UNISON - WA ACDA's Online Newsletter
Articles and news
May 14, 2012
Ulrich quotes Wilson; adds his own observations on church youth choir work
by Joel Ulrich, R & S Chair for Music in Worship
A
fter reading John Wilson’s article in the April Choral Journal, Hallelujah! Youth Choirs Strengthen Music Ministry, and thinking about his concluding “points to keep in mind when working with teenage choirs…”, I was reminded that “adult” choirs are not always “miles apart” from youth choirs. After having taught high school choirs for 39 years, I didn’t see my adult church choirs as a whole lot different in many aspects—I just needed more patience with them!
Here are Wilson’s points—you’ll have to make the specific applications to your particular situation, but thinking about them, you’ll find some connections:
- Keep the rehearsal fast-paced
- Emphasize pure vowel production (teenage guys are more prone than adults to “spread” vowels) [or not! ^_^]
- Have snacks at every rehearsal [or not! ^_^]
- Keep the rehearsal positive and friendly along with some humor
- Give a needed vocal break in the middle of rehearsal
- Be loving but firm
- Be critical but never mean or insulting
- Challenge them musically but be realistic about their limitations
- Always have them memorize their music
- Do not sing in public if they do not know the music well or they will be discouraged
Again, you’ll have to make the cross-connections (literally, and figuratively!) based on your particular situation, and my responses below are “off the top”—all the points have much more conversation, etc.
- Pacing is most certainly an important aspect, depending on the particular music for Sunday, the peculiarity of the music you’re working on, and how tired your singers are that “night”, etc.
- Vowel production is constant work, period! Even “trained” singers in church choirs have not always been trained as ensemble singers, and their ensemble “training” depends on who their conductor was, etc.
- Snacks and “coffee” work really well for early Saturday morning, special rehearsals, etc. I keep water bottles for them every Wednesday evening rehearsal.
- Certainly, keep the rehearsals positive and friendly—they’ve had a long day already. And guest conductors add extra “break” as well.
- Vocal “breaks” will again depend on your particular situation—length of rehearsal, distance folks drive to get there, etc. And after our 2 hr. evening rehearsal, I give opportunity for “feedback” and discussion, etc. of the work that evening.
- “Loving but firm”—i.e., “speak the truth in love”, and as the model the Lord left us, church choir directors are “foot washers” in the true sense of the Lord. His apostles were not always easy to work with, but He never gave up on them….^_^
- “Critical” in the true sense of the word, critiquing our work for the highest glory—soli Deo Gloria! It was said of Olaf Christiansen, “Throughout the years, Olaf’s main objective with the St. Olaf Choir was to present sacred music sung beautifully, without distraction [i.e., positively critical to eliminate the “distractions”], so the listeners would be sensitized to the Holy Spirit’s message. This he saw as Kingdom work and his calling on earth.” Joseph M. Shaw, The St. Olaf Choir, 1997
- “Challenging” them and being “realistic” is constant work—out of their “comfort” zones so that in time they become comfortable at a higher level, etc.
- “Memorizing” has blessings, but obviously can’t be done every Sunday: “standards” of your repertoire over time, Spirituals, etc., etc.
- “Do not sing in public if…”—or Sunday morning…and the congregation might be “discouraged” as well!
So, just good thoughts for us to keep our work “fresh” and thoughtful. Share your reflections with us as they come to you. Hope to see you this summer—if you’ve not worked with Rod before, don’t miss this. He’s the “real deal”!
Blessings and joy, ju—“The Lord has put a new song in [our] mouth, a song of praise to our God…” Ps. 40:3
October 11, 2011
Skill building will bless our life-long work with church choirs
by Joel Ulrich, R & S Chair for Music in Worship
Dear Colleagues,
As we begin our new church year, the thoughts from Jeannine Jordan’s interview with Paul Klemme remind us of the importance of keeping the “big picture” as the back-drop/context for the day-to-day (see Jeannine Jordan Interviews Dr. Paul Klemme, jeannine@promotionmusic.org / www.promotionmusic.org).
J: Another aspect of worship at St. Paul’s [Episcopal Church, Salem, OR where Paul is Minister of Music] that David and I enjoy, is that there is order and excellence in everything. Would you please speak to your philosophy of excellence?
