Introduction
The choir members of “The Diocesan Choir, Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong” and their conductor, Dr. Allison So, always strive to improve the performances of their choir and make the rehearsals enjoyable and worthwhile. Therefore, they engage in numerous rehearsals to polish and polish their techniques and musicals. For this assignment, I observed the choir rehearsing a piece titled “Holy Is The Lord.” Effective planning is crucial for both group and individual rehearsals. The conductor, as well as other choir members, can employ various strategies to make the choir rehearsals meaningful and enjoyable for all the involved individuals. Essentially, such strategies are important because there are some cases where the choir might be preparing for the particular musical piece, yet the members are not ready for it. The success of a choir rehearsal is widely based on certain steps such as knowing your choir, preparing yourself, and selecting the right songs. The conductor takes responsibility for the way members undertake the rehearsals because their actions determine whether the training was successful or not.
Knowing the Choir
The conductor knows the individuals he is leading, which is an important step because it helps them to build meaningful relationships and learn the choir’s skill sets and levels. To achieve this objective, the conductor meets with choir members to articulate his vision for the group. The meetings must not be formal or long, but the conductor ensures that he is fully prepared and ready with the details of the meeting. A personal touch plays a significant and crucial role in rallying the choir members behind the vision for the choir. During the meetings, the conductor should be willing to listen to the concerns and wishes of choir members, especially in regards to how to improve their performances.
Preparation
Members of the choir, as well as conductor, should ensure that they are prepared for the rehearsals. The conductor takes some time to learn different elements of the songs that he wants the choir to sing. Indeed, it would be frustrating to participate in a rehearsal session while the conductor fumbles through various sections of the songs or a sheet of music. When the conductor gives out a sheet of music or CDs, it is important for them to understand music before they push other members to achieve certain standards. Questions may arise during the rehearsal concerning the discrepancy between what the conductor is teaching and the way the choir members sing. Ultimately, the choir members follow the lead of their conductor. In most instances, the choir members follow the conductor’s instructions and cues when they present themselves as an authority in a particular piece of music the choir intends to perform.
Proper Song Selections
Ideally, the choir can choose to sing every new song or popular songs on the radio. Nevertheless, it is important to select they right music. When selecting music, the conductor considers whether the song is scripturally valid, whether the song is consistent with the pastor’s teachings, whether the song draws attention to the choir or God’s teachings, and whether the choir has the level of skill required to perform the song.
Warming-Up
Before they sing, the conductor and the choir members always engage in a warm-up session. All members participate in the warm-up sessions to acquit themselves with the songs, directions, and instruments. Furthermore, the warm-ups help them clear their voices in readiness for the actual performances. The choir also spends some time warming up before the rehearsal begins. The warming up session needs a lot of concentration to ensure that the choir members and the conductor do not damage their voices. The other aspects of warming up include bending, stretching, yawning, and humming, which plays a crucial role in preparing the vocal chords.
Count Singing
The conductor decides the type of technique to be widely used to achieve rhythm, tempo, and pitch. Count singing is a rehearsal procedure that involves teaching rhythm and pitches simultaneously and training members to share a common pulse. The rehearsal technique is based on the notion that all subdivisions and beats should be chanted on appropriate pitches while rhythm dictates the way tempo changes. Count singing involves the signing of pitches on subdivision and note values of rhythm. The count-singing rehearsal techniques employed by Dr. Allison and the Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong’s diocesan choir are effective because they eliminate doubt about the point when particular vocals should begin and when they should end. Furthermore, they clarify the pitches that individual members should be singing as well as the duration of the pitch. The different vocals are widely aligned irrespective of the durations or pitches of the varied notes.
Own Feelings
In my view, “The Diocesan Choir, Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong” is using the correct and effective approach to choir rehearsals. For example, the conductor sets precision and rhythm of every musical piece. Furthermore, the conductor ensures that all choir members clearly understand the rate and tempo of a song as well as the beat or the pulse. Elements such as text clarity and correct pronunciation are also addressed during the rehearsals. Moreover, the conductor strives to balance between the number of women and men to achieve superior sound quality as well as balanced choral tone. Vocal exercises are also an important part of the rehearsal process. Notably, Dr. Allison has to think about the amount of time that the choir members spend at the rehearsals because most of them are volunteers.
