From experimental sonic meditations to singing sessions for the homeless, there’s a new spirit of inclusiveness in choirs – and you don’t even need a good voice to join
I have joined a choir by mistake. This time last year, I was adamant I could not sing. But now, here I am, with 15 other people in the Cafe Oto Experimental choir in
London, and we are each singing one long, even note, in whatever pitch comes naturally: this is the composer Pauline Oliveros’s Sonic Meditations.
You are probably imagining a cacophony of bum notes, but it is the opposite. Our voices fall in together in a huge harmonious chorus that fills the space with beautiful sound. As we shake off any lingering self-consciousness, people reach for higher volumes, and the hair on my arms stands on end. My eyes are shut and I feel as if we are floating.