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Fred Zindi Music
I have often wondered whether people like Sulumani Chimbetu, Alick Macheso, Oliver Mtukudzi and Ammara Brown who sing and dance on stage are consciously aware of the therapeutic effects of such behaviour or they are just in it to earn a living.
It comes as no big surprise that scientists have discovered that singing and dancing have significant health benefits.
When you sing, musical vibrations move through you, altering your physical and emotional landscape. Group singing, for those who have done it, is the most exhilarating and transformative of all. It takes something incredibly intimate, a sound that begins inside you, shares it with a roomful of people and it comes back as something even more thrilling: harmony. So it is not surprising that group singing is on the rise. According to Chorus America, an organisation involved in singing, figures released in 2015 show that 32,5 million adults in the United States sing in choirs. Many people think of church music when you bring up group singing, but there are over 270 000 choruses across the United States and they include gospel groups.
As the popularity of group singing grows, science has been hard at work trying to explain why it has such a calming yet energising effect on people. What researchers are beginning to discover is that singing is like an infusion of the perfect tranquilliser, the kind that both soothes your nerves and elevates your spirits.
The elation may come from endorphins, a hormone released by singing, which is associated with feelings of pleasure.
Or it might be from oxytocin, another hormone released during singing, which has been found to alleviate anxiety and stress. Oxytocin also enhances feelings of trust and bonding, which may explain why still more studies have found that singing reduces feelings of depression and loneliness. A very recent study even attempts to make the case that “music evolved as a tool of social living,” and that the pleasure that comes from singing together is our evolutionary reward for coming together cooperatively, instead of hiding alone, like every cave-dweller for him or herself.
The benefits of singing regularly seem to be cumulative. In one study, singers were found to have lower levels of cortisol, indicating lower stress.
A very preliminary investigation suggesting that our heart rates may sync up during group singing could also explain why singing together sometimes feels like a guided group meditation.
Study after study has found that singing relieves anxiety and contributes to quality of life.
It turns out you don’t even have to be a good singer to reap the rewards. According to a recent study I conducted at the Zimbabwe College of Music in 2014, singing “can produce satisfying and therapeutic sensations even when the sound produced by the vocal instrument is of mediocre quality.”
All the participants including those whose singing skills were mediocre, felt good and satisfied after the session. There are some people who are tone deaf but still enjoy singing.
You must have wondered why such people join singing competitions like Idols. Singing groups vary from casual affairs where no audition is necessary to serious, committed professional or vocational choirs.
Charity Rujeko, a regular church goer, had this to say about the effects of singing after joining a church choir at New Life Ministries in Mbare, Harare.
“After years of singing in the shower and warbling my way through karaoke duets for many years, I finally joined my church choir. Every Thursday evening, I head to a church hall in Mbare, where, along with 30 others — mostly women, and the occasional dude — I spend 90 minutes belting out Mathias Mhere, Baba naMai Charamba, Sebastian Magaya, gospel and pop classics, from Janet Manyowa to Beyonce.
I’m more of a keen amateur than a wannabe soloist, but even the odd off-key note or wrong lyric can’t detract from how good singing makes me feel. I leave every session uplifted, buoyed by a flurry of endorphins flooding through my body.”
So it comes as no surprise that scientists have shown that not only does singing in a choir make you feel good, it’s got health benefits, too.
Researchers at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, found that choristers’ heartbeats synchronise when they sing together, bringing about a calming effect that is as beneficial to our health as yoga.
The scientists asked a group of teenagers to perform three choral exercises — humming, singing a hymn and chanting — and monitored their heart rhythms during each.
They showed that singing has a dramatic effect on heart rate variability, which is linked to a reduced risk of heart disease. This is why very few singers experience cardiac arrests in their lives. Exceptions are Luther Vandross and Barry White who died after debilitating strokes due to overweight problems.
Song is a form of regular, controlled breathing, since breathing out occurs on the song phrases and inhaling takes place between these.
It gives you pretty much the same effect as yoga breathing. It helps you relax, and there are indications that it does provide a heart benefit.
Having done both yoga and singing, I’m inclined to agree. Panting one’s way through a downward dog just isn’t as soothing as afloaty aria; nor does contorting oneself into the shape of a cobra make you feel quite as good as a burst of Aretha Franklin.
Yoga may supposedly be relaxing, but it’s also sweaty, tiring and often painful. Singing, on the other hand, never fails to leave me feeling fabulous.
It is often said that in addition to singing, one can also benefit from dancing to music.
A lot of Zimbabwean parents do not view dancing as a career but there are several artistes such as MacIntosh, Melanie Chenjerai and Simba Dzowa, to mention only a few, who are making a decent living through the career of dancing.
Simba Dzowa, who is now based in Norway, had this to say about his career:
“My artistic journey was a bumpy ride which took time, perseverance, sweat, blood and tears, but I am glad to have had a pool of mentors, among them my father, Soukaina (the Zimbabwean Dance teacher), David and Victor Mwenye, Brian Geza and Jonas Sande who guided me through their experience. These people believed in my talent and offered me endless help,” he said.
He said he went through the auditions just like any dancer would do and at one time he had to sleep at train stations in Sweden to get an audition slot.
“I underwent about three auditions and I was successful in all of them, but I had to choose to join The Norwegian National Contemporary Dance Company called Carte Blanche,” he said.
Dzowa attributes his success to Dance Trust of Zimbabwe where he was a student. He said he worked hard to be where he is now, after having landed in Norway in 2006 through Dance Foundation Course on a student exchange programme.
He is now fully employed by Carte Blanche and has been travelling around Norway and the world with the company since August 2009.
The Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York conducted a 21 year study of senior citizens aged 75 years or older on the therapeutic effects of dancing and came out with the following findings:
Dancing reduces stress and depression.
It increases energy and serotonin,
It improves flexibility, strength, balance and endurance,
It strengthens bones and boosts cardiovascular health,
It increases mental capacity by exercising the cognitive processes, and
It is also essential for dynamic and rapid-fire decision making as it creates new neutral paths.
Group singing and dancing is cheaper than therapy, healthier than drinking, and certainly more fun than working out. It is the one thing in life where feeling better is pretty much guaranteed. Even if you walked into rehearsal exhausted and depressed, by the end of the night you will walk out high as a kite on endorphins and good will.
So folks, keep on singing and dancing. It is healthy for you. This is why many medical practitioners always recommend exercise as it is good for the body and soul.
Online Reporter