@Kathy Unfortunately the deaf sister does have good hearing aids as well as a microphone but she still has a lot of difficulty. I do believe people who are tone deaf could be trained but its a matter of how. I would be interested in knowing what you tried for children.

We also do have some range issues. I have two sisters who insist that they are altos but when they are off key they sing higher... so I am almost positive they are in reality sopranos that have never been used to hearing themselves sing high.

Barring a medical condition, "tone-deaf" adults can learn to match pitch, providing they are willing to (1) work at it and (2) not sing everything that the full choir sings. Here is what I have done with a handful of singers:

1. Figure out their comfortable speaking range. One way to do this is have them start talking, and interrupt them by singing a note in their speaking range. From there you can figure out a comfortable range to begin with them.

2. Tell them: "I'm going to sing two pitches, and each time I do that, I want you to sing them back to me."

3. Sing sol-mi in their speaking range, on a neutral syllable. They will sing something back, probably not what you sang to them.

4. Sing back to them what they sang to you (don't tell them you're doing this). Ideally, they will sing the same thing again.

5. If they sing something different, repeat #4 until they sing exactly what you have just sung (which is what they just sang).

6. Once they do that, they have matched pitch. Let them know that they did, and tell them that they were able to match pitch some of the time, and that if they are willing to work with you, they could learn to improve.

Singing back what they just sang to you seems like a gimmick, but it works. What I have found is that repeated work in this exercise over a period of time with a willing singer will reduce the amount of time it takes for them to match what you sing.

A few other notes:

-Then there is still a long and difficult road ahead -- matching more difficult intervals, adding text, stretching out of the speaking range, not to mention vocal basics such as breathing and tone etc. The singer will likely need to sit out most things at first. One can learn by experience various techniques during rehearsal for getting them back on point when they get tonally "lost."
-A person who cannot match pitch and is not willing to follow instructions to get there cannot sing in a choir, because (as far as I know) there isn't any "secret" way of leading them in to matching pitch. They have to know and accept the fact, and be willing to work.
-Nobody, in my opinion, should ever be labeled "tone-deaf." Rather, it should simply be said that they are currently not able (or are working on improving their ability) to match pitch sufficiently.

Of course, being a convent choir brings various advantages and disadvantages as far as this procedure is concerned. So you may need to adapt this procedure to your own circumstances. I pray, however, that you are blessed with willing learners.

My experience as a visitor of many convents and monasteries is that those that have very good singing also have voice lessons.

For the rest, most places I visit have two kinds of singing - one being the hours or office, which is sung by all, and some sing very well and some not so well, but all sing or recite in turn as required, and if some are a bit out of tune or the voices don't blend, that's just life.

The other kind of singing being for the Mass or special occasions (Christmas concert, et cetera) in which the choir is only those with better voices, and they rehearse daily to prepare that music.

As a singer and formerly shy person, I'd add one other tip to the better ones in Jon's post: many people who 'can't sing' are very tense and have no air flow (perhaps trying too hard to sound pretty, or because they are timid and afraid of making mistakes). Learning to relax (using arm and body movement can help) and breath in and out freely and deeply (say, with vocalizations and breathing exercises) can help a lot in breaking that 'itty bitty voice' habit. I think women and shy people tend to suffer this problem more. It does require some space where one can make mistakes and sound silly and make noise just to learn how the body works. Kind of like learning to ride a bike requires many experiences of crashing into things and falling over to figure out where the balance point is.

Hello Sister! I will bookmark this thread for future reference!

My sympathies from my own experience. We had a challenge where one or two lone singers on one side of choir had to contend with an elderly Sister, deaf with hearing aids, who "sang" all over the map -- if the psalm tone went up, she went down, etc. Eventually the superior had mercy on the choir and asked Sister just to mouth the words. It makes a big difference.

On the other hand, sometimes it is possible to have a historically good singer, who held up her side of the choir, become less and less able to hold pitch due to advancing old age and health problems . . . totally unaware that she is dragging everyone down. We are having recourse to the organ, regretfully.

Monastic choirs are usque ad mortem. No firing volunteers. "Till death do us part." It doesn't have to be worthy of a recording (if only!). Charity is of prime importance, in the human relationships involved; yet sanity also has its own demands, when we have to sing the Office so many times a day.

Didn't Dom Marmion call the Office truly "a sacrifice of praise," and the monastic life, "the antechamber to Heaven"--PURGATORY!

(Just in fun. I wouldn't trade this life for anything in the entire created universe!) Yet it also takes fortitude for us who have been given this charge to try and make progress, or do something helpful for the Sisters and the choir. CatherineS, if only we could find someone to help us with singing! It doesn't seem possible, so we do what we can.

Here are some tips:

Matching Pitch requires Dialing Down and Dialing In...

1. have EVERYONE sing as soft as possible. Many times going off pitch is because people want to sing forte... this is pitch sensitivity... my phrase is always 'blend with your friend'.

2. sing in the ear of a single person who struggles. Do this privately one on one.... SOFTLY! have them try to match pitch.

3. Do this excersize over and over and over.

Starting low: Do-Re-Me-Fa-Sol-Fa-Mi-Re Do. Each note is a quarter note and take it at 120bpm. Then ascend a half step and repeat the excersize until you do a good half an octave. Then reverse the chromatic ascent to descending. This must be done softly and really get everyone close to each other (shoulder to shoulder)... do this in a semi-dead acoustic, and then move it into a live acoustic. Show them the difference between the two, the pros and cons. Have everyone stand in a semi-circle when doing this. LISTENING TO ONE ANOTHER IS AN ART, and blending is the result!

4. Divide and conquer... never put two pitch challenged people next to each other... put really good singers on both sides of the one needing help.

5. NEVER EVER show frustration or disapproval. This is a long term project. As long as there is a bit of progress from week to week and month to month, it will all come together. Be consistent. Keep doing this over and over and over.