by Julia Layton From How Stuff Works

In the United States, choral singing is the most popular of all arts-related participatory activities [source: CA]. Across the country, 28.5 million people regularly sing in one of 250,000 chorus groups [source: CA]. It's a group activity that seems to stand the test of time better than others, and there may be a very good reason why: Singing has some effects that other participatory activities don't.

It has become pretty obvious in the last couple of decades that singing has special draws. Regular people all over the globe are addicted to karaoke singing. And many of those people can't even carry a tune. Bars use it to draw customers on slow nights: People will come if they can sing for a crowd. People will watch others sing for a crowd, too -- "reality" competitions like "American Idol" and "X Factor," two of the most popular shows in the United States and around the world, respectively, are all about singing.

Image courtesy of MGM Studios/Hulton Archive/Getty Images. Does singing (in the rain or otherwise) really make you happy?

Of course, some of the competitors on those shows can actually sing really well. It's clear why people are drawn to them. But what's the draw for somewhat-less-talented singers to belt out a tune? Why the huge interest in karaoke? Why all the singing in the shower, in the car, in the chorus? Does singing make people happy?

In this article, we'll find out what effect singing has on mood, outlook and general psychological health. We'll look specifically at choral singing, which is where the most recent and surprising research has been done. Apparently, choral singing, whether with a church, city or private group, really does make people happy.

The physiological effects of singing are fairly well-documented. For those who doubt its power, just look at songbirds: When male songbirds sing to female songbirds, it activates the pleasure center of the male's brain. In fact, scientists have discovered that the effect of singing on the birds' brains is similar to the effect of addictive drugs on human brains EurekAlert. But there's a caveat. That effect doesn't happen when the birds are singing alone.

As it turns out, singing's effect on humans has a similar caveat.

by Layton, Julia From How Stuff Works

Singing has some of the same health benefits as exercise.All types of singing have positive psychological effects. The act of singing releases endorphins, the brain's "feel good" chemicals. Singing in front of a crowd, a la karaoke, naturally builds confidence, which has broad and long-lasting effects on general well-being. But of all types of singing, it's choral singing that seems to have the most dramatic effects on people's lives.

A study published in Australia in 2008 revealed that on average, choral singers rated their satisfaction with life higher than the public -- even when the actual problems faced by those singers were more substantial than those faced by the general public [source: MacLean].

A 1998 study found that after nursing-home residents took part in a singing program for a month, there were significant decreases in both anxiety and depression levels [source: ISPS]. Another study surveying more than 600 British choral singers found that singing plays a central role in their psychological health [source: ISP]

But why? Could you just start belting out a tune right now in order to make yourself feel happy?

	Image courtesy of Library of Congress. Singing has some of the same health benefits as exercise.

It's possible. Some of the ways in which choral singing makes people happy are physical, and you get them whether you're in a chorus or in a shower -- as long as you're using proper breathing techniques during that shower solo. Singing can have some of the same effects as exercise, like the release of endorphins, which give the singer an overall "lifted" feeling and are associated with stress reduction.

It's also an aerobic activity, meaning it gets more oxygen into the blood for better circulation, which tends to promote a good mood. And singing necessitates deep breathing, another anxiety reducer. Deep breathing is a key to meditation and other relaxation techniques, and you can't sing well without it.

Physical effects, while pretty dramatic, are really just the beginning. Singing causes happiness for other reasons that have less of a biological basis.

Some of the greatest connections between singing and happiness are more mental than physical. They're harder to measure, but just as significant.

Choral singers need to concentrate on their music and technique throughout the singing process, and it's hard to worry about things like work or money or family problems when you're actively concentrating on something else. So choral singers tend to have a built-in "stress-free zone." Learning is also part of the process -- learning new songs, new harmonies, new methods of keeping tempo. Learning has long been known to keep brains active and fend off depression, especially in older people.

Fox Photos/Getty Images Two Welsh members of the Men's Choir of the Great Western Railway Institute practice aboard a rail carriage. Singing in choral groups establishes a support system.

The question remains, though - why choral singing specifically? Concentration and deep breathing can happen in a recording studio, or in the privacy of your own home.

