Sing out your stress

Are you feeling the pressure? Is the tension at work becoming unbearable? If so, Catherine Chetwynd comes up with a suggestion that is not only very simple in its execution, but comes highly recommended by the health profession for relieving all the usual anxieties

It's official, singing is good for your health, according to research undertaken by Dr Stephen Clift, professor of health at the Centre for Health Education and Research at Canterbury Christ Church University College. 'We found 52 public reports on singing which have some relevance to well-being and health,' he says. 'If you ask any group of singers, they talk about increased happiness and sense of well-being, enhanced posture, deeper breathing, stress relief and they forget their worries.

'To some people, singing is almost a life-saver,' says Clift. 'It helps them cope with depression, anxiety and bereavement; and people who have a stroke and lose the ability to speak can still sing. It can also be good for asthmatic conditions.'

John Spedan Lewis, founder of the John Lewis Partnership, understood this wisdom and started the Music Society in 1925 with the formation of the partnership's first choir. He wanted to give ordinary partners access to music at a time when it was beyond the means of the majority. He also believed that music plays an important part in personal and social development.

Now, the choir, Voices in Partnership, comprises around 90 singers, ranging from cashiers to directors and drawn from 25 branches across the UK. There are no auditions. A chamber choir, the Cavendish Cabaret, is drawn from the more experienced members of the larger group and forms the backbone of the choir.

Voices in Partnership meets three times a year to prepare for summer, Christmas and Easter performances, starting with an all-day rehearsal. 'Singers then take away music and CDs of their voice part so that they can practise on their own,' says secretary for the John Lewis Music Society, Ronni Usborne. 'We won't see them again until the afternoon of the performance.

'There is an immense feeling of pride standing on stage with 90 singers and an orchestra. Singing is my equivalent of the gym and, when I concentrate on the music, I forget everything else. It is completely rejuvenating.' This summer the choir gave an open-air concert. 'It is the first time I have worn wellies on stage,' she says.

Manvinder Rattan, conductor and musical director for the partnership, works four days a week on John Lewis music and events and one day on non-company related music. 'He joined the business as a department manager and evolved into this role,' says Usborne. John Lewis Partnership sponsors 50% of the choir's outgoings.

The Deloitte choir was founded in September last year by Harriet Cross, a financial service knowledge manager. 'I sent round an exploratory e-mail and was overwhelmed by the response - around 150 e-mails - and 50 of us meet weekly in the 10-11 weeks before doing a concert,' says Cross.

Leveller

'We don't do auditions and would never turn anyone away, even if they have never sung before and cannot read music. Those who are more experienced will bring the others up to standard,' she says. The choir rehearses in the Deloitte offices. 'We have a keyboard plugged into our AV system in a meeting room. It works a treat.

'People join because it is fun, a great way to unwind and relax after a busy day, it is completely different to what we all do for our day jobs. We also network with people we would not otherwise meet and get a better understanding of other areas of the business. It is a great leveller and includes people from secretary to partner.'

Deloitte has a sports and social budget and the choir applies for a portion of that each year. 'It is quite nice if clients hear about the Deloitte choir,' says Cross. 'It shows we are more than meets the eye.'

The Association of Swedish Choral Music stands testimony to the strong choral tradition in Sweden and company choirs are not uncommon. Eva Sjöö and a colleague started the choir in Nordea (bank) 11 years ago. 'I longed to sing in a choir and the bank didn't have one,' she says. 'It was difficult to get a room to sing in and to find a musical leader. I am responsible for the finances and administration connected with the choir.

'Nineteen of us meet every Monday for two hours and we sing all kinds of songs - English and Swedish pop and folk songs, even some hymns. We give small concerts but our audience is mostly our friends and colleagues; sometimes we sing at old people's homes. We like to have something to work towards.

'We do it for fun and to wind down from everything else. I read somewhere that you can't cry when you sing, and it's true.' The bank supports the choir as part of its health programme. As I write, Nordea choir is preparing to join 3,000 singers from across Sweden to sing in The Globe, a large arena in Stockholm. 'It will be fun but means lots of practising,' says Sjöö.

ABB bank choir has been singing since 1947. 'Originally, the choir performed only for small gatherings of colleagues and in old people's homes until 1949, when they performed an operetta in Västerås and in Stockholm,' says Cia Andersson, chairman of ABB choir.

'Today the repertoire includes slow songs, hits from musicals and a bit of jazz,' she says. There are 60 members, all auditioned, of whom some 60% are employed by ABB or related to people working there. 'We have weekend workshops about twice a year and meet once a week for rehearsals. This can be a problem for ABB employees, as they are often away on business, so we decided to allow non-employees into the choir. We give four concerts a year and sing everything by heart. We do a bit of acting as well.'

'Today, our relationship with the bank consists mainly of financial support and sponsoring, and we are talking with ABB to find new areas where we can co-operate.' In conjunction with the choir, the bank is offering a scholarship to a young, promising singer from Västerås. 'Creating a show together, and singing itself, create enormous well-being among singers.'

Japanese companies have a long history of group exercises and corporate bonding, so it is not surprising that a Japanese company should have a choir. Japan Airlines Chorus Freude was established on 12 September 1988 by members of JAL staff who sang at Suntory Hall, Tokyo, to celebrate the privatisation of the airline in November 1987. A chorus of 600 sang Ode an die Freude (Ode to Joy) from Beethoven's Symphony No. 9.

The joy (Freude) of this experience led some of the participants to form Japan Airlines Chorus Freude, which has 38 members and practises every Thursday night from 6.30pm to 8.30pm. The airline provides them with a place to practise and helps promote the choir's activities. 'The chorus sings a wide range of musical arrangements written by Western and Japanese composers, primarily focusing on classical music,' says Stephen Pearlman of Japan Airlines.

JAL Choir gives an annual mini Christmas carol concert (30 minutes) in Terminal 1, Haneda Airport, and an annual performance at Naritasan Temple, where they are joined by local singing groups. They also arrange a biennial overseas tour, which lasts around 10 days.

'The members of the Japan Airlines Chorus Freude not only sing together for the pure joy that singing gives them, but they also value the strong relationships that develop with the singing groups they team up with,' says Pearlman. 'They are extremely proud to be JAL's singing ambassadors.'

That says it all.

Catherine Chetwynd is a freelance journalist specialising in business travel, conference, incentive and exhibition writing. She also writes for The Times and the Financial Times.