litd E dition 
 
 CROIR 
 
 HJTO 
 
 Ci^oRas Co)HDact:i]^T6 
 
 A TREATISE 
 
 On the Orgfanization, Managfemcnt^ Training;, and 
 
 Conducting: of Choirs and Choral 
 
 Societies 
 
 BY 
 
 F. W. WODELL 
 
 PHILADELPHIA 
 
 THEODORE PRESSER 
 t909 
 
Copyright, J 90 J, by Theodore Presser, 
 

 Ji59769 
 
Preface. 
 
 This book is, in some measure, the outcome of the 
 author's desire to be of service to such as need assist- 
 ance in the work of organizing and conducting Choir 
 or Choral Society. 
 
 It is hoped that it will bring aid, suggestion and 
 stimukis to workers in this field. Its production has 
 afforded pleasurable employment for the " spare hours " 
 of a professional life for a considerable period. May 
 its perusal be to many a source of profit. 
 
 The Author. 
 Boston, Jan, 1901* 
 
Choir and Chorus Conducting, 
 
 Part I. 
 ORGANIZATION. 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 Intf odtJCtion* — In organizing a church choir account should 
 be taken of the special purpose for which it is designed : 
 whether it is to lead the people in song, or to sing as proxy for 
 the people, or both. The style of music to be sung and the size 
 of the auditorium are also items for consideration. 
 
 A quartet is seldom effective in the promotion of good 
 congregational singing. A quartet which sings modern tunes 
 with their rich harmonization, and is given to over-much 
 ' ' expressiveness ' ' in the way of shading and variations of 
 tempo, discourages the average worshipper and prevents his 
 joining in the hymn singing. Where a quartet is to be used 
 to lead the congregation in the hymns, it should be made up of 
 powerful voices, and frequently sing the melody in unison, 
 keeping a steady pace. 
 
 Church music, available for quartet of male or female 
 voices is comparatively limited in quantity. 
 
6 ; cHoiii : A,5?i? ''(?H.Qiius conducting. 
 
 As compared with the quartet of mixed voices, both the 
 male and female quartets lack variety of tone-color and are 
 consequently deficient in expressiveness. Both male and 
 female quartets are capable of rich effects. 
 
 The. popular ear appreciates the virility of the voices and 
 the richness of the close harmony in the singing of the male 
 quartet, and such a choir is therefore much in demand for 
 special kinds of work, particularly the singing of the more 
 simple settings of familiar and ' '■ gospel ' ' hymns. 
 
 The female quartet lacks the virility and breadth of tone 
 of the male quartet. It can be used, however, to good 
 advantage to give variety to a service. It is very seldom used 
 alone as a choir. Some beautiful sacred music has been 
 written by good composers for its use. 
 
 The Male Quartet Choir, — In organizing a male quartet 
 choir, great care must be taken to secure a proper balance of 
 the voices. The first or highest tenor, should be the lightest 
 voice, (have less volume than the others), and should play 
 about ''high" E, F, and G with ease and freedom. The 
 second or lowest base should have the greatest volume, and 
 should descend with ease and full voice to the low F. A 
 mistake is often made in placing a heavy, semi-baritone voice 
 as the second tenor of a male quartet. In such case the balance 
 of parts is lost ; the inner part is made too prominent. A 
 better plan is to have a first tenor sing second tenor. It is 
 unwise to use a heavy baritone as the first bass of a male 
 quartet. The first and second basses then sound too much 
 alike, their parts become ' ' muddy, ' ' and they over-balance tha 
 tenors. The greatest error is to put a second tenor into the 
 position of first tenor. The quartet will then always sound 
 top-heavy, there will ever be danger of flatting, and blending 
 and delicate shading will be well-nigh impossible of attain- 
 ment. 
 
ORGANIZATION. 7 
 
 First tenor and second bass voices are, in this country, 
 comparatively rare. Sometimes a young tenor who has thought 
 his compass of effective tones restricted to ^ ^ high G, ' ' has a 
 light, thin upper voice which he is afraid to use. Judicious 
 training of that light upper voice on downward scales and 
 arpeggios, gradually increasing the force of the notes, will some- 
 times develop in such an one a good first tenor voice. 
 
 The Female Quartet* — The voices for a female quartet 
 choir must balance as do those of the male quartet. The first 
 soprano should have a light, lyric voice, singing easily around 
 upper E, F and G. With this voice should be associated a 
 light, high mezzo-soprano, or better, a first soprano singing as 
 second soprano. The first alto should be a mezzo-contralto, or 
 a mezzo-soprano who has a good low A. The second alto must 
 needs be the ' ' bass ' ' of the quartet and should possess a round 
 full tone to low F. This voice seldom sings higher than third 
 space C, treble clef. The ordinary choir soprano should not be 
 used as a first soprano in female quartet work. The voice is 
 too full in character, and the part runs too much above the 
 limits within which it is most at ease. Occasionally what has 
 seemed to be an unpromising, weak soprano voice, of not more 
 than an octave in compass, from middle G ( treble clef ) to high 
 G, has under training, turned out to be a genuine lyric, or 
 first soprano. 
 
 The Female Trio* — The best combination for the trios 
 for female voices sometimes met with in music for the church 
 is usually that of a light, high soprano for the upper part, with 
 a high mezzo-soprano for the second part, and a broad, low 
 mezzo-soprano or chorus alto for the lowest part. As a rule 
 the high mezzo-soprano is given the upper part, but the effect 
 is never of the best. The characteristics of each composition 
 must govern the choice of voices. The point here made is that 
 frequently the true effect of the music is not brought out because 
 a voice of too heavy a character is assigned to the upper part. 
 
8 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 The voices of a male and of a female quartet should 
 taper in volume as shown in the accompanying diagram : 
 
 Tenor. I Soprano. 
 
 The Male ot Female Chorus. — This may best be considered 
 as an aggregation of quartets. The full bodied voices must be 
 kept off the upper parts, or a '' top-heavy" effect, with flat- 
 ting, is almost inevitable. 
 
 The Mixed Quartet Choir. — The mixed quartet — Soprano, 
 Contralto, Tenor and Bass — is a form of choir popular in the 
 United States. It is seldom well chosen either as to balance or 
 blending of voices. 
 
 As a rule, in selecting singers for a quartet choir, one voice 
 ( usually the soprano or the tenor ) is settled upon, for various 
 reasons, musical and otherwise, as one that must be had, and 
 the remaining three voices are taken without much thought as 
 to whether they will blend and balance with the one first 
 chosen. A major part of the available appropriation is used in 
 paying the special voice, and necessarily the committee is 
 hampered in the work of choosing the remaining members of 
 the quartet. 
 
 As a result so-called quartets are often made up in a 
 peculiar manner. As for instance : A light, high soprano, a 
 
ORGANIZATION. 9 
 
 full- voiced contralto, a robust tenor, a baritone. This combina- 
 tion is too light at top and bottom. 
 
 Another ill-balanced choir often met with, is this : A full, 
 dramatic soprano, a mezzo-contralto, a light tenor, a full, low 
 bass. 
 
 Perhaps the least satisfactory combination is one not infre- 
 quently found in the wealthier churches, in which the desire 
 for voices possessing extremely high and low tones is gratified 
 at considerable expense. Here is found : A light, high soprano, 
 a contralto, a lyric tenor, a low bass. A duet between the 
 soprano and bass of this combination is about as satisfactory as 
 would be one by the piccolo and bass tuba of the orchestra. 
 
 Voices of great power, and voices of extremely high, or 
 low range, as the case may be, are comparatively scarce. The 
 very full, low bass, in America, is more scarce than the light, 
 high soprano. Good tenors of any class are not at all plentiful. 
 There is also a lack of genuine, low contraltos. Most quartet 
 contraltos, are mezzo-sopranos whose low tones are heavy 
 and full. Too often these low tones are artificial ( forced ) and 
 to the cultivated ear, accustomed to the genuine contralto voice, 
 decidedly unpleasant. 
 
 Under these circumstances, it is less difficult and expensive 
 to form a quartet choir on the basis of a baritone voice for the 
 bass part. This would naturally mean the association with 
 such a bass of a mezzo-contralto, a lyric tenor, and a high 
 soprano. Much of the modern music for quartet choirs is 
 written for all the voices at high pitches, presumably for the 
 sake of brilliancy, and such a quartet as has just been mentioned 
 is needed to do it justice. 
 
 Following is a suggestion for two quartets, drawn up with 
 reference to balance of voices : 
 
 No 1. — A light, high soprano, a mezzo-contralto, a lyric 
 tenor, a baritone. 
 
10 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTIXG. 
 
 No. 2. — A full, mezzo, or dramatic soprano, a contralto, a 
 robust tenor, a full, low bass. 
 
 An item of equal importance mth balance of tone in 
 making up a quartet choir, is that of the blending quality of 
 the voices. There can be no true quartet singing without this. \ 
 Oft-times a singer is acceptable as a soloist, but unsatisfactory 
 in quartet, because the quality of the voice makes it 
 ' ^ stick out ' ' from the other voices. Frequently this is, to a 
 large extent, a matter of voice production. A forced tone may 
 be ''on the pitch," but it will not blend. Perfection of into- 
 nation is an absolute pre-requisite to the blending of voices. No 
 matter how well a singer may perform in other respects, if he 
 has a tendency to sing off the pitch on a given note or vowel, 
 that singer is not properly available for fine quartet work. 
 
 In the grand orchestra the instruments are divided into 
 families ; that is, groups having the same general tone color ; 
 as, for instance, the trio of trombones, or the quartet of 
 strings ; each instrument having a certain individuality as it 
 sounds its note of the chord, yet each member of the trombone 
 or string family having a voice which bears a strong color- 
 resemblance to the voices of the other members of the family. 
 When the members of one of these families sing together 
 the blend is very close, and the effect full and rich. So with 
 human voices. When four moderately good voices are found 
 in one family, so that a mixed quartet may be formed there- 
 from, there is usually a strong family likeness among the 
 voices, a resemblance in tonal hue, which gives a close, rich 
 blend. 
 
 It is not necessary, however, in order to satisfactory blend- 
 ing in a quartet choir, that all the voices shall be of the same 
 general tone-color. The composer for the orchestra, and the 
 organist, study the combining of instruments and stops of 
 different colors so as to secure special richness, or brilliancy. 
 So a bright, vibrant tenor voice is sometimes needed in a 
 
ORGANIZATION. 11 
 
 quartet where the baritone is of a rather sombre quality. The 
 one voice complements the other, is modified by it. In the 
 same way a rather acid soprano may be sweetened somewhat 
 and blend surprisingly well with a contralto of a soft, sombre, 
 enveloping quality of tone. 
 
 It is evident that in choosing voices for their blending 
 qualities there is an opportunity for the exercise of a fine sense 
 of tone-color. Those who have charge of the organization and 
 drilling of choirs would do well to study the characteristic 
 timbres of the human voice from its lowest to its highest 
 registers ; and also the qualities of organ stops and orchestral 
 instruments, singly and in combination. 
 
12 CHOIR AND CHOaUS CONDUCTIXG. 
 
 Chapter II. 
 
 The Quintet Choir* — Occasionally it is useful to have the 
 services of both a bass and a baritone, in connection wdth a 
 quartet choir. There is one leading director in the Eastern 
 States who is fond of this combination, and makes special 
 arrangements of five-part music for its use. 
 
 The Double Mixed Quartet ( Octet )♦ — A choir of eight 
 voices made up of Mixed Quartets, Nos. 1 and 2 above men- 
 tioned, is one of the most effective combinations possible for a 
 church service in which solo singing, sti'ong hymn leading and 
 a varietj^ of concerted work is desired. From this combination 
 a director may organize : Two mixed quartets, a female quartet, 
 a male quartet. If well chosen as to blending, the full com- 
 bination will have sufficient sonority to give a satisfactory 
 interpretation of many of the larger anthem forms. Eight 
 good, well blended and thoroughly ti^ained voices, in such a 
 combination, mil give much more breadth of tone, and musical 
 satisfaction generally, than Tvdll double the number of ordinary 
 chorus singers. It is not necessary that these singers shall be 
 especially fine soloists in order to obtain the best effects in 
 concerted singing. The double quartet need not, therefore, 
 represent exactly double the expense of the exceptionally fine 
 solo quartet. One of the quartets may consist of less experi- 
 enced singers, yet the combined effect under a competent 
 trainer be verj^ good. The greatest care, however, must be 
 exercised in regard to the items of balance and blend of voices, 
 as above set forth, or best results cannot be expected. 
 
ORGANIZATION. 18 
 
 Chaptek III. 
 
 The Choir of Boys and Men* — This form of choir, in 
 which the treble and sometimes the alto part is sustained by 
 boys whose voices have not changed, while men sing the tenor 
 and bass parts, is in favor in the Episcopal Church. It is 
 generally or rather popularly known as the Boy Choir. As a 
 rule this type of choir is not a success, musically, because the 
 boys' voices are not properly or sufficiently trained. Extremists 
 assert that only by such a choir can the Music^il Service be 
 rightly given. Others find the boys' voices inadequate to a 
 proper interpretation of parts of the Service. Laying aside 
 this debated question, and assuming that a Boy Choir is 
 wanted, it may be said, and with emphasis, that only one who 
 thoroughly understands the training of the female voice should 
 be entrusted with the formation and drill of such a choir. 
 Given such an instructor, he will, of course, find his material 
 wherever he can ; in the Sunday School, the public school, the 
 private family. 
 
 It is of little use, in America, to endeavor to organize a 
 Boy Choir upon a purely volunteer basis. The best plan is to 
 pay each boy a stated sum per rehearsal and service, and by a 
 system of bonuses and fines reward or punish him in connec- 
 tion with such matters as attendance, punctuality, good order, 
 and so on. The best voices, as a rule, come from the homes of 
 the moderately well-to-do. These children are out of doors a 
 good deal, relatively strong, and have some refinement, which 
 tells favorably upon the voice quality. The average American 
 boy is an energetic mortal, and unless he is checked at home, 
 his enthusiasm upon the street and playground operates to 
 injure the quality of his voice. 
 
 In many cities and towns of this country sight singing is 
 taught in the public schools. A fair degree of ability in note 
 
14 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 reading is often gained. Where the teacher of the room or in 
 charge of the music lesson happens to have been well-tanght 
 vocally, to possess a musical voice, and good taste, the scholars 
 at least do not injure their voices in the sight-singing work. 
 Too often the teaching of music is entrusted to one who lacks 
 the qualifications enumerated. City Boy Choir masters have 
 learned to know and dread the public school tone exhibited by 
 boys whose sight singing work in the pubKc schools is done 
 under a grade teacher who has but little musical knowledge, 
 and no ear for good tone quality. 
 
