5: What Makes a Safe Singing Space?
Heather Maîr Thomas 
Looking into what it feels like to be safely supported on your singing journey. How traditional and modern containers both work. The safety of zoom.
What Makes a Safe Singing Space?
Historically, communities have sung for hundreds of years, everywhere.
Sailors sang shanties to direct the rhythm of pulling oars or hoisting sails, workplace songs have emerged from cultures the world over. communities sang in worship, people used to sing together in pubs, gathered around a piano, school assemblies used to involve hymn singing, sports teams sang their National Anthem. Football fans sing at the top of their voices during matches.
It felt like that when I was growing up. Singing was very informal. Nobody cared if you were in tune or trained. The act of singing wasn’t about performance, it was about participation.
When I got older it occurred to me that my upbringing wasn't typical - not the norm in most societies nowadays, and I realised how absent this musical culture was.
For the majority, singing had become something for the stage, not the sitting room. Something people watched or heard, rather than something they did.
And I believe we’ve lost something vital because of it.
Why Singing Now Feels Unsafe for So Many
For many people today, the idea of singing brings up fear. Fear of judgement, fear of not being good enough, fear of being exposed.
This fear often stems from experiences in school, or being told at a young age to be quiet, or to mime. Somewhere along the line, singing stopped being a natural part of life and became something reserved for the 'talented'.
But you don’t need talent to sing. You don't actually need anything, just your own permission - and you need the right environment.
What a Safe Singing Space Looks Like
To me, a safe singing space is one that feels more like a fireside than a stage. Crooning around the kitchen table, relaxed, chilled and playful. Even a group zoom call can feel relaxed and connected.
During lockdown I created a regular, free class called "Relax and Sing for Breathing and Wellbeing". It was full of people who had never sung before, all around the world, coming together, mutually muted, singing along to exercises and recordings at the same time. People looked forward to the sessions and formed a real bond.
I'll link to the communal song we created at the end of this blog post. It still gives me shivers, remembering the circumstances and how so many people had never sung in their lives before.
As Safe Singing Space is where you:
- Don’t have to get it right
- Don’t have to impress anyone
- Are allowed to sound like you, not someone else
- Can explore gently, with support and kindness
It’s a space that welcomes uncertainty, imperfection, and emotion, because all of these are part of being human, and part of using your voice.
Why I Created *Permission to Sing*
After decades of performing, teaching, and working with hundreds of adult beginners, I realised that what many people need isn’t just technique, it’s safety.
Safety to feel. Safety to try. Safety to accept yourself as you are.
That’s why *Permission to Sing* begins not with songs, but with breath, sound, and curiosity. It offers the kind of space I grew up with, relaxed, kind, unpressured. Even if you’ve never had that kind of experience before.
You don't need a special venue, studio or hall. You can sing wherever you are. The bathroom, the car, the shed.... wherever you feel safe that you have privacy and it's a space you can relax in.
Reclaiming the Communal Voice
Singing has always been a way for people to connect, with themselves, with one another and with something greater. We’ve sung to mourn, to celebrate, to belong.
You don’t have to be from a musical family to remember that - it’s in us all - and it’s never too late to return to it.
A Safe Place to Begin Again
*Permission to Sing* was created as a gentle re-entry point. For those who’ve been silenced, or simply forgotten the joy of using their voice. You’re welcome here, not when you’re ready to perform, but right now, exactly as you are.
Let me know how you get on! What space have you found where you can sing undisturbed?
Oll and Gwella
Permission to Sing - Mini Course
Relax and Sing (the Virtual Voice Club) Lockdown Video
Categories: : BEGINNERS, PERMISSION TO SING
