Community Singing Resources
Album/Song Spotlights
Melanie DeMore and VocalEssence -- How to Hold On: Songs of Comnfort and Solace. The first new album of Melanie songs in quite some time. Absolutely spine-tingling and soul-filling.
Katie Sontag -- Into the Unknown. Just a reminder, Katie's coming to lead us on December 10th!
Linda Allen -- I Believe That Peace Will Come. I do. I have to.
Lydia Violet Harutoonian (feat. Joanna Macy) -- Keep Her Safe. Lydia, who led a memorable evening as our Guest Songleader some years ago, was such a wonderful presence throughout Joanna Macy's Celebration of Life at Grace Cathedral last night. You can hear Joanna -- may her memory be a blessing -- speak on this track.
More Songs
Marv’s Song Library — All of the songs sung in Marv’s choirs and song circles to date
Marv’s The Human Heart on Daily Antidote of Song and on SoundCloud (includes teaching tracks)
Marv’s Begin Again on Daily Antidote of Song and on Soundcloud
Marv’s I’m Coming Home (original version) and Patricia Norton’s version featured on her A Breath of Song podcast
Lisa G. Littlebird’s Song Library, Reach for Life! Community Singing Playlist and Winter 2021 Community Singing Playlist
Songs from the Threshold Choir, founded by Kate Munger
Bishop’s Ranch Sessions: 27 Songs by Kate Munger. PayPal a generous, affordable, and personally significant donation to Kate at kateamunger@gmail.com to receive these songs. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Threshold Choir.
Upcoming Events
Marv’s weekly drop-in All In Song Circle, Wednesday nights in San Anselmo, November 5 - December 10. Sheniqua Trotman joins us as Guest Songleader — visiting us all the way from Brooklyn! — on November 5th.
Marv’s Joyful Voices Chorus 7-week non-auditioned community choir, Wednesday nights in San Anselmo, culminating in our open-to-everyone Big Sing — Join my email list to get the Winter ‘26 Season announcement coming soon!
Meetups With Marv — Selected music events (led by some of our favorites) that Marv is attending; anyone and everyone can meet up with him at the venue an hour or two before start time to hang out, meet people you haven’t met before, talk about community singing opportunities or whatever, and enjoy a great show. The next Meetups are:
Sunday, March 30: MaMuse — A rare Marin concert by two of our very favorites, Sorah & Karisha of MaMuse, at HopMonk Novato. Meetup at Hopmonk: 5pm for dinner and/or drinks. Doors for the show open at 6, Show at 7.
Saturday, June 7: Astrid Jorgensen and Pub Choir — Astrid, an amazing choir leader from Australia, gets the entire audience singing as one choir! Meetup at Eureka! (walking distance) in Berkeley at 6pm. Show at the UC Theater: Doors at 7, Show at 8. Recommended parking: Center Street Garage.
Wednesday, June 25: Open Mic Night at the Big Rock Café in San Rafael, 5:00-8:00. Come sit outside on their covered patio and hear local acts (including kids!) do their thing!
Sunday, August 10: Naturally 7 at SFJAZZ in San Francisco. Called “the best a capella group in the world” by Quincy Jones, they’re truly amazing. We’ll meet up at the SFJAZZ bar at 6, show at 7.
Sunday, October 5: Tuck & Patti at SFJAZZ in San Francisco. One of the greatest jazz duos — wife & husband! — in the history of planet Earth — I’ve been a fan for 40+ years. We’ll meet up at the SFJAZZ bar at 6, show at 7.
Thursday, December 4: Vienna Teng at Sweetwater in Mill Valley. One of Marv’s very, very favorite singer-songwriters — and a truly wonderful human! Meet up at 7 at the bar at Sweetwater, show at 8.
Daily Antidote of Song — Daily, on Zoom and YouTube, 9am Pacific. To honor the Solstice, I taught Debbie Nargi-Brown’s The Light That is You, my song Begin Again, and Batya Levine’s We Rise there on 12/21/24 (you can watch the recording here), and I taught my song The Human Heart there on 11/20/23, you can watch the recording here (although I forgot to teach the 2nd harmony!).
Songs of the Sea and Chantey Sing-along, Bear Valley Visitor Center, Pt. Reyes National Seashore, 3rd Saturdays, 3:00-4:30.
