About Session
Bridging the Gap Between Commercial and Community Music
Pop Nation Canada is Canada’s largest contemporary choir organization, engaging more than 450 singers ages 6 to 65+ across diverse performance ensembles and recreational classes. Their model prioritizes joy, movement, social connection, and the celebration of uniqueness over perfectionism, creating a space where singers can grow musically while also cultivating authentic community.
Scholarship affirms that choirs are more than music – they are spaces of identity, belonging, and connection (Durrant, 2005) – and that ensembles must adapt to meet the cultural and social needs of the 21st century (Smith, D’Amore, & Hibbert, 2017). Yet, few case studies illustrate how these principles can be applied across multiple age levels within one organization. Pop Nation offers such an example, reimagining choir as a place where the energy and popularity of commercial music intersect with the inclusive, relational ethos of community music.
This presentation highlights Pop Nation’s distinctive practices, including specialized crossover vocal techniques; the replacement of uniform costumes with a look book that celebrates diverse bodies; the incorporation of original music in every concert with songs written specifically for each age group; the use of an Artist Collaboration Agreement to establish inclusive rehearsal culture; student-centric learning tools; peer mentorship across age levels; trauma-informed pedagogy; and reflective leadership. Together, these transformative approaches foster joy, belonging, and fun resulting in high retention and consistently positive participant feedback.
