Sarah Begl en - Choral Methods

BT 6.4 Observing a High School Choi r

So phomore Mixed Choir
The choir is composed of 17 altos, 8 men and 19 soprani. The choir director says,
"stand fro m the waist" and "focus your mind on everything that goes into this performance:
tone, rhythm, pitches " and "if it catches you by surprise ... then you are not prepared for the
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I observed there is not a lot of soun d from the harmony sections. I believe students
are learning to produce a good sound but are trying too hard physically. All of the choirs
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are singing "Kyrie" Mass in G Kobert Shaw, edited by Alice Parker for their winter concert.
The song is legato and the students know how to sing through on the vowels so their sound
is more prominent compared to the Fres hman chorus singing Handel's Hallelujah ... there
were a lot of spread vow els because there are quicker rhythms and a faster tempo which
causes beginner singers to manipulate their jaw more.
The Sophomore Mixed Choir director, Mr. Hartle.>:J used to be our piano accompanist
when I was in high school. It seems like a lot of the singers are singing with swallowed
vowels. When the students phonate they ar e moving the pitches with their throat. It
sounds as if the words are stressed at the same weight. These students tend to cut off the
ends of phrases early rather than holding the notes for the full length. A lot of the students'
bodies are not as engaged as they should be and most of them look bored. I know I cannot
sing well if I'm not fe eling vibrations and energy throughout my whole body .. .if I were
teaching this choir I would have the m pulse the eighth notes to internally subdivide. I
would welcome the students everyday reminding them not to stress about other
class es ... be engaged in this mom ent and be happy that we get to make music together.
would also have them stand and be jamming with the song and dancing. Too often I feel
during re hearsal students are standing still and holding their bodies tight. I also would
model the phrases and singing text stress and unstress.
I fee l comfortable with the behavior environment. A student said "guys stop talking:
"ifuey have a sense of pride for their ense mble and desire for their community to work
together. Students are for the most part respectful, except when they are talking while the
teacher is wo rking on another section. I observed that when some students are singing
softer dynamics their support is totally gone from underneath them. Some students are not
looking at their music. Students have an issue with touching their face in the interlude and

postlude of a song .. .it looks so bad! Some st udents are afraid to sing musically ... and at
differe nt dynamics ... they think it's funny that they are trying hard.

Varsity Choir
All of the students at Lyons Township High School use the Canvas 1 in Varsity Choir
there was a vocal test where they had to record themselves sing a section of Gloria and
Kyrie. Thes e students are visibly so much older and mature looking. These students are so
quiet and focused that I can hear the lights buzzing. The Varsity Choir is an audition senior
choir of 15 men, 14 altos, and 20 soprani. Warm-up: lip trill 5, 4, 3, 2, 1...the younger choirs
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and south 'campus also sang this exercis e but this choir sang with a more present tone. The
director, Mrs. Lyda calls out the different sections and holds their parts accountable. These
students sing more unified vowels. These students look like more expressive singers just
from their warm ups;they are more comfortable w ith producing a sound so there is visibly
less te nsion. I feel like the younger choi rs stood like statues with blank expressions. This
older group of students can control thei r dynamics ... piano sounds supported.
The Twelve Days of Christmas Variatioi:5 arr. Mark Grizzar~ is an awesome
contemporary arrangement for mixed chorus, women's chorus, men's chorus and
sympho ny orchestra. Every choir at LT has a role in this song for their winter concert. The
song has a lot of dissonance with extended chords and it is an SSAATTBB arrangement.
These students have a lot better diction than the younger choirs. I observed a blind
student in this top auditio n-o nly choir..]t.was very cool to see she's readine ~ i

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technology and following along just fine. These students seem to rush the conductor or
slow down the tempo .. .it's hard for students to all keep an inner pulse ... if I were teaching
this choir I would have students physically keep a pulse and shap~

them to wean off the

physical motion. Mrs. Lyda keeps the bigger beat by stomping her foot. This song requires
singing longer durations than usual on singable consonants like "ng~ I would practice this
by implementing it in the warm-ups .
We are one week out of the concert and Mrs. Lyda seems to be rehearsing and
rehearsi ng parts of the song but students are not exactly internalizing it .. . in the beginning
of the r ehea rsal process students should have been engaged in the process more .. .now we
are a little panicked ... and frustration from the director is evident.

