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Sing for Success Choral Rehearsal Strategies for a

Rewarding First Reading

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SING for SUCCESS

Choral Rehearsal Strategies for a Rewarding First Reading

by Matthew Bumbach

First impressions are powerful and long lasting. We have likely met a person with whom we connected instantly or, perhaps, someone who rubbed us the wrong way. How often have singers instantly fallen in love with a new piece or, far too often, dismissed a beautiful piece of music because the first reading left them feeling defeated? First read-ings are among the most difficult tasks that choral conductors must perform, yet they are among the most important.

There are a number of approaches to first readings, and they are informed by various philosophies of music educa-tion. Some conductors choose to dive in immediately, putting the incumbency on the choir. This can work well for highly advanced choirs with exceptional sight-reading skills and years of experience. Other conductors avoid the first reading unconditionally, choosing to walk the choir through the piece little by little. Again, this is an excellent method for some choirs or for some pieces of music.

Still, some readings go like this: The conductor hands out a new piece. He or she gives the first pitches, probably from the piano. The choir stumbles through

the first section, often doing fairly well, until something new comes along. A massive train wreck occurs, and all but the diehard sight readers stop singing. The conductor tries to muscle the choir through, but eventually there are no singers left and everybody gives up.

This may not seem like such a big deal. The singers walk away with a general idea of how the piece begins and are aware of the sections that will need serious work. In those few minutes, however, the singers have developed significant bad habits that will require time-consuming correction. Poor tone has been rehearsed, wrong notes and rhythms ingrained and negative opin-ions formed. Imagine, instead, a first reading that leaves the choir feeling suc-cessful and inspired.

Before the RehearsalSignificant conductor preparation should precede any first reading. A number of methods for score study exists. This author favors the use of structural charts and strategic score marking. Each con-ductor should choose a method that she or he finds practical and useful. Normal

practices for preparation should include playing or singing through the piece to familiarize oneself with the melod-ic and harmonic content, investigating the structure of the piece to identify moments of importance or significant change, anticipating difficult elements within the work that may mislead the ensemble and making broad musical decisions. Additionally, the conductor

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may explore the history and background of the work and the composer, and the historical period from which they came. These discoveries will inform and expo-nentially improve the first reading of a piece.

Method for First Reading! Use the warm-up time! Choose carefully

! Rehearse first! “Peel away the layers of the onion”! Send them off singing

Use the Warm-Up TimeThe warm-up time can be used for more than just preparing the voice to sing. It provides the conductor with the oppor-tunity to build vocal technique, develop the singers’ ears, build ensemble and

put elements from musical selections into the ear of the choir. Often conduc-tors rely on major scale warm-ups that fall within one octave. Consider intro-ducing the key or mode of a piece by creating a warm-up in that key or mode. Difficult rhythmic elements, challeng-ing intervals or tricky ostinati can be introduced through an originally cre-ated warm-up. Continued on page 14

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Consider Felix Mendelsohn’s There Shall A Star From Jacob Come Forth. The piece has two main contrasting themes, one legato and the other marcato (Figures 1 and 2). The conductor can create warm-ups from each of these main themes and use them to teach the two different articulations. The legato example (Figure 1) allows the conductor to teach not just the legato articulation, but text stress. There should be motion toward beat one of the second measure, and again to the penultimate note with a de-emphasis of the last note. The marcato example (Figure 2) also allows the conductor to teach text stress, with the height of the phrase on the first syllable of pieces. The final syllable should be de-emphasized. In addition to text stress, the marcato theme gives the conductor the opportunity to teach the proper weight of each beat. Finally, the conductor has easily taught a difficult tritone leap to the entire choir.

Choose CarefullyThough some choral pieces can be suc-cessfully read from cover to cover the first time, it is not necessary for singers to tackle an entire work on the first reading. With a little extra preparation, conductors can choose a section of the work that can be fairly well polished in one sitting. For particularly challenging pieces, the con-ductor may choose to introduce a single phrase.

A first reading of Mendelssohn’s There Shall a Star From Jacob Come Forth may consist of only the main themes, leav-ing out some of the more challenging counter material. Or, perhaps, only the concluding chorale will be introduced in the first reading. The choice of material will depend largely upon the skill level of the choir. No matter the skill level of the choir or how large a section of the piece the group sings, the conductor should aim to send the singers away with a sense of accomplishment.

Rehearse FirstThis author is not an advocate of the cold reading in most situations. Rather, con-ductors can use a short three- to five-min-ute rehearsal to introduce some melodic material, main themes or difficult musi-cal elements that would otherwise be roadblocks to a successful first reading. This short rehearsal may include singing through key changes, rehearsing unex-pected cadences or singing ad libitum through challenging melodies or harmo-nies.

