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One from the Folder: Repertoire Thoughts for Women’s/Treble Choirs

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#45: Friday, March 15, 2019

“Wild Embers” by Melissa Dunphy
Text by Nikita Gill
SSAA, a cappella

I met Melissa at the Composer’s Fair during the recent ACDA national conference in Kansas City. On the hunt for new women’s/treble music, I especially wanted something that would speak to the singers in my choir. When I walked up to her table, I knew I’d found the right place. She had a number of works for SSAA ensembles, and every one of them had a purposefully-chosen poetic text that rose off the page along with the music. Her work had life and energy and feisty passion, and I wanted to program it all! Besides being an award-winning composer, Melissa herself is an amazing soul, and is the embodiment of the creative artist I want my students to know exists as a role model. Among her works, “Wild Embers” is at the top of my list for a future performance.

The text for Melissa’s piece is by British-Indian author Nikita Gill. She is often labeled an “Instapoet” for her fame as a writer among the social media crowd, but her poetry has far more substance than the name may imply.

Wild Embers
We are the descendants
of the wild women you forgot.
We are the stories you thought
would never be taught.

They should have checked the ashes
of the women they burned alive.
Because it takes a single wild ember
to bring a whole wildfire to life.
–Nikita Gill

I read the poem on the front cover of Dunphy’s score, and was instantly drawn to the imagery. There is a power and a presence in the text that I know my singers will grab on to – a story to be told that is very real and vital to them.

Thinking in the future tense, I can see this selection being the contextual centerpiece for a choir’s tour or festival set, or for a thematic concert. You could focus a whole set on Fire: both the literal flame and the metaphorical passion/strength/energy. I got going on this idea after looking at “Wild Embers,” and now I’m hooked. You know that feeling once you go down the rabbit-hole of programming…an idea sparks, you run with it, which takes you to another idea and another concert, and so on. I’m already making a list of other possible companion pieces and can’t wait to see what this future concert set becomes.

Dunphy’s musical setting is a nice balance between difficult and accessible. The piece is SSAA, unaccompanied, in 3/2. At certain places in the music, there are four separate musical or rhythmic ideas happening. So, the piece is truly SSAA in areas and may be challenging for groups that struggle with part independence. However, there are also places which are S1+S2 and A1+A2 (two-part with harmony), or homophonic, or unison.

The piece does includes some tight dissonances, voice crossings, and a few tricky rhythms in 3/2 (including borrowed figures). However, with practice, these are all within the grasp of most ensembles.

The nature of Dunphy’s composition emphasizes Gill’s story, beginning with the pp “Shh” that opens the piece. The “shushes” come back at varying points throughout, as if they are the wild ember bringing the fire to life. Dunphy’s opening motives build to a ff melismatic point at “Wild wild women,” and adjust the tonality with added flats. After the ff dissipates back to p, the “ssh” returns, along with a single stomp and thigh clap at the beginning of each measure. This very simple, very clean body percussion brings a rhythmic cohesion and drive to the piece, but doesn’t add additional tonal complexity or visual distraction. Another p ff pp progression happens near the end of the piece, as the wildfire builds and generates energy, then dissipates into a final “ssh.”

I was pleased to meet Melissa and her music at the Composer’s Fair, and I hope many other similarly serendipitous meetings happened with other composers and conductors. Her work has energized me as a conductor, and I look forward to approaching this music and the text with my students next year, as we prepare for a concert set yet to come.

Title:Wild Embers
Composer:Melissa Dunphy
Date of Composition:2017
Author:Nikita Gill
Date of Text:2017
Subject(s), Genre:Women’s history, fire, strength, passion
Language:English
Listed Voicing:SSAA
Voicing Details:SSAA
Ranges:S1: C4-Ab5
S2: C4-E5
A1: C4-D5
A2: G3-D5
Accompaniment:A cappella
Duration:~3:30
Tempo:Moderato, MM=52
Commissioning Ensemble:Acalanes High School Bella Voce; Bruce Lengacher, director
Publisher:Mormolyke Press (mormolyke.com)
Further descriptions and details, including program notes, audio, perusal score, and purchasing:
http://www.melissadunphy.com/about.php
http://www.melissadunphy.com/composition.php?id=7

Until next week!
-Shelbie Wahl-Fouts

Dr. Shelbie Wahl-Fouts is associate professor of music, Director of Choral Activities, and music department chair at Hollins University, a women’s college in Roanoke, Virginia.
Email:
Bio:     https://www.hollins.edu/directory/shelbie-wahl-fouts/

For a listing of all current and past blog entries by this author, click here.
For a spreadsheet of all blog posts and their repertoire, click here.

