Companion Voices are singers who, on request, visit and sing at the bedsides of people who are dying. Judith founded Companion Voices in early 2014 with a single learning circle in Brighton, and we have gradually expanded to a number of these circles around the UK and became a Community Interest Company – CIC – in 2019. For more information, please visit www.companionvoices.org or see the short overview below.
Our learning circles typically have up to sixteen participants, with the idea of creating close-knit and trusting relationships – vocally and emotionally. Participants pay to be part of the learning groups and, after an initial session to be sure there is a good fit with the group, commit to a monthly subscription. These are not drop-in singing groups and a steady set of people is necessary to train and prepare for this heartfelt service.
At any time, people who would like to have singing for themselves or a friend or family member, can contact their local group and arrange for a small number (probably three or four Companions) to come and sing. This may take place in a family home, residential home, hospital, hospice or wherever the person happens to be. There is no charge for this.
Companion Voices’ songs are chosen to serve the purpose of creating a soundscape for people that will be comforting, relaxing and undemanding. To this end, they are simple and repetitive, drawn from a wide range of different traditions, and may have words in languages unknown to the recipient. Singers are trained to sing these songs and also to respond intuitively in the moment, perhaps taking the volume up or down, tapering to a single voice, hum or whatever seems the best fit.
It is possible for more familiar songs to be woven in on the request of the recipient, their friends or family, but this is not the real thrust of the idea: the singing is not for the purpose of entertainment or ‘cheering up’, but more to accompany and honour the person or people receiving it; not to pull them back towards life and the familiar but to allow them to progress forward knowing they are not alone; to give them a sense that their experience is held and acknowledged by the singers and their voices as they take their leave of life.
You can hear our songs on our dedicated website, which also contains much more information about Companion Voices and you can also find some of our songs here.
Judith Silver 