Choral singing, choral attendance, and the situation of choirs in Canada
Three major research projects for Choral Canada
Funded primarily by Choral Canada and the Canada Council for the Arts, three major research projects have recently been completed:
- A survey of 2,000 Canadians 18 or older related to choral singing and attendance
- A detailed survey of 861 choral organizations in Canada, representing over 1,500 choirs and 60,000 singers
- An estimate of the number of choirs in Canada, involving a random sample of 864 schools and 977 churches as well as the survey of choral organizations
Key research findings include:
- 3.5 million Canadians sang in a choir in 2016 (10% of the population).
- The 3.5 million choral singers would constitute the largest city in Canada, 27% larger than the population of Toronto in 2016 (2.7 million, according to the 2016 census).
- About one in every 4 Canadian children sings in a choir (23%).
- 3 times more children under 18 sing in a choir than play hockey.
- 1.8 million Canadian adults (7% of all adults) sing in a choir. There are about 50% more adult choral singers than hockey players in Canada.
- More than 1 in 4 Canadian adults attended a choral performance in 2016 (7.8 million people).
- There are about 28,000 choirs in Canada.
- Choirs are involved in the social fabric of their communities. For example, 68% of responding choirs did community outreach (such as singing at hospitals, support facilities or other community events), and 62% performed at charity concerts or singing engagements in 2016.
- Attracting new singers is a key challenge for Canadian choirs.
A more detailed summary of the research is available here.
Also available are three infographics produced for the project:
- Key findings from the public survey
- Findings regarding choral (and music) education
- Key findings from all research elements