One from the Folder: Repertoire Thoughts for Women’s/Treble Choirs

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#41: Friday, January 18, 2019

“Deep Peace, Healing Light” by Leonard Enns
Text inspired by Gaelic traditions
SSA, a cappella

Frequently, choral selections with crunchy harmony or pleasantly-dissonant chords require four voice parts minimum, usually more. By contrast, this lovely selection by composer Leonard Enns, “Deep Peace, Healing Light,” provides ample opportunity for suspensions, non-chord tones, and clusters, while only requiring three voice parts. This piece is ideal for concert or contest; it can also be used for funerals, retirements, graduations, or other community events where peace and/or reconciliation are the focus.

The work is primarily homophonic, with only a few exceptions. The shared vertical/rhythmic structure adds stability throughout and helps support less experienced singers who may be pursuing the piece.

Interestingly, there is a series of six measures on the second page which are scored twice. Labeled “A” and “B,” they differ in range and tessitura, but not in rhythm. The score markings indicate you should choose either A or B, based on the skill set of your group. “B” is good in its own right, but “A” really allows your ensemble a chance to shine, depending on the range of your S1s.

Another point to notice would be the ample opportunities for incorporating dynamics and tempo changes. Dynamics are given throughout and range from mp to f. Tempos ebb and flow as well, including ritards and caesuras. A strong ensemble will likely relish the chance to dig in and shape the emotion of the selection through these means.

Tonally, the piece centers around Eb major, with excursions to c minor, eb minor, and Gb major. In listening to the selection, I am struck by the way the tonality shifts in a such a smooth way. Using solfege might be tricky, if your ensemble is new to added accidentals. It could easily be used for the beginning and ending of the work though without concern. However, if you are interested in practicing the ensemble’s use of added flats (me and te, in this case), this is an excellent and brief foray into the skill.

The ending of the work is another unique point – it is aleatoric, with a series of notes in the score regarding how it is to be performed. After a solid Bb chord (V of Eb major), each voice part freely explores various pitches within the descending Eb major scale, incorporating “oohs” and the text “deep, deep peace.” Voices overlap to create a meaningful, tonal soundscape.

The source of this text is a curious one, without a clear answer. The octavo’s attribution suggests that the words are a “Gaelic Blessing.” John Rutter’s familiar choral selection “A Gaelic Blessing” uses the same text, albeit with an added Christian-themed closing line, and notes a similar attribution (“adapted from an old Gaelic rune”). Of interest though, is that the lines appear as part of a larger prayer within the 1895 novel The Dominion of Dreams: Under the Dark Star, by Celtic-Revivalist William Sharp, writing as Fiona Macleod. There is no doubt the text is inspired by other legitimate Gaelic blessings. However, whether the text is truly from Gaelic tradition, or simply written in that style by a 19th century author, remains in question.

Regardless of the text’s origins, the sentiment of the text is certainly worth considering:

Deep peace of the running wave to you.
Deep peace of the flowing air to you.
Deep peace of the quiet earth to you.
Deep peace of the shining stars to you.
Deep peace of the gentle night to you.
Moon and stars pour their healing light on you.

The text’s meaning, coupled with Enns’ beautiful setting, make this a quality choice for your women’s/treble ensemble.

