This ground-breaking study of the natural voice movement largely centres on the work of the Natural Voice Practitioners’ Network (NVPN). As the author is professionally involved in the NVPN, the content is mainly based upon participant observation, and data collected from members of the network. The book provides an ethnographic exploration of the communities in which natural voice practitioners work, and the contribution that membership of the NVPN makes to the lives of individual singers, choir leaders and social groups.
The publication of this work is timely, as it is partly a response to the increase in research and media attention on the positive effects of group singing upon health and wellbeing, community development, and social capital. Bithell notes that, despite the widespread evidence of the benefits of singing, research in the related field of community music is sparse. The main aim of this book is therefore to ‘fill the gap’ by ‘[marrying] principles and practice with theoretical insights and interpretations derived from different disciplinary perspectives’ (p.2). Other aims include examining open-access community choirs in order to address questions about how these choirs operate, who leads them, and what repertoire they sing.
This volume fulfils most of the above aims admirably. The opening chapter sets out the theoretical perspectives, key concepts and themes. In chapter 2, the concept of ‘natural voice’ is explicated alongside an exploration of the philosophies and principles of the NVPN. A narrative approach is adopted in chapter 3, charting the ways in which individual practitioners entered the natural voice movement, and examining the main socio-political influences upon the network. In chapter 4, the modus operandi of a typical NVPN choir is explored, with examples of rehearsal structure, warm-ups, teaching strategies and repertoire. Chapters 5 and 6 interrogate the position of world song in NVPN choirs, and consider the potential minefields of ownership, appropriation and authenticity. In chapters 7 and 8, the emphasis is on community, and the value of creating connections between choirs and the homelands of their adopted repertoire. The final chapter reviews the main themes, including participation and performance, community and networks, liberation and empowerment.
Before reading the main text, I read the appendix containing the NVPN Philosophy and Working Principles. Positioning this in the opening chapter would have provided a clearer context, since the NVPN takes centre stage. In brief, the principles embrace vocal individuality and expression, community and accessibility, and healthy use of the voice. The working practices include providing a range of singing opportunities, recognising the needs of less experienced singers, avoiding technical language, encouraging vocal health, prioritising accessibility and enjoyment, and learning songs by rote rather than printed music. ‘Accessibility’ means that NVPN choirs are usually non-auditioned.
Choirs based upon these principles have great potential to offer a transformative approach to the phenomenon of the self-professed ‘non-singer’, who has typically been led to believe that he or she has no inherent ability to sing (p. 247). Bithell believes that these ‘non-singers’ can be rehabilitated in NVPN choirs, partly because their world music repertoire is less likely than other genres to have negative associations with adverse experiences of school singing. My only reservation is that this argument in favour of world song is partly based on assumptions about the vocal repertoire commonly used in schools, and the reaction of individuals to this repertoire (p. 304), and it would have been helpful to see more empirical support for this.
Other potentially contentious assumptions within this book include the implication that choirs which do not operate specifically according to NVPN guidelines may not offer the same emotional and social benefits. Although Bithell admits that some of the benefits may be derived from any choral experience, she also states that ‘others apply particularly to open-access community choirs and natural-voice-style singing groups’ (p. 233). In chapter 7 she asks ‘What, then, is different about a natural-voice-style community choir?’ (p. 226). Her answers include ‘connectedness’, ‘empowerment’, ‘self-realisation’, ‘happiness’, ‘communitas’ and ‘collective effervescence’ (pp. 226–241). However, it is notable that other studies demonstrating the various benefits of group singing have encompassed a wide range of choral settings rather than focusing only on NVPN or community choirs. It is not difficult to find literature praising the effects of singing in school and college choirs, workplace choirs, choral societies, men's choruses, barbershop ensembles, and operatic societies. More research would be necessary to confirm whether NVPN choirs have a monopoly on some of the community-related and emotional benefits of group singing that Bithell highlights here, or whether all of these benefits accrue regardless of the type of choral activity.
