Vocalist.org archive


From:  Mezzoid@a...
Date:  Sat Apr 15, 2000  5:01 pm
Subject:  Re: [vocalist-temporary] more adjudication fun


In a message dated 04/15/2000 9:15:47 AM Central Daylight Time,
earthbounddiva@w... writes:

<< After my first year of teaching (this year) and sending my students to solo
and ensemble at the district level - I wondered - why don't they take a day
or so to sit the judges in a room and give them a workshop? >>

They do (in WI, where Lisa and I are both located). You are required to go
to a presentation of how to judge, to do trial judging and discuss your
ratings. Before you can judge officially, you are assigned to a mentor and
you sit in a corner of a room during the morning hours and fill out forms as
if your marks actually counted. You are supposed to discuss your results
with him/her at the break and at lunch. At lunchtime, the real judge takes
several of your forms with him and turns them into the main office. It is
then determined whether or not you qualify for the first level, registered
adjudicator. You also receive an extensive handbook at the training session
and are required to read it and fill out a questionnaire on the rules, which
is then sent to the state office and reviewed before you are even assigned a
mentor!

I qualified this year, but will not get a chance to judge till next year.

<<There are also some judges that are just too hard on high school students
(in my opinion).>>

I agree, but I also feel that there are some judges that aren't hard enough.
I had one 16 year old girl who sang "Ici bas" like a dream. The child does
not study French, but her French was PERFECT; her tone was lovely, she knew
the song backwards and forwards. She received 4 excellents and a good - in
dynamics because she didn't make enough of the <>. Perhaps not, but frankly,
I was happy that her tone was clear - she's very young and to develop that
kind of subtlety is going to take time. So she got a first rating, but no
star, so she won't be going to state. I have other students who are going to
state and for a couple of them, both the students and I were shocked!! We
expected a 2nd, a 1st if they were lucky, but no star.

I heard a girl last year (not one of mine) who belted "O Thou that tellest
good tidings to Zion." Didn't do the recit, not a single ornament, just 3
dynamics: loud, louder, and Oh My G*d. She got a first.

Despite the quirky judging, I am proud of my students and think that overall
they did quite well -- of the 13 students who did contest, 12 got a first, 8
of which got a first with a star and are going to state, and 1 got a second.
I think she succumbed to nerves because she was quite ready.

Christine Thomas
Mezzo-Soprano
Wauwatosa, WI

"I love to sing-a, about the moon-a and the June-a and the spring-a"

emusic.com