Save the dates:

Parksville Community Park, picnic shelter

5-6:30 pm on Mondays*, June 12 - August 21

(*on August 14 the venue is not available; we will book a different location)

McMillan Arts Centre

3-4:30 pm on Thursdays, June 15 - August 24

Community Performances / Singalongs:

Friday, August 18, 6:30pm, Parksville Outdoor Theatre: opening for Glen Foster in the Tim Horton’s free concert series - we will get the audience singing!

Saturday, August 19, 2-4pm, Qualicum Beach Museum: Children’s Day - We are on right after the Coombs Old Time Fiddlers! Let’s make a circle and invite passers by to join in and sing along!

August 26, 2-4pm, Knox United Church (Summer Singalong with Sylvia and friends)

The Picnic shelter is across from the sports fields, beside the one-way road to the highway (bottom left of the above picture). The new outdoor theatre is in front of it.

McMillan Arts Centre: 133 Mills Street, Upper Level, Parksville

Choir Session Plans and Logs

Find out what we’ll be singing… and what we sang in previous sessions

We’ll sing a variety of songs each week, but keep returning to our “core songs” which have song recordings - these are the songs we’ll spend some time learning, and create some sweet harmony!

I will update this section every week, and provide the update to you in a weekly members email.


June 13 and 15:

  • We sang “Oleo”, a call-and-response women’s working song from Ghana.

  • We learned the harmonies on the chorus of Teach Your Children Well

  • For fun on Thursday, we sang a song by Collective Soul, Shine!


June 20 and 23:

June 27 and 30:

  • We sang “Sweet Caroline” for fun, and played around with who sings the “ba ba da”’s first, and who layers on the harmonies.

July 3 and 6:

  • We sang the classic choir round, “Bele Mama”, and Be Whatcha Gonna Be - the bassline is a bit tricky!

  • On Thursday we sang Good News, a long-time favourite in our song circle.

  • We


  • July 10 and 13:

  • We’ll learn “How Could Anyone Ever Tell You” by Karen Drucker and Listen To The Music by the Doobie Brothers!

  • We’ll bring back a favourite round, recorded with my beach group in 2022, “I step into the flow”.


    June 20 and :

  • We had some fun with Oleo and Good News, we brought back a favourite round from my Sing Again beach group, “I step into the flow”.

  • We sang a round that I recorded a year ago: I Step Into The Flow! Finally, the classic choir round, “Bele Mama”.

    Thursday, April 13

  • We’ll sing

  • Classic choir round: “Bele Mama”, and “Oleo”, a call-and-response women’s working song from Ghana.


July 10 and 13:

Song Recordings

…to help you learn the songs and harmonies by ear!

Practicing these songs is highly encouraged - it’s very rewarding for everyone. Listening and singing along at home is great for gaining confidence singing a song, whether it’s the melody part, or a harmony part. I usually arrange the songs so that the alto voice can sing the melody, but I do like to mix it up a bit. There’s no pigeon-holing here; you’re free to explore your range and sing the part that feels good for your voice on that song, on that day.

What’s the difference between melody and harmony? The melody of a song is the familiar tune that you’d sing along with on the radio. A harmony is sung along with the melody, but different from the melody (higher or lower), and compliments it, making a richer sound, like a chord on the piano, instead of just one note. When we say “three-part harmony” we mean there is a melody and two harmonies (although technically the melody is a harmony too - one of three notes in the chord, that together make harmony).

For most of our songs, I’m providing you with “part-dominant” tracks for the melody and harmonies (where one part is louder in the mix, so you can hear it and sing along). For some songs, I’ve provided tracks made by other artists (with permission).

If you’re new to singing in a group, try the melody part first. Once you’re comfortable singing melody while others harmonize, then you might be ready to try a harmony part!

To learn a harmony by ear, first listen to the different parts and pick which part suits your voice best. Then, sing along with the harmony track until you know it. Then, when you feel you know it well, sing that part along with the “All parts” track, and see if you can sing your part without getting pulled off track by the other parts. It takes a LOT of practice! It helps to sing near others who are singing the same part, so you keep each other on track. That’s why I like us to move into three groups in our choir sessions. Remember that there are no wrong notes, and that my harmonies are just guidelines - you are always free to make up your own. There are no wrong notes; spontaneous harmony, mistakes and laughter are encouraged!

Harmony is such a deep source of joy for me, and connects us in a special way, energetically, and spiritually.

Here are the song recordings to help you learn the melody or a harmony:

Cecilia - Simon & Garfunkel

Chiquitita - ABBA

Dancing Queen - ABBA

Good Time Comin’ - Gerry Barnum**

How Could Anyone Ever Tell You - Libby Roderick

Let It Be - The Beatles

Listen to the Music - The Doobie Brothers

Teach Your Children Well - Crosby, Stills & Nash

True Colours - Cyndi Lauper

When I’m Up I Can’t Get Down - Great Big Sea

You’ve Got A Mind - Gerry Barnum **

** Songs written by Gerry Barnum that we’ll be singing with him!

“Both Sides Now” - Joni Mitchell

One of my favourites! So beautiful, with the highs and lows of the melody, and of life. I’ve created this arrangement for Sing Again, inspired by the echoes in the incredible and intricate version by A Capella Academy. Our version is just challenging enough!

