Explorations of Inmate and Volunteer Choral Experiences in a Prison-based Choir

Abstract

The purpose of this investigation was to explore participants' (N=44) experiences in a joint inmate-community volunteer choir at a minimum security prison. Initial survey data provided a demographic profile of both inmate (n=20) and volunteer (n=24) participants, and indicated significant agreement that their participation afforded: (a) means to a peak experience with momentary disappearance of stresses and (b) a sense of accomplishment. Among significant variations between participant responses: (a) inmates perceived more improvement in intrapersonal skills than volunteers and (b) volunteers reported more success in identifying out of tune singing than inmates. Subsequent qualitative data included interviews, field notes, and material culture. A grounded theory, formulated from emergent themes in conversation with relevant literature, suggested that choral music education experiences, approached more comprehensively than simply promoting interaction between individual singers and a musical score, may carry potential for transformative personal and interpersonal change in prison choir contexts.

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