Redemption Songs: A Year in the Life of a Community Prison Choir

by Andy Douglas

"Redemption Songs" takes the reader inside the walls of a medium-security prison and offers a glimpse at how music and the arts are offering second chances to the incarcerated. For six years, the author volunteered with the Oakdale Community Choir, a performing chorus composed of volunteers and inmates, based in a men's correctional facility in Coralville, Iowa. As the gates clang shut behind choir volunteers each week, the reader encounters the rewards and challenges of creating music in this environment, a place usually defined by trauma, danger, and control. But it’s also, as we learn, a place where healing, atonement and growth can occur.

Through crisp prose, “Redemption Songs” describes the lives of people struggling to overcome their pasts, volunteers who dedicate their time and energy to offer hope, and prison administrators charged with balancing security needs with opportunities for inmate self-improvement.

The United States incarcerates more people per capita than any other country in the world. With more than two million prisoners in U.S. jails and prisons, many Americans know someone impacted by the system. In addition to describing the choir's progress as it shores up its repertoire for several concerts each season, the book examines some of the pressing issues facing the criminal justice system and the people we as a society have chosen to put behind bars.

It also reflects on several questions: How can music and the arts inspire prisoners to change? Should the underlying philosophy of our correctional system be one of retribution or restoration? What can restorative justice, a philosophy which focuses on redressing the harm done when a crime is committed, offer to all those touched by crime and the criminal justice system?

Dr. André de Quadros, Professor of Music and Chair, Department of Music Education, Boston University, notes, “More than an account of the choir’s work, the book is a deep insight into musical humanity under dehumanizing conditions. Douglas’s work is evocative and thoughtful, deeply compassionate and humble, and brings the reader close to the troubled lives, wounds and hopes of the incarcerated men.”

"Redemption Songs" depicts the sheer joy of making music together, and how singing can break down barriers and create community.

218 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 21, 2019

About the author

Andy Douglas was born in Brazil to missionary parents, and travel and spiritual practice have shaped his life ever since. He has practiced yoga and meditation for thirty years, and lived for seven years in various countries of Asia. After returning from Korea in 1990, he worked as a journalist and public radio announcer, before receiving a bachelors’ degree in Anthropology from the University of Iowa. In 2005, he received an MFA in Creative Writing, also from the University of Iowa, where he was the recipient of the Marcus Bach Fellowship for Writing about Religion and Culture. His essays, stories and translations have appeared in Mary, New Renaissance, J Journal, Fogged Clarity, Nimrod, Pisgah Review, Bayou, and The Examined Life. He received a full fellowship for residency at the Vermont Studio Center, and has also had residencies at the Kimmel Harding Nelson Center and the Prairie Center of the Arts. He’s active in peace, economic justice and prison issues, and sings in a choir with prisoners. His partner, Lois, and he both live in Iowa City, Iowa. He has a love for film, music, and literature.

Reviews

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautiful nonfiction book about restoration, reconciliation, community, and the musical work of being in relationship. For me, the book blossomed into a beautiful exploration of the complexity of the most difficult restorative work (especially in the last half of the book). I love the integration of multiple voices from insiders, therapists, wardens, and outsiders into a complex narrative. The last half integrates a compassionate, spiritual exploration of what it means to be broken and to be human. One of my favorite books of the year thus far. Highly recommended!

[Stuart Bishop · Rating 3 out of 5]

I struggled with rating this book, eventually settling on 3 stars as the right place to land.

The writing is a little bit clunky, and there’s a bit too much religiosity in it for the taste of this atheist.

BUT

The subject is important, and the book is written by someone who wants to make a difference and has taken action to do so. Andy Douglas provides a lot of research and opinion in telling the story, and is scrupulous in making the book about the issues and the insiders he meets, not about the narrator.

Not a pleasure to read, but important and absolutely worthy of your time.