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tions is also critical to encourage future participation. performed by the heavy metal band Disturbed. This
When students share, it should not be about right or gritty version painted a new picture for students and re-
wrong answers, but rather about helping them connect sounded on a different level for many of them. The raw
their thoughts to others or to the text itself in meaning- emotion and rough edges highlighted the importance
ful ways. of the text. As an extra layer to the listening sequence,
Hopefully, the structure of the lessons and class- I showed them the music video for our final listening.
room environment will help students feel empowered The visual aspect provided a stunning new sensory in-
to share interesting observations about the text. In my put to digest the music in a way we had not previously
experience, many students are surprised to learn that explored.
they misunderstood keywords or phrases when they
only listened to the music. Reading the lyrics allows Part 4: Review previous versions and make connections
them to think about the meaning of the text without As a conclusion to this listening sequence, revisit
a direct aural stimulus. I have also found it helpful to each interpretation of the text. Students will often be
leave questions about the text open ended and let stu-
dents share what speaks to them instead of reading
through the text line by line. By first understanding
what students find important, it is then easier to guide
them through the story the text is telling.
In The Sound of Silence, some students were drawn
to the lines, “In restless dreams, I walked alone, nar-
row streets of cobblestone… and my eyes were stabbed
by the flash of a neon light that split the night,” and
they were able to connect to the narrator of the song
and could visualize the scenario. Other students were
drawn to the emphatic statement, “‘Fools’ said I, ‘you
do not know, silence like a cancer grows.’” The idea
of silence as a cancerous blight that grows and suffo-
cates the narrator of the song resonated deeply with
many students. After listening to this input, I guided
the discussion back to the lines, “people talking without
speaking, people hearing without listening,” facilitating
further discussion. To encourage genuine connections
between the text and students, I had to be willing to LOVE BADE ME WELCOME is a collection of
share what these words mean to me and how Paul Si- choral music from composer J.A.C. Redford and
mon uses these words to evoke strong emotions in the London Voices exploring spirituality, love, and the
listener. As mentioned previously, if I ask my students human experience. Blending traditional forms with
to emotionally relate to the music, it is also my respon- contemporary harmonies and time-honored texts,
sibility to demonstrate being vulnerable and share my Redford sets the poetry of Shakespeare, Gerard
personal connections to the message of the text. Manley Hopkins, George Herbert, and more.
After the discussion based on text in isolation, to fur-
ther students’ understanding, it may be helpful to pro- Redford is the composer of Homing, commissioned
vide them with another arrangement to listen to while by the American Choral Directors Association for
they read along with the text. When students read the its Raymond W. Brock Memorial Commission 2017
text and listen at the same time, they can synthesize
important concepts. Using The Sound of Silence gave navonarecords.com/catalog/nv6695
me the opportunity to share the version of the song

CHORAL JOURNAL June/July 2025 Volume 65 Number 9 45