According to research on emotional intelligence, the ability to identify and regulate emotions is essential to young people’s well-being and relationships. Singing choral music offers students the opportunity to reflect on their emotional lives, with the emotions they bring into the classroom directly affecting how they engage in learning. Choral ensemble singing can help students become more aware of their emotions and make sense of them.
The clinician will show how ensemble music-making provides a safe space for students to express and learn to regulate emotions in healthy ways. Drawing on Marc Brackett’s five skills—recognizing, understanding, labeling, expressing, and regulating emotions—students can develop emotional intelligence while reaching their musical goals. Use of both calming and energizing vocal warm-ups, discussions around choral texts and composer choices, and varied repertoire all support this growth. Students can also capitalize on the sensory experience of active music-making to learn to shift emotions.
Target Audience
High School Choir
Additional Notes
Clinician Info
Philip Silvey
Eastman School of Music, University of Rochester
Philip Silvey is Professor of Music Teaching and Learning at the Eastman School of Music where he teaches the Treble Chorus, Choral Arranging, and other courses in music education. He has served as clinician and adjudicator in numerous states and directed state honors choruses in Maryland, Virginia, New York, New Jersey, and Georgia. He has presented interest sessions at national, regional, and state ACDA and NAfME conferences. His writings appear in Choral Journal, Journal of Research in Music Education, Music Educators Journal, and the Bulletin for the Council for Research in Music Education. His choral compositions and arrangements, published by Santa Barbara Music, Carl Fischer, Boosey & Hawkes, Hal Leonard, and ECS Publishing have been performed by all-state and national honors choruses in the United States. Learn more at www.philipsilvey.com.