Still singing by the rivers

I have a question, as we emerge from lockdown. It echoes Psalm 137. How can we sing the Lord’s song?

The original setting was by the waters of Babylon. Our setting is emerging from a post-Covid experience and there is, quite naturally, a reluctance to sing.

A fear of singing?

Singing, and a connection to Covid-19, is having a bad press. The Church Times newspaper (29 May) reported a recent webinar from the Royal School of Church Music. One scientist stated that the evidence regarding singing and infection was mixed, and fuelled by scare stories. One such story centred around the experience of the Amsterdam Mixed Choir. After a performance of St John’s Passion, 102 out of 130 members contracted the virus.