Treble Repertoire for Soprano and Alto Choirs

The October 2023 issue of Choral Journal is online and features an article titled “Treble Repertoire for Soprano and Alto Choirs: A Content Analysis of Choral Journal Repertoire Articles from 1966 to 2019” by Alicia Canterbury Vorel and Elizabeth Hearn. Following is a portion from the article.
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As an official publication of ACDA, the Choral Journal (CJ) has fostered scholarship while simultaneously disseminating organizational news and information for over sixty years.1 The early issues consisted mostly of news related writings and ads with a few pedagogical articles. Over time, CJ emerged as an internationally recognized, peer-reviewed publication that today, promulgates research and pedagogical articles about choral music and related topics. The Journal has and continues to serve as a barometer of evolving norms and practices in the choral field. Because of its scope and reach, one might argue that its articles have not just informed but shaped the ideas, practices, and opinions of the choral profession.

Because of its longstanding and varied contributions to the field, CJ provides a wealth of data for scholars to mine. While a number of music journals have served as the focus of various content analyses,2 few scholarly writings have analyzed the occurrence and recurrence of particular topics in the Choral Journal,3 in particular, analysis of and recommended repertoire for treble/SA choirs. This type of analysis is needed to provide perspective and context to discussions about treble/SA choirs.

The purpose of this article is to examine and analyze the forty treble repertoire-focused articles published in the Choral Journal from 1966 to 2019. As scholars interested in secondary and collegiate treble/SA choirs, we were curious about the nature of treble choir repertoire included in CJ articles, specifically, which compositions for treble choir have appeared frequently in CJ articles and what story do they tell? By highlighting compositions that were included in multiple articles, we were able to identify relationships and patterns in the repertoire articles while documenting the evolution of repertoire-focused articles over time.

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Read the full article in the October 2023 issue of Choral Journal. acda.org/choraljournal