 In some choirs of boys and men the alto part is sung by 
 men who use a kind of falsetto tone quality. It is difficult to 
 find a boy-alto voice w^hich has sufficient power to be effective, 
 and at the same time is of pleasing quality. If, however, one 
 is likely to worry over difficulties in the organization and man- 
 agement of a Boy Choir he had best not take up the work. In 
 the nature of the case, the choir master can look for but three 
 or four years of good service from boys upon whom he has 
 spent much careful effort. At the change of voice, the choir 
 boy is lost to the choir. He may re-appear as a tenor, baritone or 
 bass — he may not even have a voice good enough for choir work. 
 
 Only what is known as the Head-voice, which, to the boy, 
 sounds like a girl's voice, should be used by the treble boys. 
 There is no danger, whatever, in having both small boys and 
 girls sing high tones, provided this Head-voice be used. Much 
 power, however, cannot be looked for. There is intensity — 
 carrying power, but not volume. The organizer of the Boy 
 Choir must, therefore, provide many more boys than men. 
 Only actual test of the voices available will determine the pro- 
 portionate numbers. If he listens to the choir singing an 
 anthem, stationing himself at a little distance from them, he 
 will get at the matter of balance. Obviously the leader of a 
 Boy Choir must be constantly on the lookout for new material. 
 If he is wise he will establish some sort of a waiting list, or 
 probationer's class. 
 
ORGANIZATION. 15 
 
 Chapter IV. 
 
 The Chofus of Mixed Voices^— A choir numbering more 
 than eight voices — the Double Quartet — may be called a Chorus 
 Choir^ 
 
 There is an extensive list of the best class of compositions 
 for use in the church-service which cannot be adequately 
 rendered except by a well-trained chorus. The style of compo- 
 sition is such that several voices on each part are needed to give 
 it with proper breadth and dignity. This music is sometimes 
 attempted by the mixed quartet, but the performance savors 
 somewhat of burlesque. 
 
 Many wealthy churches in America now pay each singer of 
 a chorus of from twenty to forty voices, and engage, in addi- 
 tion, a good solo quartet. Such a combination, carefully 
 organized, and under competent leadership, is equal to the 
 finest compositions to be found in the literature of church 
 music, and gives great satisfaction. As a rule, a second mixed 
 quartet, a male quartet, and a female quartet can be organized 
 from such a force, on the lines heretofore indicated. The 
 church and the director possessing such resources are to be 
 congratulated. 
 
 In organizing a church choir, whether paid or voluntary, 
 the items of balance and blend must receive due attention. If 
 the chorus is to number sixteen or less, it may sometimes best 
 be made up on the quartet basic, that is, twelve voices means 
 three singers on each part. Care should be taken to secure at 
 least one quartet of full, low voices, as was indicated in treating 
 of the Double Quartet. 
 
 In a chorus choir of say twenty-five singers, the bass 
 should number seven, the soprano eight, and tenor and alto five 
 
16 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 each. Here it must again be pointed out that, owing to 
 great differences in voices as to sonority, nothing short of 
 actual test in the singing of an anthem will enable the 
 Director to know w^hether he has secured a good balance of 
 tone. It will usually be found, however, that the bass and 
 soprano must average a larger number of voices than the other 
 divisions if these parts of the compositions sung are to have 
 due effect. Few organizers realize the importance of securing 
 a solid bass. AVhen this division is sufficiently powerful, and 
 sings with firmness, the music has a solidity highly gratifying 
 to the cultivated ear. There is also much less danger of 
 flatting. Too often chorus choir singing has the effect of a 
 vocal trio, ( soprano, alto and tenor, ) with the pedal organ 
 filling in the bass which the voices fail to supply. 
 
 Herewith is given : — 
 
 A Table 
 
 Showing Compass of Chorus Voices ; Also Kange of Best Notes. 
 
 Actual pitch is indicated. 
 
 Compass. Best Notes. 
 
 High ( lyric ) Soprano. 
 
 m 
 
 ^^ 
 
 High Mezzo-Soprano. 
 (Commonly called Soprano.) 
 
 a: 
 
 2 
 
 ^ 
 
 Low Mezzo-Soprano. 
 ( Mezzo-Contralto. ) 
 
 Contralto. 
 
 PiP^N=5^ 
 
 :^ 
 
 P^P 
 
ORGANIZATION. 
 
 17 
 
 High ( lyric ) Tenor. 
 
 Low Tenor. 
 
 Baritone. 
 
 ,.=^^^3^ 
 
 e^J^M^N 
 
 W 
 
 m 
 
 Note. — There may be, in any chorus, exceptional voices in each class, of 
 a range exceeding the limits here indicated. Cultivation and practice will 
 bring to many voices increase of range and of sonority. Young voices develop 
 in surprising ways, and it is therefore advisable for the choir director to make 
 frequent examinations of voices and re-classifications of his forces. Let it be 
 distinctly understood that this table applies only to average chorus voices, 
 and not to solo voices. Best notes are those tones in a voice which can be 
 sung with power, and for a considerable time without fatigue. On these 
 notes intonation is most certain, and clearness and smoothness in delivery is 
 most easily attained. 
 
 The classification of voices is a matter of knowledge and 
 skill upon the part of the examiner. The division to which a 
 voice belongs is not to be decided upon the item of compass 
 alone ; but the chief point is to discover the natural timbre and 
 level of the voice. Sometimes lyric or high sopranos are 
 exceeded in upward range by mezzo-sopranos, but their natural 
 tone quality or timbre, light and flute-like, bird-like, together 
 with their facility in runs and scales^ and power to sing for 
 a considerable time above third space C freely and easily, 
 shows their class ; Lamperti, the elder, says : 
 
 ''A soprano may be recognized by the facility with which 
 the upper G is emitted ; no difficulty will be experienced in 
 enunciating words on the highest notes, nor in holding a long 
 breath upon them. This is the crucial test, because there are 
 
18 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 sometimes contraltos that can sing up to the high C, but they 
 cannot pronounce words on the upper notes without f'ffort and 
 great detriment to the voice. ^^ The above test of ease in pro- 
 nunciation and ability to hold a tone for a long time, at a high 
 pitch, should also be applied to male voices. A baritone may 
 be able to sing high A at a climax, but this does not prove him 
 a tenor. Many tenors, through lack of proper cultivation, are 
 unable to sing rightly from D upward, and so can scarcely 
 reach the high G except with great effort. Such may well be 
 classed with low tenors or baritones, notwithstanding that their 
 lower notes may be comparatively weak. In America mezzo- 
 sopranos and baritones predominate ; there are more high 
 sopranos than tenors or low basses. 
 
 The actual classifying of voices is best done in private, 
 each voice being examined separatelj^ The tricks that voices 
 play mth their owners, under the nervous strain of an exami- 
 nation, are manifold and odd, and the examiner must be on 
 the alert to guard against being misled as to the real nature of 
 the voices he listens to. A pleasant, friendly, cheerful manner, 
 on the part of the examiner, is most helpful in this connection. 
 If the candidate can be made to feel and act naturally — to 
 permit the real voice to show itself under the influence of a 
 friendly chat, and a pleasant smile, the result will be satisfactory. 
 
 Where for reasons it is necessary to classify voices from the 
 mass, in the rehearsal room, there is perhaps less nervousness 
 on the part of the candidates, but the task of the examiner is 
 made somewhat more difficult. He may walk about among 
 his singers while the test exercises are being sung, noting the 
 characteristics of the voices as he passes, and later assigning 
 parts. Or, he may call up a number of male or female singers, 
 indiscriminately, listen to their singing, and assign parts at 
 once. A finer subdivision can be made later by taking members 
 from each division in fours, and putting them through the 
 tests. 
 
ORGANIZATION. 
 
 19 
 
 Voice-Classification Tests^ 
 
 No* J. Moderato 
 
 Lah, lah, lab, lab, 
 
 Lab, lab, lab, lab, lab, lab. 
 
 No, 3. 
 
 V V V 
 
 No. 4. 
 
 i 
 
 ^ 
 
 a 
 
 ^ 
 
 e 
 
 \^ \^ ■■^' v^r .^1 
 
 12 3 4 5 
 
 lah, lah, 
 
 Lah, lah, lah, lah, lah. 
 
 No. 5. 
 
 al 
 
 ^ 
 
 :fe 
 
 ^ 
 
 ab, lab, beb, nee, po, too. Lab, beb, nee, po, too, lab, beb, nee, po, too. 
 
 Note. — These test exercises should be used from the lowest pitch given 
 for each class of voice, and worked chromatically upward to the limit of the 
 voice as it appears. The syllable ' ' lah ' ' should be made without movement 
 of the jaw ; the face should wear a pleasant expression and the upper part of 
 the body should be bent slightly forward. The arpeggio and skip, are of far 
 more value than the scale in bringing out the true character of the voice. 
 The syllable "lah," done as directed, has also a special value in this connec- 
 tion. Exercises Nos, 4 and 5 furnish material for the use of tests recommended 
 by Lamperti. Necessarily the pronunciation of the syllables, to have any 
 value as a test for the purpose in hand, must be attempted with rapidity, 
 distinctness and smoothness in view. The pause will prove the ability of the 
 singer to prolong a high note. 
 
20 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter V. 
 
 Having completed tlie ciassification of voices the Choir 
 Director may find that the parts do not balance. This defect 
 must be remedied if the best grade of work is to be done, It 
 is not well to have too many light, high sopranos. The lower, 
 fuller, richer voices of the sopranos and mezzo-sopranos have a 
 special value in giving body and color to the tone of the Choir. 
 As a rule, in America, the greatest lack in chorus choirs is that 
 of a sufficient body of tone in the tenor. A skilful director 
 will, in favorable passages, reinforce his tenor parts b}^ using 
 the lowest voices among the contraltos in combination with the 
 tenors. He will also constantly listen to his baritones with the 
 hope that one or more of them, under cultivation, may give 
 signs of added freedom and true tenor qualit}^ on the upper 
 notes, and become available for the tenor division. 
 
 Frequently, in volunteer choirs, there is difficulty in 
 securing a sufficient number of altos, ladies having the idea 
 that the alto part is of secondary importance, or that it is 
 especially difficult, often preferring to strain to sing the upper 
 notes of the soprano part, rather than to join the alto division. 
 The Director may effectively combat these notions by pointing 
 out that the alto part is of equal importance with the soprano ; 
 that the harmony is incomplete without it. He may also refer 
 to the advice of gi-eat composers to students of music to learn 
 to sing and play the second part for the sake of musicianship ; 
 of cultivating the harmonic sense. Schumann has said : 
 
 ' ' Lose no opportunity of playing music, duos, trios, etc. , 
 with others. 
 
 ' ' If all were determined to play the first violin, we should 
 never have a complete orchestra. 
 
ORGANIZATION. 21 
 
 ' ' Sing in choruses industriously, especially the middle voices. 
 This will make you a good reader, and intelligent as a 
 musician.'^ 
 
 As a means of discovering material for the alto division 
 the Chorus Director may require all the sopranos to sing the 
 alto, while the soprano part is played firmly upon an instru- 
 ment. While this is being done he should listen for those 
 singers among the sopranos who easily, and with some force of 
 tone reach the A; 
 
 i 
 
 w= 
 
 and who, while perhaps making errors in reading the alto part, 
 show a disposition to make a ' '■ second ' ' which harmonizes 
 with the instrument. Such voices can usually be transferred 
 to the alto division with good results. 
 
 A careful study of the table of ' ' Best Notes ' ' of chorus 
 voices will bring many suggestions as to the proper make-up of 
 an effective choral body. As has akeady been hinted, a judi- 
 cious mixture of the various classes of voices is desirable, as in 
 this way fulness of tone, and richness of color is obtained. 
 A multiplication of the number of baritones, for instance, may 
 give bass enough to balance the other divisions of the chorus, 
 but the bass will lack the depth and richness it would possess 
 were some of the baritones withdrawn, and a few low basses 
 added in their stead. It is the difference between the eight- 
 foot and the sixteen-foot tone of the pipe organ. 
 
 The remarks made heretofore, with reference to blending, 
 apply in the organization of a chorus choir. It should be 
 remembered, however, that where most of the voices of a 
 division of a chorus are of a good blending quality, little 
 roughnesses in a few individual voices will be absorbed or lost 
 in the mass of tone. 
 
22 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Some organizers think it desirable, even necessary, to have 
 what is called a leading voice for each division of a chorus. If 
 a voice leads in such a way as to be heard above all the other 
 voices of its division, then the balance and the blend of the 
 choir is destroyed. The highest type of choral singing is not 
 possible for the choir, so long as the leading voice is retained. 
 
 A certain conductor, about to perform the ' ^ Messiah ' ' in 
 an American city, feared for the promptitude and firmness of 
 his tenor di^dsion of thirtj^ singers. At the last moment, 
 therefore, he engaged the services of a local quartet tenor, who 
 was a ready reader, to lead the tenors. This gentleman w^as 
 powerful of phj^sique and lung, and loved to sing. He was a 
 German, a butcher, and his command of English not of the 
 best. The audience was therefore more amused than edified 
 to hear one stentorian tenor voice declaiming, high and clear 
 above chorus and orchestra, 
 
 ' ' AU-l vee ligh scheep ! All-1 vee ligh scheep ! ' ' 
 
 It is certainly a matter of comfort to conductor and chorus 
 to know that there are, in each division, singers who can be 
 depended upon to sing the right notes, at the right time, and 
 in the right way. What is desirable is not a leading voice, in 
 the common acceptation of the term, on each part, but that all 
 the singers of each division shall follow the conductor's lead, 
 promptly and accurately, singing as one great soprano, alto, 
 tenor, or bass voice, as the case may be. No listener of culti- 
 vated taste, and no choral Director worthy of the name, desires 
 to hear one singer strike in always just before and louder than 
 everybody else, in the attempt to lead. 
 
ORGANIZATION. 23 
 
 Chapter VI. 
 
 Circumstances must govern the choice of plan for securing 
 material for the chorus choir. 
 
 Where an appropriation is made from which each singer is 
 to be paid, the problem is comparatively simple. Advertising, 
 and personal inquiry among teachers of singing and singers, 
 will usually develop a sufficient number of satisfactory voices. 
 Most American students of singing are willing to sing in a 
 chorus choir for pay. The power of the dollar to change 
 opinions as to the propriety of singing in chorus is magical. 
 
 While on this topic t\^o statements may be made : 
 
 First. — The tdkcher of singing who condemns, without 
 reserve, chorus singing for vocal students, thereby confesses 
 ignorance of chorus work, and also a lack of confidence in his 
 own teaching. 
 
 Second. — Well taught vocal students who have passed the 
 primary stages of instruction, when singing in chorus under a 
 Director of fine taste who understands the voice, can come to 
 no harm, vocally, and will benefit musically by the experience. 
 
 In cases where the Director is expected to organize his 
 chorus upon a voluntary basis, several plans are open to him. 
 
