Monday, March 9th

Con Brio
1. Chat about new grading system for participation, questions students have regarding it,
they are now accountable for their participation in class EVERY DAY.
2. Vocal Warm-Up
a. Continuing emphasis on round and forward vowels, nothing from the throat. Lots
of breath exercises and continued emphasis on connecting to the LOW breath
b. Use of dynamics, making sure we are not pushing when singing forte.
3. Theory: Rhythm Randomizer (rhythmrandomizer.com)
a. Parameters: quarter notes, half notes, dotted quarter notes, quarter rests
b. Encourage students who are a shy to participate and attempt to speak the rhythm.
4. Repertoire
a. Steal Away: sectionals to learn pitch and rhythm for pages 3 and 4
i. Sing through pages 3 and 4 for accurate pitch and rhythm. Encourage
students to look at dynamics
b. Sail Away Ladies: review up to measure 34 for accurate pitch and rhythm. Can
we start thinking about word stress (DIE-di-o, SAIL away)? Review individual
lines, if necessary
i. If time, move on to the new section, have students write in solfege. What
is our key signature?
Cantate
1. Housekeeping; quick note about the level of noise in class and sitting in your assigned
seats
2. Chat about new grading system for participation, making sure students know they are
held accountable EVERY DAY now instead of randomly
3. Vocal Warm-Up
a. Roundness to the tone, breath control, big emphasis today on vowel shape
4. Theory: Sight Reading
a. Part One: an 8 measure unison phrase in 4/4 time. What is the time and key
signature? Let’s sing our traditional exercise in that key. Identify any skips
(which measures and what is the solfege for those skips). Sing the exercise on the
board. Work through in pairs for singing together
b. Part Two: an 8 measure unison phrase in 6/8 time. Only rhythm today, identify
the counts and then speak through.
5. Repertoire
a. Bonse Aba: learn measures 37-60 in sectionals for accurate pitch and rhythm.
Come back together and sing through, incorporating movement!
b. Ad Astra: sing through measures 1 through 43 with piano accompaniment, work
on continuing to add dynamics (specifically, the ‘sursum’ section).
Bel Canto
1. Chat about new grading system for class participation
2. Debrief about Disney and Desserts. Watch Vocal Majority’s performance.
3. Vocal Warm-Up
a. Continued emphasis on warm, forward tone, balance between sections, and vowel
shapes. Lots of breath work.
4. Theory: Sight Reading
a. 8 bar unison phrase in 3/4 time with dotted quarter notes (a bit easier today since
it’s Monday!) What is the time and key signature? Any tricky rhythms? Any
leaps? Let’s do our traditional exercise.
5. Repertoire
a. Koowu: rehearse page 3, see what the students did in their sectionals on Friday.
Work on breath control and blend, especially, and crisp diction on the word
‘Koowu’. Transition to measures 44-48 with the quarter note triplets, speak the
rhythm first, add pitches, then do it in the canon written in the score.
b. Hexenlied: review ALL text for first verse in German. Speak it in the rhythm
before adding pitches. Review pitches, specifically in second soprano. If time
allows, transition to the second verse and learn the pronunciation.
Choral-Aires
1. Quick debrief about Disney and Desserts. Watch a few performances from this past
weekend!
2. Vocal Warm-Up
a. Emphasis on breath control
b. Emphasis on legato singing, how legato can you be?
c. Additional emphasis on dynamics: even when it’s piano, how is your breath
connection?
3. Repertoire
a. Stars: rehearse measures 1 through 38, isolating parts as needed. Begin working
on musical nuances, such as legato, dynamic shape, which parts are more
important than the others in an 8 part piece. Discussion on use of vibrato in this
piece.
b. Dixit in Corde Suo: 10 minute sectionals for students to review their part for
measures 95 through 110. Return and rehearse measures 95 through 110, way
under tempo, for tuning purposes. Combine all parts together.
Chorale
1. Quick debrief about Disney and Desserts. Watch a few performances from this weekend!
2. Jackson B.’s birthday!
3. Warm-Up
a. Big emphasis today on breath control. Basses, not so heavy with the forte sounds!
Exercise in minor today.
4. Theory: sight reading
a. 8 bar exercise in 4 parts. What is the time and key signature? Do you see any
leaps in the exercise? What is that solfege? Let’s our traditional exercise and the
exercise on the board.
5. Repertoire
a. Daemon Irrepit Callidus: sectionals on measures 1 through 14 (I take alto/tenor,
Lynne takes soprano and bass). Look at text, speak the rhythm in the text, then
add pitches. Think about articulation (where are the accents? Let’s hear them on
the beginning of each bar!) Return back and sing together, under tempo first, then
pick up the tempo.
b. Lamentations of Jeremiah: sing through to measure 42 for accurate pitch, rhythm
and text. Make sure the students are aware of the meter changes!!
Men of Note
1. IMC discussion: can we be memorized with all our music by next Monday??
2. Quick vocal warm-up
3. Repertoire
a. Brothers Sing On: review pitch and rhythm, particularly with the second tenor and
first bass. Sing through verse one, additionally paying attention to the specific
articulation (i.e. staccato on bottom of page one into page two). Transition to
second and third verse, what changes?? Speak through the changes in rhythm
before adding pitch.
b. Take Me Home Country Roads: sectionals for about 15 minutes. When students
come back, clean up pitches and try singing all the way through. Pay attention to
the bridge section for pitch and rhythm and clean that up first, if needed.
c. Last Words of David: sing from the beginning to see how we do.
d. I Can’ Tarry: sing from the beginning for security