When masses of random people come together to do anything in a unified fashion, the results can be pretty epic. When the Australian social organisation called "Pub Choir", which invites hundreds of people to sing together in harmony, was faced with the Coronavirus pandemic and social distancing, it decided to take the choir online so we could all sing from a social distance.

And thank goodness for that! As a dedicated member of a local choir, I was now teaching my kids from home, still working my job, and housebound! Weekly choir sessions was my paradise, an opportunity to meet people who liked to sing and share. For wellbeing,  its proven that singing releases a vast amount of that feel-good serotonin and can help many through all sorts of personal obstacles. 

With up to 6,000 people taking part (in Heroes, listen below), it's just as much fun to listen to the videos again and sing along with thousands of others whenever you want to.  When people sing together, magic happens, we are unified and no matter our background or circumstances, we are all one. Did you know when we sing in a room together, all our heartbeats synchronise? A session of singing wins over a session of Yoga for decreasing cortisol (stress) levels. All good news for those of us who love to sing. (P.S - I LOVE yoga, and highly recommend you do them both for optimum stress relief).

Three months on and these projects are continuing, so find out more if you would like to get involved in the next one.

The social organisation Pub Choir began in Brisbane in 2017 drawing hundreds of people together to learn harmonies and record popular songs.

For Couch Choir, singers were encouraged to visit the Pub Choir Facebook where three videos of different harmonies were published to encourage participants to record themselves singing at home.

Virtual Soul Choir has been one of the most fun choir projects through the pandemic. This is perhaps because its very local to me in Victoria. Part of the "Be Kind Ballarat" Campaign, this soulful song has been written locally. 

"Ray of Sunshine" was just what we needed to get dancing and singing. I went and sang in the greenhouse where it was quiet, as I had a house full. It's still a song that the kids will listen to on a Friday night to let loose. 

The Virtual Soul Choir is planning to release another song with a theme along the lines of celebration, and you can join the choir and find out more by clicking the link to their website. 

If you live in Victoria, Australia,  you can visit Community Music Victoria and see what singing groups are available in your area:

Keep singing, stay safe and happy!