 When the interest of the pastor and leading members of 
 the congregation can be enlisted, it is sometimes possible to 
 form a voluntary chorus from among the younger members of 
 the representative families of the church. As a rule, however, 
 such a membership is difficult to manage in the matter of 
 regularity of attendance and punctuality. The claims of 
 society interfere with those of the choir. 
 
 Young people who are members of the congregation may 
 naturally be expected to have a stronger interest than outsiders 
 
24 . CHOIR AXD CHORUS CONDUCTING. ' 
 
 in sustaining the musical service of the church, and it is there- 
 fore wise to recruit the chorus, so far as possible, from the 
 young people connected with the church. 
 
 The principal feeders for the voluntary chorus choir ai^ 
 the Singing Class, and the Sunday School. It is sometimes a 
 good plan for the Director to establish a class in sight-singing 
 for the congregation, mthout fee, if thereb}^ he can ti-ain and 
 secure material for his chorus choir. In most congregations 
 may be found a number of j^oung men and women who would 
 take advantage of an opportunity to learn to read notes in an 
 evening class. A general class for the congregation, old and 
 young, has in certain cases, been carried on, one evening each 
 week, for two terms of ten weeks each, during the winter. A 
 simple text book has been used, with a black-board, and the 
 interest of the class well sustained, so that an exhibition of 
 sight-reading of music equivalent in difficulty to the ordinary 
 modern hymn tune, has been given at the close of the term. 
 The result of such a work has been to prepare a number of 
 young men and women for singing in the chorus choir of the 
 church. Another result has been the revival of interest among 
 the older people in the congregational hymn singing. 
 
 The Director of a voluntary chorus choir will do well to 
 take charge of the music in the Sunday School, and make him- 
 self pleasantly acquainted with the young men and women he 
 finds there. He Tsdll thus come to know of available choir 
 material of which he would not be likely to learn in any other 
 way. 
 
 Another plan for securing good material for a chorus choir 
 is to advertise and to promise that a portion of the time 
 at each rehearsal shall be given to sj^stematic class instruction 
 in voice culture and the art of singing. This promise must, of 
 course, be faithfully kept. There are those who maintain that 
 nothing of value in the way of cultivation of the voice can be 
 done in class. It is true that for the highest results, individual 
 
ORGANIZATION. 25 
 
 instruction in the use of the voice is necessary^ A voice 
 trainer who has thought out the principles upon which he works 
 can, however, prepare exercises in the two or three funda- 
 mentals of voice culture, ( such as control of the breath, relax- 
 ation and freedom of the throat, tongue and face ; and vibi-ation, 
 or resonance ) which, practiced carefully under his supervision, 
 will improve the tone production of at least a majority of his 
 class. 
 
 The promise of such instruction, and of the rehearsal and 
 performance of a good class of music, will usually do much to 
 attract desirable singers. 
 
 Chapter YII. 
 
 Whether the chorus choir be paid or voluntary, it should 
 have but one head — the Director. 
 
 Experience teaches that in choir management the authority 
 should rest upon the shoulders that bear the responsibility. 
 The Choir Director should take for his motto : — '' No responsi- 
 bility without corresponding authority." A chorus choir with 
 a constitution and bj^-laws, a set of officers and of committees 
 on membership, music, etc. , etc. , elected by the choir, is practi- 
 cally a ' ' society for the prevention of the peace and efficiency 
 of Choir Directors." Such officers and committees as are 
 necessary should be appointed by the Director, and he should 
 also make the required rules. 
 
 That he should exercise intelligence and caution, and study 
 his people, and the special circumstances under which he 
 labors, goes almost without saying. A volunteer chorus choir 
 is practically a little kingdom, ruled by an autocrat who yet 
 must obtain and retain the consent of his subjects to his govern- 
 ment. The head of such an organization holds an extremely 
 
26 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTIXG. 
 
 difficult position. He can best retain it by doing everything 
 possible to secure the respect and good will of his choir mem- 
 bers, while maintaining to the utmost the dignity of his office. 
 The glove must cover the fingers of steel. On all matters of 
 choir management, as upon questions of musical interpretation, 
 his word must be law. If he caii make his membership realize 
 that his one concern is for the music ; that all he does is A^ith- 
 out personal prejudice, with no thought of merel}^ having his 
 ow^n wa3% but with an eye single to the best possible musical 
 results, he will have but little trouble in keeping up his organi- 
 zation, and maintaining his rightful position as head thereof. 
 He is sure to meet with a few " irreconcilables " whose motto 
 is " rule or ruin." No mercy should be shown to such. They 
 should be dropped without hesitation, and before they have 
 had time to demoralize the membership. Such are found at 
 times amongst the best singers, who cannot well be done with- 
 out. It is far better to suffer their absence than their 
 mischievous, disquieting, disintegrating presence. Besides^ 
 every director of experience knows that the singer has not yet 
 been born whose presence is vital to the existence of a chorus 
 choir. An exhibition of dignified, courteous independence on 
 the part of a choir director has been known to reform even a 
 supposed ' ' irreconcilable. ' ' 
 
 Volunteer chorus choir singers are not always humble, 
 ^ ' preferring one another. ' ' They sometimes prefer to sit ' ' in 
 the highest seats ' ' where others have been sitting. The choir 
 seat question has occasioned much jealousy, and some trouble 
 for choir directors. A good plan is to change the seating of 
 the choir at stated intervals, SRy e^ ery two months. A success- 
 ful choir director has made it a rule to advise every member of 
 his volunteer chorus that possession for a length of time gave 
 no title to a particular seat ; that no member of the choir 
 ''owned" any seat, but each was seated at the request of the 
 director. 
 
ORGANIZATION. 27 
 
 ^JHAPTER VIII. 
 
 What shall be the tests or conditions for entrance into the 
 chorus choir ? In this matter the Director will necessarily be 
 governed somewhat by circumstances. 
 
 He must take into account the grade of service expected 
 of him. If no sight-reading test is adopted, with a view to 
 barring out no singer whose voice is acceptable, good work may 
 be done on occasion by dint of an enormous expenditure of 
 time and labor. As a chain is no stronger than its weakest 
 link, so the non-readers of a chorus choir are the measure of 
 the strength, (or rather, weakness) in performance, of the 
 organization. No matter how much labor may be expended 
 upon the service music for Sunday, there can be no certainty 
 that one or more of the non-readers will not make a false entry, 
 or sing wrong notes, and make discord where there should be 
 harmony. It is frequently the case that singers with good 
 voices and genuine talent are poor readers of notation. Their 
 very gifts have operated to cause them to neglect the study of 
 sight-reading. Many salaried quartet singers are such poor 
 readers that they are constantly in fear of a sudden, though 
 necessary change in the service numbers, and always beg for 
 ^'next Sunday's music" a week ahead. This is not as it 
 should be. Thoroughly competent choir directors who have a 
 voice in the engagement of soloists are more and more giving 
 the preference to ready music-readers. Who can blame them ? 
 
 Where a choir director, in order to secure a sufficient 
 supply of acceptable voices, makes no test of sight-reading, he 
 
28 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 can only hope to do good work, in comfort, by converting his 
 choir into a singing class and giving systematic instruction in 
 note-reading. 
 
 As will be inferred from what has been said in regard to 
 balance and blend of tone, an examination of the voice as to 
 quality, power and compass should be insisted upon as a condi= 
 tion of admission. Otherwise a choir is likely to be burdened 
 with ''dead-wood," meaning thereby ineffective and objection- 
 able vocal material. It seems to be ordered by the fates that the 
 worst singers shall be the most faithful members of volunteer 
 chorus choirs. Sometimes the personal relationships of certain 
 ineffective choir members make it very difficult for the Director 
 to dispense with their services. Yet he can never expect to do 
 good work while carrying a load of ' ' dead-wood. ' ' The 
 nominal strength of the choir may be sixty voices, and, looking 
 upon the aggregation of singers, the congregation will expect 
 a volume of tone proportionate to the forces engaged. They 
 will be disappointed ; and congregations are not more back- 
 ward in criticising the work of the choir and choir director 
 than they are in making remarks upon the minister's sermons. 
 
 There is also a danger that the really effective singers in 
 the chorus will tire of the many repetitions at rehearsals made 
 necessary by the inefficiency of the dead-wood, and withdraw. 
 On the whole, it is better not to adanit dead-wood, or, in case 
 much of it is found in a choir when first taken charge of, to 
 eliminate it at once and risk resulting criticism and antagonism. 
 Of course, where there is a chance that present dead-wood 
 may, by instruction in sight-singing and the principles of voice- 
 use, be converted into live, useful, vocal timber, the Director 
 will wait and work. 
 
 Those who, not having voices, persist in trying to sing ; 
 those whose voices have been worn out in the service ; those who 
 have radically defective voices, are so much dead wood. It is 
 a sad fact that those chorus gingers who have ' ' lost the voice 
 
ORGANIZATION. 29 
 
 they had ' ' are the very last persons in the world to recognize 
 their condition. No mere hint will bring them to a realizing 
 sense of it. With such the Director must have a ''heart 
 to heart ' ' talk, and in preparing himself for it he will need to 
 cultivate patience, perseverance and a good temper. 
 
 Chapter IX. 
 
 An intelligent, popular young lady or gentleman may be 
 appointed as Choir Secretary. The Secretary's duties may be 
 to keep, in duplicate, a register of membership, properly classi- 
 fied, and of attendance at rehearsals and services. One copy 
 will be in the Director's possession, for his use. The Secretary 
 may be of considerable help to the Director, if he be a man of 
 good judgment and sympathetic nature, in welcoming members 
 and inquiring after delinquents. It is best, however, for the 
 Director to keep in personal touch with each member of the 
 choir ; and, without showing the least partiality, or losing 
 dignity, demonstrate that he knows and is interested in every 
 singer under his care. To be able to call each member of a 
 large chorus choir by name is a gift worthy of cultivation. 
 The power to remember names, as well as faces, has made 
 many friends for politicians. And, in a good sense, the Director 
 of a voluntary chorus choir must be a politician. 
 
 Another helpful officer is a Librarian, who, with his 
 assistant, shall keep the music in good order, and distribute 
 and collect the same at rehearsals. The Director should never 
 perform this duty. It is not proper to his office. It would be 
 wise for him to pay for this work rather than to do it himself. 
 
 Experience teaches that these two officers, under the 
 Director, are all that are really needed in the carrying on of the 
 work of a large chorus choir. A multiplicity of officers and 
 
30 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 committees in choir work breeds trouble. ' ^ If you want a thing 
 well done — do it yourself," is a saying which, applied to the 
 conduct of the affairs of a chorus choir, has in it more truth 
 than poetry. 
 
 Chapter X. 
 
 The Choir of Children's Voices ( Boys and Girls )♦ — A well 
 trained choir of children's voices may be so used as to add 
 greatly to the interest and profit of a church service. 
 
 There is an ethereal purity, a passionless sweetness, in the 
 tone of a well-trained children's choir which is powerful to stir 
 the hearts of the people. 
 
 Children's voices are comparatively weak. A children's 
 choir, therefore, should be organized with a view to securing 
 delicacy of tonal effect, rather than breadth and force. The 
 author does not share the opinion, held by some voice- trainers, 
 that the child voice ought not to be used on high tones. The 
 average boy or girl between eight and fourteen years of age, 
 if properly taught to sing softly and sweetly, with chest up and 
 smiling face, vdW develop unconsciously the pure Head- voice 
 and be able to reach 
 
 ^ 
 
 with ease and beauty of tone. If children are allowed to use 
 nothing but this so-called head-voice down to the lowest notes 
 of their compass, there can be no forcing of the voice. 
 The so-called Chest-tone given out on 
 
 ^ 
 
ORGANIZATION. 31 
 
 by some child singers is not the true chest-tone, but a throaty, 
 forced production which is not tone but noise, and is destruc- 
 tive to throat and voice. Such power as is desired from a 
 childien's choir should be managed chiefly by the addition of 
 older boys and girls, as their voices are naturally somewhat 
 more full, or sonorous, than those of children of few years. 
 Children should not be required to sing long at a time in the 
 upper third of their vocal scale. The greater part of music for 
 children's choirs should be placed in the octave 
 
 i 
 
 with occasional notes within a third or fourth higher or lower. 
 Obviously light, graceful, lyric compositions, of a proper compass 
 as indicated, with short phrases, and cheerful, simple sentiment, 
 are best suited to the use of a children's choir. Simple songs 
 of praise, unison carols, or songs in two parts treated as first 
 and second treble parts, are indicated. If it is desired to use 
 children's voices in the performance of the larger and more 
 trying forms of sacred composition, then a very careful selec- 
 tion of the stronger and more intelligent children should be 
 made. These should receive thorough drill so that they may 
 come, unconsciously, to manage breath properly, and the 
 Director should be most watchful to see that their voices are 
 not over- worked at rehearsals or services. 
 
32 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter XI. 
 
 The Choral Society ♦ — The history of choral societies in 
 America is a long record of disappointed hopes and ambitions. 
 But few choral societies have any great length of life. The 
 most permanent of these organizations are to be found among 
 the German- American communities. These music lovers com- 
 bine the social with the musical purpose ; build music club- 
 houses, and expect to pay for music just as they expect to pay 
 for provisions. It is to them one of the necessities of life. 
 American singers often look upon choral singing as something 
 which ought not to cost them any money, or as a proper source 
 of revenue. ' ' How much is there in it for me ? ' ' is the 
 question frequently asked by an American singer who has been 
 invited to join a choral society" — meaning not how much of 
 pleasure, of insti'uction, of mental improvement and refine- 
 ment, but how much of money — dollars and cents. 
 
 The choral society organizer who meets with such a 
 response to his invitation is advised to drop the questioner at 
 once. He may attend a few rehearsals, as a result of coaxing, 
 but he cannot be depended upon ; he is sure to be absent when 
 most needed. He is also advised to beware of the enthusiast 
 who gushes about ' ' our society ' ' and the w^onderf ul things 
 which it is to accomplish through somebody's efforts. If a dozen 
 or twenty quietly earnest music lovers agree to meet statedly 
 for the practice of choral singing, possibly at first at a private 
 house, there is ground for hope of a permanent organization, 
 and one which will grow in numbers and efficiency. A little 
 effort will develop such a company in almost any American 
 town of four thousand population. 
 
 Much of what has been said regarding the organization of 
 
ORGANIZATION. 33 
 
 the voluntary chorus choir of mixed voices, applies to the 
 organization of the choral society. The shorter the constitu- 
 tion and by-laws, the fewer the oflSicers and committees, the 
 less machinery, the better. 
 
 A President, Vice-President, Secretary-Treasurer, and 
 Librarian, a Committee on Membership and a Committee on 
 Music, Concerts and Soloists (including the Conductor) is 
 sufficient machinery for the carrying on of the business of a 
 large choral society. 
 