Title:Deep Peace, Healing Light
Composer:Leonard Enns
Date of Composition:2012
Text Source:Gaelic Blessing* (see notes in description)
Subject(s), Genre:Peace, blessing, compassion.
Can also be suitable for funeral.
Language:English
Listed Voicing:SSA
Voicing Details:SSA
Ranges:S1: Eb4-F5/Ab5
S2: D4-D5/F5
A: Bb3-Bb4/C5
Accompaniment:A cappella
Duration:~2:30
Tempo:76, gently with rubato
Dedication:In Memory of Mary Anne Kowal
Publisher:Cypress Choral Music CP-1224
Further descriptions and details, including program notes, audio, perusal score, and purchasing:
http://larrynickel.com/CypressAudio/Deep.html
http://cypresschoral.com/PDF/SampleCP1224.pdf
https://soundcloud.com/cypress-choral-music/deep-peace-healing-light

Until next week!
-Shelbie Wahl-Fouts

Dr. Shelbie Wahl-Fouts is associate professor of music, Director of Choral Activities, and music department chair at Hollins University, a women’s college in Roanoke, Virginia.
Email:
Bio:     https://www.hollins.edu/directory/shelbie-wahl-fouts/

For a listing of all current and past blog entries by this author, click here.
For a spreadsheet of all blog posts and their repertoire, click here.

One from the Folder: Weekly Repertoire Thoughts for Women’s/Treble Choirs

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Week 27: Friday, September 21, 2018

“Lux Aeterna” by Michelle Roueché
SSAA, a cappella

Maybe you have a group that loves close harmony, or you want to showcase their beautiful tone. Perhaps your performance venue is an acoustically excellent church or hall, and you want to take advantage of the resonance. Or maybe you want to push your SSAA choir into unaccompanied repertoire, but without too much divisi yet. Or possibly you want to work on feeling the ebb and flow of tempo as an ensemble.

If you’re looking for that one specific selection to round out your concert: something lush, pleasantly-dissonant, legato, and full of opportunity for musical growth, I would highly suggest Michelle Roueché’s “Lux Aeterna.” Published by Walton Music, as part of the Lynne Gackle Choral Series: Choral Artistry for the Developing Singer, this piece presents a wealth of musical and pedagogical possibilities.

It is no secret that my advanced ensemble loves crunchy harmonies. They devour pieces with seconds and clusters. Sometimes though, those types of pieces require 8 parts/divisi, complex rhythms, independent lines, or lots of part re-assignments and penciled-in arrows to make them work. And sometimes you don’t have enough students or rehearsal time for that to be attainable. I’m happy to report that Roueché’s piece includes all the wonderful things you are looking for in this type of selection, without it being impractical for smaller, less-experienced, or time-crunched ensembles.

From a rhythmic perspective, everything in this selection is likely readable on the first time through. There isn’t anything more complex than dotted quarter+eighth, and most rhythms are the same across all voice parts. Ranges are kept within or below the staff, and sit well in the voice. Similarly, the Latin text keeps the vowel options and the pronunciation challenges to a minimum. This allows rehearsal time to be focused on the real heart of the piece – the delightful harmonies.

With the exception of eight measures near the end, the whole piece can be taught on solfege, if your ensemble is so inclined. Finding the pitches shouldn’t be the main goal of the work though – it should be relishing the chords that are made. The setting feels particularly well-suited to treble voices, as the overtones and timbres blend so well together.

The piece opens with slow bell-tones fermatas on the word “Lux.” Each voice enters in turn, stacking to create clusters on the pure [u] vowel, and then cutting off with a brief-but-clean closing consonant. You can just see the proverbial light sparkling, especially if you are in a resonant performance space. The text then moves to the S1 line, while the remaining parts provide harmonic support. The “Lux” fermatas return again, followed by a lovely aleatoric moment.

The song continues in this vein – “lux” fermatas countered with phrases of text. At no point is there additional divisi within the four voice parts. Some phrases even begin in unison or 2part, and then expand to form the chords. Everything is within reach, from a skills perspective, but the result is still exciting and well-crafted.

When the next text enters, (“Requiem aeternam…”), the tonality changes briefly to the parallel minor. This section includes some expected accidentals, but may be more challenging to learn on solfege. Marked “Faster”, these few measures add a brief sense of urgency, leading to a cadence on major V.

