Vocal Nosh
a good sing and good food in convivial company
What is Vocal Nosh? by Fay White
Vocal Nosh is a community event where people gather to sing and eat together for the sheer pleasure of it, for community, for connection, for the joy of making music rather than observing others doing it. Each session stands alone and people can come once or occasionally or every time. The songs are strong, simple, taught by ear ( no written music ) and there are no auditions or solos and no-one is put on the spot. The food is simple too, but nourishing. At Vocal Nosh in Newstead where it all began, we say it's about "Good food and a good sing in convivial company".
What happens?
It usually starts with a warm-up of stretches and vocal play - and ends with lots of harmonies. Songs are taught by a skilled singing leader who may or may not use songsheets. People usually stand and sit in a circle but move around all through the session to find the part they want to sing. Most sessions have a theme of some sort and songs are chosen that fit the theme for that night. People say they come tired and go away energised!
Where did it start and how is it run?
It began in 1999 in the little town of Newstead near Castlemaine in Victoria, Australia and is still going strong. We have between 30 and 50 people gather once a month and different skilled singing leaders lead the session. It's a team effort. A couple of people plan the food and do the shopping, others do publicity, other folk make soups and we get crusty bread and fruit to make a nice healthy meal. We sing for a hour, then eat, then sing for another hour and go home. Everyone helps with the dishes and the tables. Community news gets shared and people catch up. It's a buzz.
Help to get it going.
A couple of years ago a person who attended Vocal Nosh at Newstead approached me and said "This is good stuff - we need to train other people to lead sessions like this". She happened to be a community developer with heaps of experience in that field and we devised a course of training. Her name is Anne-Marie Holley. Simultaneously, VicHealth (Victoria's Health Promotion Foundation) came to the party and funded the training. Since then, this work of training and resourcing communities and singing leaders has been done through Community Music Victoria (CMVic) with full Training Weekends and Gathering Days for leaders to learn new songs and skills that work with this kind of singing. There are now several hundred people who make up a network of singing leadership teams across the state - and from across the borders..
Costs?
At Newstead we charge $15 per person and $12 concession and that covers the singing and the meal. The hall hire and insurance and the leader's fee are also covered by that. We have a dedicated group of volunteers who do the food, the publicity, the shopping and the cleaning. Some groups have a volunteer leader as well and therefore charge less.
Where did the name come from?
The name "Vocal Nosh' is my invention but it's not a trade name or a copyrighted title and I'm completely happy for anyone to use it if they are singing to build community. "Nosh" is a word for food or nourishment. There are groups all over the country now. Every group is different and has its own flavour and name. Sessions have been named Local Vocals, Singing for Fun, Harmony Soup and Sing for your Supper etc.
Session or choir?
Vocal Nosh is singing for the fun of it, not a rehearsal for performance and not a choir or set group. People come and go from Vocal Nosh as they wish and no-one takes names. There is no list and we don't use name tags. You just come when you need a good sing and want to tap in to community and share a meal. However, once people get the singing bug they often want to join a choir. Choirs of course are a great way to encourage the practise of the everyday arts that keep our spirits healthy and alive. There are community choirs all over the state and contacts for those can be gained through Community Music Victoria as well.
Vocal Nosh Philosophy - a summary by Jon Hawkes, previous EO of Community Music Victoria
We've been repeatedly asked to outline the underpinning philosophy of Vocal Nosh. Here it is.
Vocal Nosh describes a community singing (and eating) together. People bring food and their voices to a designated place to eat and sing together. It is really the semi-formal organisation of a community behaviour we've indulged in since long before we could write. Unfortunately, in these days of atomisation and alienation, it is a behaviour that has become more and more unusual. The principles that inform these gatherings include the following: (thanks to Jon Hawkes for this summary):
• Singing ‘with’, not ‘to’. People gather to experience the immediate joy and fulfilment of singing together rather than to rehearse for a future public event.
• Creative participation. When we put sound into the air together we create something that wasn't there before. It is a creative act. Creativity and participation are basics human needs according to UN economist Manfred Max-Neef.
• Safe place. We make a physical and emotional environment in which participants feel free, fearless and secure.
• Working together. We come together in a spirit of co-operation and celebration, rather than competition and judgement. There are no losers.
• Respect and inclusiveness. We can all be involved and make a contribution. Difference is expected and valued; it is an advantage, not a problem.
• Care and encouragement. No one is left out or ignored; all feedback is constructive.
• Learning. We can all improve and usually do when there is acceptance and no pressure.
• Nourishment. Of the spirit with music and of the body with food.
• Health. There is a profound connection between making music together and individual and community wellbeing.
• Empowerment. Having a voice is the first step towards having a say.
• Initiative/confidence. Through these processes we can all learn to step forward when the time is right for us.
• Meaningful relationships between art and people. Art is not only the product of artists that can be celebrated by the rest of us; it is also the results of the creativity we all have within us. In the exercise of our creativity we become fully human.