 It is presumed that the society will elect its officers and 
 committees, annually, at the last meeting of each season. The 
 choice of a Conductor is best left to a committee made up of 
 the officers and one representative from each of the four divisions 
 of the chorus. 
 
 The Secretary-Treasurer should present a full report to 
 the society at the annual meeting. 
 
 The officers, with the Committee on Music, Concerts and 
 Soloists, may form a Board of Managers, or Finance Committee, 
 for the financing of the affairs of the society. 
 
 A good plan for organization is to provide for three classes 
 of members : 
 
 1st — Life Members. 
 
 These to pay a fixed sum, and to receive a certain number 
 of seats for each concert and privileges in the way of attend- 
 ance at all rehearsals. 
 
 2d — Associate Members. 
 These to pay an annual fee, and to receive therefor a cer- 
 tain number of seats for each concert, and the privilege of 
 attending special (final or solo) rehearsals. 
 
 3d — Active (singing) Members. 
 These to pay an annual fee (usually higher for gentlemen 
 than for ladies) and to receive therefor the benefit of the 
 
34 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 instruction at the rehearsals, and pleasure from the concerts. 
 In some cases active members receive complimentary tickets 
 for final (solo) rehearsals. In other cases, active members 
 receive one complimentary ticket for concerts. These are 
 points as to which each society must decide for itself according 
 to circumstances. 
 
 Where active members pay an annual fee, the society 
 usually supplies copies of the works studied. This plan is 
 strongly recommended, for where members purchase copies it 
 is often found that some fail to bring music to rehearsals, and 
 considerable inconvenience results. A choral society, more- 
 over, should have its own library, as, while the membership 
 will change, the society may persist, and works will be per- 
 formed several times within a series of years. 
 
 Each society must fix its own tests for admission to singing 
 membership, as circumstances alter cases. The advice of the 
 Conductor, however, should be asked and given great weight 
 in this regard. 
 
 So, too, with reference to the work of the committee on 
 the choice of music, concerts and soloists. If a wise choice in 
 the matter of a Conductor has been made, that ofiicial is best 
 able to judge what music the society may hope successfully to 
 prepare and perform, how many concerts should be given in 
 one season, and what soloists are needed. The committee 
 should, therefore, give due weight to the Conductor's opinion 
 on these matters. Indeed, if it were not that some of the best 
 Conductors are as children with reference to finance, it might 
 be said that in regard to the questions just referred to there 
 need be no committee, the decision resting with the Conductor. 
 Sad, aye most sad, yet amusing are some of the tales that are 
 told of the struggles between Conductors and Finance Com- 
 mittees of choral societies. The fault is by no means always 
 on the side of the Conductor. A small-minded, commercial, 
 inartistic committee-man finds it difficult to sympathize with 
 
ORGANIZATION. 35 
 
 the desire of an enthusiastic, artistic conductor, on fire with 
 love for his art, who wants the very best singers that can be 
 had for the solo parts, and all the instruments called for in the 
 orchestral score. 
 
 A Conductor who desires to organize a choral society must 
 bear in mind : First — that he needs to make many friends ; 
 then to do all in his power to keep them ; Second — that he 
 must expect active opposition from other professionals, passive 
 resistance from lazy singers, and discouragement from a con- 
 siderable class of people who never can see how anvthino" worth 
 while in choral music can be done in their community. They 
 are sometimes ' ' dog-in-the-manger ' ' people ; usually pessi- 
 mists. This last mentioned class ( the pessimists ) are perhaps 
 the most dangerous of all. They should be carefully kept out 
 of the ranks of the society, for their conversation and manner 
 are most demoralizing. One such member can do more to kill 
 a society than half a dozen enthusiasts can do to keep it alive. 
 The Conductor, as organizer, should bear in mind that the 
 indolent may be stirred up and possibly converted into willing 
 and effective workers. If the Conductor is made of the right 
 sort of material the pessimists will not discourage him, while 
 the jealous opposition of other professionals will but stir him 
 to greater efforts. 
 
 When the co-operation of leaders in prominent social and 
 musical circles can be secured, the task of organizing a choral 
 society is comparatively easy. It is not wise, however, to rely 
 upon what are known as society people for choral material or 
 permanent support. The great majority of choralists come 
 from the ranks of those who are moderately well-off, and 
 whose social engagements occupy but a small part of their time 
 and attention. Society is fond of fads and will drop a 
 conductor, or an enterprise as quickly as fashions in dress are 
 discarded. 
 
 The singing-class can frequently be developed into a choral 
 
36 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 society. This can be established by means of circular and 
 newspaper advertising, and personal canvassing. 
 
 A successful choral society may sometimes be organized in 
 a minor city by interesting a well-known citizen, and issuing 
 a call in his name, and that of the Conductor, through the 
 newspapers, for singers to rehearse and perform a standard 
 oratorio. The work chosen should be one generally known, at 
 least by repute, and one which good singers are likely to wish 
 to rehearse for the sake of becoming acquainted with the 
 music. 
 
Part II. 
 THE CHOIR DIRECTOR. 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 One who manages, drills and conducts the performance of 
 a church choir, is, in America, usually called a Choir Director. 
 As a rule, the musical head of a choral society, the one who 
 prepares for and conducts the performances thereof, is properly 
 called the Conductor, the direction of the affairs of such a 
 society usually devolving upon the officers and committees 
 elected for that work. 
 
 The Choir Director is, of course a gentleman. Whether 
 he be a ' ' professor of religion ' ' or not, he will respect the 
 religious opinions of others, and by his demeanor, prove his 
 good breeding and fitness to act as a leader in the service of 
 song. A wise clergyman appreciates a Choir Director who 
 shows an interest in the public service in all its parts. A wise 
 Choir Director will endeavor to cultivate friendly relations 
 with his clergy. 
 
 37 
 
38 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter II. 
 
 The true teacher loves his subject and has a consuming 
 desire that others shall love it. To such a one, the coming 
 into the eye of the pupil of the gleam of awakened interest is 
 at once reward and incentive to renewed effort. The skilful 
 drill master knows his subject, and how to present it in such 
 fashion as to arouse and sustain interest on the part of his 
 choir. He so arranges the work of the rehearsal as that the 
 singers derive pleasure from it, even though they may be 
 attacking difficulties. 
 
 In real teaching, one object is to lead those taught to find 
 out for themselves. Telling is not all of teaching. The funda- 
 mental facts should be presented ; the thing before the sign, the 
 easy before the difficult, from the kno\\Ti to the unknown, in 
 progressive order. Pupils learn by doing. The drill master 
 who explains too much, who t-alks a great deal, wastes time 
 and strength. Better make necessary statements and explana- 
 tions as brief as is consistent with clearness and get the singers 
 to doing, to making their own experiments, observations, 
 comparisons. 
 
 To educate is to di^aw out. The best teaching is that 
 which so prepares a student that he knows how to study. 
 There is an art of teaching as well as an art of singing, and 
 choir directors do well to study the literature thereof, and as 
 well the latest works on applied psj^cholog}^ The best grade 
 of work in the rehearsal room is not to be stumbled upon. It 
 is the result of a natural gift for leadership and teaching 
 developed by study. 
 
THE CHOIR DIRECTOR. 39 
 
 Chapter III. 
 
 As the choice of music, its rehearsal, and manner of per- 
 formance are matters under the Director's control, he cannot 
 know too much of music generally, and of church music in 
 particular. Harmony, counterpoint, musical form, composi- 
 tion and the history and literature of vocal music claim his 
 attention. 
 
 The usual choir drill in the case of chorus choirs is limited 
 to teaching the notes — that is, the pitches, and the time, with 
 more or less attention to variation of power. Much more 
 than this is required if the choral work is to be of the highest 
 grade. 
 
 One of the primary requirements of good singing is good or 
 musical quality of tone. The quality of tone produced by a 
 chorus choir depends, of course, upon the quality produced by 
 the individual singers. When good natural voices or well- 
 trained vocalists are in a majority the tone of the choir may be 
 in a measure satisfactory. Usually, however, the volunteer 
 chorus choir contains so large an admixture of crude vocal 
 material that the tone quality of the choir is far below what is 
 desirable. These same voices, under proper training, can be 
 made to give good results. It is plain, therefore, that the 
 chorus choir director should understand the human voice, and 
 how to develop and cultivate its powers. The practical method 
 for fitting himself for such work he will find to be to study 
 singing personally with an instructor who can sing and 
 also teach, and teach how to teach. The Director can also 
 supplement his knowledge by reading the works of experienced 
 teachers of singing, and choir-trainers. 
 
40 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter IV. 
 
 The section of this work devoted to choir organization 
 contains suggestions as to the attitude of a Conductor toward 
 his choir. 
 
 In the rehearsal room the successful drill-master is court- 
 eous, firm, impartial, tactful and patient. He is the leader, the 
 fount of instruction and the only one permitted to exercise 
 authority. He may listen to suggestions from members of his 
 choir or others in private ; he should permit no public inter- 
 ference with his authority or functions by choir member, music 
 committee-man, clergyman, or any one else. 
 
 Preparation for the work of each rehearsal cannot be too 
 thorough. The use of every moment should be determined 
 beforehand. The drill-master will find it profitable to spend 
 some minutes immediately before each rehearsal in quiet, 
 reposeful thought, with the one object of bringing his mind 
 into a state of peace, so that he may enter the rehearsal room 
 thoroughly master of his own soul, and prepared to meet 
 obstacles and opposition with serenity. A man who is 
 master of himself, who knows just what he purposes accom- 
 plishing at each rehearsal, and exactly how to set about to do 
 it, has a tremendous power over choralists. The high-strung, 
 excitable man, who leaves his working plan to the inspiration 
 of the moment or decision of circumstances, may expend a great 
 deal of effort in the rehearsal room, but results will be unsatis- 
 factory. 
 
 In carrying out a season's work in a systematic way, the 
 Director will find it advantageous to make for his private use, 
 from an ordinary memorandum book, a Conductor's Eecord 
 Book upon a plan somewhat as follows ; 
 
THE CHOIR DIRECTOR. 
 
 41 
 
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42 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 It is well to plan the season's choir work in advance, with 
 a view to bringing about definite results. As for instance : 
 
 An increase of membership. 
 Regularity and punctuality in attendance. 
 An advance in the grade of music performed. 
 Improvement in quality and volume of tone. 
 Added expressiveness in performance. 
 
 Something can then be definitely planned for each rehearsal 
 having a direct relation to the carrying out of the general 
 scheme for the season. 
 
 The point is that it is wise to have a definite plan to follow, 
 and not to trust to chance, or circumstance, or mere routine 
 work for improvement. At the close of each rehearsal the 
 Director will find it profitable to mentally review the evening's 
 work that he may discover whether a step forward has been 
 made, and if not, where the fault lies. 
 
 Chapter V. 
 
 The Choir Director must secure and maintain good order, 
 and respectful, willing obedience in the rehearsal room. He 
 must first of all be able to rule himself, to keep his temper and 
 be courteously firm. 
 
 In dealing with a large volunteer chorus choir, in the 
 rehearsal room, it is well to have it understood : 
 
 That announcements will be made but once. 
 
 That all conversation must cease when the Director speaks. 
 
 That when one division is being rehearsed other divisions 
 must observe silence. 
 
THE CHOIR DIRECTOR. 43 
 
 Some members will offend against even such simple, 
 reasonable rules as the above. Direct, personal, public reproof 
 is seldom advisable. When it is used, (as after repeated 
 general and private warnings have proven ineffective) it should 
 be made as short and sharp as possible. The moral effect is 
 thus enhanced. 
 
 A private interview with a recalcitrant member is advised, 
 rather than public reproof or remonstrance by letter. The 
 leader of a volunteer choir who can write a letter of remon- 
 strance to an offending singer which will not be misunderstood 
 or used against him, is a clever man. Before a personal inter- 
 view with an offender is had, it is wise to take a few minutes 
 for quiet meditation, during which the attempt should be made 
 to eliminate every vestige of temper from the soul, and to 
 cultivate a spirit of brotherly kindness. When a choir member 
 has been reproved, it is often a good plan to ask such a one to 
 do for the Choir Director or choir some little service. If this 
 is done in a kindly way, in the presence of the choir, the 
 member will usually perform the service gladly, feeling that 
 the leader cherishes no resentment, has confidence in him, and 
 wishes the choir to know it. Cases are on record where 
 valuable but thoughtless members have been saved to a choir 
 and changed into real helpers of the leader by the treatment 
 indicated. It will not always work ; there are dispositions 
 which are not to be reached in this way. With them it is rule 
 or ruin, and for the choir as a whole it is best to promptly 
 dispense with the presence of these irreconcilables. 
 
44 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter VI. 
 
 Where the form of service permits^ the Director will adapt 
 his selections, in both text and style of music, to the central 
 theme of the sermon. When sermon, hymns, solos and con- 
 certed pieces all tend to the enforcement of a particular thought, 
 the effect upon the congregation is likely to be powerful ; cer- 
 tainly much more so than where the service music bears little 
 or no relation to the theme of the discourse. It is sometimes 
 impossible to find selections particularly appropriate to a sermon 
 topic. In such case the well-equipped Director T,^dll at least be 
 able to choose numbers which will not be incongruous. He can 
 give a tone to the service, one of solemn worship, of praise or 
 of thanksgiving, as may seem best under the circumstances. 
 Too many services have as little point and symmetry as does 
 the ordinary, dreary, hodge-podge known as the '' miscellaneous 
 concert. ' ' They cause the intelligent and sensitive worshiper 
 to wonder on what ground anthems are introduced into the 
 public service. 
 
 In planning the giving of services and concerts, the Choir 
 Director will do well to keep in mind economy of means and 
 strength. 
 
 It is unwise to give heavy, fugal choruses with few voices 
 on a part, It is tiring to the singers and unfair to the 
 composer, as the interpretation is necessarily inadequate. 
 Quartet choirs should confine themselves to selections requiring 
 less volume and breadth in delivery. 
 
 Compositions having many unison passages are often 
 effective, and require, as a rule, less time for preparation than 
 pieces with full harmony throughout. 
 
 The frequent use of unaccompanied music is strongly 
 
THE CHOIR DIRECTOR. 45 
 
 recommended. Its rehearsal compels tlie singers to rely upon 
 themselves, and gives opportunity for observing the many lesser 
 defects which are so likely to escape notice when an accompani- 
 ment is being played. Unaccompanied choir singing, when 
 well done, has a powerful effect upon a congregation or audience. 
 Most people prefer the sweet tones of the human voice to those 
 of any instrument made by man. 
 
 The preparation and performance of concert programs 
 furnishes variety in work for a chorus choir, and stimulates 
 interest. It sometimes happens that a choir is so engrossed in 
 its concert work, that interest in the Sunday service music 
 suffers. This should be guarded against. The choir should be 
 made to understand that its reason for existence is its Sunday 
 service. With the choral society the case is different. 
 
