Sign Choirs - An Interpreter's Point of View

A very popular trend in Pentecost today is the use of sign choirs.  Normally, young people, especially young ladies, wear dark clothing and perform a recorded song in “American Sign Language” as part of the worship service.  Over the years I have seen a great many of these sign choirs, and as a sign language interpreter and former sign choir director I would like to offer a few thoughts on the subject. 

I would preface the remainder of this article with a disclaimer of sorts.  I will be extremely blunt for the sake of clarity.  Please do not mistake forthrightness as accusatory in any way.  I believe our sign choirs are most often led by wonderful saints and young people with great intentions.  My comments on the subject are intended only to help bring into focus the purpose of sign choirs and offer some suggestions for helping them achieve the goal they were designed for.

The first thing that must be remembered in considering a sign choir is that American Sign Language (ASL) is a LANGUAGE.  It is not a “performing art” or a form of drama.  It has a set vocabulary, grammar, syntax, etc.  There are rules to sign language just as there are to any other language, and for the signer to be understood those rules must be followed. 

The second thing which is important to understand is the difference between translating and interpreting.  Translating is providing a word for word parallel of one language to another.  Interpreting is providing a thought for thought parallel from one language into another.  You will not hear the term “sign language translator” used by those who are familiar with the language because spoken language does not directly translate into sign language.  Instead, you will hear the term, “sign language interpreter.”  This is because ASL has a much smaller vocabulary than most spoken languages and therefore it is impossible to directly translate every spoken word.   

Finally, in order to clearly convey meaning sign language uses what are called, “non-manual markers.”  In layman’s terms – facial expression, size of sign, mouthing the signed words, etc.  For example, the sentences, “I understand” and “I don’t understand” can be signed using the exact same words and differentiating them with a simple headshake.

One of my primary concerns with sign choirs is that many of them focus on the often  in accurate use of non-manual markers with little if any attention paid to the vocabulary.  The trend is for the sign choir to move in such as a way as to give the feel of the music without actually signing it.  It is unquestionable that for music to be truly interpreted you have to include the beat, the flow of the words, and the overall mood of the music.  I’m not suggesting that these things be excluded in a sign choir.  On the contrary, in training interpreters I have strongly encouraged them to make music LOOK like music.  But while music does need to look musical, if someone who knows sign language cannot understand the song your choir is signing without the audio, you have become ineffective as a sign choir and are actually doing little more than performing a version of “interpretative dance. 

Consider this – you have a “Spanish choir” that gets up and intends to sing in “Spanish.”  But rather than actually using the translated lyrics, they sing  words such as ‘hola, adios, Jesus, queso, enchilada, Senor’ to the tune of “The Blood Will Never Lose Its Power.”  It sounds great!  It sounds worshipful.  It sounds like a song we should raise our hands and praise to.  So…does the fact that it sounds good make it something we should sing in church?  Does God get glory from it?  Is it worship?  Of course not.  But when the same thing is done in sign language we overlook it.  Sadly, that example is no exaggeration.  I can tell you that with the exception of one, almost every sign choir I have seen is NO MORE than 50% accurate and most of them use less than 15% accurate signs.  In fact, one group I saw signed no more than 5 words of the entire song in the correct context.  In other words, most sign choirs are largely “interpretive dance teams” with little to no correlation to sign language.

With that said, worship is a corporate activity, not a spectator event.  Sign language is a truly beautiful language and is certainly readily appreciated by a hearing-only audience, especially if it is dramatized to the point of interpretive dance.  It is a great performance to enjoy, but for a hearing only audience, a performance is all it is.  Furthermore, for a deaf audience, if it is not truly an interpretation of the song, a performance is all it is.  In my opinion, if you do not have a deaf person participating in your service you need to carefully consider the use of sign choirs in service on a regular basis.  What purpose is the sign choir serving and is the use of it giving glory to God?  And even if the choir is genuinely worshipping, is the use of a sign choir promoting corporate worship or encouraging spectatorship?   

