Virtual choirs can unite singers from different backgrounds to achieve a common goal of creating beautiful music.
The virtual choir brings together people from diverse backgrounds, allowing them to make meaningful connections and create something larger than themselves.
Deep dives
The Birth of the Virtual Choir
The virtual choir was founded by Eric Whitaker as a way to connect singers from around the world to create music. The idea came to him after watching a fan video of a young woman singing one of his compositions. The first virtual choir consisted of hundreds of individual voices singing together and alone, creating a mesmerizing and powerful performance. The virtual choir grew with each installment, bringing together thousands of singers from across the globe.
Challenges and Innovations
Creating the virtual choir presented some challenges, such as ensuring singers stayed in tune when singing alone. To overcome this, Eric provided piano tracks and eventually added a choir singing underneath the solo performances. Detailed musical instructions were also provided to guide the singers. With each installment, the infrastructure and tools for participating in the virtual choir improved, allowing for smoother coordination and increasing the number of participants.
Expanding Boundaries and Changing Lives
The virtual choir proved to be more than just a musical project. It brought together people from diverse backgrounds and allowed them to make meaningful connections and create something larger than themselves. The stories of participants revealed the transformative power of singing and the virtual choir. Singers shared their personal experiences, such as overcoming physical limitations, bonding with loved ones, and finding a sense of belonging. The virtual choir continues to inspire and connect people, with future possibilities including smaller and more intimate projects.
Singing with others is a powerful form of expression. That's why the composer Eric Whitacre started the Virtual Choir; an experiment that connects singers from every corner of the globe. In this episode, we hear how a choir can unite people from different backgrounds to achieve a common goal - creating beautiful music.