Choral music on the fly

 

Each hand gesture – two fingers stabbing the air, a palm facing upward – symbolizes a different type of sound, which the choir then creates with their voices.

This is the Overtime Improv Choir, a Fredericton-based improvising choir and the brainchild of Joel LeBlanc. In the summer of 2010, LeBlanc was collaborating with a friend who teaches music at University of Toronto and stumbled upon the rare concept of an improv choir.

“She was using some of my pieces for her vocal ensemble classes that she teaches there. She started telling me she has this improvising choir and I thought about writing music for one.

“The biggest thing I got out of it was working with the improv choir and seeing how it works and seeing how it’s available to anybody…I thought that was really exciting. I like the idea that you can just grab anyone at all and work toward free or collective improvisation.”

Overtime’s No. 1 rule is the door is always open, regardless of talent or experience. LeBlanc’s history with music has involved experimenting with different genres, including the 12 years he spent with local trio Hot Toddy, and he thrives on incorporating each singer into the collective.

“Anybody can do it, it’s not intended only for experts or trained singers. It’s meant for absolutely anyone to take part. The challenge was to try to write music in such a way that anybody could handle it.”

During each practice, LeBlanc teaches new conductive cues. During the rest of the rehearsal, LeBlanc busts out his musical talent and composes a piece based on the way each voice blends together.