Building Community Choirs in the Twenty-First Century: Re-imagining Identity through Singing in Northern Ireland

An examination of how community choirs in Northern Ireland are attempting to transcend sectarian boundaries.

Building Community Choirs explores the under-researched practice of community choral singing in Northern Ireland. Sarah-Jane Gibson conducted ethnographic research with five choirs in various locations over the course of five years and illustrates how choirs reimagine identity through the ways they organize, rehearse, and perform. By actively rethinking conceptions of identities within their groups, Gibson’s study shows how gender, age, religious faith, and ethnic diversity can both influence structures of community in the region and be influenced by them.