It is no secret that encouraging boys to sing – and to keep singing – through the teenage years is a challenge that most music teachers will encounter in one form or another. In both classroom and 1:1 contexts, boys are less likely to engage with activities that involve singing, and many youth choirs struggle to recruit and retain male singers. Worryingly, a wealth of research indicates that if boys stop singing in their childhood or teenage years, they rarely resume in adult life; and with recent studies showing that boys' voices are starting to change earlier than before, this is no longer a problem that is restricted to KS3.
With singing being placed front and centre in the Model Music Curriculum, and general agreement in its value – both in terms of developing musicianship and enhancing general wellbeing – it is clear that music teachers working with this age group have a key role to play in making singing a positive experience.
How do we, as educators, keep boys singing throughout their school years and beyond? The successful teacher will need to be armed with an understanding of the changing voice, suitable repertoire, and strategies to manage groups where several boys might be singing in a different range to their peers.
Voice change – the stages
It is now generally accepted that we should refer to a boy's voice as ‘changing’ rather than ‘breaking’. The initial negative connotation that something is broken is not helpful. It seems clear that a basic knowledge of voice change, and the stages that a boy's voice will move through, will prove invaluable to music teachers and choir leaders alike. There has been a great deal of research into voice change, and several models exist to explain the different stages of change. Of these, the Cooksie scale – developed by John Cooksie – is the commonly accepted standard, and an excellent point of reference.
The chart below shows the stages that a boy's voice will move through. We can see that it starts at a treble and then gradually moves down. Looking at this chart in a little more detail, it is apparent that at the first stage of voice change – Midvoice I – there is a quite steep loss in range. It is not until Midvoice IIA that the voice starts to develop more baritone qualities. As the voice moves into the final stages there can be quite a limited range, and students can sometimes find singing above C4 (middle C) in their new low voice extremely challenging. It is not until the New Baritone stage is reached that the boy will start sounding like a young adult. It should also be noted that the term ‘baritone’ is used here to describe a stage of change and not a fixed voice part. There is a huge difference between a 15-year-old who has reached the New Baritone stage and a mature 21-year-old who has an established baritone voice.
A visual guide to vocal ranges based on the Cooksie scale (from Gumm, A. (2021) A guide to the adolescent male singing voice, tinyurl.com/5n8szc3v)
One size fits all?
Sadly for the educator, there is no ‘one size fits all’ and it is really important to remember that every boy's voice will move differently. Some may drop through the stages relatively rapidly, whereas others may move down into Midvoice I and remain there for many months. However, understanding the limitations of the voice at each stage should help the educator to establish suitable repertoire and find a way of ensuring that the student is vocally comfortable in school singing activities.
Research suggests that the most common age at which a boy's voice will change is the 12–15 bracket. However, this is not always the case. As noted above, there are increasing instances of boys singing in the Cambiata I – or even Cambiata II – range in KS2. An awareness of the stages of voice change will enable the educator to quickly identify students who have moved into these ranges and make adjustments to help accommodate this.
Psychology – the emerging teen
When considering singing strategies for school age students, we also need to be aware that the teenage years are absolutely vital to the development of a young person. During this time, children develop a stronger and more individual sense of personality. They will often pull away from previous familiar environments, such as parents and home, and become willing to push – or test – boundaries. During this key period they may experiment with various personalities, almost like trying on new outfits. Personal appearance, and especially peer perception, becomes of heightened importance during these teenage years.
If the boy's voice has started to change earlier than his peers, these feelings of isolation can often be magnified. It is, therefore, helpful for the educator to keep in mind that if a class includes one or two pupils singing at a different pitch to their classmates, they are liable to feel exposed and self-conscious. Perhaps we should consider what it would feel like if we were singing in a choir at a completely different pitch to everyone else in the group?
Strategies
So, how can we help? Consider the following:
Group management
First, we should look at the way we view our singing groups. Traditionally, the expectation would be that any school singing group in KS2 and early KS3 would be based around one- or two-part singing in higher voices. However, forearmed with the knowledge of the stages of voice change, we can see that most higher voice music will be uncomfortable and unreachable for the majority of students who have moved past stage one. Regularly giving boys unachievable repertoire will not help to enhance or engage them with singing; it will likely have the opposite effect!
When working with students and changing voices, consider how best to set up your singing situation that allows you a flexible adjustment of parts. Try not to classify parts as soprano, alto etc., but look at naming them 1, 2, 3. This will offer you a more flexible system that allows you to move boys around into a part that is comfortable while avoiding any gender-based connotations relating to voice parts.
Warm-ups and exercises
When planning warm-ups, it's really easy to get stuck in a rut and cycle through the same few exercises. Consider keeping the range of these warmups limited, and try not to push the students too high or too low.
Repertoire
Finding flexible repertoire is key here. Look for two- and three-part arrangements that offer mid-range vocal lines and don't constantly sit at the edges of the range. Don't be afraid to make adjustments to lines or harmonies if they don't work with the group of singers you have. Most importantly, be aware of whether your students are feeling comfortable or not.
Current commercial repertoire may often seem like a good solution here, and while there is good material, there should be an element of caution. Most pop songs performed by female artists sit very low in the register. Conversely, male artists tend to sing extremely high in the male register. While there may be some moments where this can work well – as the boys transition down the range – once they reach the stage of New Baritone, this repertoire will become unachievable and uncomfortable. It is also worth remembering that younger girls may find the low range of contemporary pop songs as uncomfortable as boys being asked to sing too high.
Strength in numbers
All the times I've observed or researched singing within schools, one thing has become clear: boys do enjoy singing together, and they also enjoy using their voices as a powerful form of self-expression. Putting together a boys' singing group within the school can help to build this culture and is certainly worth investigating and encouraging.
Knowledge is power
Try to include boys in the conversation – they often find what is happening to their voice unsettling and at times distressing. My experience in working with boys as they go through voice change suggests that there is a real desire to understand what is happening during the process. Explaining the stages of voice change will help the student to map how their voice is changing. In every case I have worked with, this has enhanced engagement with singing.
And finally…
At the risk of repetition – there is no ‘one size fits all’. However, research shows that vocal leaders empowered with knowledge and confidence will have a much better chance of engaging boys within singing, and keep them singing into adult life.