 As a measure of economy, in preparing for a concert the 
 Chorus Choir Director will frequently take up choruses from 
 the oratorios and cantatas which can afterward be used in the 
 church service. 
 
 Experience has led to the making of the following sugges- 
 tions to Conductors of choirs and choral societies, in regard 
 to concert giving : 
 
 The Director should so refer to the concert as to magnify 
 the choral work, no matter how eminent the soloists engaged. 
 The chorus is the backbone of the choral concert. Everything 
 possible should be done to cause the members to feel that the 
 concert is theirs. The advertising must not minimize the 
 choral features of the program. 
 
 Details of hall and platform arrangements should be given 
 into the hands of trustworthy committees. Instructions 
 should be clear and concise, and committee-men held respon- 
 sible for the performance of their duties. The Director should, 
 however, see for himself, in good season, whether his instruc- 
 tions have been followed. It is the only safe plan. 
 
46 CHOIR AXD CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 The seating of the chorus and distribution of mi^sie should 
 be placed in the hands of secretaries and librarians and the 
 work left to them. 
 
 The meeting and care of visiting artists should be left to 
 committees, including at least one officer of choir or society. 
 The Conductor should always be courteous to artists, but 
 should not run after them. 
 
 Keep no audience waiting — begin on time. 
 
 The Conductor should be the last person engaged in the 
 performance to take his place. 
 
 In doing so he should bow to the audience, signal 
 for attention, lift his baton and begin the concert with as little 
 fuss as possible. 
 
 Applause should be acknowledged with a bow. Encores — 
 repetitions of choral or orchestral numbers — should be avoided. 
 Rarely can the fine effect of a first performance be duplicated ; 
 an anti-climax is a thing to be avoided. 
 
 Auditors and critics judge by results, and take no account 
 of what the Conductor may consider to be extenuating circum- 
 stances. Seldom is a conductor obliged to give a concert. He 
 should never do so unless satisfied that the work in hand is 
 well prepared. One failure is more talked of than two 
 successes — it is the wa}^ of the world. 
 
 The Conductor should have naught to do with handling 
 money in connection with a concert, except to accept the 
 Conductor's fee, and receipt for it. 
 
 Let the understanding between the Conductor and the 
 finance committee of a concert be thorough and clear as to 
 amount to be allowed for soloists, orchestra, etc. Much trouble 
 will thus be avoided. 
 
 in the case of a choral society giving two to four concerts 
 per season, it is sometimes well to use local soloists for at least 
 one concert. Good judgment is needed in the management of 
 
THE CHOIR DIRECTOR. 47 
 
 this matter. Societies have come to grief over the rival claims 
 of local solo singers, and others have only avoided disaster by 
 using none but visiting artists. Yet the local singer, when 
 competent, deserves encouragement. 
 
 The Conductor who holds a proper view of the dignity of his 
 position will wish the advertising of his concerts to be done in 
 a legitimate fashion. As a rule the most effective medium is 
 the daily or weekly newspaper. A circular, to be of much 
 value, must be extremely well written, tasteful in its typogra- 
 phy, and show the program. Beside, it must be gotten into 
 the hands of the people who patronize concerts, and this is 
 often a difficult matter. The ordinary circular distribution 
 will not accomplish it, for most circulars, so distributed, are 
 thrown away unread. A circular sent out in an ordinary 
 sealed envelope will certainly reach the person intended and 
 stand a good chance of being read. This method is expensive. 
 On the other hand, the circular offers opportunity for saying 
 what needs to be said at less cost, usually, than it could be done 
 for in the advertising columns of the newspaper. The art of 
 advertising is a difficult one, and a concert giver who can secure 
 the services of an expert is fortunate. So far as financial 
 results are concerned, the personal efforts of the members and 
 friends of the choir or choral society to obtain subscriptions 
 or sell tickets, are far more effective, usually, than the most 
 judicious and liberal advertising. 
 
 A custom against which the Conductor should set himself 
 is that of printing commercial advertisements upon the program 
 of the concert. It is undignified and inartistic. 
 
48 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter YII. 
 
 An important part of the work of a Conductor is the 
 arrangement of service and concert programs. 
 
 In those churches where the texts to be used in the musical 
 numbers are stated by ecclesiastical authority, the Conductor 
 has but to consider the matter of the appropriateness of the 
 musical settings. The music should be of a character suited 
 to the meaning or emotional content of the text. The numbers 
 should vary in tonality and to some extent in style. Other- 
 wise ear and voice become wearied. Long anthems with little 
 change of key ; or those in four part harmony throughout, are 
 likely to become tedious to the listener. The introduction of 
 solo parts heightens the effect and prevents monotony. 
 
 In chanting an extended text it is well to use two chants, 
 one for the first, and another, in a different kej- , for the second 
 half of the selection. 
 
 As has been intimated, where the choice of service selec- 
 tions is wholly in the hands of the Director, it should be his 
 aim to choose texts and music which will reinforce the central 
 idea of the sermon or service. In general, care should be 
 taken to avoid incongruity, as regards the subject of the 
 sermon and the texts sung, the spirit of the other parts of the 
 service and that of the music. The selections in a given 
 service, w^hile showing variety in key, mode and use of more 
 or fewer voices, should not present violent contrasts in style. 
 There should be unity with variety. A lugubrious anthem for 
 quartet, with long-drawn out, slowly moving phrases, has been 
 followed in one service by a brilliant, florid anthem of praise 
 for solo soprano. There was variety without unity. Xf one 
 selection was in harmony with the tone of the service, the 
 other certainly was not. 
 
THE CHOIR DIRECTOR. 49 
 
 As an example of a well arranged service, an account is 
 given of an afternoon service held at King's Chapel, Boston, 
 Mr. B. J. Lang, organist and director. The music was sung 
 by a solo quartet and a small chorus of adults, mixed voices. 
 
 The organ prelude was about five minutes in length, and 
 of a quiet, devotional character. After the opening collects, 
 the following selections from Mendelssohn's ''St. Paul," were 
 sung : 
 
 Recit. ( Contralto ) As He Journeyed Toward Damascus. 
 Aria—'' But the Lord is Mindful of His Own." 
 
 Recit. (Tenor and Bass) and Chorus — "And as he 
 journeyed. ' ' 
 
 ' ' Saul, why persecutest thou Me ? ' ' 
 
 And he said, ' ' Lord, who art Thou ? ' ' 
 
 "And the Lord said to him," I am Jesus of Nazareth, 
 whom thou persecutest." 
 
 And he said, trembling and astonished, ' ' Lord, what wilt 
 Thou have me to do ? " 
 
 And the Lord said to him, "Arise and go into the city, 
 and there thou shalt be told what thou must do. ' ' 
 
 Next came the scripture lesson, prayers, and a hymn for 
 the choir, "Hark, Hark My Soul, Angelic Voices Swelling," 
 the organist improvising for a few minutes, at its close, using 
 the tune as a theme, until the minister had taken his place, 
 and prepared himself for his address. 
 
 This was upon the topic of ' ' Visions. ' ' At its conclusion 
 further selections from ' ' St. Paul ' ' were given as follows : — 
 
 Chorus — " Rise up ! Arise ! " 
 
 Choral — " Sleepers, wake, a voice is calling ! " 
 
 Recit. — (Tenor) — "And His Companions." 
 
 Aria — ( Bass ) — " O God, have mercy." 
 
50 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 At the conclusion of the aria the congregation sang a 
 hymn and the service closed with the benediction, and a 
 tasteful organ postlude. 
 
 It will be noted that the theme of the sermon and of the 
 musical service was one and the same. 
 
 Chapter VIII. 
 
 Program-making, for choir and choral concerts is by no 
 means a simple matter. The Conductor must consider : — 
 
 His duty to his art : the music must be as good as it is 
 possible to give with benefit to tlie audience as well as to the 
 performers. 
 
 Next, the interpretative forces available, in other words, 
 the numbers and skill of chorus and orchestra, and the calibre 
 of his soloists. 
 
 The size of the auditorium ; chamber music rarely sounds 
 well in a large hall. 
 
 The importance of variety and contrast in arousing and 
 sustaining interest. It is often a good plan to give tw^o short 
 works of contrasting styles. Some symphony program makers 
 proceed, apparently, upon the plan of leading up to the heaviest 
 item upon the program. They place the march, the suite, 
 etc. first, reserving the symphony for the last number. This is 
 a mistake. The largest work is that which makes the greatest 
 demands upon the strength of both players and listeners, and 
 is best given first, when both parties are fresh and their power 
 of concentration strongest. 
 
 In preparing what is known as a miscellaneous program, 
 involving the services of vocal and instrumental soloists and a 
 
THE CHOIR DIRE^^rrOR. 61 
 
 chorus, certain points should be carefully attended to. As a 
 general rule ; 
 Do not — 
 
 Follow one number with another in the same key. 
 
 Give two sad or two bright selections consecutively. 
 
 Use two solo voices or instruments of a similar character 
 in succession ; as, a soprano and a tenor ; a contralto and a 
 bass ; a flute and a violin. 
 
 Follow one vocal number with another when an instru- 
 mental number could be placed between. 
 
 Mix recitations and music. A concert is not the place for 
 elocutionary display. 
 
 Place comic or humorous selections on the same program 
 with serious music. 
 
 Fail to choose an effective number for the close of the 
 program ; the last impression should be a good one. 
 
 Cater to popular taste any more than is absolutely necessary 
 to get people to attend the concert. Give some numbers of a 
 high-grade, well done. Then will public taste be educated, 
 and art justified of its friends. 
 
 Undertake large works for the sake of outside or news- 
 paper reputation when the forces available are incapable of an 
 adequate interpretation thereof. To do so is to work an 
 injustice to the composer, to art, and also to make trouble in 
 the choir. 
 
Part III. 
 THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 Inttoduction* — In preparing for his work the choral 
 conductor will first study the technical items of his art ; sing- 
 ing, harmony, counterpoint, composition, score-reading and 
 time-beating. If he expects to deal with an orchestra, he will 
 study a good work on the orchestra and instrumentation, and 
 if possible one orchestral instrument, preferably a stringed- 
 instrument. The listening, first to a small orchestra and later 
 to a '' grand " or ^' symphony " orchestra, score in hand, noting 
 the transference of themes from one instrument to another, 
 and the use of the various families of the orchestra in combi- 
 nation and contrast, is also recommended. 
 
 The choral conductor who has made a serious study of 
 voice culture and singing has a decided advantage over one who 
 has not. Suppose he has not a good voice ; he should never- 
 theless study singing, that he may know how to treat the voices 
 of others. A choral conductor who does not understand the 
 voice can not hope to secure the finest effects from his chorus, 
 and is likely to cause injury to some voices. 
 
 Dr. H. R. Streeter, author of '' Yoice-building," says: 
 
 "A man may be an artistic flutist ; he may read a musical 
 score well, and have an accurate knowledge of tempos ; he 
 may even possess the ability, which some do not, of composing 
 
 52 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 53 
 
 a good score ; fortunate circumstances and friends may unite 
 to bolster him up and keep him in position ; he may possess all 
 these and many other requisites, and then utterly fail as a 
 director of voices. ' ' 
 
 A conductor who cannot sing, but is a good violinist, will 
 be able to teach his chorus to sing with a true legato, — in the 
 singing style. Pianists and organists who have not been 
 trained as singers usually make the least effective choral 
 conductors. 
 
 Chapter II. 
 
 The ability to beat time gracefully and correctly pre- 
 supposes a feeling for tempo and rhythm, and a study of the 
 method of indicating the pulses and their subdivisions, so that 
 the performers may know exactly when to take up the entrances, 
 and may keep time as one man. Further, by the motions of 
 his baton, and the expression of his features, the conductor 
 indicates the variations of force — the sforzandos, crescendos, 
 diminuendos^ special accents and emphases. 
 
 The conductor's baton should be light, and of a color 
 easily discernible. His actions in time-beating should be as 
 graceful and unobtrusive as possible. He should not, by his 
 gestures, obtrude his personality between the audience and the 
 music. Above all, stamping the foot, or rapping upon the 
 music desk, and other noises must be avoided. 
 
 No general rule, of course, can be laid down for the manner 
 of conducting. Each conductor who has the qualifications by 
 nature and study for the work, will best succeed when he is 
 most natural, or unconscious, in the act of conducting. Per- 
 haps the most striking personality for boldness, rugged strength 
 and magnetism Americans have seen at the conductor's desk 
 was Anton Seidl. His play with the baton was free, but his 
 
64 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 face was the chief means for expressing his wishes to his men. 
 
 Emil Pauer has a decided, strong beat and a good deal of 
 virility. 
 
 Gericke, the present conductor of the Boston Symphony- 
 Orchestra, has a very decided beat, and makes considerable 
 work of conducting. 
 
 Theodore Thomas is probably the most graceful great 
 conductor America has known. His motions in beating time 
 form a series of beautiful curves. He stands firmly upon his 
 feet, and does not reach out or bore in toward his men. Arm 
 and wrist do all the work, with an occasional side glance of 
 the eye to prepare an entrance, or a slight gesture of the left 
 hand to emphasize a point of accent or shading. 
 
 The point of chief importance in time-beating is that the 
 baton shall clearly and decisively indicate the primary accent. 
 Some professional and many amateur conductors wave the 
 baton in a series of semi-circles leaving the performers in doubt 
 as to which motion indicates the strong accent — the down beat. 
 A style of time-beating which brings the baton to a point of 
 rest on each beat may be somewhat angular to the eye ; it is, 
 however, very clear and comfortable to the performers. The 
 down beat, at least, should be easily discernible by everybody 
 concerned. 
 
 The baton may be used with ease if held lightly between 
 thumb and fingers ( somewhat as the violinist holds his bow ) 
 at a point a short distance from one end : 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 65 
 
 To avoid fatigue from prolonged use of the baton it is wise 
 to keep the elbow near to the side as much as possible, throw- 
 ing the work largely upon the wrist. The piactiee of time- 
 beating with either arm is recommended. 
 
 For moderate force and flowing delivery, a rather short 
 stroke, with a curving motion, is indicated. For less force the 
 stroke may be made quite short. 
 
 For the crescendo the length of the stroke is gradually 
 increased, bringing the whole arm into play ; sometimes the 
 arm is raised, little by little, as the force approaches a climax. 
 These motions are reversed for the decrescendo. 
 
 The staccato style is indicated by short, straight beats, 
 from the wrist, passing rapidly from one rest-point to another. 
 
 A long, rapid, vigorous, full arm beat, usually made with 
 both arms for emphasis, indicates the sforzando or exclamatory 
 attack. 
 
 The pressure-legato delivery, which is not the same thing as 
 a repeated accent, and is notated thus : 
 
 i 
 
 Thou art my 
 
 may be indicated by a firm beat with a drawing of the hand 
 somewhat toward the body on each beat, as though pulling 
 each tone, with energy, from the performers. 
 
