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As the pandemic began in March 2020 no one could have predicted that fourteen months later our world would still be trying to figure out how to get out of it. As those initial weeks of cancelled rehearsals turned into months, we quickly began to see the cancellation of not just rehearsals, but also of concerts. I can remember thinking, on the day of each cancelled concert, of wanting to mark the loss of our collective creative work and community effort in some meaningful way. So much time, effort and creativity had already been expended that it seemed important to mark those occasions, grateful for the communities of singers with whom I am privileged to work, acknowledging their efforts, and lamenting our inability to share with audiences in ways we’d perhaps learned to take for granted. As I think now of programming into the future in the post-pandemic world, I have started by coming back to some of the programs that had been cancelled, wondering if there is still a place for them. When the pandemic began, my symphonic chorus the Grand Philharmonic Choir (Kitchener-Waterloo), was just a few weeks away from a performance of Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem. So much work had already gone into preparing this work that I decided to re-program the beginning of the 20-21 season to include this great piece. A work of both deep reflection and abounding hope, it seemed an appropriate way to begin the new season, which surely was to have marked the end of the pandemic. By the middle of the summer, of course, it became evident that the pandemic would be with us well into the 20-21 season and this newly rescheduled performance, also, was cancelled. Now, with cautious optimism I look towards 21-22, hoping that we’ll be in a position to offer this enduring work. Time will tell. On the other hand, however, there are programs, planned before the pandemic began, that I am unlikely to come back to, at least right away. And the reasons for putting them off, or putting them away entirely, in search of new ideas, is twofold. On a very practical level,
we’re going to need to return to boot camp! As I think of my student and community ensembles, it will have been, at the very least, 18 months since we last sang together in regular rehearsals. Without the regularity of rehearsals and the discipline of practicing between them, we will need to resharpen our musicianship, rebuild our vocal endurance and renew our ensemble skills. On top of that, when we return, there are sure to be new protocols in place, like mask-wearing and additional distance between singers. These will be new experiences and will take getting used to. Notwithstanding what I said, above, about the comfort and hope of the Brahms Requiem to mark the end of the pandemic, simpler programming and less material may be to everyone’s advantage as we return to singing together. Perhaps more importantly, this 14-month long forced sabbatical from rehearsing and performing has provided an opportunity to reflect on our lives, on our art, and how we can use our creative energy to provide comfort, foster hope and help create a more just and equal world. A pandemic in the age of social media has meant that we are made more acutely aware of the injustice and inequality around us. How one has been able to weather this pandemic is sadly too often tied to forces of socio-economic status, race, or location. The Black Lives Matter movement received renewed momentum and energy following the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis about one year ago. Issues of race, inclusivity and equality have come to the foreground around the world in the wake of his death, and as we consider our own responsibilities to each other and to the earth. Inevitably, these and other events in our own communities cause us to question and consider the role our art has as a response. How can our programming and our choirs contribute to the important conversations that are taking place? What role do our collective voices, through performance, education and outreach have in helping to lift up the voices less heard, and communities under-represented. The world has changed so much in the last fourteen months and if we believe art has a necessary role of response, our programming will need to change, too. There have also been several silver linings that have come about as a result of the pandemic which will impact programming into the future. How many of us had ever been on a Zoom call before the pandemic began? Yet today we can navigate screen sharing, chat functions and reaction emojis as experts. Being forced to pivot away from our well-worn and comfortable paradigms has pushed us to do things differently. And, while I don’t think that anyone would argue that Zoom has improved the choral experience or that virtual choirs will ever replace the joy we experience when singing together, these and other technologies have ushered in a welcomed broadening of the choral community. Working in this way has allowed us to peer into each other’s choral rehearsals and workshops to share with and learn from each other. Today it feels like it has never been easier to reach out to a composer, a conductor or other musicians, creating space to build rich collaborative experiences. Our ability to live-stream concerts, while building a capacity to monetize (ie charge a ticket price) for these experiences, provide growth opportunities for organizations as we work to figure out what a live concert experience will look and sound like in the future. These have been good developments of the past year, and they should remain once we return to more normal activities. Thanks to Pro Coro Canada and Michael, for the opportunity to ‘think aloud’ about programming into the future. Best wishes and stay safe. Mark Vuorinen
Artistic Director, The Elora Singers and Festival
Artistic Director, Grand Philharmonic Choirs
Associate Professor and Chair, Conrad Grebel University College/University of Waterloo
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