In the twenty-first century, knowledge of audio recording equipment has become an essential tool for every choral director. From submitting national and state honor ensemble auditions to creating learning tracks for at-home practice, producing a quality audio recording is now a pedagogical necessity. Despite its importance, many directors lack the technical expertise and confidence to […]
Podcast
ChoralEd, Advantages of Curwen Hand Signs
Have you ever found yourself in the middle of a rehearsal, wishing you had a secret window into your singers’ minds?[i] A way to see, not just hear, if they’re truly grasping the music? If so, you may want to consider incorporating Curwen hand signs. For those unfamiliar, Curwen hand signs are a system of […]
ChoralEd: Simplify the Music Learning Process: Harmonic Chord Chart
In episode 37, ChoralEd host Micah Bland recommends the use of a harmonic chord chart when sight-reading new performance repertoire. The implementation of a harmonic chord chart serves two purposes. First, pitch and rhythm are separated from each other allowing students to focus on one musical element at a time. This feature can be advantageous […]
ChoralEd: Avoiding Rote Teaching – Using Solfège to Introduce New Repertoire
Introducing music using a rote technique has its advantages in certain circumstances. However, possibly more impactful is connecting the sight-reading skills that are required in most state music standards with the learning of new performance repertoire. To begin, have students count the rhythm separately from the music. Concurrently with this step, students can begin to […]
ChoralEd: Identifying Potential Vocal Challenges in the Repertoire
Prior to introducing new repertoire to an ensemble, choral directors should carefully evaluate their selections for potential vocal challenges as they prepare for the rehearsal process. To identify potential vocal challenges choral directors should look at and sing through each voice part and consider the following questions. Where did I have trouble? Where will my […]
ChoralEd: Selecting Appropriate Repertoire
When selecting repertoire for the choral ensemble a great deal of care and thought should be given to each song as this music will serve as your curriculum for roughly eight weeks of rehearsal. By selecting repertoire that is at the appropriate difficulty level, (as opposed to music that is too easy or difficult) you […]