Tips for Caroling during COVID

December 21, 2020

We all need a little joy this holiday season to mark the end of a truly memorable year. As troubling and uncertain as the past few months have been, we at Musical Empowerment want to remind you that the decade is only just starting, and it’s important to keep our sights set on the future.

Although COVID is an inescapable reality that we’ve all had to deal with, this doesn’t mean that we can’t end the year on a positive note. And what’s a better way to do this than caroling during the holiday season? Here are some things to keep in mind:

Maintain social distancing and other health and safety measures

Also called physical distancing, social distancing measures are in place in order to curtail the rate at which the pandemic spreads. The Center for Disease Control’s social distancing guide maintains that a six-foot distance between individuals can significantly lower the risks of infection. In addition, the CDC also counts small outdoor gatherings (such as caroling in small groups) as a comparatively safe social activity that people can engage in. Of course, you can also further lower health risks by keeping your masks on while not singing and bringing along alcohol or hand sanitizer for the caroling party.

Reach out to your local community

Telling local community leaders about your caroling plans will allow you to plan your route, sing to more people, and manage the way your group practices social distancing. This is also a good way to spread some much-needed cheer to the people that need it the most. Recently, the Nashville Baptist Church’s ‘COVID Caroling Ministry’ visited hundreds of people at home and at their many stops in places like Mt. Juliet, Lebanon, and other Nashville locales. While keeping the recommended distances apart from each other, members of the choir are taking the church to the communities through well-planned routes that allows them to cover more ground and visit more homes. If your local community is in need of some cheering up, your local leaders might be interested in supporting your holiday caroling plans.

Photo Credit: Courier & Press

Go virtual

While the ideal way to carol is (of course) in-person, we also need to adjust to the times. Moving your caroling plans online is not only safer for everyone involved, it can also allow you to spread the season’s cheer even further through a digital space. Apart from streaming or video uploading sites/apps like Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, or even TikTok, you will also need real microphones if you want to do this properly. Thankfully, there are a variety of affordable professional vocal microphones available today. Among the different choices listed in a guide to the best vocal mics by Shout4Music, affordable models like the Audio-Technica AT2020 and Shure SM58 are well-suited for recording or livestreaming caroling sessions. With a phone or laptop, a fast Internet connection, and a professional microphone, you can start caroling the world with studio quality vocals. And apart from virtual performances, these mics can also be used for any future live gigs and caroling sessions that you might have in mind.

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