Singing is a Miracle- Or Should Singing be Common, Expected?

I saw this post on Facebook and thought about it quite a bit. 

It says "Singing is a miracle. It has been called the most complex coordinative act that a human being is ever called upon to perform", and it's signed Dan Marek.  

At first, it felt good, but then it didn't.

Singing is a miracle. Yes! But, singing maybe should be no big deal. Everyone can sing. Babies sing before they can talk, and little ones can even sing a melody perfectly when you sing it in a different key and when you change keys. There are lots of examples of singing being something like walking, a thing that we can all do. It's a miracle like walking is a miracle then. 

Check out the Wikipedia page on Singing. There's so much information about formal singing and pedagogy. This is something that irks me, the idea that singing is something that requires instruction, and the focus is on the singer as a professional, performing for the enjoyment of spectators. (The article is also Eurocentric, except for the comment that Iranian women aren't allowed to sing which is bizarre and misleading, but that's another issue.)

Most people can sing, but often people say that they "can't sing". Do we ever suggest that people should stop walking because walking is "a complex coordinative act"? People should be aware that they don't understand what they're doing when they walk, and might not do it gracefully or with a certain style, so they should not attempt it? Imagine: We don't enjoy the way you walk. You need instruction to walk in a more pleasing way. Do you need to understand your head voice and chest voice and passagio to sing Take Me Home Country Roads in the car with your buddies, or sing a lullaby to your little one? No. Go ahead and sing. You can sing. 

Singing for others in a particular genre or for commercial purposes is something different in my mind.  Performing is a different thing, and I wish there were a different word for singing like that. Professional singer/vocalist performing needs a name other than singing. Or, maybe there should be a different word for recreational singing, like race walking vs hiking vs walking? Professional walking aside from race walking doesn't exist as a commercial profession, except dog-walker, I guess, so it really doesn't compare. Dancing is a better thing to compare to singing. Walking and dancing map onto speaking and singing. 

Dancing is like singing because people also feel like they "can't dance", and are embarrassed to dance, and they also make fun of people who don't dance perfectly gracefully or in a typical way. Wikipedia is interesting again. Check out Dance. It's not Dancing, but Dance, an art form. Interesting right there. Here's something I kind of like about that article: "Dancing is common human behaviour, and does not necessarily require specific choreography." It talks about dancing in social settings, and for exercise. It divides dance into theatrical and participatory dance. Maybe we can do that with singing? Participatory Singing? Maybe that could work for times when you sing along with others, but then we need another term for singing while you're hiking, or singing a lullaby, or just singing for yourself in the kitchen or in the shower. Dancing in the kitchen isn't participatory or theatrical either. 

Singing in a group, like a choir, if it's not being judged and evaluated, or singing at a campfire or in the audience at a concert or in the congregation at church, or on a road trip in a car full of friends- those are miraculous in wonderful ways. Group singing has a special power, a magic. It's actually been studied, the physical and emotional benefits of group singing. It's really good for you, and I could argue that group singing is better for your health than walking. Dancing and Singing are for everyone, miraculous because we humans are miraculous. 

I think we should expect to hear people sing all the time, and dance all the time too. There's music everywhere. There should be more opportunities for people to sing and dance. We should enjoy the diverse ways that voices sound and not judge them when they're not in a competitive or commercial context. Even then. Enough with the judgement and ranking of people! Stop humiliating people for being different. Different voices should be treasured just as different faces are. We should feel free to respond to music with movement, all of us with all of our body types and with different interpretations, unique moves.  

Dan Marek is "a distinguished international singer, teacher, and writer."  

Perhaps a voice teacher should help students to aim for a high level of health, vocal and general health, for vitality and maybe for stamina. Inspire students to play with their voices and learn to control them. They can teach music appreciation, and maybe composition. But most of all, a teacher of singing should inspire a high level of appreciation for diversity so that nobody gets the feeling that they "can't sing", and nobody feels that they have the right to tell someone else that they can't sing or shouldn't sing. 

If you know me, you'll know that this is the thing that gets me up on my soap box. Singing is for everyone. You can sing. Yes, you can. And, you deserve to sing without feeling uncomfortable, freely and joyfully.