Unit 9. Conducting II.

Answer the questions:

Conducting involves precise indication of speed, dynamics and phrasing, as 1. What does conducting involve?
well as adequate representation of the composer’s intentions. 2. What are the methods of conducting?
The use of a baton did not become the universal method of directing a 3. What skills must a conductor possess?
performance until the second half of the 19th century. Other methods before that 4. What ideas were the first schools of conducting based on?
time included the hand, a roll of paper, or a violin bow. It was normal for opera 5. Why is the conductor’s authority important?
to be directed from the harpsichord, which was necessary for playing the Unit 10. Choir
recitative, and for symphonies to be directed by the principal first violin. Even A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus.
today, however, there are conductors - e.g. Boulez - who prefer to dispense with The former term is often applied to groups affiliated with a church and the
it and use their hands. second to groups that perform in theatres or concert halls, but this distinction is
The original purpose of conducting was simply to keep the performers far from rigid. Choirs may sing without instrumental accompaniment, with the
together. By the middle of the 19th century the conductor had become an accompaniment of a piano or pipe organ, with a small ensemble (e.g.,
interpreter. Berlioz, Wagner, von Bullow and Richter showed that a conductor harpsichord, cello and double bass for a Baroque piece), or with a full orchestra.
needed to be a consummate musician, with an intimate understanding of the Singing without accompaniment is called a cappella singing (although the
score and the power to communicate it to others. American Choral Directors Association discourages this usage in favor of
The only training for conducting is continual practice, practical familiarity "unaccompanied", since a cappella denotes singing "as in the chapel" and much
with orchestral instruments and a knowledge of their capabilities and limitations, unaccompanied music today is secular). Choirs may perform music from the
ability to read a full score and an intimate knowledge of the style of composers classical music repertoire, which spans from the medieval era to the present, or
and periods. Felix Mendelssohn dedicated himself to an exact realization of the popular music repertoire.
score through manipulation of the baton. His great dissenter named Richard Choirs are often led by a conductor or choirmaster. Most often choirs consist
Wagner declared that a conductor should personalize the score by coloring it of four sections intended to sing in four part harmony, but there is no limit to
with his own emotions. And so out of the clash of these two points of view the their number: Thomas Tallis wrote a 40-part motet for eight choirs of five parts
history of conducting was born. Mendelssohn fathered the “elegant” school, each.
whereas Wagner inspired the “passionate” school of conducting. The ideal Using a baton gives the conductor's gestures greater visibility, but many
modern conductor is a synthesis of the two attitudes. choral conductors prefer conducting with their hands for greater expressiveness.
The conductor’s instrument is one hundred human instruments, and he must Most conductors do not play an instrument when conducting, although in earlier
cause them to play like one. Therefore, he must have enormous authority, to say periods of classical music history, leading an ensemble while playing an
nothing of psychological insight in dealing with this large group. The conductor instrument was common.
must not only make his orchestra play; he must make them want to play. And the One of the main classifications of choirs is by gender and age since these
conductor must be humble before the composer; must never interpose himself factors affect how a choir sounds:
between the audience and the music itself, which is the whole reason for the - Mixed choir (with male and female voices). This is the most common and
conductor’s existence. dominant type, usually consisting of soprano, alto, tenor, and bass voices, often
PRACTICE abbreviated as SATB. Often one or more voices is divided into two, e.g.,
I. Which words in italics mean the following? SSAATTBB, where each voice is divided into two parts, and SATBSATB,
1. to stop using something; 2. a goal, an aim; 3. modest; 4. to mention an where the choir is divided into two semi-independent four-part choirs.
additional thing which gives even more strength to the point you are making. 5. a Occasionally baritone voice is also used (e.g., SATBarB), often sung by the
rebel, an opponent; 6. a light, thin stick used for conducting; 7. extremely skillful; higher basses.
8. close, dear, loving; 9. a harsh noise; a conflict, a sharp disagreement; 10. to - Male choirs with the same SATB voicing as mixed choirs, but with boys
individualize, to make distinctive; 11. a lead sheet; 12. knowledge, understanding; singing the upper part (often called trebles or boy sopranos) and men singing
13. to devote alto (in falsetto), also known as countertenors. This format is typical of the
British cathedral choir.
- Men's chorus, a choir of adult men, low voices only, usually consisting of two 3. a woman;
tenors, baritone, and bass, often abbreviated as TTBB (or ATBB if the upper 4. clarity or relative possibility of seeing;
part sings falsetto in alto range). ATBB may be seen in some barbershop quartet 5. earthly, material;
music. 6. stiff, inflexible, firm;
- Boys' choir, a choir of boys, typically singing SSA or SSAA, sometimes 7. arrangement, outline;
including a cambiata/tenor part for boys/young men whose voices are changing 8. a type of close four-part harmony for male voices, popular in romantic and
and a baritone part for those whose voices have changed. sentimental songs of the 1920s and 1930s;
- Women's choir, a choir of adult women, high voices only, usually consisting of 9. to deprive of the will to persist in something, to prevent, to oppose by
soprano and alto voices, two parts in each, often abbreviated as SSAA, or as expressing disapproval;
soprano I, soprano II, and alto, abbreviated SSA. 10. a melodic ornamental tone following a principal tone by a skip;
- Children's choir, often two-part SA or three-part SSA. 11. to associate, to connect.
- Girls' choir, a choir of girls, high voices only, typically SSA or SSAA.
It is the conductor's decision on where the different voice types are placed. In III. Distribute the voices from the highest to the lowest:
symphonic choirs it is common to order the choir behind the orchestra from
highest to lowest voices from left to right, corresponding to the typical string 1. For women: soprano, alto, contralto, mezzo-soprano.
layout. In a cappella or piano-accompanied situations it is not unusual for the 2. For men: bass, tenor, baritone, countertenor.
men to be in the back and the women in front; some conductors prefer to place
the basses behind the sopranos to tune to each other. More experienced choirs IV. Match the voices with their definitions:
may sing with the voices all mixed. Consideration is also given to the spacing of
the singers. Studies have found that the amount of space affects the perception of 1. Coloratura a) the lowest male voice, E2 (two Es below middle C)
sound. soprano to E4 (the E above middle C).
PRACTICE 2. Soprano b) a male voice, G2 (two Gs below middle C) to F4 (F
I. Answer the questions: above middle C).
1. What is the difference between a choir and a chorus? 3. Mezzo c) the highest male voice, B2 (2nd B below middle C)
2. What accompaniment do they sing with? to A4 (A above Middle C), and possibly higher.
3. How is singing without accompaniment called? 4. Countertenor d) the lowest female voice, F3 (F below middle C) to
4. Who usually leads the choir? (contra tenor) E5. Rare contraltos possess a range similar to the
5. How many sections do most choirs consist of? tenor.
6. Can a leader play an instrument when conducting? 5. Contralto e) a female voice between A3 (A below middle C) and
7. What factors are the main classifications of choirs based on? A5 (two octaves above A3).
8. What are their kinds? 6. Tenor f) the highest female voice able to sing C4 (middle C)
9. How are the voices placed? to C6 (high C), and even higher.
10. Is the spacing of the singers important? 7. Baritone g) a male voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that
of the female contralto or mezzo-soprano voice
II. Find equivalents in italics for the following: types, generally extending from around G3 to D5 or
1. a mainly vocal musical composition, of highly diverse form and style, from E5.
the late medieval era to the present; 8. Bass h) the highest female voice in opera, distinguished by
2. the choir’s conductor; its ability to do vocal acrobatic leaps, fast vocal runs
and trills, and free movement within the highest part
of the voice.