Introduction
As the festive season is upon us, it seems appropriate to
consider a suitably seasonal film. The Christmas Choir
offers an updated version of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol by
telling the story of a workaholic, self-absorbed man who is jilted
into realising that life is about so much more. It is essentially a
tale of redemption, love and second chances that highlights the
power of music to unite and to transform.
What makes this film especially interesting is
that it is based on a true story. A French dental technician named
Pierre Anthian, who had a background in classical music, moved to
Canada in 1995 and began volunteering at a shelter for the homeless
in Montreal, because he had always devoted much of his time to
helping disadvantaged people. He was motivated by a long held aim
to create a choir of homeless men, which was partly inspired by the
important role that music played in his life. Anthian is quoted as
saying “Music is good for the soul. I hoped a choir might provide
these men with a way to earn a little money and to gain
self-confidence and dignity.” He put out a call amongst the street
community in downtown Montreal, asking for choir members and
stating that musical experience and talent were not necessary. Not
long after rehearsals began he had collected 20 people, ranging in
age from 19 to 67, some with drug and alcohol problems and a few
with musical ability, which resulted in the birth of the Accueil
Bonneau Choir. They made their debut in December 1996 in a subway
station and went on to make six albums and to tour as far afield as
Paris and New York. The choir disbanded in 2003, as many of
its members had found jobs.
Written by Donald Martin and directed by Peter
Svatek in 2008, The Christmas Choir was first shown on
television in America and has only just been released on DVD, in
the UK, in September 2010.
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The Film
As the film opens, we are introduced to Peter
Brockman, hard at work in his office, where his secretary asks him,
apologetically, if she can have leave during the week after
Christmas, to see her family. Absorbed in his accountancy work, he
almost forgets that he is supposed to meet his fiancée for a meal
that evening and consequently arrives late to hear her tell him she
no longer wants to marry him because he is a workaholic. Confused
and upset, Peter consoles himself in a bar where a man called Bob
is playing the piano and singing. They start to talk and find that
both had mothers who believed in the power of music to nourish the
souls. Bob invites Peter back to meet ‘his family’, which turns out
to be the residents of a homeless shelter. Here Peter meets sister
Agatha, a formidable nun who runs the centre. She accepts a
generous donation from him but also invites him to give his time to
volunteering if he is able. He tells her that this is unlikely as
he has very little time, but he finds himself drawn back to the
shelter with the idea of starting a choir for the men there. He
hopes to give them the chance to earn some money for Christmas.
With some scepticism and reluctance, sister Agatha allows him to
try. The rest of the film tells the story of his struggle to make
the choir a success and to find out what really matters to him. As
Peter finds purpose in his life through the choir, he also finds
new love.
The Christmas Choir is also a film
about estrangement between fathers and sons. We discover that Peter
has had no contact with his father for sometime and that Fred, one
of the homeless men, has been shunned by his son. We find
out, too, that Peter’s father has a problem with alcohol, which
Peter finds very hard to deal with. This difficulty is echoed in
the problem drinking of one of the choir members, which almost
threatens to destroy the project at one point. The film reminds us
that anyone, from any walk of life, can encounter difficulties with
alcohol and money that may set them on the slippery slope to
homelessness and that receiving help at just the right time can
make the difference between success and failure for an
individual.
Relevance to the field of Mental Health
The Christmas Choir presents us with two important
topics that have a great relevance to those involved in mental
health: the first is the field of Music Therapy and
the second is the issue of psychiatric morbidity among the
homeless.
To quote from Nordoff Robbins, the UK
charity that specialises in using music to transform the lives of
mentally or physically disabled adults and children: “Clap your
hands. Tap your feet. Sing out loud. Dance or stomp. Shout or cry.
We all react to music in different ways. But we all react. Because
music has a universal power to reach us, touch us and make us feel
different.”
There is a growing body of research in the
Music Therapy field that seeks to examine its clinical
effectiveness as an evidence-based practice in a wide range of
client groups. The Nordoff Robbins research department presents
some of this research in a publication, freely available online,
called
Presenting the Evidence. Of particular interest to
psychiatrists is the work being done, by music therapists, with
dementia sufferers, stroke victims, individuals with learning
disability and those diagnosed with autistic spectrum
disorders.
The Christmas Choir may touch many of
us, at least in part, because the Carols in the film have probably
been known to most viewers living in Christian societies since
their childhood, whatever their religious beliefs. They often
provoke memories of past Christmases, whether good or bad, just as
they do for Peter in the film. This musical recognition can
demonstrate to us how music might be used in a therapeutic setting.
In a reminiscence session, for example, individuals suffering from
dementia, who lived through the second World War, may be able to
connect with their early life by singing along to wartime tunes
when they are unable to express those memories in words.
Turning to the other topic of relevance to the
mental health field, The Christmas Choir brilliantly
highlights some of the psychosocial issues associated with being
homeless. Much research has examined the psychiatric morbidity that
is associated with homelessness. An original paper by Marianne
Hayward entitled Psychiatric
morbidity and health service use among attendees at a winter
shelter, (Psychiatric Bulletin (2007), 31, 326-329), found
31.3% of 597 attendees, at a Christmas shelter in the UK, were
recorded as having psychiatric morbidity. Many other studies have
shown an increased rate of depression, anxiety, psychosis and
substance misuse in the homeless population, making it hugely
important to target this population and encourage better engagement
with mental health services.
For homeless people, breaking away from their
social exclusion and poverty is often very difficult as it can be
almost impossible to get employment whilst they are homeless, but
to find even temporary accommodation can be too great a financial
challenge. Organisations like Off the Streets and into Work and
Crisis
(who merged together in April 2010) work hard to find employment
solutions for homeless people. In the current economic climate this
has become an even tougher task. Homeless Link is the national
membership organisation for frontline homelessness agencies in
England. Their mission is to be a catalyst that will attempt to
bring an end to homelessness. Their website provides the
interested reader with a wealth of information on the issues and
facts surrounding homeless living.
This year, the BBC Radio 4 Christmas Appeal
also addresses the issue of homelessness by highlighting the work
of The
Connection, an organization providing specialist services for
the homeless in central London.
The Christmas Choir, based upon the
real life experiences of a small number of homeless men, provides a
wonderful introduction to some of the complex issues surrounding
homelessness, as well as to the power of music to transform
lives.
- More information about The Christmas Choir can be
found at IMDB as
can a short
trailer.
- The DVD may be purchased at
amazon.co.uk.
- Minds on Film blog is written by Dr J Almeida, Consultant
Psychiatrist.
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