As the Princeton Public Health nurse, I have seen and heard many sad stories of sickness and loss. We worked hard at Town Hall to help mitigate the spread of disease and educate ourselves and the public about the new and frightening viral illness named COVID-19.
As the global pandemic sweeps through one year, now into year two, choral singing continues to remain on hold and there is no end in sight. And I am left with the unimaginable, not singing with my choir.
We were devastated to hear that singing together in a group is one of the worst things that anyone can do and is a danger to our well-being and the health of the community. The risk of spreading disease as we share each other’s space has been deemed verboten.
If only we had known that our last concert was the last time that we would sing together and blend our voices to create choral magic, I would savored it a little more. There is a certain grief that choral singers endure as we sing alone in a zoom meeting or in the shower.
The irreplaceable piece of my life, is singing shoulder to shoulder together. Breathing together, soaring to that high crescendo and murmuring the tender soft notes as the song drifts off into silence. It is truly magical. I feel the same way after we rehearse on a Tuesday night or sing a concert. We are together, we are singing, we are making something wonderful out of our bodies, our voices. When you add the energy of a full orchestra to this mix, well you just have to come and experience in person because it is just not the same when you are not there, in person.
As I reflected on the loss of singing with my choir it occurred to me that it wasn’t just the music we were making and yet it is all about the music. The sound that one person makes when they sing is beautiful and singular. But when 100 voices sing their parts together they create a harmony of sound that touches your heart and soul. I LOVE IT.
Sharing the same space as we work towards a common goal is a large part of the enjoyment we gain in being together. I have always loved going to the group drumming circle on the Delaware River with my sister. I am no expert in drumming. But sharing the rhythms together as they get faster and more intense creates an energy that comes off of the group and is shared by all. It is palpable and healing and keeps us going back for more.
I heard Princeton Pro Musica sing with my daughter’s group, Princeton Girl Choir. They are a premier choir that sings classical and major choral works with an orchestra and I was hooked. I auditioned and realized that I had found a piece of my soul that I did not know was missing. I am grateful that we still sing together on zoom.
I wish that I had more time to practice singing. I have been so busy in this overwhelming response that the public health community have had thrust upon us. But we stepped up and have helped mitigate disease and are now working on the vaccination rollout. I long for the day when we can gather and make music in person again.
Kathy K., 2021