Always wanted to learn how to sing opera? From Couch to Chorus is back for a festive edition. Wherever you are, join us online over four weeks this November…
From Couch to Chorus is open to all, from complete beginners to experienced choir-goers. If you don’t read music or know your voice type, don’t worry. You’ll be provided with everything you need to help you experience what it’s like to sing in an opera chorus – all from the comfort of your own home!
Experience operatic drama and melodic richness with one of the most famous tunes in the repertoire: ‘Easter Hymn’ from Pietro Mascagni’s Cavalleria Rusticana. With the ‘Priest Chorus’, enter the exquisite and mythical world of Mozart’s The Magic Flute. Let the party begin with ‘Fair is Rose’, the chorus of the bridesmaids from Gilbert & Sullivan’s Ruddigore. End on a high and get festive with the “Hallelujah Chorus” from Handel’s Messiah.
The course will culminate with a livestreamed finale event on Tuesday 26 November where you will get a chance to sing along live with the Chorus of Opera North. There is an option to attend in person and take part in a side-by-side rehearsal at the Howard Opera Centre too (please note that places are limited and offered on a first come, first served basis)
Since its first edition in November 2020, over 4,000 people from all over the world have joined us to take part in our award-winning online course. We can’t wait to welcome singers old and new!
“This was a superbly put together experience. The learning resources were excellent and easy to use. And the opportunity to sing alongside members of Opera North and have a coaching insight was such a privilege and a wonderful opportunity. More events like this would be wonderful.”
“It is a wonderful opportunity to encourage those who would like to sing but are nervous of joining a choir.”
“Wasn’t sure whether I would enjoy it, but I really did. Definitely opened up a whole new area of music for me.”
– from Couch to Chorus: Sing into Spring 2023 participants
Optional side-by-side rehearsal and in-person finale: £20 per ticket
Accessibility
All sessions can be captioned. We can also provide song lyrics in large print. If you have any access needs, please get in touch via lifelonglearning@operanorth.co.uk or 0113 2233600.
If you’d like to join us but need help figuring out which voice type you are, this guide is for you. Listen to recordings of ‘Habanera’ from Bizet’s Carmen, performed by the Chorus of Opera North, and sing along to see which one feels most comfortable!
If you’re still not sure, get in touch with us at lifelonglearning@operanorth.co.uk. Please only sign up to one voice type to ensure we can make as many places available to participants as possible.
There will be two joint sessions for sopranos and tenors, and altos and basses, followed by a session with all four voice types. Simply select the session for the group you’d like to join.
On Tuesday 26 November the finale will be livestreamed for free from 7pm to those who signed up for the online workshops.
For participants who can travel to Leeds, there is an option to join us for the finale in person at the Howard Assembly Room and to take part in a side-by-side workshop with the Chorus of Opera North in the Howard Opera Centre from 5.30pm on the day. Tickets are £20 per person and can be booked by selecting the ‘In person event’ option, as well as signing up for the online workshop.
5 November, 6.30-7.30pm
12 November, 6.30-7.30pm
19 November, 6.30-8pm
Live streamed finale: 26 November, 7-7.45pm
5 November, 8-9pm
12 November, 8-9pm
19 November, 6.30-8pm
Live streamed finale: 26 November, 7-7.45pm
Side-by side rehearsal with the Chorus of Opera North and in-person finale: 26 November, 5.30-7.45pm at the Howard Opera Centre.
No, warm up exercises will be included at the beginning of each session.
If you can’t make the sessions due to other commitments, we’ll be sending the Zoom recordings after each workshop so you can catch up at a time that suits you.
A Zoom link will be shared with all participants ahead of the first workshop on Tuesday 5 November. If you have not received the link 24 hours before the first session, please check the following areas before contacting the Box Office:
To download Zoom onto your desktop, follow this link: https://zoom.us/download
Step-by-step:
If you don’t have Zoom on your device:
To join the call, please click the link from your email, which should open in your web browser. Your browser will then prompt you to open Zoom (if you have it installed on your device) or to join the call from your browser. Alternatively, you can open the Zoom application, click ‘join a meeting’, and enter the meeting ID and password.
Unfortunately, the time delay on Zoom means it’s impossible for everyone to sing at the same time. To solve this, everyone is muted during sessions so you can sing along and learn at home without distraction.
There are two View settings on Zoom – ‘Gallery View’ and ‘Speaker View’. Please make sure you select the ‘Speaker View’ setting on Zoom once the workshop has begun, to ensure that you see the session properly. You change your View settings by clicking the icons in the top right-hand corner of your screen. Sometimes, other participant’s faces can cover the right-hand side of the screen when the sheet music is being shared on-screen. If the faces are obscuring your view of the music, you can remove them by either minimising the thumbnails, or clicking ‘View Options’ at the top of the screen and selecting ‘Side-by-Side’ mode.
We do! We can send you the song lyrics in large-print. Please get in touch via lifelonglearning@operanorth.co.uk or 0113 2233600 for accessible content and more information.
We will be captioning all Zoom sessions. To enable the captions in Zoom, click on the ‘CC’ button which is to the right of the ‘Record’ button. You can then follow every word being spoken – this can be useful if you are hard of hearing or listening in a noisy environment.
