During warm ups everyone vocalizes
the fullest range of the voice (both girls and boys). We do at least one
overall ascending exercise, one descending exercise, and either a range extender
or a tongue twister. I teach them why we do certain vocalizes and what their
instrument is as scientifically as possible; that knowledge gives them
responsibility and accountability for their participation and performance in
class and on stage. For instance my favorite warm up is what I call a lip
bubble (aka motorboat sound). Ascending and descending the perfect fifth,
either with a legato or glissando articulation, gives the students a limited
range to manage or focus on. This exercise is wonderful for supporting and
maintaining airflow as well as relaxation of many muscles. Occasionally adding
the outstretched tongue, which can release some minor tongue tension, injects
some purposeful silliness at the beginning of the rehearsal. I usually begin in
E flat or E and ascend by half steps to D’. If the piano is used at this point,
I try to only have the open fifth or adding the playing the do, re, and sol as
a chord to get their ear active in tuning.
As for voicing here’s how it works
in my classroom. I teach them a short song or fragment and we sing it in
multiple keys. I then bring the students up to the piano in small groups, eight
to ten at a time, always of the same gender, and we sing thorough them again. I
call this a Voice Check (like a doctor’s check-up). No one ever sings by
themselves (which reduces anxiety) and I move around the circle "casually"
listening to the individuals sing. I then ask them to identify which key felt
best for them. The students know that I always take their opinion into account
when deciding their voice part and that they don’t always get what they want.
Their voice part is determined by how many singers there are in the ensemble,
their ability to match pitch, overall tone quality, range, and level of
experience. Students sing the part that fits their voice the best.
What about the boys? I usually
bring all of them up at once and first determine pitch matching ability and
guesstimate (depending on my personal experience with the student) where they
are in their vocal journey. We do the same exercise as above with modified
keys. I use lots of analogies in my instruction and I teach the kids that their
voice is like their foot: you can’t control when and how your foot grows, only
how you use it. You wouldn’t wear a shoe that’s too big or small or not
appropriate for a given activity, so your voice part is going to be as best a
fit as possible for your voice where it is now. Boys in my groups sing soprano,
alto or baritone. Since we do these voice checks at the beginning of the year
and after each concert any student’s voice part is not fixed and can/does
change during the year.
This leads me to repertoire. The joy
and vexation of repertoire! When possible and appropriate, I like to give the
students some control of their repertoire. For our festival music I always
program a folk song or “world music” type piece which may or may not be in
English, an “art” piece which is typically not in English, and a spiritual or
gospel style piece in English. I choose two to three pieces per category and
present them to the students. We look at the judging form and talk about
contrast of styles, genres, languages, and tempi and apply the criteria to the
given pieces and together choose the literature.
Where do I find my repertoire? The
standard answer: everywhere! Repertoire lists found online, concert programs
either passed to me or attended, honor choirs, youtube channels of some of my
favorite children’s choirs, conferences, reading sessions, colleagues. Don’t be
afraid of some SSA literature for a mixed voice chorus; some of those alto
parts are in a good range for your changing voice boys. Or my favorite – if the
music and/or text is so important to you to teach, make it work for your
ensemble! I just rearranged the Peter, Paul, and Mary song “Light One Candle” (SATB)
for my 3-part mixed choir because I knew they could handle the harmonies (arranging
meant I could control the voicing and lines) and the text’s message was one I
wanted them to internalize. Some of my favorite composers and arrangers in no
particular order: Ruth Elaine Schram, Patrick Liebergen, Rollo Dilworth,
Caldwell & Ivory, Susan Brumfield, Mary Goetze, Jim Papoulis, Henry Leck,
Doreen Rao.
So you’ve sorted them into voice
parts, warmed them up, and have literature in hand. How to teach it? Literacy
baby! The resources I use are: Directions to Literacy by Ann Eisen and Lamar
Robertson (as a scope & sequence guide for me using different repertoire), One
Minute Daily Theory Books 1 & 2 (Slabbinck), 185 Unison Pentatonic
Exercises (Bacon) and Kodaly Exercises. They sight-read daily and their mantra
is “Don’t stop and never give up.” They read an exercise rhythmically
before adding the melody. When they struggle with an exercise I remind them of
how far they’ve come (“better today than yesterday, better tomorrow than
today”). When it comes to literature, my students write solfege into their
music as often as possible. Lots of repetition is key (isn’t it always...).
That dovetails into management
(which I admit I am struggling with this year). Keep them busy! Moving swiftly
in rehearsal is good for their attention span. My students also enjoy some
freedoms within boundaries when appropriate. Give them some space when you can
tell when they’ve hit their limit (usually occurring outside of class) and push
them to develop some drive to move through and beyond the minor drama that
distracts from the goal (which is sometimes just getting through rehearsal). We teach life skills as much as we teach legato most days.
When I was asked to do this blog
post I surveyed my friends as to what I should cover. I’ve tried to touch on
everything they’ve suggested, saving my favorite for last: “How to keep your
sanity”. When you figure it out can you let me know? I try to laugh and find
goosebump moments as much as possible, both in and outside of class. Sometimes
it’s remembering the small epiphanies the students have or connecting with a
former student who is doing well in high school or beyond. In the moment –
breathe – lots of breathing!! Restrain that inner voice that wants to be
negative. Invest yourself in yourself. Take care of your physical/emotional/mental/intellectual/spiritual/etc
needs. Connect with colleagues.
I wish you sanity and success with your
squirrels.
You make a difference and they know it (though they rarely show it).
Amanda Isaac currently directs
twelve choral groups ranging between 5th through 8th
grades, four of which are at the junior high, and teaches 2nd and 3rd
grade classroom music at two elementary schools in the same school district in Bakersfield, California.
Her junior high choirs consistently earn superiors or higher at festivals and
her students regularly participate in county, all-state, division, and national
honor choirs. After earning both a BA and MA in Music from California State
University Chico, Mrs. Isaac furthered her professional studies by completing
her Kodály Certification from McNeese State University with Lamar Robertson,
Ann Eisen, and Susan Tevis. Mrs. Isaac has given presentations at both regional
and state conferences for multiple organizations and enjoys guest conducting
honor choirs. In 2016 she joined the faculty of the Colorado Kodaly Institute
where she teaches the Level 3 Pedagogy and Folk Song Analysis courses. Named
the Kern County Music Educators Association’s Choral Educator of the Year in
2013, Mrs. Isaac is currently serving her second term as the organization’s
President. She also hosts the Kern County CMEA Choral Ratings Festival and
holds active memberships in the California Music Educators Association,
American Choral Directors Association, and Organization of American Kodaly
Educators. Outside of academia, Mrs. Isaac is the Director of Music
Ministries for First Congregational Church, UCC in Bakersfield. In her free
time, she enjoys life with her wonderful husband and two young children.
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