Transform any choir into an instrument of social change! This session will explore communal singing as a galvanizing sociopolitical force through the lens of forty years of Eastern European history. Drawing on the presenter’s own Fulbright and Title VIII-backed fieldwork in Estonia (interviewing musicians involved in the Estonian Singing Revolution) and in Poland (leading music in Ukrainian refugee centers), participants will examine how choral music supports community resilience and peaceful civic engagement. Through participatory singing, conductors will explore ways to incorporate socially meaningful repertoire into their own ensembles. They will leave with a variety of teaching resources: repertoire lists, pronunciation guides, and avenues for connecting with social change initiatives.
Singing Revolutions: Any Choir Can Inspire Social Change
Erica Glenn
Erica Glenn is the director of choral activities at Brigham Young University-Hawaii and a 2021 National Finalist for the American Prize in Conducting. In May 2025 she conducted the premiere of her original, thirty-minute Worldwide Requiem at Carnegie Hall, and she will conduct the European premiere with the Oxford Philharmonic in 2027. In 2023, Dr. Glenn researched the Estonian Singing Revolution as an American Councils Scholar in Tallinn, and in 2022 she completed a Fulbright grant in Warsaw, Poland, studying the impact of music on morale among Ukrainian refugees. She holds a doctorate from Arizona State University (Choral Conducting), an EdM from Harvard (The Arts in Education), and an MM from Longy Conservatory (Music Composition). As a composer and researcher, she has published with SBMP, Pelican Music, the International Alliance of Women in Music Journal, Tactus, and USA Today.