 To indicate the release of a hold or pause note, the baton 
 should be given a very rapid, short motion from the point of 
 rest first to the left and then to the right. When, after a 
 pause, the movement is to be resumed without a break in the 
 continuity of the tone, the resumption of the regular beat 
 should be preceded by a slight preparatory motion of the baton. 
 
 In cases where a note is to be held for several measures 
 the left hand may be held up during the sustaining of the note 
 
66 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 and dropped with a quick motion at its end, while the right 
 hand beats the time as usual. 
 
 Excess of gesture is to be avoided. The left hand should 
 be sparingly used. It may come into play effectively as shown 
 above. Also in other ways, as for instance : To indicate the 
 entrance of voices or instruments ; to silence a performer ; to 
 subdue force of tone by a downward, repressive gesture ; to 
 secure a crescendo by a gradually rising motion ; to indicate 
 subdivisions of the beat. The left hand is to be looked upon 
 merely as an assistant to the right hand in the work of time- 
 beating and conducting. There is no more ludicrous sight 
 than the two-handed conductor, as he waves both arms wildly 
 and continuously in the air in a tremendous effort to give an 
 inspired reading of the music. 
 
 Chapter III. 
 The method of time-beating recommended is as follows : 
 Simple Duple Measure : ^ or S 5 o 
 
 Compound Duple Measure • 4 o m 
 Two beats to the measure — :Down (strong); up (weak). 
 
 z 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 57 
 
 When the rate of movement is very slow the beat is thus 
 divided : 
 
 3* 
 
 Simple Duple Measure :- 
 
 f 
 
 Compound Duple Measure : — 
 
 Note. — The large, black figures show the point of rest on the principal 
 
 beats. When the pulse is subdivided the principal beat should receive 
 especial emphasis. 
 
 g g o 
 
 Simple Triple Measure : 2 4 8 
 
 Q Q Q 
 
 Compound Triple Measure : 4 s 1 6 
 
 Three beats to the measure — Down 
 (strong), right (weak), up (weak). 
 
68 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 In slow movements : 
 Simple Triple Measure : — ■ 
 
 « 5 
 
 I 2 
 
 Compound Triple Measure : — 
 9 8 7 
 
 "V"/ 
 
 J 2 3 
 
 Simple Quadruple Measure : 2 S ^^ 4 
 
 12 12 
 8 
 
 4 
 8 
 
 12 
 16 
 
 Compound Quadruple Measure : 4 
 
 Four beats to the measure — Down (strongest), left (weak), 
 right (strong), up (weak). 
 
 4. 
 
 N 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 £i» 
 
 lu slow movements : 
 
 Simple Quadruple Measure : — 
 
 8 7 
 
 Compound Quadruple Measure : — 
 
 12 11 XQ 
 
 The sign g is used for four-pulse measure, called common 
 time. The beat note varies : it may be in one case the whole 
 note ; in others the half or the quarter note. 
 
 The sign ^ is used for measures of different values ; but 
 such measures must be considered as two-pulse measures, and 
 two beats given : Down-np. 
 
 ^^Alla Breve. Originally a species of time in which every 
 bar contained a breve, or four minims ; hence its name. In 
 this time, chiefly used in the older church music, the minims, 
 being the unit of measurement, were to be taken fast, some- 
 what like crochets or quarter notes in ordinary time. This 
 time was also called Alia Capella ( church time ). Modern Alia 
 
,^ CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 hreve time simply differs from ordinary common time by being 
 always beaten or countf^d mth two minims ( and not with four 
 quarters) in the bar, and, therefore, is really quick common 
 time. It is indicated in the time signature by ^, i. e. , the g 
 which is used to show four-quarter time, w^th a stroke dowTi 
 through it." — " Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians. 
 ^^A capella: 
 
 (1) In the church style ; vocal pieces unaccompanied. 
 
 (2) Church music in duple time." — ''Stainer and 
 Barrett's Dictionary of Musical Terms." 
 
 In very quick movements beat triple measure thus : 
 
 1 
 
 practically indicating, by the down beat, only the first pulse of 
 each measure. 
 
 Likewise, beat quadruple measure thus : 
 
 1 3 
 
 practically indicating by a down and up beat, only the strong 
 pulses — the first and third. 
 
 The choral conductor rarely has to deal with five-pulse 
 measure. This can sometimes be taken as three-two, Down- 
 right-up, down-up. In such case the first dow^n beat should be 
 more vigorous than the second down beat in the measure. It 
 can also be taken thus : Down-left-right-up-up. 
 
 When a piece begins on other than the first beat of a 
 measure, the conductor need not give the preceeding beats ; he 
 should, however, make a short preparatory motion with the 
 baton before giving, with marked clearness, the beat on which 
 the singers or players enter. This to warn the performers to 
 be ready to attack promptly on the beat. This preparatory 
 motion is not needed when the piece begins on the second part 
 of the beat ; a decided marking of the beat is suflBcient. 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 61 
 
 Chapter IV. 
 
 In beating time in recitative, it is important that the 
 conductor should be thoroughly familiar with both the vocal 
 and instrumental parts of the score. He must be independent 
 of the printed score and thus able to concentrate his attention 
 upon the performers, especially the reciter. 
 
 As a rule, short cadential chords, in a recitative, as at * 
 in the following example, are struck after the voice has ceased : 
 
 Handel— 
 
 " Messiah." 
 
 m 
 
 ^^ 
 
 5^^^ 
 
 :n:?= 
 
 ^=^ 
 
 :^^=p: 
 
 Be - hold ! He shall come, 
 
 saith the Lord of 
 
 s 
 
 w=m 
 
 1^ 
 
 ^@^ 
 
 ^\ 
 
 ^n 
 
 Lt 
 
 w. 
 
 *^ 
 
 
 2. ^ 
 
 When the orchestra is to enter on the weak pulse of the 
 measure, as at * in the extract given below, the first beat must 
 not be given too strongly, or careless players may strike the 
 chord too soon : haydn— 
 
 The Creation." 
 
 fe 
 
 J^-^f-tl 
 
 t 
 
 s ^ 
 
 I* 
 
 Pro- claim - ing thus 
 
 S 
 
 t — r 
 
 
62 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Where rests occupy one or more measures, as in the 
 following extract at *, all beats except the first in each measure 
 may be omitted. The regular beat for each pulse must be 
 resumed when the instrumental accompaniment begins. 
 
 Massenet — 
 " Eve." 
 
 * 
 
 -f—r-r—r 
 
 -51-A- 
 
 V — V — V — t^ — b^ 
 
 C'estd'un re-flet du ci el que ton front se co - lo - re, Je 
 
 4-4- ♦ * 
 
 m 
 
 p r f r 
 
 t 
 
 S 
 
 ^: 
 
 vols, — dans tes re - gards, 
 
 P 
 
 luire un vi - vant e - clair ! 
 
 m 
 
 ^ 
 
 In the following excerpt the harmony changes only on the 
 first pulse of each measure. It is necessary, however, in order 
 that the tympani of the orchestra may know and observe the 
 tempo desired, to give four beats to the measure. The singer, 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 63 
 
 in this modern, measured, accompanied recitative, is expected 
 to observe the tempo and rhythm indicated by the composer : 
 
 Moderato. 
 
 Gounod— 
 Redemption.' 
 
 i 
 
 m 
 
 ^H3^ 
 
 :p:^^t 
 
 -^ 
 
 lE^P^PE 
 
 -#—4 
 
 :b=W 
 
 VIM bk-kU 
 
 When the hour was at hand, the Lord, with resig - na - tion, went 
 
 m. 
 
 N 
 
 ^ 
 
 m 
 
 -s?: 
 
 *- 
 
 
 
 :ii^ 
 
 ^4=1^ 
 
 Where, as in the following extract at *, chords are sustained 
 for one or more measures, one beat may be given for each 
 measure. 
 
 COWEN— 
 
 Rose Maiden." 
 
 b J f T~^ 
 
 P=^H*= 
 
 P 
 
 b=tc 
 
 in glo - ry, In win - ter I must pine, 
 * 
 
 ¥ 
 
 ^ 
 
 3F 
 
 a 
 
 Berlioz, however, says : 
 
 ^ ' I do not see why, in recitatives, the bar should not 
 be divided regularly, and the real beats be marked in their 
 place as in music that is kept time to." — (Art of Conducting.) 
 
64 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 When this is done, care must be taken to follow the singer 
 with precision ; to dwell upon each beat at the point of rest so 
 as not to anticipate the movement of the voice to the note upon 
 the following beat. For example, in singing the recitative 
 from the ' ' Rose Maiden ' ' quoted above, the soloist may 
 possibly pause somewhat on '' winter," and ritard considerably 
 in delivering the words ^'I must." The baton must be held 
 at the point of rest on the down beat at ' ' winter ' ' until the 
 syllable '' ter " is completed, then moved quickly to the left, as 
 the singer delivers ^ ' I " and held there until the last consonant 
 of " must " is sounded ; and so on. 
 
 Chapter V. 
 
 An important part of a choral conductor's preparation for 
 his work is the development of imagination, and the cultiva- 
 tion of taste and feeling. He should familiarize himself with 
 the master-pieces of literature, especially the works of the 
 imaginative writers. He should also embrace every opportunity 
 for hearing orchestral and organ music, as these stimulate the 
 fancy and emotions of the sensitive musical soul. One must 
 himself feel if he is to make others feel. 
 Berlioz says : 
 
 '' The orchestral conductor should know the compositions, 
 the nature and compass of the instruments, and should be able 
 to read the score. Those he directs should feel that he feels, 
 comprehends, and is moved ; then his feelings, his emotions, 
 communicate themselves to those whom he directs." 
 
 When preparing for a service or concert the conductor will 
 thoroughly familiarize himself with the score, words and 
 music. He must decide what is the meaning of the words and 
 the content of the music, in other words, upon his interpreta- 
 tion of the work as a whole. 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 65 
 
 An instrumental composition carries its own message. 
 A composition in which words and music are joined, pre- 
 sents a different problem. In the first case, the conductor 
 strives to bring out or interpret the structural and technical 
 beauty of the music, and, if he be a man of imagination and 
 fine feeling, he will endeavor, through his players, to make his 
 audience feel something of the emotion aroused by the music 
 in his own soul. 
 
 The phrase is often used : 
 
 ^^ Mr. Jones has set Mrs. Smith's words to music." 
 
 A proper conception of the relation of words and music in 
 a vocal composition would make the phrase read thus : 
 
 '' Mr. Jones has set music to Mrs. Smith's words." 
 
 The office of the music in a vocal composition is to illumi- 
 nate the sentiment of the words, to intensify the mood of the 
 text. Not all music set to words accomplishes these effects, and 
 sometimes music appropriate to the words is so badly per- 
 formed as to defeat its purpose. 
 
 Evidently the important point for the choral conductor is 
 to arrive at an adequate conception of the meaning or senti- 
 ment of the text. Then comes the study of the music as music, 
 and also in its special relation to the text as indicated above. 
 
 The meaning of the words may be considered in two ways : 
 
 (1) The ordinary sense of the words, as language convey- 
 ing thought. 
 
 (2) The emotional sense or content of the language, as 
 expressing feeling. 
 
 Distinct enunciation and articulation, and the proper 
 grouping of words, are the chief means for bringing out the 
 sense of the text. ^ ^ ^^f ^^ .^..v^ v-*— 
 
 'Mid play sure, send pal aces, though weam a rome. 
 Be it averse, oh wum bull there snow play sly comb. 
 
66 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 The foregoing, though perhaps somewhat over-drawn, is a 
 suggestive illustration of defective utterance by a singer. 
 
 To secure a distinct delivery, special attention must be 
 paid to the consonants, particularly to those which end words. 
 Each word must be uttered with the proper sound of the vowel, 
 and with a clear division between it and the following word. 
 Otherwise, we have such absurdities in choir singing as : 
 
 ' ' Oh ! glorious soap. ' ' ( hope ) . 
 * ^ The consecrated cross-eyed bear. ' ' (cross I' d bear). 
 *^ Make lean ( clean ) your heart.'' 
 ^ ' The soldier' s steer. ' ' ( tear ) . 
 ^ ' Oh Loar thohoo art moy Gawd. ' ' 
 (Oh, Lord, Thou art my God ). 
 * ' Captain John Smith having gone to sea his wife, requests 
 the prayers of the congregation." 
 
 The foregoing announcement b}^ a church clerk shows the 
 necessity of a proper grouping of words, if the meaning of the 
 language is to be made clear. 
 
 Good singing is an extension of good speaking. The 
 singer should deliver the words as a good reader would do. 
 He should sing sense. To this end the singer must regulate 
 his breathing, for by it he punctuates the sentence. 
 Breath must not be taken : 
 Between syllables of a word. 
 Between words that naturally fall into a group, as : 
 
 ^^ I will go to my ) Father." 
 "Thy mercies how ) tender how ) firm to the end." 
 ' A well-known hymn runs thus : 
 
 "And every day I live I seem 
 To love Thee more and more. ' ' 
 The poetical phrasing requires that the breath be not taken 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 67 
 
 after '^ seem," ( as is usually done ), but after '' live," and the 
 remainder of the clause sung with one breath. 
 
 Authorities differ somewhat as to the wisdom of frequent 
 breaks in the melodic outline in order to bring out the sense of 
 the words. 
 
 f A. M. Richardson says : 
 
 ' ^ Though a fresh supply of breath is not required, a break 
 should be made in order to make the sense clear. 
 
 ' Finding, 1 1 following, 1 1 keeping, 1 1 struggling. ' 
 Here each word introduces a fresh thought. When a break is 
 made at the 1 1 the meaning is brought home. ' ' 
 Per contra, § Sieber says : 
 
 ''Although the interpunct nation of the text will often be 
 a sufficient guide, we shall frequently find our breath too short 
 to sing from comma to comma, or, on the other hand, may 
 encounter them so often, that to use every one of them for a 
 breathing place would cut the cantilene into fragments. And 
 yet this kind of so-called musical declamation is frequently 
 heard, especially in quartet choirs, where it is styled to ' sing 
 with expression.' " 
 
 We recall here the well-known line : 
 
 ''There, with my Saviour, Brother, Friend." 
 
 In such cases it is usually possible to effect a compromise 
 which permits of the preservation of the flow of the melody, 
 while, by means of skilful enunciation, articulation, accentua- 
 tion and emphasis, the meaning of the words is made clear. 
 This style of delivery, however, is that of the artist, and is 
 not often heard. 
 
 t Choir-training. § Art of Singing. 
 
68 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter YI. 
 
 The text of a vocal composition is next to be studied with 
 reference to its sentiment or emotional content. One may sing 
 with distinctness : 
 
 "I come to watch o'er thee," 
 in a matter-of-fact way, as though stating a mathematical 
 problem. The object of solicitude may gather from the lan- 
 guage used that the singer proposes to spend some part of the 
 evening in her vicinity in the capacity of a watchman. Whether 
 he does so from personal interest in her Avelfare or because he 
 has been employed for the work does not appear. His state- 
 ment conveys no sentiment, betrays no emotional ' ' content. ' ' 
 It is the baldest declaration of a fact. Now it is quite easy 
 for one sensitive to the higher uses of language to find in these 
 words an expression of devotion. This is the emotional content 
 or sentiment of the text for which the choral conductor must 
 seek, and which he must interpret to his audience. This involves 
 a consideration of appropriate emphasis, tone-color, and shading. 
 
 Accent is a particular stress placed upon a syllable. In 
 music it is the stress which, occuring regularly, divides the 
 pulses into groups or measures. 
 
 Words have their own accents. Take the word ' ' Founc?(x- 
 tion. ' ' The accented syllable is ^' da.^^ 
 
 Music which is well-adapted to the words brings the 
 metrical and the verbal accents together. When it does not, 
 as in the following excerpt, 
 
 A- 
 
 M 
 
 Spir - it of mer - cy, etc. 
 the metrical accent may be modified. 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 69 
 
 In the following excerpt, at * an unimportant word is 
 wrongly placed upon the strong pulse of the measure : 
 
 T. B. Aldbioh. 
 
 S. B. SOHLESINGEB. 
 
 ^^EJig 
 
 •=& 
 
 Up to her cham - ber win - dow, A slight wire trel - lis 
 
 This mistake is frequently made by bungling translators. 
 Placing the ' ' A " on the last beat of the second measure, and 
 giving the first two beats of the third measure to the word 
 " slight " would remedy the defect without injuring the music. 
 Emphasis is a special force given to a word. 
 In the clause : 
 
 '^ Dear Lord, I cannot let thee go," 
 ''cannot" is the emphatic word, and should receive special 
 stress. The sentence, "I love you," may be delivered with 
 the emphasis upon either of the three words, as : 
 
 I love you. 
 I love you. 
 I love you. 
 the meaning being different in each case. 
 
 Music which is well-written for words rises and falls with 
 the ebb and flow of the intensity of the sentiment of the text. 
 But there is music which fails in this regard. The ordinary 
 hymn-tune must necessarily do so with reference to some of the 
 stanzas used in connection therewith. 
 
 An emphatic word will sometimes fall upon a weak pulse 
 of the measure or a weak pitch of the melody. 
 Here is a verse from one stanza of a hymn : 
 
 tt^S 
 
 3 
 
 1=q:-- 
 
 So let 
 
 lips and lives ex - - press 
 
70 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 In this line an unimportant word, let, falls upon a strong 
 pulse while the emphatic word, so, is placed upon a weak pulse. 
 
 
 P 
 
 t=t 
 
 t 
 So let our works and vir - tues shine 
 
 In the line next above, the words are properly placed w^ith 
 regard to accent and emphasis. 
 
 Where words are misplaced, as in the first line quoted, 
 the}^ must receive proper stress independently of the music, so 
 as to cause the sentiment or emotional content of the text to 
 stand out with clearness. 
 
 It should be kept in mind that emphasis may easily be 
 overdone. Conductors are sometimes so expressive as to 
 appear fussy and ridiculous. Only when the choral conductor 
 by an intelligent, sympathetic study of the text, has made its 
 sentiment or emotional content his own, is he ready to secure 
 an interpretation thereof by his chorus. 
 
 The free, well trained voice, is capable of a multitude of 
 shades of tone-color. By tone-coloring is meant, not the 
 passing from one degree of loudness to another, as some under- 
 stand the term, but giving; to the voice the quality appro- 
 priate to the sentiment of the words. A singer should always 
 express. 
 
 Tone-coloring is neither shading, nor accent. One may 
 say: "I love you," yet the color of the voice, the quality of 
 tone, may express to the sensitive ear quite a different senti- 
 ment, — may give the lie to the words. 
 
 Every shade of sentiment expressed in w^ords has its 
 appropriate tone-color. There is a wide field for the exercise 
 by the choral conductor of imagination and skill in getting his 
 singers to feel as he does the emotional content of words and 
 music. If he can make his singers feel — if he can stir them 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 71 
 
 SO that they grasp the full significance of the text, their tones 
 will be more or less colored by their feelings and they will 
 more truly interpret the composition. 
 
 t * * * * * ' ^ The emotion which the singer 
 calls up regulates indirectly the entire vocal mechanism, inas- 
 much as it stirs the will into action and thus compels the 
 plastic vocal mechanism to furnish the proper tone-coloring, 
 for its own perfect expression. ' ' 
 
 Technical preliminaries to success in coloring tone are 
 those which develop absolute freedom in action of the vocal 
 instrument — breath control, with relaxation at the neck. To 
 these may be added the study of a correct, full, noble emission 
 of all vowels. 
 
 A vicious method of tone production embarrasses the 
 throat and fixes one or two colors on the voice. There can in 
 such case be no true, expressive tone-coloring in the delivery 
 of the text. The vocal mechanism is not plastic. Diseases of 
 the throat and nose, such as catarrh, fix a color on the voice 
 and injure its expressiveness. Singers suffering from such 
 diseases may be charged with emotion, but they cannot properly 
 and fully express what they feel. 
 
 The use of various degrees of force, or shading, is also 
 indicated as one of the means of bringing out the sentiment of 
 the text. Loudness is not always appropriate, or impressive. 
 Although this item is usually determined with reference to the 
 music, yet there are circumstances under which the shading 
 should be decided by the exigencies of an adequate delivery of 
 the text, irrespective of the demands of the music. A 
 conductor of fine taste will modify delivery in this regard, 
 avoiding fussiness over details and too violent contrasts of 
 force. 
 
 t Philosophy of Singing. — C. K. Rogers. 
 
72 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter VII. 
 
 A poem or prose text arouses in the composer thoughts, 
 imaginations, feelings, a mood. He naturally attempts to 
 express himself in music. Sometimes he sets his music to the 
 text which has interested him. The more sensitive he is to the 
 play of thought and feeling in language, and the greater his 
 command of the materials of composition, the more likely is 
 he to write music which enhances the effect of the text. 
 
 The choral conductor will study the music with a view to 
 discovering and bringing out its special relation to the text 
 and, as well, its specifically musical content. He will determine 
 the rate of movement, or tempo, phrasing, accentuation, shad- 
 ing, tone form, tone coloring and style of delivery ; in short, 
 the interpretation of the composition as a whole. 
 
 As to Interpfetation in general: 
 Some choral conductors are satisfied with broad, mass 
 effects. If the correct pitches are sung, the singers keep time, 
 and develop the most obvious climaxes, they are satisfied. 
 They do not care to trouble themselves much about the finer 
 details of choral interpretation. On the other hand, certain 
 conductors emphasize details to such an extent that the compo- 
 sition is heard as a thing of shreds and patches, and some so 
 refine the choral singing as to take all virility from the 
 performance. 
 
 Good music pulsates with life ; rises and falls in billows of 
 sound. There is a curving, wave-outline of the phrase, the 
 section, the period, and, most broadly, of the movement. It 
 is for the conductor to bring out these curving, wave-outlines. 
 Thus is secured breadth of phrasing and well-proportioned 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 73 
 
 musical expression. Over-emphasis of detail detracts from the 
 effect of a composition as a whole. 
 
 Richard Wagner has some suggestive paragraphs as to 
 Tempo in his book on ^'Conducting," the sub-title of which is 
 "A Treatise on Style in the Execution of Clasical Music." 
 He says : 
 
 ^^ I received a good lesson at Paris in 1839, when I heard 
 tlie orchestra of the Conservatoire rehearse the enigmatical 
 Ninth symphony. The scales fell from my eyes ; I came to 
 understand the value of correct execution, and the secret of a 
 good performance. The orchestra had learned to look for 
 Beethoven's melody in every bar, Ji^ >f< >ii and the 
 orchestra sang that melody. This was the secret." 
 
 ''French musicians, in the main, belong to the Italian 
 school ; its influence upon them has been beneficial inasmuch 
 as they have thus been taught to approach music mainly through 
 the medium of the human voice. The French idea of playing 
 an instrument well is to be able to sing well upon it. And as 
 already said, the superb orchestra sang the symphony. The 
 possibility of its being well sung implies that the true tempo 
 had been found, and this is the second point which impressed 
 me at the time. ^^ * * He, (the conductor), found 
 the right tempo whilst persistently fixing the attention of his 
 orchestra upon the Melos [melody in all its aspects] of the 
 symphony. 
 
 "A right comprehension of the Melos is the sole guide to 
 the right tempo ; these two things are inseparable : the one 
 implies and qualifies the other." 
 
 Students of conducting will find Wagner's book thought- 
 provoking throughout. 
 
 t Lussy says : ' ' Relative tempo, however, is the all-impor- 
 tant matter in the execution of a piece ; everything depends 
 
 1i Musical Expression. — M. M. Lussy. 
 
74 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 upon it, not only the strength of the metrical, rhythmical and 
 expressive accents, but also the character, the entire rendering. ' ' 
 Again : 
 
 ' '■ The normal tempo * * >ii can never be the 
 result of arbitrary rules ; and depends neither upon the 
 composer nor the performer. In fact, the true tempo of a 
 composition, that which * >ic >k most exactly inter- 
 prets its inmost thought, is the tempo which results from its 
 actual structure." 
 
 The student of conducting is recommended to read and 
 re-read M. Lussy's chapter on ''Tempo." 
 
 Wagner and Lussy are, in this discussion, concerned with 
 pure ( instrumental ) music. 
 
 The nature of the text has much to do with the tempi 
 adopted for a vocal work. A conductor of fine feeling and 
 good taste will instinctively adopt a rate of movement conso- 
 nant with the prevailing sentiment of the words, as well as 
 with the character of the music. One would not conduct a 
 movement having a quiet, contemplative text, such as : 
 ' ' One sweetly solemn thought 
 Comes to me o'er and o'er," 
 as rapidly as would be appropriate for a movement having a 
 text giving expression to active, or intense feeling, as : 
 '' Make a joyful noise unto the Lord." 
 
 The greater the number of performers and the larger the 
 auditorium, the slower, within reasonable limits, should be the 
 pace adopted. This to give clearness to the delivery and time 
 for the music to reach and properly impress all hearers. 
 
 It is well-known that composers are frequently the least 
 competent judges as to the proper tempi for their works. 
 Their printed indications of tempo, therefore, even when given 
 in figures for the metronome, are to be regarded merely as 
 suggestions or approximations. They sometimes omit to give 
 directions as to tempo, or do so in a careless manner. They 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 75 
 
 are, with the printers, liable to error, in affixing metronomic 
 figures to compositions. The conductor, therefore, cannot rely 
 exclusively upon the marks given in the score for his tempi. 
 
 The meaning of the terms used by composers as tempo- 
 indications, is not always clear. Usually their directions are 
 given in the Italian language. Of late some English and 
 American writers have come to use the English language as, 
 for instance, '' Slowly " in place of adagio. 
 
 In the following table the term first given refers to rate of 
 speed ; the second has, also, a reference to the style or character 
 of the music ; this would, naturally, influence the tempo. 
 Table of Words Suggesting Rate of Movement : 
 Lento — slow ; Largo — slow ; broadly. 
 Adagio — slowly. Grave — heavy ; with gravity. 
 SIow«i Adagissimo — slower than Adagio. 
 
 Larghetto — not so slow as Largo ; Larghetto — 
 
 rather broad. 
 Andante — ( ^ ' going " ) at a moderate pace. 
 Andantino — ( not so slow as Andante. By some 
 Moderateo used to indicate /S^oi^er than Andante). 
 
 Moderate — at a moderate pace ; — Allegretto — 
 rather lively. 
 r Presto — quick ; Allegro — not so fast as Presto, 
 Quick* j merry, lively. 
 
 (. Prestissimo — very quick ; Vivace — lively. 
 Tempo commodo — in convenient time. 
 Tempo ordinario — in ordinary time, (also, ^^a 
 moderate degree of speed"). 
 f The effect of certain of these words is modified by the 
 use of other words attached thereto, as ; 
 
 Molto — muchj very, (Molto allegro — very quick ) ; 
 Piu — more ; Assai — very ; 
 
 Meno — less ; Poco — a little, 
 
 and so on. 
 
 tSee Budiments of Music. — Cummings. 
 
76 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Exactly how slow, moderate, or quick the pace of a move- 
 ment should be is not indicated by the use of the above quoted 
 terms. This is left for the conductor to determine. Some 
 modern composers favor omitting to a great extent directions 
 for tempo and shading, relying upon the musicianship and 
 good taste of the interpreter. Where these qualifications are 
 lacking, it makes but little difference whether there be many 
 or few printed directions as to tempo and expression. 
 
 These points must be considered as having a bearing upon 
 the question of the proper tempo for a piece of choral music : 
 
 1. The sentiment of the text. 
 
 2. The melodic character of the music. 
 
 The tempo must be slow enough to permit of the full 
 development of the melodic beauty of all the parts. 
 
 3. Its harmonic construction. 
 
 When changes of harmony are frequent the pace must 
 be slower than where the chord does not change for several 
 beats. 
 
 4. Its metrical and rhythmical character. 
 
 Singers must have time to enunciate and sound clearly 
 every word and note. 
 
 When there are frequent changes of key, metre or rhythm, 
 the tempo must be relatively slow. 
 
 As a general principle, it may be said that the more com- 
 plicated, the more crowded with details the music, the slower 
 the tempo. Performers must have time to give the music 
 adequate utterance, and the music must have time to impress 
 itself upon the hearer. 
 
 The conductor should decide upon a normal, or average 
 tempo for each movement, and should make departures there- 
 from only for a good musical reason, and not as a matter of 
 caprice, or simply from an unintelligent desire to be expressive. 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 77 
 
 Sudden changes from a slow to a quick tempo, or vice versa, 
 without good reason, are as objectionable as the habitual 
 sudden dropping from a forte to a pianissimo so much favored 
 by male quartets who think in this way to make something of 
 simple music. It is not so easy as it would seem to hold to a 
 regular, uniform tempo for even a short period. Nor is it easy 
 to remember the normal tempo of a movement, especially 
 under circumstances that excite the conductor or performer. 
 Practice in beating a movement through at a normal tempo to 
 the tick of the metronome is therefore recommended. 
 
 An old vocal score of ' ' The Messiah ' ' has no metronomic 
 indications as to tempo. The chorus ''Glory to God," has the 
 direction ' 'Andante allegro ; " or " going " at a moderate pace, 
 but in a cheerful, livel}^ manner. The modern editions give 
 metronomic figures, which, of course, are much more definite 
 as suggestions regarding pace. The indication for the above 
 chorus is: Allegro. J== 80 ; ( | time). The chorus, ''And 
 the Glory of the Lord " is also marked Allegro, but the metro- 
 nomic indication is now J= 118 ; (| time). These metronomic 
 indications are suggestions, and no conductor is bound by 
 them. 
 
