Lisa Liberty Becker | Yearning for reconnecting with the chorus

By Patrick Chatelain
Editor: Ningxuan Hu

Professor Lisa Liberty Becker has written and edited for numerous publications, including The Washington Post, Boston Globe Magazine, Boston Magazine, and Sports Illustrated Women. She is also the author of Net Prospect, a critically acclaimed book illustrating multiple perspectives on recruiting for women’s college basketball. Now, she teaches at her alma mater in the COM writing program. Outside of her work, Becker sings in The Greater Boston Intergenerational Chorus.

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted every aspect of normal life from school to work to recreational activities. “It’s really isolating. Nobody really likes being stocked at home,” Becker said. Like most of us, Becker is eager to return to normal activities once the threat of the pandemic passes. Among her desires to return to physical classroom with her students, get-togethers with friends, eating out, and working out in public gyms, Becker looks forward to singing in The Greater Boston Intergenerational Chorus once again. 

The Greater Boston Intergenerational Chorus is a community chorus located in Watertown. The chorus has 80 members in total, from seniors as old as 80 to children as young as 10 years old. The group includes anyone who has an interest in music – from artists who compose their own pieces to enthusiasts who are new to reading sheet music.

The chorus is also inclusive through its variety of music genres. Members practice a range of styles including African, spiritual, folk, jazz, gospel, novelty, classical and modern music. All of the songs are original compositions made by members of the chorus. 

“Choruses is good for the soul to do,” said Becker who enjoys the social aspect of singing as a community. Becker has participated in multiple choruses throughout her life. 

She first joined The Greater Boston Intergenerational Chorus with the older of her two sons when he was in the sixth grade. Together they practiced and performed with the chorus for three years before her son entered high school. Although her son left the chorus, Becker stayed with the chorus — it has been six years now. 

Aside from practicing and performing, the group comes together for social outings. “You become close to the people you sit near,” said Becker as she described the friendships she formed within the group. 

The COVID-19 pandemic halted the activity of The Greater Boston Intergenerational Chorus. The group has not been able to host their weekly Tuesday meetings since February and will not meet again for the remainder of the 2020 calendar year. 

Recently, in lieu of in-person meetings, the group started meeting over Zoom calls. However, the virtual world came with its own challenges. Audio delay has prevented the group from having practices efficiently. “Anything that needs to be exactly in-sync is nearly impossible,” said Becker referring to the synchronous singing that is essential in a chorus. Due to these difficulties, they have only had a few online meetings since the quarantine. 

For Becker, The Greater Boston Intergenerational Chorus represents what people have been yearning since the pandemic shut down recreational activities: going out and connecting with a community.

“The value of the community is something that I’ve learnt from the pandemic,” said Becker. Until the pandemic settles and a vaccine is made, she will remain diligent in social distancing and await the day she can return to her beloved chorus rehearsals.