Lana Mountford wrote:
> Oh boy, does this raise my hackles!
> I've had the great good fortune of singing with some very fine choral directors, > who believed that the only way to get a vibrant rich choral sound was to allow > the singers to sing with their own voices, and rely precision in diction and > rhythm (and careful audition scrutiny) to achieve "blend." I LOVE singing in a > chorus -- there's nothing like the "high" a singer can get when singing with an > ensemble where the harmony is "locked in" and the sound seems to transcend the > combined voices. The choral repertoire contains some of the most beautiful music > ever written for voice.
Lana, what you say is so true. The elusive "blend" is best achieved by unity of diction (everyone singing the same vowel) unity of rhythm (everyone agreeing on cut-offs and consonant placement as well as precise singing of the notated rhythms), everyone singing with their own voice (produced as freely and as healthily as their current development allows), and everyone balancing the amount of sound produced (no one voice sticks out because it is too loud) as well as careful audition scrutiny. And that audition scrutiny is probably the most important aspect! Why do conductors choose singers that don't fit with their ideals of a choral sound and then spend so much time trying to get them to produce that sound, when rehearsals could be better spent on interpretive matters?!
> I've also had the terrible misfortune to sing with a choral director who believed > that the only good soprano was a "boy" soprano, and that the only way to achieve > "blend" was to make every singer try to manipulate his/her voice into some flat > "medium" hooty sound. The manipulations I was forced to employ to achieve the sound > > this director wanted were having a severe negative impact on my vocal health, > enough that my teacher noticed.
Stay away from this type of conductor! Occasional use of the boy treble sound for some English Cathedral music is appropriate, I suppose, and most singers with a healthy technique can modify their sound on these occasions. But for a steady diet of straight tone -- not safe.
> It almost sounds as if this guy has it out for you. I'm not sure there's > anything you can say to him, except perhaps to explain your vocal "philosophy" -- > that you teach your students to sing with a healthy relaxed technique that will > form the foundation for their ability to be soloists. If that conflicts with his > "philosophy," then it might be better for him if your students refrain from > singing in his choirs. Your students can look for a good community or church > choral program if they want to sing in a choir.
What is this conductors background? Does he have any knowledge of vocal pedagogy? Would he be open to a workshop with his choir on healthy singing?
That's my 1.2 cents (Canadian -- very bad exchange rate today) worth!
Good luck Mary Beth, Cheers Craig, Burnaby BC
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