandemic, over Zoom. “Many singers shared they learned a lot about technology during our Zoom rehearsal era and were grateful to be able to stay connected with one another and make music in new ways,” said Graham. “‘But, of course, nothing beats being back together in person.” 

Soprano Becky McAlpine from the Trillium Woods Chorale confirmed the new safety procedures are worth it. While she appreciated the pandemic adaptation of Zoom rehearsal, “This is so much more fun. It feels so good to be singing in person.” 

The Trillium Woods Chorale will perform for their fellow residents on June 22, 2021 at 2:30 PM in the Trillium Woods Auditorium and will be available to view on YouTube (plans are subject to change with conditions of the pandemic). The Sabathani Vintage Voices choir will perform a free concert for friends, family, and the community on June 30, 2021 at 6 pm at the Sabathani Community Center Auditorium. For more information about the concerts and Vintage Voices, please call 612-547-1458 or visit www.vocalessence.org. 

VocalEssence, called “one of the irreplaceable music ensembles of our time” by Dana Gioia, past chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts—and the choral ensemble that Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones says “sings magnificently”—impacts thousands of students, singers, and composers each year through its initiative programs, contests, and support for innovative art. VocalEssence was founded in 1969 and has debuted more than 250 commissions and world premieres. For more information, visit vocalessence.org.    

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