Silence is Golden

Ok, this may feel a little cheesy, but I think it’s worth stewing on. What is the role of silence for us as choral musicians?

Our blank canvas

One analogy that I hear a lot, and that is definitely work considering, is that silence is our blank canvas. Sound is our color. I like this and I think there’s a lot there of value, but I wonder if we might tweak it a little. A blank canvas is the space on which a painter puts paint in order to create art. When we put sound onto silence, we’re doing the same thing. The problem is that silence, by definition, is no longer there when there is sound–but the canvas is always there holding up the paint, allowing it to depict and elicit and enthrall. I might challenge this analogy, then, and suggest that time is our canvas, and that silence is the choice to not put paint onto it. Time is the thing that remains beneath our work, defining its ultimate dimensions, just as a canvas does for a painter.

If a painter chooses to leave a spot on the canvas blank, that is very different than painting it white. When we choose to leave a spot of time blank, we need to do it with the same intentionality. For example, I have started suggesting to my conducting students that we are not cutting off sound, we are cueing silence. I have started asking my singers not to rest, but to sing silence. It turns out, there’s actually quite a big difference!

Frequently a rest between two phrases is the length of time it takes to breathe. One of the advantages of singing the silence is that it reinforces how important the breath is. Breathing can communicate a tremendous amount of information including tempo, dynamics, phrase length, articulation, mood… If we’re already singing the silence, then this should come second nature. How often do we hear a singer or choir only thinking about the duration of the sound? Every rest feels like the boring pause between what actually matters. We lose so much that way! Pay attention to people breathing in everyday life and see how much you can tell about what they’re about to say by the way they take the breath to say it. We can add that much communication and more to our performances if we sing the silence and not just the sound!

Silence as Gesture

So how can we as conductors share the value of silence? For starters, we are the literal embodiment of artistic silence. If we’re doing our job, we are showing the music without ever making a sound. Such good role models! When we cue breaths, we should model the way we want the choir to take the breath, thus communicating and facilitating their expressive potential.

When the choir has long sections of rest, we need to make sure we are still singing the silence by being engaged in the music, showing the story of the interlude, transitioning appropriately from what came before to what is coming next. This is especially important during introductions and endings of pieces! Ever watch someone sing beautifully and then give up on their character and just sort of wait out the pianist at the end of the song? We need to be engaged all the way through! Our job is to serve the composer by telling the WHOLE story, not just the part where we get to speak!

One other great opportunity for conductors to choose the color of silence is at the beginning and end of pieces, and between movements. Performing an exciting piece with a surprising opening? Jump up there and start! Take them by surprise! Singing something tranquil and introspective and personal? Leave some blank canvas around the edges by taking a few extra seconds of silence and stillness before you start and after you finish. So frequently we hear about the drama in a piece of music. We’re the director, and our concert is the director’s cut! Every scene change, cross-fade, interlude, it’s all up to us how they fit together to make the bigger picture! But most importantly, don’t get so caught up in the sound that you forget that the silence is a choice, and a very important color in our profession and our art. Paint some silence on a canvas of time and see what happens. And encourage your singers to do the same.

Have thoughts on the role of silence in music? Have ideas about singing the silence? Please share below!