Sine Qua Non is one of my favorite Latin expressions – it literally means, “Without which, nothing.” You don’t see it so much anymore – the decline and fall of Latin language classes has seen to that – but it’s a nice one to have in your pocket. Maybe the best English term is “deal breaker” but there’s more negativity in “deal breaker” than in sine qua non, so I’ll stick with the Latin.
I can’t think of just one sine qua non that informs my teaching philosophy in the rehearsal space, so I’m doing a series of them for the next week or so. For each of these, I consider my rehearsal a failure if I do not honor them.
Group Listening
We need to spend time listening together. Intentionally. Why?
- We come from diverse musical lineage. Until we have common frames of reference, we cannot really move forward in the same direction.
- The facilitated conversation that can arise around group listening is a great opportunity to deepen the human connection and empathy the singers feel for each other.
- Listening and drawing out specific concepts can lead to broad application in the music the ensemble is working on.
- Listening offers the opportunity to continue forward momentum and mental engagement while giving a needed brake from active vocalizing.
Without group listening, nothing. Sine Qua non.