The Royal School of Church Music's indispensable guide to choral training "A church or a school without a choir is like a body without a soul. Singing lies at the heart of worship and education. Voice for Life has a valuable part to play in giving life and soul to us all as we worship and learn." -John Rutter, composer and conductor Designed for use in schools, churches, and with other community choirs, Voice for Life offers five levels of vocal training for beginning through advanced singers. Whether a child or an adult, singers will develop skills in five core areas: using the voice well, musical skills and understanding, repertoire, belonging to the choir, and choir in context. How Voice for Life works There are five levels in the Voice for Life scheme, for singers of any age from beginners through to advanced singers, starting with a preparatory level for brand new, inexperienced singers. White (preparatory level) Light Blue Dark Blue Red Yellow White Level The preparatory White Level for new singers (both children and adults) introduces and assesses very basic choral skills and understanding. On completion of this preparatory level, the singer is admitted as a full member of the choir. There is a Voice for Life White Lapel Badge that can be awarded to acknowledge the singer's achievement. For robed choirs, it may also be your custom to award a surplice at this stage. Some choirs also choose to present singers with the Voice for Life Chorister's Companion (G-7863) on joining the choir. The White Level is fully integrated into Voice for Life resources, with a new White Level Singer's Workbook now available.Ê Light Blue, Dark Blue, Red, and Yellow Levels Once the singer has become a full member of the choir, they move on to the four main levels of Voice for Life: Light Blue, Dark Blue, Red and Yellow. At each level of Voice for Life there are graded targets which are assessed informally by the choir director. Once a singer has completed the necessary training for that level, reached the targets and finished their workbook they can be awarded their RSCM Voice for Life medal and the appropriately colored ribbon (for robed choirs) or colored lapel badge (for non-robed choirs). The singer then moves on to the next level. |
