Voice change.

It's one of the unique aspects of working with a middle school or high school youth choir and it's a process - one that takes understanding, patience, and flexibility.

Voice change occurs during adolescence when the larynx and vocal cords lengthen and thicken (source). For boys, the change is dramatic; for girls, more subtle. However, it is important to recognize the changes that occur in all voices and ways to encourage and support singers throughout the process (and keep them singing!).

Encouragement is vital to the process. Do what you can to make singers feel comfortable experimenting and trying things, help them learn how to be flexible and support one another throughout the process.

Breathing is a vital component of singing.

But the way we breathe when singing is different than the way we breathe in everyday life, requiring us to use our respiratory muscles in new and different ways.

The goal when singing is to have breath control and good breath support.

Breath control means being able to inhale quickly and exhale slowly throughout the phrase while maintaining good posture. (source)

Breath support means using other muscles (e.g. abdomen, back) to support the work of the lungs and foster better tone production and the ability to sing longer phrases. (source)

It's been a tough few weeks in the world. Mass shootings. Acts of terror. Racial injustice. Social injustice. Discrimination. Fear. Hatred.

Again and again we find ourselves here - a hurting, broken people - fighting to break the silence, tear down the walls that divide us, preach the Gospel of love over and over.

This is part of our ministry in church music, I believe. We are the messengers, the ambassadors, the peace-makers and the hope-bringers. We are God's instruments of peace. What a privilege - what a responsibility.

Now, more than ever, we need to come together. We need to unite - our hearts and hands and voices - in proclaiming God's message of love and light and doing His work in the world.

"For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?" - Esther 4:14

Last week at Music and Worship Arts Week, I joined numerous others (choir directors, singers, organists, etc.) at a series of choral reading sessions.

When I look for youth choir anthems, I look for relevant, meaningful text and beautiful, well-crafted music (here's an inside look at my process). I look for anthems that will inspire and encourage adolescent singers and connect with their faith.

Several publishers (Hope, Alfred, Beckenhorst, GIA, Hinshaw, Lorenz, etc.) were on-site to present the newest offerings from their catalogs and the choral clinicians for the week presented their own reading sessions of their favorite works.

As such, today's post includes a mix of old and new, classic and modern, traditional and more contemporary anthems. (See my reading session picks for adult choir here.) There's also a mix of voicings - everything from unison/2-part up to SATB, depending on the number of voices you have and the level of your group.

I hope you find something meaningful to and accessible for your choir

It's that time of the year again - the time when choir directors everywhere begin choosing music for next year!

From conferences to reading sessions to the seasonal reading packets in your mailbox, the stack of anthems, catalogs, and listening CDs on your desk at any given time can get overwhelming.

Where to begin? Is there a method to this madness?

As a quintessential Type A individual, I believe there is a method for every madness, anthem selection included! Today, I'm sharing an inside look at my process - my selection criteria, the things I take into consideration, and questions I ask myself along the way.

Whether you're choosing music for an adult choir, youth choir, or children's choir, I hope you find this insight useful and beneficial to your ministry.

Let's get started

I've written several posts like this one with anthem recommendations for the small church choir (here and here) and children's choirs (here), but today's post is specifically for youth choirs. Youth are often looking for life-changing experiences - things that will empower them. Choir and the music you sing can offer words and meaning to go with those experiences. Look carefully at the text, listen for beauty and singability in the musical lines, and look for teachable moments (life, faith, and music).

The anthems in this post range from unison/2-part to SATB, depending on the age of your singers, size of your choir, and their ability to sing in parts. The nice thing is, many of these anthems are available in a variety of different voicings (marked with *), so you have a little more flexibility! 

Here are my top 50 anthems for youth choir:

Several weeks ago, I wrote a post about ways for children to participate in worship. Not sit in the pews with a children's bulletin and a pack of crayons, but actively participate in meaningful ways. It's important to create a welcoming and inviting space for all who come to worship and plan experiences that include children and youth, as well as adults. This creates a worship environment that is inviting, inclusive, intergenerational, and inspiring. (For more about each of these points, read this post).

Youth participation in worship should not be limited to Youth Sunday.

From serving as worship leader to helping serve Communion, bringing Scripture readings to life or contributing to music ministry, many middle and high school students are capable of participating in and contributing to worship - often, they just need to be asked. 

Here are 25 ways for youth to actively participate in worship:

Working with a youth choir can be a fun, inspiring, rewarding, and deeply meaningful experience.

As a director, you balance the responsibilities of building community, integrating service, sharing meaning, inspiring purpose, and fostering musical development.

But how do you approach musical growth and development for adolescent voices? How is it different from working with children's voices or adult voices? What do you do when voices begin to change?

Here are a few helpful tips for working with 6th-8th grade singers: