Final Bel Canto Reflection

I improved a lot in choir this year.  Though I did not work much at the beginning of the year, and would actually hide my phone behind my binder so I could do something besides sing, I ended up working much harder to improve.  That change happened around the time I noticed the people who sat behind me sitting behind the chairs and watching videos on their laptops.  Also, though I'm still a bad singer, I can hold a pitch much longer, and have greatly extended my upper range. While I won't lie and say I'll miss being in choir, I do appreciate how it has helped me.

-Raphael Lamé

Singing technique definitons

Allegro: (especially as a direction) at a brisk tempo

Soprano: the highest of the four standard singing voices

Staccato: with each sound or note sharply detached or separated from the others

Pianissimo: (especially as a direction) very soft or softly

Sempre crescendo: gradually getting louder

Simile: in the same way

Alto: a voice, instrument, or part below the highest range and above tenor, in particular

Basso: a bass voice or vocal part.

Piano: soft

Mezzo Forte: (especially as a direction) moderately loud

Forte: loud; strong

Fortissimo: (especially as a direction) very loud or loudly

Diminuendo: (especially as a direction) with a decrease in loudness

Ritardando: (especially as a direction) with a gradual decrease of tempo

Ideas for next song set

First song- Dound Akuru- did it before, but we have improved and I'd like a chance to redeem ourselves.

Second song- Happy (by Pharrell Williams)- Multiple parts, repetitive, seems to fit what we've been doing

Post Concert #1 Reflection

Last night was a lot better than I expected.  I expected us to get up on the stage and fail spectacularly, but instead we simply got up and sang.  We sang together for the most part, which was amazing.  We also had a nice tone, which I think may have been helped by the acoustics of the room we were in.  However, I did notice a few places in the music where it seemed like the guys didn't know whether or not we should sing.  This resulted in some parts being way too quiet (especially in Sourwood Mountain).  But, I think our work in class with the breathing paid off, because it sounded like we were all breathing together.

I think that we presented ourselves as professionally as we could.  While on stage, we acted exactly as we should.  However, due to the enormous number of people in that room, our entrance and exit was unorganized and therefore very unprofessional.  Also, there were a lot of complaints about our noise in the foyer.  I think that was inevitable, as we were a bunch of teenagers stuck in a room which could barely fit half of us comfortably.  I think it would have been much more comfortable for us and quieter for the audience if we had been told we could go hang out outside.

Going towards the next concert, I would really like to see base and tenor sections separated.  In this concert's songs, we were almost the same group, which I would really like to see changed.  For the entire ensemble, I think a better blend is what we should get next.  Currently, we have a lot of spaces during songs where there are many distinct sounds, even within a single section.  If this were to be fixed, we would be a lot closer to sounding like choral.

Personally, I need to work on my posture.  I have bad habit of putting my hands in my pockets, or quite literally "twiddling my thumbs" (or other fingers).  I also need to work on matching pitch.  I constantly felt like the people around me were at a much different pitch than I was, though even then I couldn't tell if they were higher or lower.  I hope to get better at this for the next set of songs.

Native Languages

Why is it easier:

Singing in my native language is easier because I already know the words, and there are no new sounds which I am not used to producing from my mouth.  It is very easy to read through the words and even memorize them.

Why it is harder:

Singing in my native language is harder because for the few words which are pronounced differently, because of singing, I am unable to change them from what I already know,  The main example of this in class in "love", which is pronounced very different while singing than it would be while talking conversationally.

Proper choir technique

Posture:

Posture for sitting should be "standing from the waist up", meaning having a straight back and not leaning against the back of the chair.  Legs should be vertical, with feet touching the ground.

Posture for standing should be straight, legs comfortably separate from each other (not widespread, but not straight vertical either).  Hands should be at your sides, hanging loosely.

For both positions, music sheet should be below face, at a position where it can be seen while looking straight forward to avoid either blocking view of your audience or looking down, away from audience.

Breathing:

Breathing should be deep breaths, and should be directed through stomach, not lungs.  This means that when you breathe in, you should feel your stomach, below your rib cage, expand.

Vowel Formation:

Vowels should be long, not wide.  An example of this is love, which should sound more like a cross between "love" and "lave".

Articulation"

Articulation should be focused and precise, with very distinct sounds.  The hard consonants, "T", "D", "P", "K", and sometimes "C" should be easily identified, and small differences such as the difference between "G" and "J" should be made obvious.

Raphael's Introduction to Choir

My music experience mostly consists of last year.  I think this year will be very similar, but might be very different.  If it is different, it will be because I am now part of the older half of the choir, and will be expected to do better.  However, it will still be singing, so my experience should not change much.