Dr. Klemme: The Old and New Testaments tell us that if we are to give of our gifts to God, we are to do it in a first-class manner and with a feeling of excellence. We should not give anything to God that is compromised or mediocre—God would not expect that nor would any of us who work together. We strive for something that is beyond ourselves—something that is heavenly and divine.
I tell my partners in music ministry that we must prepare and rehearse, then give our music as a gift. However, that gift has to be really, really well done—or we agree not to do it—or to work on it longer before we perform….
So, “In the beginning, God”…He is the creator of the song, and from the beginning, “skill” was a given:
…They were all under the direction of their father for the music in the house of the Lord with cymbals, harps and lyres for the service of the house of God. Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman were under the order of the king. They and their kindred, who were trained in singing to the Lord, all of whom were skillful [i.e., teachers].. (I Chronicles 25:1-7).
Paul’s thoughts on excellence simply reflect what has been important throughout the ages, i.e., ”skill”. Thus, skill building will bless our life-long, “big picture” work with church choirs. Over time, they will find more joy in the song as they become can doers! Literacy/skill building enables the “really, really well done” Paul mentioned, and gives a larger context to our weekly efforts.
The paradigm/thoughts of James Jordan I’ve shared in the past help in this: He writes that most choirs operate under the paradigm that the choir simply reflects the conductor:
Conductor----------------------------->------------------------------>Choir
The problem is, he says:
Such a paradigm places all the responsibility for music making on the conductor, and the choir accepts little if any responsibility for what happens [especially if the choir is learning by rote]. [The choir’s] job is merely to ‘return’ what was expected by the conductor.
He goes on to say, “Allow me to suggest a different paradigm”:
Choir---------------------------------->------------------------------->Conductor
In this paradigm, the choir is held accountable for supplying the energy and soulful synergism (i.e. ‘synergy’--the combination of actions or individuals in such a way that the effect is greater than the sum of its parts) inthe music-making process. The conductor then actively reacts to their spontaneous [God-given] human spirits. The choir creates the music, and the conductor actively reacts and evokes from the singers sounds that are born out of their [own] soul. It has been my experience that if the choir is given this responsibility, and is asked to commit to the process in the most profound way, they will accept that responsibility and sing beyond expectations.
He’s not advocating for literacy here, but literacy is key to helping singers take ownership of singing, and to finding the “soulful synergism” he talks about.
Here are some thoughts I shared at an NWCSI/Canada Christian school teachers’ conference last week regarding literacy as a center piece for true choral music education. As church choir directors, we may not think of ourselves as “educators,” but our choirs will become more musical over time if we integrate “education” into our weekly work, etc.
Things to Keep in Mind:
- Singing is the only true life-long “sport.”
- Teach/conduct from the perspective of life-long singing, beyond just “learning the song for Sunday,” etc.
- Solfege enables literacy, and frees singers from “director/piano dependence.”
- Solfege improves intonation. When we learn songs by wrote—playing parts on the piano, etc.—we’ll never sing totally in tune because, a) the piano is never totally in tune with itself, and, b) it’s compromised tonally from the get-go—orchestras don’t tune from the piano. When we begin learning parts using solfege to think the intervals, we’ll begin to sing more in tune because now we’re singing from the fundamental tone and thus we sing the other scale notes based on their relationship to that tone. “But I don’t have time…the piano is easier”…etc. Again, the life-long, long-haul perspective frees us from the tyranny of the urgent. Start with “baby steps,” and you’re on the way!
- You must decide how best to use it for your singers—even singers who’ve “sung all their lives” are not always open to “learning”. There’s a “learning curve” at the beginning, and depending on an individual’s learning style, some will assimilate more quickly while others will take longer—as is true with all subjects.
Solfege is a tool first and foremost. It is a tool to enable a way of thinking—hearing and singing, melodically and interval-ically in a tangible, pragmatic manner: “Je-sus loves me this I know…” (S-M-M-R-M-S-Sol…); or Sol-mi—minor 3rd, mi-do—major 3rd, do-sol—perfect 5th, etc. etc. , and tools are never ends in-and-of-themselves.
- Solfege is like a foreign language:
- You speak it best when you’re immersed in the culture;
- When you begin to think in that language, you’re on the way to knowing the language. For example, you’re beginning to “think” musically when you sing “Jesus loves me this I know…”, etc., and you hear “sol mi mi re mi sol sol…”, etc., etc.
- Solfege can become “conversational” given time, repetition and intentional usage, as should be done in each rehearsal.
How do we get started?
- “Love where you are and grow from there”…directors and singers.
