Using singing to connect people is at the heart of Starling Arts' work.

We sing in healthcare, school, community, choir, and workplace settings in London.
We want to inspire positive changes to health and wellbeing through singing.

Check out a snapshot of some of the work we do below.

The Starling Voices

We run The Starling Voices, two fun and lively choirs in London. The groups blend high-quality singing, awesome performances, and community spirit!

Our choirs embody the wellbeing benefits of singing. Our methods boost moods and promote positivity.

We are an inclusive choir community regardless of background, lifestyle or musical experience. This community has led to marriages, babies, and lifelong friendships, all stemming from the power of singing together.

Official Wicked Workshops

We offer workshops in partnership with the hit West End musical Wicked.

Our Official Wicked Workshops immerse participants in the fantastical world of Wicked and cover Wellbeing, Anti-Bullying and Musical Theatre.

Ideal for schools and community settings, the workshops fuse together our passion for musical theatre, singing and wellbeing in a package that complements both the show and the curriculum. 

All workshops can also be adapted for corporate settings.

Sing For Better Breathing

As trained Singing for Lung Health practitioners, the Starling Arts team run a weekly session on Zoom to support people with chronic lung conditions. 

Using singing to help participants manage their symptoms and reduce feelings of breathlessness, these sessions are also an enjoyable social activity in a friendly environment.

Developing and strengthening breathing techniques which are then put into practice through song, our Sing for Better Breathing boost moods and lung power!

Starling Arts in Lockdown

The Covid-19 pandemic plunged the world into difficult times. Group singing in person was on pause, yet wellbeing was more important than ever. So we wanted to ensure we could create a space for singing for wellbeing online.

We offered regular Zoom sessions to our members. These included mindfulness sessions, easy repertoire, dance parties and family activities. This encouraged positivity for our members and our wider community.

We also organised other online events for our extended community. These included:

• The Nest Choir

• Mindfulness sessions

• Family sing-alongs

• Dance parties

• Virtual coffee mornings

• and bonfire chats.

This maintained a supportive community despite the challenges we were all facing.

We provided online wellbeing sessions for students at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and, through the charity Parenting Mental Health, developed a Zoom programme for parents of children and young people facing mental health challenges.

We also recorded various virtual choir projects, with our song Lockdown Bucketlist viewed over 14k views on Facebook. This lifted spirits and extended the joy of group singing beyond our community.

Starling 10 and Celebrating Singing for Wellbeing

As part of the 10th anniversary of Starling Arts in 2020, we worked on a range of projects to celebrate the power of group singing. These included:

• Workshops with our community and workplace choirs

• An intergenerational outreach project with dementia patients and school children (part of a nominated project in the 2020 Culture, Health & Wellbeing Awards’ ‘Collective Power’ category)

• The creation of The Voice Inside, an uplifting song recored by our choirs

• A mini-documentary about singing for wellbeing (which you can watch below)

• A research project with a psychologist about the impact of singing for wellbeing

We brought over 150 people together to explore singing’s potential to forge extraordinary communities. The project proved that singing really does make us happier, healthier and more connected!

Leaders of Group Singing

As part of the Starling 10 celebrations, we created a A Guide for Community Choir Leaders. The booklet contains testimony, facts and advice on the transformative power of group singing. Members of the choir world are using it to improve and inform their own practice.

During lockdown we hosted Zoom sessions for other choir leaders. We shared and exchanged knowledge about running choirs and singing groups online; a valuable resource for all involved.

We are founders and moderators of the global Choir Leaders’ Network on Facebook.

Workplace Singing

Singing is proven to boost wellbeing, reduce stress and create communities, so it's the perfect tool for workplaces.

In our workplace sessions, people come together from across different departments. Many of these have never met, in spite of working for the same organisation. When you get those people singing in the same room, it's clear there'll be benefits to business as well as individuals.

We work with companies in-person and online, building teams and boosting wellbeing through the act of singing together.

Young People

We work with young people in schools, communities and masterclass sessions. We have also run intergenerational projects with young people and patients in hospitals and care homes.

Singing with young people develops life-long skills such as confidence, public speaking and team work. This encourages creativity and a better understanding of the world around them.

TEDx Talk

Our TEDx Talk on Why the World Needs to Sing outlines the connective power of group singing. We got the audience up on their feet in harmony to prove its multiple benefits!

The talk promotes our experiences and knowledge of the positive links between singing and wellbeing.

Community

We bring group singing to communities, including:

• Fundraising for charity

• Singing in hospitals

• Leading workshops at community events

• Running masterclasses for other choirs

• And bringing parties and events alive with the sound of group singing!

Videos

Get a feel for the look and sound of what we do at Starling Arts

Photos

Get a taste for the variety of work we do getting groups singing