Here are the recordings that are in my YouTube harmony tutorial.

On verses 1 and 2, sopranos sing the lead, and altos + tenors sing in harmony, with some echoes.

On verse 3, Tenors/Baritones (“bari-tenor”) sing the lead on verse 3 (but it goes so low, tenors may want to sing up an octave, or harmonize). Sopranos and altos sing in harmony, with echoes.

“Dancing Queen” - ABBA

I’ve made some recordings of the melody, middle harmony, and low harmony*. The melody is quite high (mezzo-soprano range), so if you are an alto, you might want to choose the middle harmony part.

Tenors, you could sing the lower harmony part, or the melody an octave lower.

Baritones/basses - you could sing any of the parts, an octave lower!

“Dynamite” - Taio Cruz

I had fun changing the lyrics to this huge pop hit, and making some harmonies!

We’re going to wing this one, but the recordings might help…

“Dunk Down” - MaMuse

For me, this song is about letting go… of beliefs that don’t serve you, fears that hold you back, or whatever you need to let go of. It is just pure joy to sing, and sounds incredible with many voices!

We won’t spend a lot of time learning harmonies to this song, we’ll just have fun with it! Here’s a fun, live version on YouTube:

Click here for the lyrics (which are also in your book)

“Good News” - Coco Love Alcorn

And the good news is: we’re making our own good news by singing together!

I’ve joined Coco’s online choir (www.wonderlandsingers.com), and she graciously shared these learning tracks with me!

“Here Comes The Sun” - The Beatles

Here are four videos for you: 

1. My finished product with all parts (melody and harmonies). It's called "Learn to harmonize with George Harrison's Here Comes The Sun - cover by Sylvia Humble"

2. Melody track  with lower octave (Soprano / Bass). This is for those who prefer to sing the melody (the familiar tune), rather than a harmony. I've added a lower voice here, singing the melody an octave lower (so anyone could sing it!)

3. Alto track. This part is the same as the melody during the verses, but is a little lower than the melody during the chorus.

4. Tenor track. This part is a little lower than the alto, and harmonizes with the melody during the verses as well as during the chorus.

Have a listen and see what part suits your voice. Sing along with your part (track) of choice, and then once you are comfortable with it, sing your part along with the first video... the goal would be to sing your part without letting the other harmonies throw you off...it takes a LOT of practice!

“One Love” - Bob Marley

A song of unity, reflecting what we’re creating when we sing together. Positive vibrations!

Here’s a description of the tracks. See which one feels good to sing for your voice:

  • “all parts”: Bob Marley’s part, as well as the backup singers (three harmonies) are all there - this is how we’ll all sound together. Singers take turns singing Bob’s part on the verses and chorus “fills”. (but you don’t have to solo!)

  • “alto”: the familiar melody (in the middle)

  • “mezzo soprano”: the higher harmony

  • “tenor/soprano: tenor is the lower harmony. One octave (8 notes) above that is the soprano (highest harmony), so they are the same tune (one in a low voice and one in a high voice).

“Rebirth” - Coco Love Alcorn

“Out of the hard times in life comes rebirth. Out of the hard times in life we grow”

I LOVE this song - the words resonate deeply for me, it gets me singin’ at the top of my lungs and dancin’ dangerously while driving…

I’ve joined Coco’s online choir (www.wonderlandsingers.com - I highly recommend it), and she graciously shared these learning tracks with me!

“Shine” - Collective Soul (and Dolly Parton)

What an uplifting song this is… whatever Heaven means to you, whether biblical, or simply the love and light that connects us all. Go you YouTube and listen to both the original Collective Soul version, and also Dolly Parton’s version - so different! Mine is more along the lines of Dolly’s.

My recording is imperfect and free, and that’s what we are aiming for (who wants perfection)!

Here are four videos for you; the first is my public video (feel free to share), and the rest are unlisted videos (just for you):

  1. All parts together (the finished product). Here, the melody is slightly louder in the mix than the harmonies.

  2. Melody track (alto voice), with harmonies in the background

  3. Soprano (higher) harmony track

  4. Tenor (lower) harmony track

Notice during the chorus, all four lines of "Heaven let your light shine down" are not the same; the second time is higher, and the fourth time is lower, for all parts. Have a listen for this - it gives the song a nice melodic contrast. If you find it easier to just sing the same line all four times, it will still sound beautiful. 

In the recording, during the third chorus, the lead melody (alto) actually rises up into the soprano range, and the "soprano" part moves down to fill in the gap. Let’s call this “licence to play”!

“This Little Light Of Mine” - Odetta

“…I’m gonna let it shine”

Here is Coco Love Alcorn’s version on YouTube - let’s have some fun with rhythm and improvisation, and shine our light in song!