This fall, the members of the New Haven Oratorio Choir will sing, perform and socialize, as they always have. They’ll do so, however, from behind computer screens at home.
While we have witnessed the return of some “normalcy” this summer, with some people going back to dining out or shopping, singing as a group, in person, is still considered highly risky. In March, a choir practice in Skagit County, Wa. yielded over 30 confirmed coronavirus cases and two deaths. It became a highly publicized example — among many — of how rapidly the virus can spread in choirs, resulting in an official CDC report.
And while Daniel Shaw, director of the Oratorio, admits that this year’s virtual choir will be a “very different experience” for the singers (shown above rehearsing in 2019), he is confident that they will come through it stronger in the end.
The auditioned choir, which is made up of 22 men and women, hasn’t met in person at St. Thomas’s Episcopal Church on Whitney Avenue — the group’s normal meeting spot after the Church of the Redeemer closed in 2019 — since activities across the state shut down in mid-March. They haven’t had drinks at Christopher Martin’s either, their traditional post-rehearsal activity.
The members have missed the music and friendship they share. This fall they’ll try to recreate both online.
The group, which originated in the 1960s, has always had a strong presence in New Haven, with annual concerts serving as their primary fundraisers. They stay on their toes musically by performing a variety of pieces from both well and lesser-known composers — not just the operatic-style work this type of choir normally does, said Shaw.
Sharon Benzoni Photo
“We do whatever we want,” he said about their musical choices. This year their goals will be tempered by Covid-19, but they’re not backing away from the challenges presented by the pandemic, nor are they choosing a less interesting repertoire than usual. In order to liven up a season where in-person singing isn’t feasible, the Oratorio will be working on pieces by living composers, then asking those composers to join their online sessions to speak to the singers about the work. They will work with five composers, total, including Shaw himself.
“I imagine people will be tested and people will learn,” Shaw said of the season ahead.
They’ve already begun. At a beta-rehearsal in late July — which served as a chance to iron out any issues before rehearsals begin for real this month — Shaw and a cohort of choir members tried singing together online. Or, more like singing “together.”
Singing in a group online, or making any music, presents unique challenges, said Shaw. Because of delays in internet connections, it’s not really possible to achieve the same synchronicity a group can when its members are together in person.
That means using a variety of recording and other software to allow for rehearsals and, eventually, performances. It’s tricky: Singers must be muted as they practice (so essentially, they’re singing to themselves), and Shaw and the pianist will need to take turns onscreen as they conduct and accompany, in turn. They’ll be using a number of programs to make it all work, so Shaw will need to send members audio samples that they’ll sing over, and send him files in return.
It’s going to take a lot of time. Still, said Shaw, he’s “rather optimistic.”
“It’s a challenge getting 22 audio tracks to line up exactly right together,” he said. “There’s a lot of work, but there’s also a lot of possibility.”
Having files and a post-production period, rather than a live show, means you can edit out an errant cough or other sound interruptions. If you want, said Shaw, “you can really OCD yourself all over the place.”
His goal, however, will be to maintain weekly rehearsals, teach the group some new music, work on pieces the group already knows, and eventually create virtual concerts this winter and spring.
This is important for continuity, and for financial reasons, too.
Due to Covid-19, the events that generate about one-third of the Oratorio’s budget — a fundraising cabaret they conduct once a year, as well as their spring concert — didn’t take place this spring, said Sandy Koorejian, treasurer of the group. To offset those losses, the group pushed other fundraising efforts, including a more robust campaign than normal during this year’s Great Give, the yearly fundraising event for local nonprofits organized by the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven. The choir raised 30 percent above what they did last year.
With that careful planning, Koorejian said, the choir was able to honor its contracts with Shaw and its staff accompanist for the spring semester, as well as pay rent to St. Thomas’s through March. The choir offered members a refund of half of their dues for the spring semester. The group has also received grants from the Arts Council of Greater New Haven’s Creative Sector Relief Fund and the CT Office of the Arts CARES Act Emergency Relief Grant to offset losses — support for which they are incredibly grateful.
“From a non-financial standpoint, our members missed our weekly rehearsals, which provided education and fellowship. One of the choir sections met via Zoom weekly to maintain this connection. We missed performing for our audience in May, and loyal attendees have shared this sentiment with us as well,” Koorejian said about the choir’s experience this fall.
She, like Shaw, hopes choir members — and their fans — will optimistically take on the challenges ahead, and continue to support the group financially. She sees opportunity in this strange predicament, too, including the possibility of former choir members who have moved away participating again using the new online format.
Virtual rehearsals start September 9 and members will meet weekly from there. The rehearsals — “very easy on the commute,” added Shaw — might include a little extra online time for socializing at the start.
Shaw, who said he’s been taking very long walks to punctuate the hours spent working at home alone, both preparing for the choir season as well as composing, said he truly misses meeting with the group in person. But he’s channeling all his creative energy into working with what he’s got, until meeting in person is a safe reality once again.
“This is genuinely challenging but it’s good for me, too,” he said. “We’ve faced big challenges before and gotten through them.”
Shaw said that at the outset of the pandemic shutdown, he heard someone say that “choir, specifically, is one of the most hazardous and least essential things that there is.” That makes sense, practically speaking, but he knows there’s much more to it than that.
“This is the way we are being hit by coronavirus. It means we can’t get into a space together,” he said. “But that only makes the fact that we can create beauty in the midst of all this even more important.”
Congratulations to the New Haven Oratorio Choir for starting up again with virtual rehearsals under COVID. The Greater New Haven Community Chorus is launching its own experiment in virtual choirs. We will have two projects, each building toward assembling a virtual choir performance, enjoying it together, and then releasing it to the world.
To sign up and get the link, go to www.gnhcc.org.
You can join either project up until the time to submit your video.
We are open to everyone - our plan is to use this time to reach out as broadly as possible to the Greater New Haven community and beyond - because we are virtual, anyone can join us from anywhere!
Project  Diversity
September 10 to October 10
Each Thursday evening, we will explore, learn about, and prepare to perform "This Is Me" from the film "The Greatest Showman," using this song as a basis for dialogue about equity, diversity, and inclusion. We will provide digital resources, including sheet music, practice tracks, and video tutorials for producing and uploading your virtual choir part.  You will send in your video to be included in our virtual choir.
Project Viewing and Social Night -Â October 22
November 1 - Â Public Video Launch!
Project  Community
October 29 to December 10
Our second project will build on the energy and connections of Project Diversity and will celebrate the very thing that makes GNHCC so wonderful -- our community. Musical selection to be announced.
Project Viewing and Social Night -Â December 17
January 1 - Public Video LaunchÂ