ABSTRACT
Pre-COVID-19 pandemic years have seen an increase in experience-related services such as travel, events, or creative pursuits. Spending on such services increased four times faster than those on goods, signaling shifts in consumer behavior (Goldman et al., 2017). Due to COVID-19, nations restricted mass gatherings, limiting group activities. Large group musical performance activities, such as choral singing, were severely affected by public health restrictions. Meanwhile, leisure activities were found to be essential for participants' well-being (Jacob et al., 2009). As restrictions lift, the question remains: will large group activities regain their place amongst leisure activities in the post-pandemic world? We examine the motivations and perceived benefits of choir membership to evaluate the practices and strategies for chorister recruitment and retention in the pre- and post-pandemic environment within the context of a Northern Ontario-based university-community choir-Near North Voices (NNV) (North Bay, ON). Data was collected via online survey through NNV's email list and member-only Facebook page. The study is comprised of two stages. In Stage 1 (Fall 2015), we examined choristers' perceived benefits, motivation, and involvement in the choir. The results, derived from the final sample of 55 participants (RR: 44.7%), revealed a range of personal and community benefits that affected participants' decisions to join the choir. Positive emotions, physical health, sense of belonging, personal challenge, and self-accomplishment were the strongest perceived benefits. The choristers were strongly motivated by love for singing, music, and/or performance, as well as personal connections, need for belonging, and personal challenge. In Stage 2 (Spring 2022), we examined the impact of the COVID-19 imposed suspension on choristers' perceptions of benefits of choral participation, on their well-being, and the anticipated challenges of recruitment and retention for the post-COVID resumption of choral activities. The results, based on the final sample of 34 respondents (RR: 41.9%), indicate that almost half the sample (47.1%) undertook new leisure activities (e.g., TV streaming, virtual church and community choirs, yoga, skiing, cooking/baking). The suspension of choral activities had a major/severe impact on 39.3% and moderate impact on 36.3% of the participants. ‘Feeling of loss', absence of social contact, and ‘missing singing with others' were among the most frequently mentioned impacts of the suspension, which also helped the participants appreciate ‘how much they were benefitting' from choir participation. When asked about their well-being two weeks prior to the survey, 30.3% fell into the lower end of the WHO-5 Well-Being Index (Topp et al., 2015), while 27.3% reported the best imaginable well-being. The majority (72.7%) indicated that they would rejoin NNV rehearsals once restrictions are lifted. Fear of infection, availability of safe and appropriate venues to ensure distancing and air circulation were among frequently cited concerns for recruitment and retention in the post-pandemic environment. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.