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Pope Saint Paul VI (3 April 1969): “Although the text of the Roman Gradual—at least that which concerns the singing—has not been changed, the Entrance antiphons and Communions antiphons have been revised for Masses without singing.”

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Views from the Choir Loft

“Imagination, Preparation, Passion” • Getting the most from your choir

Dr. Alfred Calabrese · September 8, 2015

319 Imagination VERYONE WANTS to have a great sounding choir. We dream of a choir that is expressive, communicative, always in tune, attentive, sensitive and powerful. Those are only some of the attributes of a great choir. Many choral conductors spend considerable rehearsal time teaching notes and rhythms to their volunteer singers. At the end of the process—success! Everyone in the choir has made a great achievement by learning the music the director has chosen. They can hold their part in a piece of polyphony, stay in tune and keep a steady tempo. It all sounds great. But—maybe not as great as the director had hoped. So what is the difference between singing all the right notes and sounding like a great choir?  IMAGINATION.

Any good conductor is only as good as his or her imagination will take them. Before the very first note is sung, the conductor must have an ideal sound in mind, the perfect sound, for every phrase, every measure, every note. The conductor should be able to hear a perfect performance of the piece before it even begins. During rehearsals, any deviation from that perfection can be addressed and corrected. Only by knowing exactly what he wants to hear can the conductor then teach the choir the way to make a great sound.

How does a conductor decide on an “ideal” sound? With imagination, preparation, and passion.

First, imagination. Spark your imagination by listening to choirs that you think are great. Do you want your boys to sound fantastic? Then listen to a fantastic boy choir. In fact, listen to several fantastic boy choirs singing the same piece. You’ll be amazed at the differences, and how your tastes and preferences will soon make themselves known to you. Do you want to know how to get a great soprano sound on a Renaissance motet? Listen to some fabulous SATB choirs singing the repertoire. (Women are most likely not going to sound like boys!) Ask yourself—do you have a favorite choir? Is it the choir of Westminster Cathedral, Polyphony, the college choir you sang in, the old Robert Shaw Chorale? Just do a lot of listening and figure out what makes any great choir, well, great. Then you can start to imagine!

Robert Shaw used to say about the Atlanta Symphony Chorus something like, “We start our process here at 95%, which is where most choirs end, and then we try to make it up to 98% or 99%.” Will you achieve the “ideal” sound? Probably not. But by infusing the music with your imagination, your choir will sing ever closer to your ideal, expressively, with intention and purpose. And that is great.

Next time: Preparation!

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Conductor Robert Shaw Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Dr. Alfred Calabrese

Dr. Alfred Calabrese is Director of Music and Liturgy at St. Rita Catholic Church in Dallas, TX. He and his wife have two children.—(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    “Music List” • 19th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I prepared for the 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time (10 August 2025). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. As always, the Responsorial Psalm, Gospel Acclamation, and Mass Propers for this Sunday are conveniently stored at the feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    This Sunday’s Communion Antiphon
    This coming Sunday—10 August 2025—is the 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). The COMMUNION ANTIPHON is really gorgeous, and two of its features are worth mentioning. First of all, the Gospel reading assigned is from Saint Luke, whereas the the antiphon—although it matches the account—comes from Saint Matthew. (If anyone can point to a similar example, please notify me.) Furthermore, if you look at the authentic Gregorian Chant version posted on the feasts website, you’ll notice that it’s MODE III but ends on the ‘wrong’ note. A comparable instance of such a ‘transposed’ chant would be KYRIE IV.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Using “Ye” Vs. “You” Correctly
    Using “Ye” vs. “You” is rather tricky, because it depends upon which era one is trying to recreate—if that makes any sense. In other words, the rules haven’t always been the same for these two. Nevertheless, Father Philip George Caraman (the legendary Jesuit scholar) gives us a masterclass using Saint Luke’s Gospel. Father Caraman was close friends with Monsignor Ronald Knox, Evelyn Waugh, and Sir Alec Guinness.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Pope Pius XII Hymnal?
    Have you ever heard of the Pope Pius XII Hymnal? It’s a real book, published in the United States in 1959. Here’s a sample page so you can verify with your own eyes it existed.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    “Hybrid” Chant Notation?
    Over the years, many have tried to ‘simplify’ plainsong notation. The O’Fallon Propers attempted to simplify the notation—but ended up making matters worse. Dr. Karl Weinmann tried to do the same in the time of Pope Saint Pius X by replacing each porrectus. You can examine a specimen from his edition and see whether you agree he complicated matters. In particular, look at what he did with éxsules fílii Hévae.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Antiphons Don’t Match?
    A reader wants to know why the Entrance and Communion antiphons in certain publications deviate from what’s prescribed by the GRADUALE ROMANUM published after Vatican II. Click here to read our answer. The short answer is: the Adalbert Propers were never intended to be sung. They were intended for private Masses only (or Masses without music). The “Graduale Parvum,” published by the John Henry Newman Institute of Liturgical Music in 2023, mostly uses the Adalbert Propers—but sometimes uses the GRADUALE text: e.g. Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul (29 June).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Random Quote

“There is no music worth hearing save that written in the last 40 years.”

— Johannes Tinctoris (1477)

Recent Posts

  • Is this what the new “Youth Mass” looks like?
  • “Music List” • 19th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
  • This Sunday’s Communion Antiphon
  • Using “Ye” Vs. “You” Correctly
  • Installment #3 • “Serious Problems with the Lectionary Translation”

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