The earlier tempo now returns, as does the initial major key. Slow “lux” chords provide a shimmering harmonic underpinning, while a legato four-measure solo allows a solo S1 to shine. The piece comes to a close on the same pitches with which it started, ending with a lovely M2 between S2 and A.

The theme of our community holiday event last year was “Sharing the Light,” so this piece fit in beautifully, and was well-received by both the audience and singers. Additionally, the text lends itself to a variety of uses, from concert performance to worship service to memorial events. If you are in search of a crunchy-yet-accessible legato selection, this is one you don’t want to miss.

Title: Lux Aeterna
Composer: Michelle Roueché
Date of Composition: 2010
Text Source: from the Catholic Requiem Mass
Subject(s), Genre: Light, loss/grief, renewal
Language: Latin
Listed Voicing: SSAA
Voicing Details: SSAA +1 solo
Ranges:S1: Eb4-G5
S2: Eb4-D5
A1: Db4-D5
A2: Gb3-D5
Accompaniment: a cappella
Duration: ~3:30
Tempo: 50-54
Series:Lynne Gackle Choral Series: Choral Artistry for the Developing Singer
Publisher: Walton Music
Further descriptions and details, including program notes, audio, perusal score, and purchasing:
https://www.giamusic.com/store/resource/lux-aeterna-ssaa-print-wlg133

Until next week!
-Shelbie Wahl-Fouts

Dr. Shelbie Wahl-Fouts is associate professor of music, Director of Choral Activities, and music department chair at Hollins University, a women’s college in Roanoke, Virginia.
Email:
Bio:     https://www.hollins.edu/directory/shelbie-wahl-fouts/

For a listing of all current and past blog entries by this author, click here.
For a spreadsheet of all blog posts and their repertoire, click here.

One from the Folder: Weekly Repertoire Thoughts for Women’s/Treble Choirs

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Week 10: Friday, May 25, 2018

“The Muse, The Stove, and The Willow Plate” by Zae Munn
Text by Ann Kilkelly
SSA, a cappella

Titled “The Muse, The Stove, and The Willow Plate” – this is a three movement work by composer Zae Munn, with texts by Ann Kilkelly. Munn is professor of music at Saint Mary’s College at Notre Dame, where she teaches music theory, composition, digital media in music, and orchestration/arranging. Kilkelly is professor emerita of performance studies at Virginia Tech – covering topics such as writing, tap dance, script analysis, gender & women’s studies, and collaborative theatrical performance. The two frequently work together on compositions, including other women’s chorus pieces and performance art projects.

Each of the three movements of this work present a woman of strong character or action. The three movements are purchased together, but can be performed separately (~2 minutes each) or together. There are no low extremes of range for any of the movements.

I. The Muse

The lyrics, as part of a longer poem “Getting Tough with the Muse,” were first published in the Southern Womanhood issue of Helicon Nine, in 1988. In it, a woman, an author, a creator, is bemoaning the eccentric temperament of her muse. As if to say: His muse is great, her muse is great. Mine? No. I got the odd one. We’re not getting along. The poem then includes some specifics as to just how out of sorts her muse actually is. The musical setting is primarily in 4/4, with some moments of 3/4. The form is ABA’B – alternating between the slower, lyrical A section with an emphasis on tight harmonies between voice parts, and the shortest, faster B section with echoes and motivic imitation. It’s a glorious fight, an internal struggle of temperament and mood, that nearly every artist and performer can viscerally understand.

II. The Stove

The second movement uses text from “Revolution,” a short story appearing in the American Voice, 1989. It’s nominally about a stove, but, really, it’s about the woman who is tired of being relegated to “women’s work.” She goes on strike, and serves cold cuts to the husband/father for lunch, instead of a warm meal cooked on the stove. In protest to the whole concept of cooking and women’s work, she takes a sledge hammer and destroys the stove, smashing it into little pieces. In mixed meter throughout, there is marked emphasis on the near-continuous eighth notes. This musically creates the pounding of the sledge hammer. All pitches are within the scheme of C Major, with no accidentals or chromatic, though linear motion of the vocal lines is stressed over vertical chord progressions. Repetition of some harmonic and melodic patterns, as well as some doubling of vocal parts at unison or the octave, makes the learning process a little easier than it might seem to be at first glance. The challenge to this movement is the mixed meter, and the continuous counting needed by all voices, in order to get each entrance/pattern in the right spot. As you might imagine, this movement can be quite cathartic and enjoyable – my college students loved it!

