The adult non-singer: connection, contexrt and culture

Abstract

Singing is usually an enjoyable activity but not to those who have labeled themselves as non-singers. Through the use of narrative inquiry, this study examines the phenomenon of the adult non-singer in Canadian society. The researcher's teaching experience involving adult non-singers and the dearth of academic research prompted an interest in this topic. Two research questions were proposed: 1) why are there adults who have designated themselves as non-singers? 2) is it possible for this label to be reversed through a positive singing experience? Twelve participants, including men and women of different ethnic background and age, participated in eight sessions. The participants were initially asked various questions about their childhood singing experiences and their personal views on singing. The remainder of the sessions was spent in vocal production. The sessions were transcribed and, along with related literature, spoke to the issues in the research questions. The research, through the participants' narratives, offered three reasons as to why there are adults who designate as non-singers: 1) the encountering of a negative childhood experience with singing at school; 2) the encountering of a negative childhood experience with singing at home; 3) the acceptance of a normative concept of singer. The research found that the possibility of reversing the label of non-singer through a positive singing experience was inconclusive. The majority of the participants in the study changed their perception of self as non-singer to self as singer. Nevertheless, a minority of participants continued to view themselves as non-singers despite the positive experience with singing. Implications for music educators were drawn from the themes of the participants' narratives as a conclusion to the study. These themes included awareness of the: 1) impact of negative encounters on students; 2) effect of cultural assumptions on the classroom; 3) understanding that students are at different points on the musical spectrum; 4) need to support non-singers in the education system.