It's because some of the most important ties between singing and happiness are social ones. The support system of being part of a group, and the commitment to that group that gets people out of the house and into the chorus every week - these are benefits that are specific to group singing. And they seem to be a big component of why choral singers tend to be happier than the rest of us. The feelings of belonging to a group, of being needed by the other members of that group ("We can't do this one without our alto!"), go a long way toward combating the loneliness that often comes along with being human in modern times.

And in that case, you might get nearly as much happiness from joining a bowling league or a Scrabble club as from joining a chorus. Probably fewer endorphins, though.

Posted, June 23 09 by tim milfull
gengland writes
Reviewed by Gemma England

Karaoke: The Global Phenomenon was a steep learning curve for me. Before I read this book, I didn’t know much about Karaoke. Like most people, I have had an experience with it, but it was short-lived, and rightly so. The group rendition of Sonny and Cher’s ‘I’ve Got You Babe’ that I was a part of was mostly screamed, not sung, and sounded, if I recall correctly, more like a threat than a reassurance.

When you think karaoke, you think Japan, but once you have read this book, you will think differently. Yes, it started there, but it has gone many places since, and each time it moved on, its use and appearance changed.

But, while it’s not all about Japan, let’s start there; Karaoke: The Global Phenomenon has fascinating facts about karaoke in this country. Karaoke culture only emerged in Japan about thirty years ago, at the peak of their economic growth. It is believed that the emphasis on singing and dancing in samurai training may have led to the development of karaoke. Who would have thought?

Karaoke has such a strong influence on Japanese culture, that there is karaoke etiquette. For instance, Japanese gossip magazine Josei Seven recently published an article to assist women venturing out for after-five karaoke with work colleagues. There are ten guidelines listed for this karaoke context, one being: ‘Take care not to sing the boss’s favourite song as he is likely not to be able to sing too many different songs’. Probably good advice! It is perhaps not surprising that karaoke in Japan has a powerful economic impact. It is estimated that in 1982 Japan spent more on karaoke home units than the United States spent on gas appliances. To be exact, they spent $625 million.

Writers Xun Zhou and Francesca Tarocco emphasise that to many countries, karaoke is not just about the singing. Some countries use karaoke as a tool to better language skills. In Vietnam, language teachers use karaoke to help teach English. They are not alone in their belief that karaoke can help in acquiring a language. It is thought that in Korea, karaoke has improved both foreign language skills, and the national literacy rate. Some cultures are using karaoke to keep traditional languages alive. Daniel Azjen and his son Roman had the idea to use karaoke ‘as a way of preserving and disseminating old Yiddish melodies’. They have named this project ‘Save the Music’, and their catalogue has more than 7,000 songs in Yiddish and Ladino. Daniel Azjen thinks karaoke has the potential to ‘bring back the enjoyment of being Jewish’.

When countries, cultures, and subcultures aren’t able to bend traditional karaoke to their needs, they create a new version of it altogether. The most interesting ‘re-creation’ is ‘pornaoke’, a cross between porn and karaoke. Created by the Royal Vancouver Porn Society in British Columbia ‘pornaoke’ involves showing a porn film silently while participants supply the sounds and dialogue. In Britain, there is karaoke designed for football lovers. Participants can sing their favourite football songs in front of a video screen featuring highlights from matches across the decades. In Russia, karaoke is used as a bit of a ‘winter warmer’, with the locals performing their favourite songs in a sauna: television, microphones, and all.

What becomes apparent when you are reading Karaoke: The Global Phenomenon is just how important karaoke is to many people in many countries. Filipinos believe that it is more important to have a karaoke machine in the home than it is to have a toilet. Let’s just hope they have communal facilities.

This book is well researched, yet the delivery is not burdened by the weight of the message. The prose is playful, clever, and witty. For instance, Xun and Tarocco seamlessly intertwine song lyrics when talking about a karaoke bar in Florida: ‘at Singers, customers can “shake it like a Polaroid picture” with their “friends in low places”, taking their pick from Sinatra and The Doors to Britney, Shaggy and Rob Zombie’.

By the end of this book you will want to go purchase a karaoke videogame such as Singstar or Karaoke Revolution, download karaoke onto your mobile, or just head off to a karaoke bar. Don’t resist it. After all, it is a global phenomenon, that many people can’t be wrong, right? Besides, there’s safety in numbers.