III. The Willow Plate

The text for the final movement in the set is excerpted from “The Collectors,” a poem in which a woman uses the images in a willow plate to sing a love song. The musical setting is in F major, though linear motion of the voice lines is dominant over vertical chord progressions. Meter signatures shift between 3/8, 6/8, 3/4, and 4/4. The underlying eighth note stays constant, but the pulse changes due to simple vs compound division of the beat. Altos carry the largest share of the melodic material, though S1 and S2 also have opportunities. S1 rises up to a Bb5, but a stepwise approach with crescendo lessens the potential difficulty. The opening motive (three eighth notes moving up stepwise to a quarter note) reappears frequently.

Title:“The Muse, The Stove, and The Willow Plate”
Composer:Zae Munn
https://www.zaemunn.com
Date of Composition:1988-89
Author:Ann Kilkelly
Subject(s):Women, Family, Identity, Strength, Love
Language:English
Listed Voicing:SSA
Ranges:S1: C4-Bb5
S2: C4-F5
A:  A3-D5
Accompaniment:a cappella
Duration:~6:00, all three movements together (can be performed separately)
Commissioning Ensemble:Written for the Wellesley College Chamber Choir
Series:Saint Mary’s College Choral Series, Nancy Menk, editor
Publisher:earthsongs, S-14
Further descriptions and details, including notes, audio, perusal score, and purchasing:

http://earthsongschoralmusic.com/index.php?main_page=product_sheet_music_info&products_id=2090

https://soundcloud.com/zae-munn/the-muse-the-stove-and-the-willow-plate-ssaa-womens-choir-a-cappella

Until next week!
-Shelbie Wahl-Fouts

Dr. Shelbie Wahl-Fouts is associate professor of music, Director of Choral Activities, and music department chair at Hollins University, a women’s college in Roanoke, Virginia.
Email:
Bio:     https://www.hollins.edu/directory/shelbie-wahl-fouts/

For a listing of all current and past blog entries by this author, click here.
For a spreadsheet of all blog posts and their repertoire, click here.

Some source material for this week’s blog post was taken from my doctoral dissertation, “By Women, For Women: Choral Works for Women’s Voices Composed and Texted by Women” (https://tinyurl.com/ydeyuyk8), as well as from program notes on the score (which are also available on the composer’s and publisher’s websites).

One from the Folder: Weekly Repertoire Thoughts for Women’s/Treble Choirs

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Week 2: Friday, March 30, 2018

Hello and welcome back to the second installment of my weekly Women’s/Treble Chorus blog, here on Choralnet.org!

Last week, I focused on What is a women’s/treble choir? Who sings in a women’s/treble choir? Why?.

This week, I’d like to continue with that introduction, looking at the challenges conductors often face when programming for women’s/treble choirs, and how we can both acknowledge and overcome those obstacles.

Starting in April, I plan to introduce a new repertoire selection with each post – focusing on subject matter, composer background, text source/author background, range, voicing, harmonic structure, form, rhythmic components, line independence, and more. I’ll walk through the piece, noting teaching strategies and pointing out potential challenges. It is my hope that this blog can serve as a resource for conductors as we program repertoire for our women’s/treble choirs.

Searching for Repertoire? (Getting mixed in with Children’s Choir)

On JWPepper and other music purchasing sites, the voicing lists now often read “Treble Choir” and “Tenor-Bass Choir,” in addition to Unison/Two-part, SAB/Three-Part Mixed, and SATB, etc. This Treble designation is beautifully inclusive when referring to the singers who make up a given ensemble, but can be tricky when referring specifically to the repertoire. On paper (or on screen), the distinction between children’s choir and non-children’s choir music is now even more murky than before.