- “Think” outside the box of how you’ve been teaching in the past, or how you were taught (or were not taught!). Become “self-critical” in the true meaning of critical—a positive work!
- Start with what you as director can do, and grow from there. Teach parts/correct intervals using solfege rather than the piano—get them used to “thinking” the sound, etc.
- Be creative in the ways you use solfege—short, simple melodies, intervals scales (i.e., sing/solfege the scale on which the song is based).
- Let skill and complexity develop in time—don’t expect to “get there” in one year.
Finally, another help that I’ve shared in the past is a basic Self-Evaluation form. It gives concrete steps for singers to keep in mind as they rehearse each song, each week. It has made a big difference in the growth of individual singers in my church choir—you should hear their “stories.” If our work in church music is to develop skill in our learning songs, we must have concrete goals/objectives other than just learning songs by ear and playing the piano louder. Solfege is the gift that keeps on giving, and helps singers develop individual skill that frees them from director dependence. So take the “long-haul” view, “Love where you are,” and truly “grow from there.” A year from now you’ll hear the difference (and you’ll also “see” the difference in your singers’ faces, too!)
The Self-Evaluation Form follows. Blessings on your year, and let us know what you’re doing! ju
Self-evaluation/critique is a meaningful form of growth/development. The concept of “loving where we are and growing from there” is an essential concept to have constantly before us if we are to reach our potential as choral musicians. When we become “satisfied” with where we are—whether that’s “I’m good” or “not so good”, we cease to grow as meaningful members of the choral community we’re involved with. So TRULY love where you are—but just don’t be content to “stay” there, as conductors and as singers.
The following questions will assist us in the work of “growing from there”:
- Are you identifying the “Do” note from the key signature in your music more “sub-consciously” now? REMEMBER: Key sigs don’t tell the actual KEY a song is in—they only tell what note is “Do” (if we use the Circle of 5ths correctly.)
Order of b’s: BEADGCF Order of #’s: FCGDAEB
2. Are you becoming more "tonally" conscious?
- Do you "see" what line or space the "Do" note is in every song you sing?
- Do you "qutomatically" determine the solfege name of your starting note in each song you sing, i.e., Do, Mi, Sol, La, etc., and thus keep the solfege going throughout your part?
- Are you beginning to identify visually the intervals in the music? i.e., sol/mi-minor 3rd, etc.
- Are you beginning to identify aurally the intervals you hear?
3. Are you "listening" more than you're singing in each rehearsal?
4. Are you more conscious of your "breathing/posture habits" in every rehearsal?
5. What other concepts do you want to remind yourself of in every rehearsal?
a.
b.
Helping our singers "find their song" involves helping them take ownership of aspects that often default to the conductor. Let's help them "learn to fish" rather than just feeding them. We only grow in Christ when we personally come to know Him. While we can certainly learn of Him from others, we don't truly know Him until we "give up all and go after Him." Ensembles that are truly musical enter into relationship with the music personally. Share your experiences in this work with the rest of us.
NOTE: For all of Joel Ulrich's material, please CLICK HERE. This will take you to the WA ACDA archives.
January 25, 2010
A little less singing + a little more listening = a little more music!
In a r
ecent e-mail from one of my former students who now sings with a community choir, I was reminded of one of the fundamental tasks of choral musicians: “Singing is Listening”…and listening to those around us in order to sing more musically.
“Now my latest choir challenge is a new soprano: she has experience that can't be beat, is more than competent at any difficult bits, already knows how to pronounce everything except Russian, and either knows everything by heart or else reads completely flawlessly. Just as I am about to be completely overcome with unbecoming envy, she sings SO LOUDLY there is really no point in anyone else singing at all. AND - she's nice too, so one can't even evilly justify much rancor toward her.”
Nothing new here—we’ve all experienced this issue at some point or other in our life work with choirs, either singing or conducting. We had this conversation at my 1st Covenant rehearsal last week.
Each week, I often share an article or phrase from a book to keep shaping our work as choral musicians—beyond just learning the “notes for Sunday”. Last week I shared from “Dear People…Robert Shaw”, a biography by Joseph A. Mussulman. As you know, Shaw wrote regular letters to his singers to review basic technical principles or to document his own personal growth as a musician. This paragraph came from a letter dated February 14, 1946, in which he recounted four experiences that had taught him one important thing. I share his “third” lesson below:
“The third lesson came with the Bach motet that the small choir had sung for the New Friends of Music on February 3. (It was a “railroad-rhythmic version” of Bach’s Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied—a distinctively “Americanized treatment”, said one reviewer, which was “giddy and exciting, having somewhat of the sect-group revival spirit about it, more earthy and physical than reflective or devout in nature. A touch more and those on the mourner’s bench might have been sent.”)
