Thousands of students returned to class on IU’s campus last week, and that includes music students, many of whom are vocalists. Shelly Miller is a professor at the University of Colorado Boulder, she is leading a six-month research project looking at singers' and other musicians' transmission of aerosol particles. She says that singing in a room for an extended period of time, in close contact with lots of people and no ventilation is a recipe for disaster."
Since singing does spread viruses further than speaking, what is IU doing to make sure students and faculty stay safe?
James Strong is a professor of practice and the director of the IU Soul Revue, which is an R&B ensemble dedicated to the preservation and promotion of Black popular music. He said the safety of everyone is being taken very seriously.
“Well, you know, for us at the African American Arts Institute, our number one priority is safety.” Strong said.
He said that IU has done a fabulous job of making sure the entire university stays safe during the reopening.
“IU has really, really been working hard on setting up comprehensive detailed guidelines for everyone to follow. And I must say they have really went into detail on how they’re going to allow this reopening for us.” Strong said.
He says the university has implemented a rigorous testing protocol along with other procedures and guidelines.
“They have a rigorous contact tracing apparatus in place, disinfecting facilities, social distancing, wearing masks, you know, also along with promoting personal accountability and common-sense managers.” Strong said.
He said that prior to COVID, dozens of singers would rehearse together in a room, but post-COVID procedures have changed all that. He said spacing will be implemented in rooms and students will be allowed in the rehearsal halls only at specific times and in limited numbers. Strong said they will be working in small groups, the rehearsal rooms will be thoroughly disinfected, and students will be assigned their own microphone throughout the duration of the semester.
“So let’s say we’re going to be sort of piecing together you know our shows and how we do our shows and in other words won’t see a room with you know twenty students singing all together like that, you know five to six students properly spaced out.” Strong said.
He said in addition to those safety protocols, they are looking into acquiring masks made especially for vocalists. Strong said while all the safety measures are essential, it’s going to come down to personal accountability.
“Because it is a college campus and we’re dealing with young adults and so, you know, personal accountability is going to have to come into play, you know, and to help us make all these protocols and all these rules and things that we’re putting in place to ensure that everyone is safe.” Strong said.
He said the IU Soul Revue season will look different from usual, but the show will go on.
“Everything is still based on, you know, locally statewide and countrywide you know, what we do. As they change, the landscape changes for us also. So, we have to be able to be flexible enough to bend and the winds of change blow through.” Strong said.
In a normal season, IU Soul Revue travels around the country to perform and also has two popular performances in Bloomington. One is the Spring show and other is the Potpourri, which showcases all three of the ensembles from the African American Arts Institute. Those include the African American choral ensemble, the African American Dance Company and the IU Soul Revue. He said that they are planning their performance schedule, but they also need to be adaptable and they may need to be virtual.
“Things are changing day to day, week to week, month to month. We do have contingency plans in place that will enable us to continue on with the good work we are doing.” Strong said.
He said that while COVID-19 affects the Black population at a disproportionate rate and he is concerned about his students and faculty, he believes that adhering to safety protocols and personal accountability will go a long way in keeping the community safe and healthy.
“We have to do this together. You know, there are going to probably be some outliers at some point. But I believe that if we, we take this walk together we can get through this.” Strong said.
With information continuing to be updated daily, best practice to remain healthy is to follow the current guidelines and stay informed.
For the latest news and resources about COVID-19, bookmark our Coronavirus In Indiana pagehere.