That’s not to say that children’s choirs can’t perform repertoire for older treble voices, and that older treble choirs can’t perform repertoire originally for children’s choir. Some material can absolutely cross over. But some material may be too mature for a children’s choir, or too childish for an older treble choir. Subject matter, text, ranges, tessitura, voicing, and accompaniment are just a few of the points to consider when trying to decide what repertoire might be good for your particular ensemble.

Why can programming for a women’s/treble (W/T) choir feel challenging?

Beyond the thoughts mentioned above and last week, there are a number of other points to consider that may make choosing rep for a W/T ensemble seem more challenging than for your mixed ensembles.

If you are a tenor or bass, you likely did not have the opportunity to sing in a W/T choir, except perhaps as a children’s choir member when you were younger. If you are a soprano or alto, and were music ed or music performance in school, you likely sang in the top mixed ensemble, and/or continue to sing in mixed ensembles now (symphony chorus, church, community). Either way, many of us who were music ed or performance majors may have had limited experience with W/T repertoire from a performer’s point of view. Since we as conductors often program works that we loved as performers, this lack of personal performance experience in W/T ensembles can be a missing resource when we look for music to use in our W/T choirs.

If you went to school for choral music ed or choral conducting, especially in a graduate program, your choral literature classes most likely focused on SATB rep, and thus contained very few works for women’s voices or treble choir. Those same lit classes (and music history classes) likely included very few works by women composers, of any voicing or genre. While some programs (though not enough!) are consciously attempting to cast a wider net in terms of what to teach their undergrad and graduate students, (i.e. including composers of other genders, races, ethnicities, nationalities, religions, and political backgrounds in the course content), these changes can take quite a while to work their way through the system, and do not generally affect those of us who may have already missed this information when we were in school.

Historical works for W/T choirs are legitimately more difficult to find in the published realm, primarily due to the political, religious, institutional, and systemic bias against women (as performers, conductors, and composers, and so too just as humans). W/T ensembles absolutely existed, but, just like the women themselves, were far less likely to be seen, heard, and valued than their mixed choir or men’s/boy’s choir counterparts. In turn, that means the music written for W/T ensembles was less valued as well, and less likely to be kept, archived, published, and distributed.

This point is even more true if you are looking for works for W/T ensembles written by women composers. Women composers historically were not afforded the same professional standing as men (for many of the same political, religious, institutional, and systemic reasons). With the exception of a few well-known or well-connected women with privileged family or religious visibility, compositional output by women composers was also less likely to be valued (kept, archived, published, and distributed), than that of their male counterparts. That’s not to say women composers didn’t exist, and that works (by composers of any gender) for W/T voices didn’t exist – but finding them takes more work and more research on the part of the conductor.

There is a great deal of re-voiced repertoire out there – selections originally written for SATB choirs and re-worked for treble voices. Some of these arrangements or transcriptions are wonderful – in that they allow our treble singers to experience composers or styles that they might not otherwise have access to. However, many of these arrangements/transcriptions have complications with tessitura, range, and voice leading, which can make them a pedagogical minefield. Figuring out which re-voiced selections may work for our ensembles, and which won’t, takes time and research on the part of the conductor.

Perhaps more at issue though is the idea of programming works originally intended for mixed, men’s, or children’s voices, as opposed to the literal and figurative voices of women. Visibility and representation are important. If we limit our W/T selections primarily to re-packaged SATB, TTBB, or children’s repertoire, we are also limiting the visibility and representation of women’s voices – both to our audience and to our singers.

New works for W/T choirs are regularly commissioned by community, high school, and collegiate ensembles. And many of these additions to the W/T genre are amazing. But, unfortunately, this repertoire frequently can be a touch too difficult for an intermediate or advanced-but-small W/T group. So, you may go to a conference and hear a great song with a perfect text, but it calls for more divisi than your group can manage, or more independent voice lines than your students are ready to tackle. This can feel disheartening – to finally find something you think will speak to your ensemble, but then realize it may not be at the right level for them just yet.

