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Views from the Choir Loft

Chorister Vocal Pedagogy

Dr. Lucas Tappan · February 9, 2016

LMT Singer HAVE WRITTEN QUITE A LOT in the past about the training of choristers in the art of sight-singing, but I would also like to share some vocal training helps as well. If you are leading a children’s choir (or any choir for that matter), one of the most important things you could do to improve the sound of your choir is to take voice lessons yourself if you have never previously had the privilege. After you have taken lessons, then teach someone else in a private lesson. This simple act forces you to take what you have learned and then find a way to communicate it to another singer. Then take it to your choir.

I once heard a choir director say it was impossible to give a vocal lesson to an entire choir all at once, but I don’t believe this. You might not be able to go into as much depth with each one as you would in a private lesson, but you can teach the general mechanics of good vocal technique.

Today I would like to share with you a presentation that Melanie Malinka, the Director of Music for the Madeleine Choir School, gave to participants in the CMAA Colloquium several years ago when it was held in Salt Lake City, UT:

    * *  PDF Download • “Working with Young Voices” (Melanie Malinka)

Perhaps this might serve as a foundation for your future work with young singers in your parish.

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Dr. Lucas Tappan

Dr. Lucas Tappan is a conductor and organist whose specialty is working with children. He lives in Kansas with his wife and four children.—(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

Quick Thoughts

    William Byrd • Simple “Agnus Dei” Canon
    Time flies! Back in July, I posted a PDF setting of a perfect canon by William Byrd (d. 1623) arranged as an AGNUS DEI for three voices. Last Sunday, we sang that arrangement with our volunteer choir. To hear a ‘live’ recording of it, click here (Mp3). In my humble opinion, this would be a perfect piece for a choir just beginning to experiment with polyphony.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Glory To God” • (For Choir + Congregation)
    I wish to thank everyone for the nice comments I received vis-à-vis my Glory To God setting for Choir & Congregation. A gentleman with a musical doctorate from Indiana University wrote: “Love this setting so much. And I will pray, as you asked, for your return to composition more fully. You are very very good.” A female choir director wrote: “I love your harmonizations, your musicality, and the wonderful interplay you have with dissonance and consonance in your music. So fun to listen to, and great for intellect, heart, and soul!” A young woman from California wrote: “Thank you for releasing your new Glory To God in honor of Saint Noel Chabanel. I'm enjoying reading through the various parts and listening to your recordings.”
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    William Byrd • “Mass for Five Voices”
    Our volunteer choir is learning the “Sanctus” from William Byrd’s Mass for Five Voices. You can hear a short excerpt (recorded last Sunday) but please ignore the sound of babies crying: Mp3 recording. We still have work to do—but we’re on the right track. Once we have some of the tuning issues fixed, I desire to use it as an example proving volunteers can sing complicated polyphony. — One of our volunteer choirs also sang that SANCTUS on 24 September 2023, and you can listen to how that came out.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“The following few hints on the selection of voices may be useful: (1) Reject all boys who speak roughly, or sing coarsely; (2) Choose bright, intelligent-looking boys, provided they have a good ear; they will much more readily respond to the choirmaster’s efforts than boys who possess a voice and nothing more; therefore, (3) Reject dull, sulky, or scatter-brained boys, since it is hard to say which of the three has the most demoralizing effect on his more willing companions.”

— Sir Richard Runciman Terry (1912)

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