82. SICK OF SHOPPING? 10 REASONS TO GIVE THE GIFT OF MUSIC AND SONG, THIS SEASON Any donation you make can help ensure that more singing and instrumental music leaders get the skills they need to establish more groups, and that special projects like Voices of Peace, StreetSounds, Singing from Country, and That Girl can bring more music to more people who need it in their lives.
81. 'THAT GIRL' HAS SOMETHING IMPORTANT TO SAY TO US ALL Sarah Mandie is a Melbourne based singer songwriter and the mother of two young girls. These two highly personal and defining elements of her life are brought into sharp focus though her new project, That Girl, and it is from her unequivocal belief in the potential of each and her passion for both, that this project has come about at all.
80. HOW TO USE MUSIC TO FINE TUNE YOUR CHILD FOR SCHOOL Can music actually make us smarter? Research suggests that from as early as 16 weeks of pregnancy, when auditory function is forming, babies begin their musical development. Their early adaptive exposure to sounds, including those familiar sounds of parents’ voices, enhance extraordinary processing skills.
79. THE REAL REASON DINOSAURS BECAME EXTINCT (& SOME NEUROLOGICAL BENEFITS OF MUSIC-MAKING) Dinosaurs couldn’t sing. Perhaps their demise had nothing to do with earth impacting asteroids or the frustration of tiny arms after all and was instead triggered by their physical inability to sing. Now, I’m no scientist but…
78. WEAVING HOMESPUN TUNES INTO THE FABRIC OF DAILY FAMILY LIFE Woody Clark dreams of a world where families find time to make music as they go about their lives together. Over the past fifteen years or more, Woody has been working to build a catalogue of songs and resources available to parents and carers to turn this vision into reality and help integrate the rich experience of intergenerational singing and playing into the familial tapestry of homes and lives across Australia.
77. UNDERMINING ADANI WITH THE MELBOURNE CLIMATE CHOIR “This particular campaign focussed on Adani has really mobilised people across political parties, across age groups and demographics. They’re worried about their children and they’re worried about their grandchildren and what they’re going to inherit…Singing about it gives anyone feeling powerless and outraged a way to feel better and join with other people who feel the same.”
76. CARBON CANARIES SING OUT FOR CLIMATE CHANGE If the ongoing issues surrounding climate change and the proposed Adani Coal mine leave you wanting to blow your top we’ve unearthed a way to help channel that frustration and anger into inspiration and joy. Let us begin.
75. IN SINC WITH DIFFERENCE: DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION IN SINGING LEADERSHIP An exciting new training program focussed on Diversity and Inclusion in Singing Leadership was rolled out in Melbourne this year to kick against the concept of the cultural melting pot, replacing that sticky, outdated cauldron with shared knowledge, experience and insights that recognise and celebrate the difference we each bring to a situation as individuals in our own right, and to develop community singing leadership so that more programs supporting disadvantage and community building can be established across Victoria and beyond.
74. SERENADING ADELA: COMMUNITY STREET OPERA CELEBRATES CHORAL ACTIVISM & THE AUSTRALIAN ANTI-CONSCRIPTION MOVEMENT One hundred years ago, Australians voted not once but twice against conscription, on October 28th 1916 and again on 20 December 2017 in referendums called by the Prime minister, Billy Hughes. The referendums bitterly divided the nation, with pro-conscription and anti-conscription campaigners spreading their messages in speeches, songs, huge public meetings, articles, and rallies.
73. SINGING IN THE STICK SHED: AN OPEN INVITATION TO SINGING GROUPS & CHOIRS The ‘mighty’ Murtoa Stick Shed stands majestically against the open skies of the Wimmera, built in 1941 as a solution for grain storage during the World War II wheat glut, when exports were restricted. The shed was originally one of three, built using logs of rainforest mountain ash and of those three is the only one still standing, saved by the people in the local town of Murtoa who recognised the cultural significance and uniqueness of the building.
