Join Choir not Band

At the school I teach in I am both the Choir and the Band teacher. Sometimes I have students who come to me with the question...

I can only take one or the other which one do you suggest I take?

Choir.

Depending on the circumstances I almost always say Choir.

Now if it is only for a year or even two, like say Jr. High, I always say stick with band. It is easier to come back to choir after a couple years, especially if you are still in band, than it is to try and pick up an instrument you havent played in a long time.

But if they have to choose for good, I say join choir. As you can tell by my Blogs title I am obviously a "Choir Guy" but I think there is more to it than that. I believe that choir will do them more good in the long haul.

I know this is probably a controversial topic but definetly one I would like to discuss because it is something I am sure I will deal with regularly. I want to be fair to my students.

I think students will have more opportunities to use the musical skills they learn in choir later in life more than they will band. Unless some one is really dedicating themselves to an instrument how often will they use it after they graduate High School. I know many parents  of students who played instruments in school who don't even own one today. Yet most parents I know sing regularly be it just in church, church choir, talent shows, community choirs, etc.

What do you think what should I tell my students when they ask Choir or Band?