If the conductor has already taught the two main themes from There Shall a Star From Jacob Come Forth during the warm-up time, this is his or her chance to put the themes in context. Ask the singers to identify and even underline places in the music where they are singing one of the two main themes. Next, the choir can

read the first section singing only when they have the main theme. This method will lay the foundation for balance later in the rehearsal process, and this quick introduction will lay tracks in advance to avoid a train wreck later.

“Peel Away the Layers of the Onion”My undergraduate conducting teach-er, Dr. Duncan Couch, frequently used the phrase, “peel away the layers of the onion.” His intention was that choral works, like onions, are made of different layers with simple elements at the core and difficult elements on the outside. The innermost layers are rhythm, pitch and harmony. Middle layers consist of text, dynamics, tempo and articulations. The outer layers are blend, balance and inter-pretation. Conductors can peel away the layers of the onion in rehearsal to expose the core elements.

When a new piece of music is intro-duced to the choir, the conductor should remove as many layers as are neces-sary to allow the choir to be successful. Interpretive layers will almost always be peeled away in the first reading. Depending on the difficulty of the music and the ability of the choir, many of the middle layers should be peeled away as well. Often a choir may need to start with the core of the onion, the rhythm alone, to be successful in the first reading.

Mendelssohn. m. 32-35.

Figure 2. Marcato theme from There Shall a Star From Jacob Come Forth

Felix Mendelssohn, There Shall a Star from Jacob Come Forth. Edited by William Bartholomew. New York: G. Schirmer, 1900. m. 2-4.

Figure 1. Legato theme from There Shall a Star From Jacob Come Forth

Continued from page 13

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As the choir progresses, layers can be added on. This author suggests removing layers in the following order:1. Personalization, meaning, interpreta-

tion, dynamics and articulations will rarely appear in the first reading of a piece.

2. Tempo. Slowing the piece down often makes the first reading dramatically easier. In the case of a dramatically slow piece, speeding up the tempo may make the first reading more suc-cessful.

3. Text, especially foreign language text, can be a huge barrier for singers. Consider, instead, using neutral syl-lables, count singing or solfège. When count singing or using solfège, the conductor should be consistent with the system used at her or his institu-tion.

4. Harmony/other parts. In some cases singers need to isolate their individ-ual parts to hear the melody or main theme in a particular section.

5. Melody. When rhythmic material is particularly difficult, it can be help-ful for the choir to speak through the text first or to sing the rhythms on a neutral chord.

Send Them Off SingingConductors should plan rehearsals to end on a successful sing-through. What better way to end a rehearsal than with a suc-cessful performance of a new piece or sec-tion of music? In the case of Mendelssohn’s There Shall a Star From Jacob Come Forth, the piece ends with a beautiful chorale that can be sight read by a medium advanced choir. A less advanced choir may end the rehearsal by all singing the melody of the chorale while the pianist plays the under-lying accompaniment.

If the final planned portion of rehearsal does not go well, which happens to every choir on occasion, the conductor may go back to another piece or section that was

sung successful-ly. Perhaps the members of the choir will recog-nize this rather trans-parent method of recov-ery, but they will still appreciate the chance to redeem themselves. Send your singers off feeling accomplished, and they will carry their enthusiasm into the next rehearsal.

ConclusionIntroducing a new piece of music to a choir is a difficult task, but it is one that conductors must do frequently. Careful score study and analysis will prepare the conductor to plan the best possible first rehearsal. A successful first rehearsal should make good use of the warm-up time, teaching concepts from the litera-ture through warm-up exercises. Conductors should carefully select sec-tions of the music that can be successfully sung in one rehearsal. Before the first reading, the conductor can take three to five minutes to rehearse challenging ele-ments from the music. The first reading of the piece should not include every ele-ment on the page. “Peel away the layers of the onion” to get to the elements that the choir can sing successfully. Finally, plan rehearsals to end on a sweet note. Singers perform better and want to work harder when they feel successful.

ReferencesDeBoer, T. (January/February 2015). Performance:

A Layered Approach to Rehearsal. Choral Director, 12, no. 1, 14-15.

Lamb, G. (1974). Choral Techniques. Dubuque, Iowa: W. C. Brown Co.

Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, F. & Bartholomew, W. (1900). Christus: An Unfinished Oratorio. G. Schirmer’s Editions of Oratorios and Cantatas.

Phillips, K. (2016). Directing the Choral Music Program. Second Edition. Ed. Oxford. New York: Oxford University Press.

Robinson, Ray. (1976). The Choral Experience: Literature, materials, and methods. Ed. Allen Winold. New York: Harper’s College Press.

Strand, Katherine. (2003). Teaching musical interpretations through choral rehearsals: Examining performance practices of the past can put students on the road to becom-ing independent musicians in the future. Music Educators Journal, 90, no. 1, 43.

Matthew Bumbach is a doctoral candi-date at the University of Miami Frost School of Music. He is a graduate of Stetson University and the University of South Florida and has taught secondary and post-secondary choral music in the state of Florida since 2004.

Figure 3. The musical layers of the onion

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