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June 2001 Table of Contents
Youth Choir
YOUTH CHOIRS: Do They Fit Today?
By Dennis Allen
As a writer of music for choirs, especially youth choirs, it would seem natural to write this article from a self-serving perspective. Obviously, Nan and I want lots of churches to have youth choirs so lots of music directors will order lots of copies of the music and drama we write. Therefore, my comments within this article could easily be meant to pad my pocketbook. (Those of you who write choral music for a living are laughing beyond control at this point, as if writing for the church was ever designed to make much money!)
However, let's presume that my motives are pure, and that my comments are solely intended to encourage those of us who lead music in churches to make sure we don't forget the importance of music for youth. That really is the truth.
Actually, we are just ending our tenure as parents of teenagers...our older son, Mark, is graduating from college in May of 2001...our younger son, Drew, began his freshman year in college in the fall of 2000. Even though we do not have youth in our home any more, Nan and I continue to stay very involved with that age group. Through workshops, through local and national conferences, and through our writing we do try to stay current with an age group which is always on the move, in many ways.
So, with all the changes in our culture, in our churches, in the styles of worship over the past decade...do youth choirs fit in anymore? Is it an out-of-date concept? Should we abandon our old youth choir paradigms? Should we shun the new worship models? Should we do either? Neither? Both? As Charlie Brown would say: "Aaauurgh!!!" (or something like that)
It seems like in every workshop I lead on working with youth choirs, people bring up some of the same issues which were present when I was a local church minister of music in the '70s and '80s. Seems like many problems are just the same as they used to be: overcommitment of the students, church staff scheduling issues, conflicts over styles of music, combining younger and older youth voices...these sound familiar, don't they! So, in many ways I think working with students is the same as it always has been. Every church is going to have to figure out their own responses to these issues.
I wish there was a magic cookbook I could recommend to you for working with youth choirs...you know, two parts this, a cup of that, stir 20 strokes and poof....you've got a successful program. Nevertheless, I do believe that is possible to have great music in your church for students. Your particular recipe may be very different from mine, but it can be just right. It will take effort, everything worth something does, you know. There is a place, a need, a mandate for you to use the wonderful gift of music in ministry to your students. Of course they fit today...all God's children fit into His church and deserve your best efforts at providing music ministry! Whether or not is the tried-and-true, 50-voice, youth choir in all its choral splendor, or it is a quartet of three girls and an acne-faced 7th grade boy, singing with a track.... all of this falls within the sphere of music ministry to students. Whichever of the above you currently have is deserving of your best.
I really have no idea where all of the below thoughts originated. I have read so many books and articles, attended so many conferences and workshops over the years, that my own youth choir seminars are filled with ideas from everywhere. So, to everyone who thinks I stole something from you, I probably did.... thanks for the good stuff! Here are some words of information and challenge:
•Be like the men of Issachar - Issachar was one of Jacob's sons. I Chronicles 12 tell the story: "they understood the times, therefore they knew what Israel should do." What a great word for working With students!
•www.youthcue.org is the web address of YouthCue. You need to know this wonderful organization whose sole purpose is youth choirs.
•Production Resources in Portland, Oregon has some of the finest youth choir ideas in print. Their "Basic Training" notebooks for youth choir are a must have for your library! Their phone is (503) 977-2923.
•There are several regional and national youth choir events each year. Once again, YouthCue is a great source of these events. Also, SONPOWER, sponsored by LifeWay is an exciting youth choir event each summer in Orlando. Call 1-800-254-2022 for details.
•Finally, here is a scatter-shot blast of tips/tricks/ideas that might work for you: provide "outside the walls" opportunities for your group to minister, pray daily for your students, create the BIG EVENT...something for your students to work towards, bring in a fine youth choir from the outside to inspire your group, begin each new choir year with a huge "Opening Night"...something which will give you a great start, conduct a personal interview with each student to determine their musical and spiritual condition, let the students lead in the organizational aspects of the group, excellence breeds excellence...never settle, don't forget the importance of the social aspect of your group...students want to be with their friends, network with other youth music leaders as often as possible, develop a Big Brother/Sister program for older students to encourage the younger ones.
Well, there you have it. I do believe that youth choirs have a vital place in your music ministry. The saying goes: "children are wet cement." Actually, I think that teenagers are still wet cement, which you can still form and mold...but the clock is ticking, the cement is quickly hardening. HURRY!
Dennis and Nan have a brand new youth Christmas project just released by Lillenas Music entitled TOTALLY CHRISTMAS. This brand new work includes songs by Avalon, Steven Curtis Chapman, Phillips Craig and Dean, as well as plenty of Christmas favorites. You can perform these songs individually or, as a bonus, Nan has created sketches and readings, which can turn the project into a musical.
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