Chapter 19

The Choir
A choir (/ˈkwaɪər/; also known as a quire, chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of
singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to
perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which spans from the
Medieval era to the present, or popular music repertoire. Most choirs are led by a conductor,
who leads the performances with arm and face gestures.
A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus. The former
term is very often applied to groups affiliated with a church (whether or not they actually
occupy the choir) and the second to groups that perform in theatres or concert halls, but this
distinction is far from rigid. Choirs may sing without instrumental accompaniment, with the
accompaniment of a piano or pipe organ, with a small ensemble (e.g., harpsichord, cello and
double bass for a Baroque piece), or with a full orchestra of 70 to 100 musicians.
The term "Choir" has the secondary definition of a subset of an ensemble; thus one speaks of
the "woodwind choir" of an orchestra, or different "choirs" of voices or instruments in a
polychoral composition. In typical 18th- to 21st-century oratorios and masses, chorus or choir
is usually understood to imply more than one singer per part, in contrast to the quartet of
soloists also featured in these works.

Choirs are often led by a conductor or choirmaster. Most often choirs consist of four sections
intended to sing in four part harmony, but there is no limit to the number of possible parts as
long as there is a singer available to sing the part: Thomas Tallis wrote a 40-part motet
entitled Spem in alium, for eight choirs of five parts each; Krzysztof Penderecki's Stabat Mater
is for three choirs of 16 voices each, a total of 48 parts. Other than four, the most common
number of parts are three, five, six, and eight.

Choirs can sing with or without instrumental accompaniment. Singing without accompaniment
is called a cappella singing (although the American Choral Directors Association[1]
discourages this usage in favor of "unaccompanied," since a cappella denotes singing "as in
the chapel" and much unaccompanied music today is secular). Accompanying instruments
vary widely, from only one instrument (a piano or pipe organ) to a full orchestra of 70 to 100
musicians; for rehearsals a piano or organ accompaniment is often used, even if a different
instrumentation is planned for performance, or if the choir is rehearsing unaccompanied
music.

Many choirs perform in one or many locations such as a church, opera house, or school hall.
In some cases choirs join up to become one "mass" choir that performs for a special concert.
In this case they provide a series of songs or musical works to celebrate and provide
entertainment to others.

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Role of conductor
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance, such as a choral concert, by way of
visible gestures with the hands, arms, face and head. The primary duties of the conductor or
choirmaster are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats
(meter), and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble.

The conductor or choral director typically stands on a raised platform and he or she may or
may not use a baton; using a baton gives the conductor's gestures greater visibility, but many
choral conductors prefer conducting with their hands for greater expressiveness, particularly
when working with a smaller ensemble. Nowadays most conductors do not play an instrument
when conducting, although in earlier periods of classical music history, leading an ensemble
while playing an instrument was common. In Baroque music from the 1600s to the 1750s,
conductors performing today may lead an ensemble while playing a harpsichord or the violin
(see Concertmaster). Conducting while playing a piano may also be done with musical theatre
pit orchestras.
Communication is typically non-verbal during a performance (this is strictly the case in art
music, but in jazz big bands or large pop ensembles, there may be occasional spoken
instructions). However, in rehearsals, the conductor will often give verbal instructions to the
ensemble, since they generally also serve as an artistic director who crafts the ensemble's
interpretation of the music.
Conductors act as guides to the choirs they conduct. They choose the works to be performed
and study their scores, to which they may make certain adjustments (e.g., regarding tempo,
repetitions of sections, assignment of vocal solos and so on), work out their interpretation, and
relay their vision to the singers. Choral conductors may also have to conduct instrumental
ensembles such as orchestras if the choir is singing a piece for choir and orchestra. They
may also attend to organizational matters, such as scheduling rehearsals, planning a concert
season, hearing auditions, and promoting their ensemble in the media.

Eastern Orthodox churches, some American Protestant groups, and traditional synagogues
do not use instruments. In churches of the Western Rite the accompanying instrument is
usually the organ, although in colonial America, the Moravian Church used groups of strings
and winds. Many churches which use a contemporary worship format use a small amplified
band to accompany the singing, and Roman Catholic Churches may use, at their discretion,
additional orchestral accompaniment.

Liturgical function
In addition to leading of singing in which the congregation participates, such as hymns and
service music, some church choirs sing full liturgies, including propers (introit, gradual,
communion antiphons appropriate for the different times of the liturgical year). Chief among
these are the Anglican and Roman Catholic churches; far more common however is the
performance of anthems or motets at designated times in the service.