Often, programming quality repertoire for our women’s/treble choirs can sometimes seem a daunting task. However, my hope is that through this blog you might find both individual selections and general resources that speak to your ensembles and their skill sets, and expand your knowledge of available repertoire. Next week, I’ll start introducing one song each each week. In the meantime, I encourage you to review the resources from last week’s post, focusing on repertoire for women’s/treble choirs and/or works by women composers.

Until next week!
-Shelbie Wahl-Fouts

Dr. Shelbie Wahl-Fouts is associate professor of music, Director of Choral Activities, and music department chair at Hollins University, a women’s college in Roanoke, Virginia.
Email: Bio:     https://www.hollins.edu/directory/shelbie-wahl-fouts/

 

 

SELECTED RESOURCES, Part 2 (See Week 1 for the start of this resource list)

MUSE Cincinnati’s Women’s Choir (Jillian Harrison-Jones, artistic director)
https://www.musechoir.org/music

Peninsula Women’s Chorus (Martín Benvenuto, artistic director)
http://www.pwchorus.org/?q=pwc/repertoire

Aurora Chorus (Joan Szymko, artistic director)
http://www.aurorachorus.org/index.php/repertoire/

Cornell University Chorus (Robert Isaacs, conductor)
http://cuchorus.com/repertoire/

St. Mary’s College Women’s Choir (Nancy Menk, conductor)
https://www.saintmarys.edu/academics/departments/music/womens-choir#Recordings%20and%20CD%20orders

Oklahoma All-State Treble Rep List
http://okmea.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/All-State-Treble-Repertoire.xls

Tennessee All-State Women’s Chorale Rep List
http://www.tnmea.com/SSAA_Rep.aspx

Empowering Silenced Voices Database For Socially Conscious Choral Music (Jeremiah Selvey & Chorosynthesis)
http://chorosynthesis.org/esvdatabase/

Sacred Renaissance Choral Music for Women’s Choirs: An Annotated Repertoire List of Music from Italy and Spain (Kathryn Kelly Longo) https://scholarlyrepository.miami.edu/oa_dissertations/1178

One from the Folder: Weekly Repertoire Thoughts for Women’s/Treble Choirs

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Week 1: Friday, March 23, 2018

Hello and welcome to the first installment of my weekly Women’s/Treble Chorus blog, here on Choralnet.org!

Starting in April, I plan to introduce a new repertoire selection with each post – focusing on subject matter, composer background, text source/author background, range, voicing, harmonic structure, form, rhythmic components, line independence, and more. I’ll walk through the piece, noting teaching strategies and pointing out potential challenges. It is my hope that this blog can serve as a resource for conductors as we program repertoire for our women’s/treble choirs.

This week and next, I’d like to delve just a bit into women’s/treble choirs as a genre, and what obstacles conductors might face in searching for repertoire.

What is a women’s/treble choir? Who sings in a women’s/treble choir? Why?

Until fairly recently, “treble choir” usually referred to children’s choirs, while “women’s chorus” referred to groups of high school or college women, or adult women in community ensembles. As our terminology has (thankfully!) grown to be more inclusive of non-binary singers, transgender singers, and those who do not identify as women, the naming aspect of women’s/treble choirs has made things a bit fuzzy.

When choosing repertoire, it’s important first to know who is in your ensemble, and how they came to be there, and why. The focus on the how and the why in particular are exceptionally important in making sure your repertoire choices help bolster the spirit and community of the ensemble, while also continuing to move the needle forward in musicality and technical skill.

There are many reasons a group of sopranos and altos may come together to sing, some of which are directly related to their self-identification as women, and some having nothing to do with self-identification beyond voice part.

One such ensemble may be an adult community choir (professional or volunteer), whose focus often (though not exclusively) includes feminism, LGBTQIA concerns, domestic violence, racial inequality, and broader themes of a social justice nature. These groups were often originally “women’s choirs” – to provide women with a space to come together as women, and make music together. While many of these community ensembles have embraced singers who do not strictly identify as women, the word “women” is often still used in the group’s name or bylaws, as a tie to the historic nature of women choosing to sing together in community.

