The Strangers’ Choir by Siolim-based Medha Sahi lets you join a choir for a day
CHRISTINE MACHADO | NT BUZZ
As you listen to them singing together, you’d be forgiven for assuming they’ve had days of practice. In truth, this choir has just met each other for the first time a couple of hours ago.
“You don’t need to know anybody or even know how to sing. You just show up with enthusiasm,” says choir director Medha Sahi. A singer-songwriter and vocal coach based in Siolim, Sahi started The Strangers’ Choir about four months ago.
“Pop-up choirs have existed for years, but I was particularly influenced by the Gaia Music Collective in New York City. I’ve always wanted to be in a choir like this, and it felt like if I wanted to be part of it, I’d just have to make it happen myself,” she shares.
So she put out an invitation on a community WhatsApp group, asking if people would be interested in joining her for a one-day choir performance at Dolce Dias in Bastora. “I figured even if 10 people showed up, it would be enough. We had around 18. That was the beginning,” she says.
Explaining the process, Sahi says the three-hour event begins with warm-up exercises on how to be part of a choir. These include learning how to respond to visual cues, control volume, and add expression to your singing. After a short break, participants begin learning
a song together.
“I try to choose a song with a strong rhythmic quality, and then I add harmonies and layers to it’,” she says.
The final 10 minutes is where the magic happens. The newly formed choir performs together. “You go home with the high of having created a beautiful piece of art with so many people you didn’t even know a few hours earlier,” says Sahi.
Since its first edition in Goa, The Strangers’ Choir has travelled to other parts of the state and beyond, including Bengaluru and Delhi.
“I think word of mouth has been the biggest driving force, because every single person who has come has walked away with something positive to say,” she says. The only challenge so far, she adds, has been finding venues with the right acoustics for a choir performance.
While she currently uses karaoke tracks for accompaniment, Sahi is considering adding a djembe or cajón player in the future. “I play the keyboard while teaching the song, but during the performance it’s hard to direct the choir and play at the same time,” she explains. She’s also open to trying out a Goan song. “I’m currently learning Konkani through YouTube videos. I think doing something local would really set us apart from other pop-up choirs,” she says.
Though the choir is travelling more now, Sahi still aims to have at least one performance in Goa every month. “This is my home now, after all,” she says.
While she’s preparing for her biggest event yet, a 100-member performance in Bengaluru on July 20, she’s also hopeful about the seventh Goa edition this Sunday, once again in Bastora. “There’s so much musical talent in Goa, and I’d love for more people to join our performances here,” she says. One day, she hopes to take The Strangers’ Choir to a Goan church with 500 voices singing together.
(The Strangers’ Choir will hold its next Goa event on July 13 at 11 a.m. at Dolce Dias, Bastora.)