Shaw’s words in his letter:
“It is a work of frightening difficulty…and a couple of weeks prior to the concert, we had rugged rhythm and a fair-to-middling sonority—but very little Bach. What we had was not a motet—but a contest.
Fortunately, we also had friends, among them musicians, and among the musicians Julius Herford. He attended a rehearsal, and after we had sung it through, I turned to him. “It seems to me, “ he said kindly, “that if we all did a little less singing and a little more listening, we’d have a little more Bach.”
So much of our work in church choirs is just getting the notes learned for Sunday, with some dynamics and text articulation thrown in for good “measure”. Hopefully, we’ll never take for granted that the over-arching work of listening will always be our first and foremost work:
“A little less singing + a little more listening = a little more music”!
Share your thoughts and experiences—we’ll share them with each other.
Yours in this ministry together,
Joel
You're the keeper of the song, a sacred trust
by Joel Ulrich, Chair for Music in Worship
Wow—has your year gone by as quickly as mine has? Seems like it was just yesterday I submitted by first Unison article featuring Bruce Leafblad’s poem Who Am I” which he presented at the 2003 National Convention in New York.
Who am I? I am the SONG, the Lord’s song, the song of creation, the song of salvation, the song of victory and deliverance, the song of praise, the song of thanks, the song of supplication, the song of joy and gladness, the song of worship. I am the song of the morning stars, the song of Moses and the sons of Israel, the song of Deborah and Barak and of Hannah, the song of the Levitical musicians Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun and the sons of Korah; the song of Kings David and Solomon; the song of priests and prophets; I am the song of choirs and congregations, the song of God’s own people. I am the new song, the joyful song, the sacred song. I am the SONG UNENDING.
(His entire poem and convention address is attached for those of you who’d like to see it again).
"And you, my colleagues in this ancient guild, are the keepers of the SONG, the teachers of the SONG, the singers of the SONG, the leaders of the SONG in the church today.”
The second article shared thoughts about Singing Is Listening”: A little less singing + a little more listening = a little more music”! The article shared some reflection on a page from Dear People…Robert Shaw”, a biography by Joseph A. Mussulman. This excerpt was taken from a letter written by Shaw to his choir:
It is a work of frightening difficulty [Bach’s Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied]…and a couple of weeks prior to the concert, we had rugged rhythm and a fair-to-middling sonority—but very little Bach. What we had was not a motet—but a contest.
Fortunately, we also had friends, among them musicians, and among the musicians Julius Herford. He attended a rehearsal, and after we had sung it through, I turned to him. It seems to me, he said kindly, that if we all did a little less singing and a little more listening, we’d have a little more Bach.”
We have all been keepers of the song” in our work with church choirs this year, and hopefully, too, we have all worked on a little more listening” in our singing together.
At 1st Covenant rehearsals, we’ve continued to work with ear-training: I’d sing some short, 5-8 note melodic patterns on a "lu” syllable and have the choir sing the notes back using solfege” syllables. Over time, this habitual work as part of our warm-up” time at the beginning of each rehearsal has enabled the choir to improve their ability to hear and identify the intervals they see in their music: that’s a sol-mi, a minor 3rd”, etc., etc.
Their intonation and ability to maintain pitch has grown tremendously and the "ah ha” moments have brought such joy to rehearsals.
Last night after rehearsing the "Soulful Celebration” setting of Hallelujah from Handel’s Messiah for 30+ minutes without touching the piano or pitch-pipe, they were exactly on pitch. Wish you could have seen their faces when we checked pitch and they heard they were right on.
So, as "keepers of the song” and as those who help our choirs to "sing a little less and listen a little more,” we find that our choir-year flies by as we participate in the only true life-time sport:” singing!
Hope you’ll all plan on coming to Tacoma this summer for our annual Summer Institute so we can all share our stories” and find the refreshment that will bless our year-long work together. As we realize at each rehearsal: we need you—you need us! See you in July!
Gratefully, Joel
For more Joel Ulrich material related to his "Keepers of the Song" writing, please click HERE.