AVI USA: Dear Nuria, we thrilled to share some of your thoughts with our audience. We would love to find out more about the history of your work and that of the Youth Choir.
When did you arrived to Auroville and what brought your here?
Nuria: I came to Auroville in 1991 because I wanted to participate in this project of creating a more conscious society, following the philosophy of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother.
A: What was your relationship to music and what drew you to settle in Auroville, with your musical background?
N: I come from a very musical family and have been all my life studying and working with music. Having started my formal musical education at 10, by the time I was 18 I decided to study singing, vocal technique and musical interpretation at the Liceo Conservatoire of Music in Barcelona, and graduated in Musicology at the University of Bellaterra in Barcelona. When I arrived in Auroville I decided I wanted to bring music education here. I started working in the schools and then 2 years later got involved with the choirs.
A: What was the initial impulse for the Auroville choir and how did the the Youth choir develop?
N:The adult’s choir was started in 1991 by Pushkar Carlotto. In 1993 he decided to go pursue his studies abroad, so I was asked to take over the choir. From 1993 till date I have been directing it. Holger Jetter started the Youth choir in 1993 and in 1995 he asked me if I could take the lead of the choir, which I also keep directing till date.
3. How did children respond and was it easy to have enough children join the choir for the initial year?
N: During the first years was a bit difficult to keep the group engaged and enthusiastically committed. I would start the season with 30 singers and end up with 18/20. Choir culture was something new to Auroville and I guess children needed time to get used to it. But the choir never stopped functioning, overtime things started to change choir culture and appreciation starting growing in the children and Auroville. For the past 15 years children are very motivated about the choir. The average participation is now around 45-50 children every season, with great enthusiasm and commitment. Beautiful to see and very rewarding!
4. How do children join the choir ? Are there children who love to sing but not gifted who can join the choir? And children who are gifted but don’t have much interest who you try to convince join?
N: I audition the children before joining the group, to check their voices and range. In the case of children having big difficulty in singing and staying in pitch I let them join for a trial period. Some end up by catching up with the group and some end up stopping because it becomes too difficult for them. If they don’t attend regularly or aren’t serious and committed to the work, I ask them to stop. These requirements are necessary if we want to work well and achieve high quality results. As children have the experience of that they feel proud and commit happily to the work and the group.
5.How is the repertoire chosen?
N: I choose a different repertoire for every season. The average age of the choir is 9 to 18 years old. Every year there are some older kids that have to stop, so every year I take new singers in. As the group keeps changing every season, I choose the songs the group needs technically and that I think they will like. I try to keep variety of styles, so everyone is happy while being exposed to practice different ways of singing.
6.Do children bring their own suggestions?
N: Yes, and If their choice is feasible for the group, and if I can get the scores of the songs they propose then we incorporate them to the program.
7. Is modern music incorporated? Yes!
8.What was the most challenging piece to perform recently? And why? A Million Dreams, for the complexity in harmonies, rhythm and voice splits.
– you can hear A Million Dreams in the video from Cripa Auditorium, above
9.What was the most fun? And why?
Believer, because it talks to them and its fast! Also they enjoyed quite much the Body percussion piece, was something new and challenging to go through without mistakes, to be all together throughout the piece.
10.What is the schedule of the children’s choir, does it run parallel to the school year?
N:Yes, from when school starts in July, till it ends in April.
11.Has the children’s choir traveled outside Auroville?
N: Only once to Chennai, with a program together with the Adults choir. Travelling in India with such a big group is hard.
12.What are the plans for the future of the children’s choir? Do you have any ambitions for the choir?
N: To continue working and growing musically and humanly, and continue to prepare programs to perform for the community every season. Choir singing is an enjoyable activity and a perfect tool for unity and harmony. While it is a big challenge to work with a group of children from so many different cultures and musical backgrounds, it is very rewarding to see how well they are able to blend together, manifesting a unity in diversity.
13. Have there been any children who graduated from the choir that went on to pursue singing full time?
N:Yes, several. Over the years 4 girls have pursued singing professionally, another girl pursued musical composition studies, and a boy became singer and bass player of a professional band. Many youth made singing part of their lives, joining other choirs wherever they went or/and continued singing as a hobby. Several youth who stayed in Auroville, or returned to stay, they joined the adults’ choir.