Another concern with the increased use of sign choirs is the sense of competition between youth groups that results. I have no problem with some healthy competition on the volleyball court at a youth social event, but when we come into the House of God, we are there to enter His presence, give Him glory, and allow Him to change our lives.  There is no room in that paradigm for competition, pride, or vanity whether in clothing, hairstyles, musical ability, or sign choirs.  It isn’t about who can do the most dramatic version of “Break Every Chain” or which choir can stay the most perfectly unified while signing “Freedom.”  It should ALL be about giving glory to God.  All too often that focus is lost among our youth.

For those who would use sign choirs as a way of training interpreters in case you ever have a deaf person in your church, I have mixed feelings.  On one hand, sign choirs are a great way to spark interest in the language and it is far easier to build a deaf congregation with someone who already knows how to sign.  On the other hand, I believe frequent use of sign choirs in regular services when there are no deaf people present can be counter-productive.  Furthermore, if the purpose of having a sign choir is in preparation for the occasion when a deaf person might attend your Church, why allow the signing to be done in a totally incorrect and incomprehensible manner?  My personal opinion is that using sign choirs for holiday banquets or special presentations is not a bad choice, but beyond that training would be better accomplished through sign language lunches or special classes.

So…what if there are deaf people in your church?  In that case, I believe a sign choir is a wonderful addition to the service.  Just as I believe that a bilingual Spanish/English church should sing in both languages, I believe it is appropriate for a bilingual English/ASL church to utilize both languages in their worship.  In that setting a sign choir allows the deaf congregation to worship with a special song in much the same way hearing people worship with a choir or chorale.  But there are still some guidelines that should be kept in mind with the use of a “visual” language.

First, remember that there is a visual “box” for interpreting.  Now, I don’t mind telling you that Apostolic church interpreters don’t stay in the “official interpreter” box any more than Apostolic worshippers sit with their hands folded.  If they did all emotion would be lost.  But there is still an appropriate visual area for even an excited Pentecostal interpreter.  That box, loosely speaking, extends vertically from about 10 inches above your head to your waist and horizontally the span of your arms.  When you move into the realm of a sign choir that box enlarges a little bit more.  It goes from about a foot above your head to your knees and offers the ability to lean right and left or step one direction or another to extend the span of your arms. 

Keeping that box in mind, here are some basic rules of thumb for sign choirs.  I would reiterate that while I am being extremely blunt, I am not suggesting that anyone is intentionally inappropriate; rather, I am offering advice on ways to avoid accidental oversights that could cause hindrances.

-          Large signs are often more clear.  Huge signs are so big they lose their definition.  Be careful not to make the sign so big and “flowing” that it can’t be understood. 

-          Stay off the floor.  There is no reason to drop to your knees, lean down and touch the floor, or do anything else lower than knee level.  When you do, the signs drop below the congregation’s line of vision and can’t be seen. 

-          Ladies need to avoid drawing attention to their breasts.  Toward that end, do not make a sign that fully extends both arms out to the side or above the head.  Don’t lean forward or backward beyond a 45* angle, and don’t swoop dramatically forward or backward.  Not only is this completely unnecessary, it creates an inappropriate focus, and in some cases begs for necklines to gape open and expose a lady’s bosom.   And lest someone protest that only the dirty-minded would focus on the ladies’ chests while watching a sign choir, remember that the visitor sitting on your pew doesn’t have the Holy Ghost to help him guard his mind.

-          Ladies, keep your knees together.  It is never appropriate for you to do more than step forward, backward, or to the side with a “normal” stride.  Again, protect the minds of our men by not spreading your legs apart.

-          Find the correct signs.  Look online for ideas for how to make the signs more musical.  Talk to interpreters to get ideas for signs that can be substituted without losing meaning.  Figure out which words are crucial to understanding the song and which words can be left out without sacrificing content.  Work on fitting the signs to the music in such a way as to make them LOOK like the song sounds.  But when all is said and done, sign the song – don’t just move to the music.

In conclusion, I would like to reiterate that I am not opposed to the use of sing choirs.  But I do believe it is imperative for us to give careful consideration to everything we do in our church services to ensure that they are done decently and in order and serve to glorify God.  I hope this post has provided some helpful guidelines that will serve to make our use of sign choirs more effective in the Kingdom.  Thank you for reading.