11/26/16 11:30 AM
BT 6.5 7 Interview with Mrs. Lyda
1. Why did you choose to teach HS music?

There was a moment in my sophomore or junior year of high school...! just loved my
high school choir director so much I wa nted to be like him .. .! wanted to develop
skills like his ... musical skills and people skills. He didn't have an ego, the program
took us on tours ... he was an authentic family man.
2. What other teaching and performance experiences have you had?
Befo re LT I taught at Oswego HS fo r three years, a very different place than here ... !
doubled that program in three years ...worked with the training chorus of the Glen
Ellyn children's Choir for a little b it ... ! performed in chorus ensembles in college
...! accompa ny all state choirs ... I sang in New Classic Singers at the College of
DuPage my 2nd and 3rd year aft er college.
3. How long have you t aught at this school, and overall?
31st year at LT,34 years overall.
4. What do you enjoy most about teaching HS choir?
(pauses to really think) the "lightbulb going off' ... growth, I feel so strongly that we
need to keep excellent music alive.
5. What are the biggest challenges of t eachi ng HS choir?
Everyone is different ... for me the challenges are definitely to be able to see things

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from a kids point of view and to challenge them just the right amount ... not too much
but enough to keep them engaged .. .motivating students is hard to individualize.
6. Do you have to recruit singers for your p rogram? If so, how?
Everyone has to recruit ... getting them in the door freshman year. .. we do run out
concerts, a junior high festival in January before they sign up for classes ... LT
summer choir camp, yard signs, ... "back in the day" older students would send
letters to younger students ... (an administrative member got upset with that idea.)
7. Do you have a school-wide and/o r choir discipline policy?
Talk to the student, might involve the counselor, might involve the parent ... if all else
fails write the referral to the assista nt principal office ...there was big drama where a
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big huge boy said she was bullied b a irl in sophomore madrigafst:he dean had to
have a meetin-g with everyone involved.

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8. What percentage of your overall program has boys with unchanged or changing voices?
What works for you when t eaching boys w ith changing voices ?
The boys voices are always changing ... 5-10% are in unchanged or seriously
changing unstable voices ... you do what you can to have boys sing in the octave of

their choice, everyone sings in head voice, you speak to boys alone and say "this is
tough" we have to psychologically support them .. .I think that's one of the reasons
boys are not involved as much during high school.. .. split up boys and girls in singlesex choirs.
8 sophomor e men
8 fres hman men
15 me n in varsity (senior year)
18 me n in concert choir (junior year)
9. What advice do you have for me as I prepare for my first choral teaching job?
Advice: #1 overall everyday it is really important to listen and watch the
students ... we plan what we are going to do and say but you have to adjust that
based on what they say ... you need them to know you're the reason you are
there ... we are teaching PEOPLE more than we are teaching MUSIC ... they could never
like you but you have to deal
10. Do you have classroom managem ent suggestions?
Class room Management: Fro m the get go you have to establish classroom
management policies fr eshman year .... write your plan on a chalkboard .. .if you are
wo rking with a section you have to keep the other students occupied and busy so
they stay engaged ... everyone is talkie .. .it's a good thing that we have a good rapport
among the students ... I know some of the comments students make are intelligent
and on track, but it's distracting .. .I'm looser than some teachers, I like students to be
energetic...it's good that there's buzz because they are responding to what I am
instructing ... th e concert choir junior boys enter in incredibly quiet...the pace of the
rehearsal is key, the conductor can't talk too much, assess the students, ask for
feedback, direct questioning ... give them time to think about it and call out a student
di rectly.