72. SING OUT AND TAKE A STAND AGAINST DOMESTIC VIOLENCE Back in April, an invitation was sent to community choirs to unite and sing up at a ‘pioneering choral event’ called You’re the Voice, an element of the 2017 Queensland Music Festival dedicated to highlighting the persistent problem of domestic violence across Australia and building awareness in a bid to ‘turn the tide’ and support positive change.
71. THE ASSYRIAN WOMEN’S GROUP: CELEBRATING, PRESERVING, AND SHARING ASSYRIAN CULTURE IN MELBOURNE Foundation House is an organisation set up to help refugees and migrants who are survivors of torture in other countries, assisting them with settlement services and connecting them with other organisations such as AMES on arrival in Australia. It is also the starting point in this story of a group of Chaldean Christian women who have hopes of becoming the Assyrian Women’s Choir.
70. DIVERSITY & INCLUSION & WHY WE SHOULDN’T BE INDIFFERENT TO DIFFERENCE Life would be boring if we were all the same. Living in the most culturally diverse state in Australia, as Victorians we are encouraged to be inclusive and tolerant of everyone, and to show respect for aspects or characteristics in a person perceived to be different to our own.
69. BETTY M. & THE BIRTH OF A NETWORK ‘The great thing about events that get people together is the fact that they get people together!’ says Betty McLaughlin, Gippsland based community music activist and founder of the Gippsland Singers Weekend at Wilson’s Prom. It was reading about the success of the 2016 gathering in October last year which inspired this conversation with Betty as encouragement to anyone out there looking to consolidate a sustainable, regional network of community music makers and wondering how to go about it.
68. STREETSOUNDS FESTIVAL HITS THE STREETS OF GEELONG WITH APLOMB! Sun shone through grey clouds gathered low over Pakington Street in Geelong West last Saturday morning, jostling to catch a glimpse of the gloriously coloured community musicians gathering in readiness on the grass below to play in the StreetSounds Festival parade and fiesta.
67. THE COUNTDOWN TO COUNT US IN, IS ON! Do you know any school aged children? Do you teach school aged children? If you love a chance to sing with your fledgling and older song birds whilst advocating for the value of music and music education in all schools, this year’s Music: Count Us In program might be just the ticket.
66. SINGING AIDS THE SOUND OF SILENCE FOR SNORERS If all you crave at night is the sound of silence, encouraging somebody who snores to sing for their supper could be the key to a peaceful night’s sleep, and the clip below will be music to your ears. We know from experience that an interrupted sleep pattern impacts negatively on concentration levels and increases the likeliness of accidents and mistakes during our waking hours.
65. THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE TECOMA: A NEW PEACE CHOIR CELEBRATES THE POSITIVE THINGS IN LIFE There’s a new drop-in choir in Tecoma, that’s all about feeling good, celebrating resilience and being grateful for Community, our safety and the Environment. During the time when Singing Leader and Community Music Activist Barb McFarlane was planning to form Tecoma Peace Choir, Donald Trump was elected to the stage and the ensuing political pantomime has done nothing to reassure anyone about the state of the world.
64. SINGING OUT ABOUT SINGING & WHY IT’S SO DARNED GOOD FOR US I have been running two community choirs for fifteen years. I have found that over time in our groups, we have had singers with varying skills and experience, some coming in briefly, but most staying for decades and developing lasting friendships. ALL have improved their skills over time.
63. MELTIN’ DOWN AGE BARRIERS IN MELTON: THE INTERGENERATIONAL STREET BAND SUPPORTING FAMILY MUSIC MAKING ‘What I really get out of the band and the practice is simply the fun.’ says Melton resident Amy McDonald who for the past year has played with The Fabulous Meltones, one of the bands to have emerged with support from Community Music Victoria’s StreetSounds project.
62. HAVE YOU HEARD WHAT'S HAPPENING IN GIRGARRE? Girgarre was one of six small towns constituting less than 6,000 people selected to receive $350,000 each over two years “for projects that realise big ideas” and puts artistic practice at the centre of community life.