Or, you may have a school-aged choir (of middle school, high school, or college level) who sing together as the second-tier group – i.e. the SAs who auditioned for the top mixed chamber group and didn’t make it. This kind of ensemble is often less about personal identity, and more about the fact that there aren’t enough tenors/basses to balance the number of sopranos/altos in a given program.

Another group may be students who sing together as a non-auditioned or auditioned treble ensemble, as part of the pedagogical design of a given choral program. These ensembles often have a tenor/bass counterpart ensemble, where SAs and TBs work separately on repertoire, vocal technique, and ensemble skills that fit the age and vocal skills of the students, and who may then come together to perform mixed repertoire, as well as SA and TB rep in the same term. Groups in this type of program frequently have an identity as a unit (i.e. women’s chorus or men’s chorus), but that identity is more about who they rehearse and spend time with (sopranos/altos/trebles, tenors/basses), and less about specifically being a women’s choir as based in gender.

There are also programs in which the auditioned SA ensemble is the top ensemble. This may be by institutional design (i.e. an all-girls school, or a women’s college). But, this scenario also occurs at traditional co-ed schools, where the director has chosen to make their flagship choir an SA ensemble – focusing the added responsibilities, additional performance opportunities, and higher difficulty of music on the auditioned soprano and alto students. In this case, the identity is often about being the “top choir,” rather than being specifically a “women’s choir,” though that distinction can vary by school and by director.

And then there are those who are together by (happy?) accident. Often, this is an auditioned mixed chamber ensemble at a smaller school, which one semester happens to not have any tenors or basses. So the auditioned mixed group unexpectedly becomes an auditioned treble group by happenstance.

In the grand scheme of things, programming quality repertoire for a women’s/treble choir can sometimes seem a daunting task. However, my hope is that through this blog you might find both individual selections and general resources that speak to your ensembles and their skill sets, and expand your knowledge of available repertoire. Next week, I’ll talk specifically about the challenges we face as conductors when programming for women’s/treble ensembles. And then in April, I’ll start introducing one song each each week. In the meantime, I encourage you to review these resources below focusing on repertoire for women’s/treble choirs and/or works by women composers.

Until next week!
-Shelbie Wahl-Fouts

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Dr. Shelbie Wahl-Fouts is associate professor of music, Director of Choral Activities, and music department chair at Hollins University, a women’s college in Roanoke, Virginia.
Email: Bio:      https://www.hollins.edu/directory/shelbie-wahl-fouts/

 

SELECTED RESOURCES

ACDA Women’s Chorus Repertoire & Resources
https://acda.org/ACDA/Repertoire_and_Resources/Repertoire_Specific/Women_s_Choir.aspx

Conducting Women’s Choirs (Debra Spurgeon, editor)
https://www.giamusic.com/store/resource/conducting-womens-choirs-book-with-companion-dvd-book-g8367

Wisdom, Wit, and Will: Women Choral Conductors on Their Art (Joan Conlon, editor)
https://www.giamusic.com/store/resource/wisdom-wit-and-will-book-g7590

By Women, For Women: Choral Works for Women’s Voices Composed and Texted by Women (Shelbie Wahl-Fouts)
https://tinyurl.com/ydeyuyk8

unCONVENTional Restoration: Giving Voice to the Silenced (Meredith Bowen)
http://acda.org/files/choral_journals/BowenFeb18.pdf

Choral Works by Women Composers (Eliza Rubenstein and Magen Solomon)
http://womencomposers.ocwomenschorus.org

Concentus Women’s Chorus (Edna Yeh and Gwendolyn Gassler, artistic directors)
http://www.concentus.org/repertoire

Elektra Women’s Choir (Morna Edmundson, artistic director)
https://elektra.ca/repertoire/

Grand Rapids Women’s Chorus (Lori Tennenhouse, artistic director)
https://grwc.org/repertoire/

Mirabai Women’s Chorus (Sandra Snow, artistic director)
https://www.singmirabai.org/music/

Orange County Women’s Chorus (Eliza Rubenstein, artistic director)
http://www.ocwomenschorus.org/repertoire

Vox Femina: Los Angeles (Iris Levine, artistic director)
http://www.voxfemina.org/music

 

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