It is undoubtedly true that some untrained singers who attend open-access NVPN choirs would not be (nor want to be) admitted to more formal, auditioned choirs, in which sight-reading is paramount, and would therefore not have access to the benefits of group singing in ‘a more conventional choir’ (p. 247). It could also be argued that individual differences in personality, learning style, and experience may mean that the benefits gained from different types of group singing vary individually. My own observations suggest that some singers do not react well to learning by rote, as is the NVPN practice, particularly if they have cognitive difficulties related to memorisation and recall. There are also questions around how empowering it is for singers to learn purely by rote, as the power and knowledge then resides largely with the choral leader, who determines the pace at which the musical content is conveyed to the singers. Further research would be necessary to discover whether or not it might be more liberating, for some singers, to be taught to read music so that they have more perceived control over their own learning experience, rather than rely on receiving repertoire from their choir leader through a process of aural learning and memorisation.
Bithell locates herself as ‘insider and outsider, practitioner and academic, advocate and critic’ (p.4). She identifies with a qualitative tradition that values ‘the subjective, the experiential, and the insider viewpoint’, and defines her own role as ‘an alert participant more than a detached observer’ (p. 5). Her transparency is disarming, but her subjective involvement occasionally has a negative impact upon the reading experience. There is a cloying quality to the rather evangelical phraseology – ‘acolytes’ (p. 63), ‘revered mentor’ (p. 47), ‘converts’, ‘transcendental’ (p. 199) – and recurring hyperbolic language: ‘iconic figures’, ‘world-class experts’, ‘legendary’ (p. 61). The good intentions of the author as a devotee of the NVPN are clear, but the inclusion of some critical commentary regarding the network would have provided a more balanced impression. Further research could supplement this fund of knowledge by including negative as well as positive aspects of the NVPN, and by seeking feedback from lapsed participants regarding their reasons for withdrawing from NVPN choirs.
Bithell's advocacy of the particular benefits ascribed to NVPN choirs would be more compelling if the book included an objective, empirical comparison of the practice and philosophies of NVPN leaders (who are often not formally trained musicians) with choral directors from other traditions, especially those with a classical background. NVPN events ‘challenge the primacy of the Western art music canon and the trained bel canto voice and make [an] important contribution to the democratisation of singing’ (p. 217), which can increase access, encourage inclusion, and overcome physical, psychological and social barriers to group singing (p. 54). However, some of Bithell's arguments are underpinned by apparent misconceptions about the nature of classical voice training, and by implicit, critical generalizations about the perceived limitations of more ‘conventional’, formally trained choir leaders in the Western art music tradition.
One of these problematic assumptions is that the NVPN concept of ‘releasing the voice is very different from training it’ (p. 54). However, the ‘grounded, centred, well-supported . . . and open-throated voice’ advocated by Frankie Armstrong (p.55) shares many features with the freedom of voice production that is, ideally, acquired during a thorough technical training. In my experience, a well-trained classical singer, singing teacher or choral director will be aware of the importance of maintaining vocal health and will adopt a holistic approach to vocal training, rehearsal and performance. It is also my experience that well informed, knowledgeable choral leaders do exist outside the natural voice network, and incorporate postural, physical and vocal work into warm-up routines that do not differ greatly from the NVPN guidelines (p. 316). Further research could usefully compare choral practices inside and outside the NVPN movement, taking into account variations in individual leadership styles, philosophies and attitudes, in order to confirm whether NVPN practitioners have a truly unique approach or whether they actually share many of the aspects of ‘best practice’ from other choral settings.
This informative guide contains a description of the evolution of amateur choral societies, alongside thought-provoking commentary on the recent resurgence of choral singing in broadcast media, as well as an exhaustive history of the natural voice movement. For NVPN practitioners and their choirs, this book provides a comprehensive validation of their philosophy and practice. For outsiders, especially singing teachers and choral leaders working in other traditions, it will provide scope for lively debate.