Vocal Nosh is a community event where people gather to sing and eat together for the sheer pleasure of it, for community, for connection, for the joy of making music rather than observing others doing it. Each session stands alone and people can come once or occasionally or every time. The songs are strong, simple, taught by ear ( no written music ) and there are no auditions or solos and no-one is put on the spot. The food is simple too, but nourishing. At Vocal Nosh in Newstead where it all began, we say it's about "Good food and a good sing in convivial company".
What happens?
It usually starts with a warm-up of stretches and vocal play - and ends with lots of harmonies. Songs are taught by a skilled singing leader who may or may not use songsheets. People usually stand and sit in a circle but move around all through the session to find the part they want to sing. Most sessions have a theme of some sort and songs are chosen that fit the theme for that night. People say they come tired and go away energised!
Where did it start and how is it run?
It began in 1999 in the little town of Newstead near Castlemaine in Victoria, Australia and is still going strong. We have between 30 and 50 people gather once a month and different skilled singing leaders lead the session. It's a team effort. A couple of people plan the food and do the shopping, others do publicity, other folk make soups and we get crusty bread and fruit to make a nice healthy meal. We sing for a hour, then eat, then sing for another hour and go home. Everyone helps with the dishes and the tables. Community news gets shared and people catch up. It's a buzz.
Help to get it going.
A couple of years ago a person who attended Vocal Nosh at Newstead approached me and said "This is good stuff - we need to train other people to lead sessions like this". She happened to be a community developer with heaps of experience in that field and we devised a course of training. Her name is Anne-Marie Holley. Simultaneously, VicHealth (Victoria's Health Promotion Foundation) came to the party and funded the training. Since then, this work of training and resourcing communities and singing leaders has been done through Community Music Victoria (CMVic) with full Training Weekends and Gathering Days for leaders to learn new songs and skills that work with this kind of singing. There are now several hundred people who make up a network of singing leadership teams across the state - and from across the borders..
Costs?
At Newstead we charge $15 per person and $12 concession and that covers the singing and the meal. The hall hire and insurance and the leader's fee are also covered by that. We have a dedicated group of volunteers who do the food, the publicity, the shopping and the cleaning. Some groups have a volunteer leader as well and therefore charge less.
Where did the name come from?
The name "Vocal Nosh' is my invention but it's not a trade name or a copyrighted title and I'm completely happy for anyone to use it if they are singing to build community. "Nosh" is a word for food or nourishment. There are groups all over the country now. Every group is different and has its own flavour and name. Sessions have been named Local Vocals, Singing for Fun, Harmony Soup and Sing for your Supper etc.
Session or choir?
Vocal Nosh is singing for the fun of it, not a rehearsal for performance and not a choir or set group. People come and go from Vocal Nosh as they wish and no-one takes names. There is no list and we don't use name tags. You just come when you need a good sing and want to tap in to community and share a meal. However, once people get the singing bug they often want to join a choir. Choirs of course are a great way to encourage the practise of the everyday arts that keep our spirits healthy and alive. There are community choirs all over the state and contacts for those can be gained through Community Music Victoria as well.
Vocal Nosh Philosophy - a summary by Jon Hawkes, previous EO of Community Music Victoria
We've been repeatedly asked to outline the underpinning philosophy of Vocal Nosh. Here it is.
Vocal Nosh describes a community singing (and eating) together. People bring food and their voices to a designated place to eat and sing together. It is really the semi-formal organisation of a community behaviour we've indulged in since long before we could write. Unfortunately, in these days of atomisation and alienation, it is a behaviour that has become more and more unusual. The principles that inform these gatherings include the following: (thanks to Jon Hawkes for this summary):
• Singing ‘with’, not ‘to’. People gather to experience the immediate joy and fulfilment of singing together rather than to rehearse for a future public event.
• Creative participation. When we put sound into the air together we create something that wasn't there before. It is a creative act. Creativity and participation are basics human needs according to UN economist Manfred Max-Neef.
• Safe place. We make a physical and emotional environment in which participants feel free, fearless and secure.
• Working together. We come together in a spirit of co-operation and celebration, rather than competition and judgement. There are no losers.
• Respect and inclusiveness. We can all be involved and make a contribution. Difference is expected and valued; it is an advantage, not a problem.
• Care and encouragement. No one is left out or ignored; all feedback is constructive.
• Learning. We can all improve and usually do when there is acceptance and no pressure.
• Nourishment. Of the spirit with music and of the body with food.
• Health. There is a profound connection between making music together and individual and community wellbeing.
• Empowerment. Having a voice is the first step towards having a say.
• Initiative/confidence. Through these processes we can all learn to step forward when the time is right for us.
• Meaningful relationships between art and people. Art is not only the product of artists that can be celebrated by the rest of us; it is also the results of the creativity we all have within us. In the exercise of our creativity we become fully human.
