Heartland Harmony
Heartland Harmony
Madison's queer-friendly, multigenerational,
all-voices-welcome community choir.
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All are welcome to experience the joy of singing in a lively and supportive community setting. You're invited whether you're a long time choir veteran or you've never sung outside your own shower. People of all ages, genders, non-genders, orientations, backgrounds, and abilities are welcome!
Resound is a unique community choir experience in that there are no auditions, no pressures of traditional performance, and no binders of sheet music to keep track of. All repertoire is taught on the spot in the aural tradition - a call and response way of sharing that makes singing accessible to all and allows us to connect more readily as a group and with the music. Many of our members identify as non-singers before joining, and end the term enlivened by and reacquainted with their inner musician.
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Murmurations, a sister choir in New Orleans singing at Dancing Rabbit EcoVillage, photo by Carolyn Bunge
The Music
We sing rounds, songs from traditional polyphonic oral traditions, harmony songs, shapenote, mind bogglingly silly songs, and acapella arrangements of artists like Fiona Apple or Fleet Foxes. We sing songs that engage mind, body, inner-child, and heart and tell stories of world beyond the oppression wrought to people and land by colonial capitalism. Singing is, after all, science fiction. All our music is quickly learned and can be carried home and woven into the rhythm of daily life. And we encourage you to bring it there! Through what we sing, we seek to participate in the decolonization of music by honoring origins, naming and paying composers where possible, and telling the stories that accompany them. We ask questions about what we sing and why and refrain from singing music of oppressed peoples, including music from indigenous Americans, Hawaiian natives, black gospel, and West / South African traditions. These are all incredible musical traditions, and we encourage you to find teachers from within them to sing under and learn from. Because it is beautiful and rich to learn from other cultures and stretch our musical minds outside of western, English language singing, Annie, your white, midwestern, Frisian-Scottish heritage choir leader loves to learn and bring songs from European polyphonic traditions to the group. If BIPOC members of choir carry songs from their heritage they wish to share with the group, space is eagerly made for their sharing! Learn more about our philosophy around decolonizing oral tradition music on our blog.
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All Are Welcome.
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In order to ensure all are truly welcome to enjoy the magic of this group, we commit to upholding an explicitly queer-friendly, trans affirming, and antiracist ethos that weaves its way through everything we do and stand for as a community. As an organization currently run by a white, cis gender woman, we are committed to the lifelong work of self-educating and dismantling white supremacy, patriarchy, transphobia, ablism, agism, and all oppression invented by a capitalist patriarchal society built on stolen < Sauk, Ojibwe, Ho Chunk, Potawatomi > land. We do not use gendered language when referring to voices, and have any and all genders in every section of the choir. We acknowledge that the fact this choir is currently led by a white woman may in and of itself may be a force of oppression that is unwelcoming to BIPOC community members. Understanding this we welcome and celebrate, though in no way expect, black voices, feedback, and participation in this community. We celebrate BIPOC finding rest, joy, self care, and spaces to feel the power of their voices wherever and however they choose.
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Hot Tip: Singing is an amazing practice for neurodivergent / atypical people, especially folks on the autism spectrum.
Accessibility
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We commit to an anticapitalist model of micro business and organization that is accessible to all, community funded, participating in reparations, and supports the work of its female leadership while seeking to make itself obsolete. We commit to continuing our support of BIPOC-run organizations doing critical anti oppression work with our events and dollars. When joining choir, BIPOC community members are invited to use the Reparations element of the sliding scale. This aspect of our scholarship fund seeks to be a physical acknowledgement of the fact that we are singing on stolen lands built from involuntary labor of black and indigenous people whose voices have been silenced and undermined for centuries. We recognize the magnitude of what it is to simply BE as a BIPOC in this country today and hope this pricing option can make it easy to access the joy, self care, and community available through this group.
Words from the Members
"Raising my voice with other beautiful souls has become an entirely new reason for being."
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"Singing is like my magical meditation. This choir makes me feel like the world will be okay amidst the chaos."
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"I've loved finding my voice, in the company of many voices."
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"My heart swells as we soften, sing, and listen."
DETAILS
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Because space is limited, all participants must pre-register for the session. Spaces often open up after the first 1-2 classes, so get on the waitlist if there is one, and we will notify you when your spot opens! We realize this could be limiting for some, so there are a small number of special drop-in passes available each term. Please reach out if you would like to drop-in to the first and second session.
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Do your best to arrive a little before our start time to properly settle in and greet your friends. We begin promptly at 7:00. This time is for you, and being on time allows you and your co-singers to make the most of it. If you can't make it on time, no problem. Just come in quietly and join right in when you arrive.
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Our choir contains mixed experience and comfort levels with singing. We do not comment on each other's voices, but can lean in closely to support each other in finding the notes and words. If you struggle to find parts of songs, find strong singers and nest yourself between them. While we deepen into the music for our own pleasure, we are not striving for perfection, and thus can be free of any sense of shame around how we think we sound.
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Always ask if you want to touch another person at choir. Be prepared for and celebrate a "no" if you receive one. Simple touch is occasionally invited during certain warmup or singing activities, and you will always have an opportunity to opt out of those experiences if you like, with absolutely no pressure.
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Be sure to bring a water bottle with you! Healthy singing requires proper hydration.
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Let us know, especially in the beginning of the semester, if you're unable to attend a session. It is absolutely fine to miss a class, though if you miss toward the beginning and don't let us know, your spot may be forfeited to someone on the waitlist.
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We will spend time both sitting and standing.
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Recordings for this session's songs are available the entire semester and can be found HERE.
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PAYMENT:
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Choir dues operate on a sliding scale basis -- $115 - $160. Dues cover 20 hours of class time, online recordings, facilitator expenses, venue cost, special events, and feeds the ongoing thread of possibility and liveliness of the group. No one is turned away for lack of funds! Need-based scholarships are available upon request. BIPOC community members are invited to use the Reparations element of the sliding scale. To review sliding scale guidelines, view our registration form below! *Refunds available up to the term start date only.*
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VENUE:
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Maiahaus is a converted church community arts space located at 402 E Mifflin, Madison. Arrive with plenty of time to find street parking. Carpooling encouraged!
SPRING TERM:
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March 2 - May 11
The spring season will close Monday May 11 with a community sharing of our music for family, friends, and the wider community to celebrate all we've done together, share in the joy with us, and replenish our choir scholarship fund!