SingWithMarv Newsletters
Allied Community Choirs/Song Circles
Marv Zauderer’s drop-in All In Song Circle: Summer ‘25 Season — Wednesdays, August 6 - September 3 in San Anselmo, 7:00-8:30pm.
Marv Zauderer’s Joyful Voices Chorus community choir — Fall ‘25 Season — 7-Week Series including Community-Wide Big Sing, starts September 17th. Try it FREE September 24th if you haven’t sung in the choir before! Details coming soon.
Marv Zauderer’s SingOnline.org Song Circle — On hiatus, TBD.
Noe Venable’s Choirs and Song Circles — San Francisco, Pacifica, Oakland
Elise Divine + Kid Beyond’s Song Circle Magic — San Francisco, 2nd Mondays, 7:00-9:00pm
Kele Nitoto’s Raise Our Voices — Black and PoC Song Circle Series, Oakland, 3rd Wednesdays, 7:00-9:00pm
Amy Webb Armstrong’s Woodsong — Oakland Woods, 1st Wednesday of the month, 7:15-9pm
Kaitie Ty Warren’s and Sara Stutz’s Living Room Choir — El Cerrito, Saturdays, 4:00-5:30pm
Tova Feldmanstern’s and Eileen Hazel’s Songbreak — El Cerrito, last Friday of the month, 2:00-3:00pm
Thrive Street Choir — Berkeley, monthly
Thrive Street Choir Community Song Circle — Urban Adamah, Berkeley, monthly
Nigun Collective Song Circle — East Bay, monthly
Laura Sandage’s Free Range Singers, Davis, Thursdays
Debbie Nargi-Brown’s Zoom Sings — Online
Amanda West’s Community Choir — Felton (Santa Cruz area)
Sarah MacEwan’s Singing Heals — Santa Cruz area, monthly and more
Heather Houston’s circles and choir — Santa Cruz & Online
Eric Spiegel’s CircleSing — Sebastopol, 2nd Saturdays.
Anti-Racism in Our Gatherings
Holistic Resistance. A Black-led organization and movement that believes ending oppression and healing from the trauma of oppression is a holistic practice. They are invested in resisting at every level from one-on-one connections to collective transformation. Common tools they use in resisting holistically include deep questions music, minimalism, heart-centered listening, grief in community, and earth connection.
Dodie Whitaker’s Vox4Change. Dodie works to dismantle systemic racism and bias by offering consultations, classes and specialized workshops in Anti-Bias and Anti-Racist initiatives.
“Who is Community Singing For?” by Jennifer Morales, Dodie Whitaker, and Laura McElroy. A document created as a vital response to inclusion issues in the global Community Singing movement.
Rosemary Campbell-Stephens MBE’s Global Majority; Decolonising the Language and Reframing the Conversation about Race
(divorcing) White Supremacy Culture: Coming Home To Who We Really Are
Lisa G. Littlebird’s Decolonizing Community Singing
Articles/Books
Song Carrier Toolkit, Liz Rog
What is “community singing?”, Liz Rog
The legacy of the oral tradition for the NVN Approach, Frankie Armstrong
3 ways group singing connects people to the nonclinical factors that are key to health and wellbeing
“The neurochemistry and social flow of singing: bonding and oxytocin,” Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, Sept. 23, 2015
9 reasons why singing with others makes us healthier and happier, Choral Canada
“The daily antidote to the merchants of bad,” Kate Woodsome, Invisible Threads
Renée Fleming shares research on the beneficial effects of music on the brain, 92nd Street Y
Project Findings, The SingWell Project
“The essential role of choir in building community,” Chorus Connection
“‘A powerful message through song’: The UK’s Climate Choir Movement is growing,” The Guardian
“Singing is good for you. Singing with others may be even better.” Washington Post
“What a musician turned cognitive scientist wants you to know about life,” Washington Post
“Why Singing is the Key to Happiness,” MetroUK
“You Are Watching the Power of Music Changing Brain Chemistry”, Reasons to be Cheerful
"Benefits of Singing," Choral Canada
“New Study: Music Helps Reconnect Dementia Patients With Their Memories,” The Optimist Daily
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“Strangely and beautifully, each soul is a living flute being carved by life on Earth to sound deeper and deeper song.”