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 Choir Types

• Mixed choirs (with male and female voices). This is perhaps the most common type,
usually consisting of soprano, alto, tenor, and bass voices, often abbreviated as SATB.
Often one or more voices is divided into two, e.g., SSAATTBB, where each voice is
divided into two parts, and SATBSATB, where the choir is divided into two semi-
independent four-part choirs. Occasionally baritone voice is also used (e.g.,
SATBarB), often sung by the higher basses. In smaller choirs with fewer men, SAB, or
Soprano, Alto, and Baritone arrangements allow the few men to share the role of both
the tenor and bass in a single part.

• Male choirs, with the same SATB voicing as mixed choirs, but with boys singing the upper
part (often called trebles or boy sopranos) and men singing alto (in falsetto), also
known as countertenors. This format is typical of the British cathedral choir (e.g.
Peterborough Cathedral, St Paul's, Westminster Abbey).

• Female choirs, usually consisting of soprano and alto voices, two parts in each, often
abbreviated as SSAA, or as soprano I, soprano II, and alto, abbreviated SSA.

• Men's choirs, or male chorale, usually consisting of two tenors, baritone, and bass, often
abbreviated as TTBB (or ATBB if the upper part sings falsetto in alto range). ATBB
may be seen in some barbershop quartet music.

• Children's choirs, often two-part SA or three-part SSA, sometimes more voices. This
includes boy choirs. Boy choirs typically sing SSA or SSAA, sometimes including a
cambiata/tenor part for boys whose voices are changing.

In schools
In the United States, middle schools and high schools often offer choir as a class or activity
for students. Some choirs participate in competitions. One kind of choir popular in high
schools is show choir. Middle school and high school is an important time, as it is when
students' voices are changing. Although girls experience voice change, it is much more
drastic in boys. A lot of literature in music education has been focused on how male voice
change works and how to help adolescent male singers. Research done by John Cooksey
categorizes male voice change into five stages, and most middle school boys are in the early
stages of change. The vocal range of both male and female students may be limited while
their voice is changing, and choir teachers must be able to adapt, which can be a challenge to
teaching this age range.
Nationally, male students are enrolled in choir at much lower numbers than their female
students. The music education field has had a longtime interest in the "missing males" in
music programs. Speculation as to why there aren't as many boys in choir, and possible
solutions vary widely. One researcher found that boys who enjoy choir in middle school may
not always go on to high school choir because it simply doesn't fit into their schedules. Some
research speculates that one reason that boys' participation in choir is so low is because the
U.S. does not encourage male singers. Often, schools will have a women's choir, which helps

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the balance issues mixed choirs face by taking on extra female singers. However, without a
men's choir also, this could be making the problem worse by not giving boys as many
opportunities to sing as girls. Other researchers have noted that having an ensemble or even
a workshop dedicated to male singers can help with their confidence and singing abilities.

Arrangements on stage

One possible layout

Choir in front of the orchestra

There are various schools of thought regarding how the various sections should be arranged
on stage. It is the conductor's decision on where the different voice types are placed. In
symphonic choirs it is common (though by no means universal) to order the choir behind the
orchestra from highest to lowest voices from left to right, corresponding to the typical string
layout. In a cappella or piano-accompanied situations it is not unusual for the men to be in the
back and the women in front; some conductors prefer to place the basses behind the
sopranos, arguing that the outer voices need to tune to each other.
More experienced choirs may sing with the voices all mixed. Sometimes singers of the same
voice are grouped in pairs or threes. Proponents of this method argue that it makes it easier
for each individual singer to hear and tune to the other parts, but it requires more
independence from each singer. Opponents argue that this method loses the spatial
separation of individual voice lines, an otherwise valuable feature for the audience, and that it
eliminates sectional resonance, which lessens the effective volume of the chorus. For music
with double (or multiple) choirs, usually the members of each choir are together, sometimes
significantly separated, especially in performances of 16th-century music (such as works in
the Venetian polychoral style). Some composers actually specify that choirs should be
separated, such as in Benjamin Britten's War Requiem. Some composers use separated
choirs to create "antiphonal" effects, in which one choir seems to "answer" the other choir in a
musical dialogue.
Consideration is also given to the spacing of the singers. Studies have found that not only the
actual formation, but the amount of space (both laterally and circumambiently) affects the
perception of sound by choristers and auditors.