HIS INTRODUCTION is going to sound like a humble-brag, but that’s not my intention. This past Sunday, a former choir member greeted me after Mass and introduced me to the lovely lady he has married since I last saw him (I’ll call her Angela). Angela gushed about how beautiful the Mass was and told me, “Your choir was so in tune! That’s something my choir back home struggles with.”
After thanking her for this generous compliment, I realized I rarely work with my choir on intonation. This is not to say we always sing perfectly in tune. We sometimes flat on certain pieces, and I work to diagnose the root vocal causes. But I rarely have to stop and tune chords or correct the altos and tenors for landing on a unison note that’s not really unison.
“We don’t really work on intonation,” I told Angela. “I just encourage everyone to sing with a healthy, balanced resonance. You know, open your mouth when you sing, and don’t do anything weird. And I remind my singers to listen to everything in the room except themselves.”
Below I’ll break down this approach in the hopes it will help at least one reader encourage good intonation with their choir. What follows is high-level advice with the usual caveat that your mileage may vary. Every choir is different.
Step 1: Open Your Mouth When You Sing
Gather any group of 10 untrained singers, and at least nine of them won’t open their mouths enough when they sing. I suspect it’s because singing is a vulnerable act and opening the mouth feels risky. Singing through nearly clenched teeth seems like a good way to protect oneself from ridicule. 
Until choir members open their mouths enough, the sound won’t flower. I’ve found that encouraging space between the molars is more effective than focusing on the distance between the top and bottom front teeth. Ask choir members to keep about one finger’s worth of space between the molars. But remind them not to be rigid about this—or about any aspect of vocal technique. And caution them that opening too far can lead to a spready sound.
A pinched tone will never quite sound in tune. With everyone producing a healthy, balanced resonance, you’ll have the raw ingredient of good intonation.
Step 2: Don’t Do Anything Weird
What seems like a pitch problem is sometimes a blend problem. In 10 years with my choir, I can think of only a few singers who struggled to blend with the ensemble. Each of them relied on tension to produce their sound. It’s ironic that the singers who “try” hardest are those who get results that are least helpful to the group’s sound.
The primary culprits are jaw tension and throat tension. If you have a singer with an unpleasant sound, try to recreate that sound (in private) by singing with a tense jaw, throat, or tongue. Once you do, you’ll know exactly what they are doing wrong and will be able to coach them in developing healthier habits.
Encouraging your singers to drop the jaw freely can help prevent jaw tension. As for throat tension, remind them not to use their swallowing muscles when they inhale. If they’re tense on inhalation, they’ll likely stay tense for phonation. Easy in, easy out. You can also point out that the larynx should lower slightly on each inhalation—but caution your singers that they should never force it down.
Step 3: Listen to Everything But Yourself
A choir is an ensemble. Its unique beauty comes from the homogeneity of its voices. Even the strongest, most beautiful voices in the choir shouldn’t drown out their section-mates. One who’s only listening to himself will sound like a soloist. One who’s listening to the rest of the choir will complement the group sound.
The best choral singers I’ve ever worked with always made their sections sound better. They put out generous amounts of sound, and yet at the end of a Mass, I couldn’t recall hearing their voices in particular.
Singers who listen as they sing almost can’t help but sing in tune. If I’m concerned about the intonation at a cadence, we’ll approach it slowly while listening intently. I find that my musicians make adjustments without me having to explain acoustic principles or instruct individuals to move notes this way or that.
Step 4: Let Them Hear the Whole Piece
I’m not much of a pianist. You’re probably better than me. But if you’re not, ask the best pianist in your choir to play through any new piece for your choir before you start working on it in rehearsal. Consider doing this at more than one rehearsal. Letting the choir hear the entire piece in advance helps them anticipate the harmonies they’ll encounter. They will be more likely to sing them accurately—and to understand how their parts fit into the whole.
I ask singers not to hum along during this play-through. It’s important for singers to receive and process the piece before they try to vocalize it for the first time. I also generally avoid playing parts for singers as they’re singing. Why? I want them to audiate the correct notes rather than sing notes a split-second after the piano plays them. This approach is “doing it the hard way,” but it pays dividends in how deeply the singers learn their parts.
In summary, I’ve found that good choral intonation doesn’t stem from spending hours of rehearsal time tuning up chords. It comes from encouraging a relaxed, authentic approach to producing resonance. I hope these ideas make your rehearsals more efficient and enjoyable.