 A comparison of these choruses, on the basis of sugges- 
 tions already made, shows that the music of "And the Glory 
 of the Lord," will stand, and calls for a more rapid tempo than 
 that of "Glory to God." The first has plain, simple, straight- 
 forward rhythms. There is seldom more than one syllable to 
 a beat note, and frequently more than one note to a syllable. 
 The accompaniment marches on with the same simplicity 
 that characterizes the voice-parts. Changes of tonality are 
 infrequent. 
 
 The music of "Glory to God," in the accompaniment, has 
 frequent scale passages in thirds and sixths with many notes to 
 a beat, and this points to a somewhat moderate tempo. There 
 is, also, a passage of imitation in which syncopation plays a 
 
78 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 part, and the rhythmic figure requires a very rapid enunciation 
 of syllables on changing pitches. This again looks toward a 
 comparatively moderate tempo. The antiphonal passage at 
 the words ^' good will," in which the sopranos are answered by 
 the other voices, calls for a rate of movement w^hich w^ill 
 permit of a dignified, clear, intense delivery of the w^ords and 
 changing chords. So, witH the long sustained notes given to 
 the announcement ^'And peace on earth." To hurry these 
 last mentioned parts of the chorus would be to reduce the one 
 to mere chatter, and take from the other that atmosphere of 
 repose which the sentiment of the words demands. 
 
 ''A H^Tun of the Homeland," by Sir Arthur Sullivan, is 
 marked ' ^ moderato. ' ' 
 
 I- 
 
 ^ #==F l=EEEg ;^^+^— ^ !==J 
 
 l^^s 
 
 # — 4—^ 
 
 The home - land, the home - land, the land of the free — 
 
 A piece of this kind, with its simple rhythms and plain 
 harmonies may well be taken at a fairly rapid tempo. 
 
 ^^Say, Watchman, what of the Night?" by the same 
 composer, is an . example of a fine anthem w hich is usually 
 taken too slowly in all the full chorus parts, except the last. 
 The music thus becomes somewhat tiresome, the more so 
 because of the many long notes and the doubling of the bass 
 in the lower part of the register. 
 
 Congregational hymns should be started at a pace con- 
 sonant with the sentiment of the words and character of the 
 music and kept fairly close to one rate of movement. Noth- 
 ing worries the average church-goer who wishes to join in the 
 hymn singing more than a frequent change of pace by leader 
 and organ, unless it be the sudden change from loud to soft of 
 which some organists are quite fond when trying to play hymns 
 with expression. 
 
 Where there is a somewhat frequent change of metre and 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 79 
 
 pace, it is well for the conductor to carefully rehearse these 
 changes, testing himself by the metronome. The scene from 
 ^' Elijah," ( Mendelssohn ) between Obadiah, the prophet, and 
 the people, ( Nos. 19-20, Novello edition ), — a combination of 
 solo, recitative with intervening choral fragments, and a final 
 chorus, — is recommended for study in this connection. So also 
 the dramatic oratorio, ^'St. Christopher," H. W. Parker; the 
 cantatas, '' The Erl King's Daughter," Gade ; " Fair Ellen," 
 Bruch ; the anthem, "As it Began to Dawn," D. Buck; and 
 the part-song, "Sleep, Little Birdie," Henry Leslie. 
 
 A mechanical adherence to tempo is undesirable. There 
 must be, for the purpose of full expression, not only a difference 
 in the pace of movements, but also more or less brief varia- 
 tions from the tempo of a movement. These are needed for 
 purposes of contrast, the emphasis of growing or of diminishing 
 force, to mark the change from grave to gay, to give opportunity 
 to bring out fully a lyric theme. 
 
 Crescendos are not necessarily to be treated as though 
 marked accellerando ; nor is a gradually ascending passage 
 always to be hurried. Sometimes an effect of great breadth 
 and power is obtained by delivering an ascending and crescendo 
 passage with a gradual decrease of speed. A well graduated 
 crescendo, made at a steady pace, has a grand effect. A dimin- 
 uendo is not necessarily to be delivered ritardando, although 
 poorly trained choirs seldom keep the pace when force is 
 lessened. They are prone to sing slowly when asked to sing 
 softly. 
 
 A change from the major to the minor mode is often 
 mistaken for a direction to sing more slowly. A slight pause, 
 either upon the last chord of a period, or between two periods 
 of contrasted metre or tempo has sometimes a good effect. 
 Care should be taken, however, not to interpolate the pause 
 between periods or movements which, from the nature of 
 words and music, should be closely connected. Full value 
 
80 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 sliould be given to final chords — a point on which many 
 singers err. 
 
 As studies in expressive variation of tempo, these selec- 
 tions are suggested : 
 
 '' Ah, What Shall We," ( ifons et Vita), Gounod. 
 
 ^'Blessed Jesu, Fount of Mercy," {Stabat Mater )y 
 Dvorak. 
 
 '^ O For a Closer Walk With God," M. B. Foster. 
 
 '' The Day is Past and Over," J. C. Marks. 
 
 ' ' The Parting Kiss, ' ' Pinsuti. 
 
 ^' A Highland Mother's Lullaby," E. B. Smith. 
 Polyphonic music must be taken at a pace which will give 
 Inll opportunity for making clear the ''walk" of each part. 
 Boe ''To Man, God's Universal Law," (Samson) Handel; 
 ' ' In that Day, ' ' Sir George Elvey, and the Bach Church 
 Ca^ntatas. 
 
 Chapter VIIL 
 
 The choralist uses accent and emphasis, primarily, to 
 bring out the meaning of the words. Musical accentuation is 
 subordinated, w^hen necessary, to this purpose. 
 
 The metrical accent should always be felt, as a kind of 
 persistent, unvarying under-pulse. Good phrasing, however, 
 frequently requires its subordination. That is an ill-trained 
 choir which, in all styles of music, marks with force the first 
 pulse of each measure, — 07ie-two-three, owe-two- three. 
 
 Here is an excerpt from Henry Leslie's part song, ^' Sleep, 
 Little Birdie:" 
 
 Allegretto non iroppo. 
 
 I 1 
 
 i 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^^ 
 
 abt 
 
 iiwie birdie, ... the day is past and gone, Take thy bliss-fdl 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 81 
 
 To mark, decidedly, the accent on the first beat of each 
 measure, would break the phrases into fragments. Equally 
 inartistic is the practice of ' ' kicking out ' ' the last note of a 
 phrase ; as at * : 
 
 ^ 
 
 =-#- 
 
 PiNSUTI— 
 
 The Sea hath its Pearls." 
 
 Yet great 
 
 IS 
 
 my 
 
 heart; 
 
 P 
 
 Faning — 
 The Miller's Wooing." 
 
 m 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^^ 
 
 Wea - - - - ri - ly. 
 
 and of accenting a note merely because it is taken by skip 
 from a lower note, as at *. 
 
 PP 
 
 Gounod— 
 "Night." 
 
 ^ 
 
 B:±^. 
 
 ^i=^ 
 
 ^^ ^ 
 
 With noise - less foot - steps tread - ing, ev - 'ry val - ley 
 
 When verbal emphasis is overdone, singing ceases and 
 declamation takes its place. 
 
 Usually the strong accents take care of themselves ; the 
 secondary accents need special attention. When a beat is 
 divided, the first note of the I'esulting group receives an accent 
 commensurate, in force, with its position in the measure. 
 For example at each * below 
 
 f#^^^ 
 
 ?=1^ 
 
 m 
 
 is found a measure of six eighth-notes. Upon the accentua- 
 tion of each measure will depend the hearer's conception of the 
 
82 
 
 rhythm, 
 passages : 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 The measures are extracted from the following 
 
 Mercadante— 
 " Far Away the Camp Fires. 
 
 m 
 
 ^ 
 
 fc£E? 
 
 t^ 
 
 Shall you ev - 'ry 
 
 iiiS^ 
 
 de - fend 
 
 Mackenzie — 
 Rose of Sharon. 
 
 :r=p: 
 
 t=^t 
 
 Fol-low the track of the 
 In passages like the following : 
 
 flocks, 
 
 Brahms. 
 
 Ah! what then is heart's de - light! 
 
 the first note of each group on one beat must be accented. 
 The legato must, however, be preserved. 
 
 Chromatic (dissonant) tones must be delivered with firm- 
 ness — otherwise they will appear to have been sounded by 
 mistake. 
 
 Syncopation is a transference of accent from its regular 
 place in the measure : 
 
 Haydn— 
 ^ " Creation." 
 
 heal - ing plant 
 
 i 
 
 / 
 
 Mendelssohn- 
 "Lauda Sion." 
 
 BEi 
 
 -^- 
 
 Praise Je - ho - vah, .... bow be - fore Him. 
 In such passages pains must be taken to deliver the synco- 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 83 
 
 pated note with firmness and to sing with well-sustained tone. 
 Suspensions must be attacked firmly, and well-sustained, as : 
 
 Gounod — 
 Mors et Vita. 
 
 Which once to A - - - bra - ham. 
 
 The marcato, by some writers interchanged with martellato, 
 indicated thus : J J , requires that the notes be sung with a 
 slight accent, yet closely connected. 
 
 The stentato is indicated by the word, and by the repetition 
 
 of the accent mark. 
 
 and is described as ''a heavier 
 
 marcato. ' ' 
 
 t Sieber says of the martellato, that it requires, like the 
 stentato, heavy accentuation, but the tones are more separated, 
 forming a combination of the staccato and the stentato. 
 
 An intelligent, elegant pronunciation of the words in truly 
 vocal music, will often suggest certain niceties of secondary 
 accentuation. In working up the finer class of modern music 
 for choirs, a conductor is constantly called upon to exercise 
 good taste, as well as technical knowledge, and in the depart- 
 ment of accentuation as much as anywhere. 
 
 '^The Sea hath its Pearls," Pinsuti, and '^The Spanish 
 Serenade," E. Elgar, are recommended as studies in refined, 
 expressive accentuation. 
 
 t Op. cited. 
 
84 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter IX. 
 
 Phrasing, as here considered, is the proper punctuation of 
 words and music. The divisions of the text must be marked so 
 that the words make sense. 
 
 The notes which rhythmically, melodically, and harmoni- 
 cally fall into groups, must be delivered as phrases. AVhen 
 the music is well adapted to the words, the latter usually 
 indicate the proper phrasing of the music. 
 
 A knowledge of musical structure is necessary if the con- 
 ductor is to be certain of the phrasing of each part in the various 
 styles of vocal composition. 
 
 In choral singing phrasing is affected by the exigencies of 
 breath-taking. Breadth of phrasing necessitates infrequent 
 breath-taking. 
 
 In some instances the phrasing of all the parts is simulta- 
 neous ; in others, as in the excerpt given below : 
 
 J. G. Callcott — 
 How Sweet the Moonlight. 
 
 jrtej J-4kJ— J 
 
 a 
 
 3 
 
 W^ 
 
 ^m 
 
 Here will we sit, and let 
 
 the sounds, the sounds of 
 
 :^=^ 
 
 -^ — K 
 
 U 
 
 ^^ 
 
 W <^ ^ — ^ 
 
 and let the sounds, the sounds of 
 
 will we sit, 
 
 each part has its own, independent phrasing. 
 
 In the following excerpt the two parts of the verse, 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 85 
 
 separated by the comma, must be distinguished in delivery. 
 The musical phrase, however, must be sung with one breath : 
 
 Gounod — 
 " Night." 
 
 ^ 
 
 i=± 
 
 m 
 
 Soft and 
 
 * 
 dark, o'er 
 
 s 
 
 the hills 
 
 P 
 
 ^#=«: 
 
 S 
 
 Soft and dark, o'er the hills; 
 
 In music of a fugal nature, the words give little indication 
 of the phrasing. They are repeated again and again, and 
 often with a view merely to furnishing material upon which 
 the singers may vocalize. Such music must be phrased with 
 particular reference to its formal construction. See the choral 
 works of Bach and Handel. 
 
 When taking breath between phrases, as in the following : 
 
 ^S 
 
 J ==72. 
 
 C. V. Stanford — 
 
 " Corydon, Arise." 
 
 iE^E^^^^ 
 
 My true love doth ex - eel For sweet - ness, for 
 
 the general rule is : Bob the last note of a phrase of sufficient 
 time for taking the ' ' half -breath ' ' and sound the first note of 
 the succeeding phrase strictly in time. 
 
 The traditional rule for the phrasing of florid passages 
 requires that they should be sung with one breath. Some of 
 the long runs in the choruses of the old writers are trying to 
 choralists, but a careful husbanding of the breath, particularly 
 on the first notes of such passages, will usually make it possible 
 to deliver them without division. This broad phrasing adds 
 much to the impressiveness of the music. 
 
CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Where the construction of a passage permits, it is allowable 
 to divide it by repeating the words as in the following excerpt 
 at*: 
 
 Haydn— 
 " Creation." — "Awake the Harp." 
 
 state 
 t Breath may be taken : 
 Where the direction of a run changes : 
 
 ly dress. 
 
 Rossini— 
 "Stabat Mater. 
 
 ^^^^^^m 
 
 ^ ^^ffm 
 
 Where the general direction of a run is interrupted by a skip: 
 
 Handel— 
 "Acis and Galatea." — 
 " Wretched Lovers." 
 
 P^m-^E^ 
 
 zi--=i=i=^^'^:3i =*=i^. 
 
 6i - ant roars . 
 
 '^^-i^^m ?=i'^=^^^ ^i!i&:^ ^ 
 
 *^0 --#- 
 
 ^=^^^^ ^ ^f^ ^^^^^ 
 
 how the 
 
 t See HandbooTc for Singers. — N. Croker. 
 
THE CHORAL CONDtJCTOR. 
 
 After a syncopated note : 
 
 87 
 
 Rossini— 
 " Stabat Mater. 
 
 ^^^^^^E 
 
 ^r:5=* 
 
 EtE^: 
 
 At an extended skip 
 
 Haydn— 
 ' Creation."—" The Lord is Great. 
 
 glo - ry lasts 
 
 
 for. 
 
 In cases where it is absolutely necessary to divide a florid 
 passage, a number of the singers may be instructed to take 
 breath at one point, and the remainder at another. In this 
 way the break in the flow of the tone may be disguised. 
 
 The final chorus of Rossini's '' Stabat Mater" — an allegro 
 in I measure, — has a pedal for the basses of nine measures. 
 Such passages may be treated as suggested in the paragraph 
 next above. 
 
 t Sabilla Novello says : 
 
 ^ ' In taking a half -breath in the middle of a sentence, the 
 time of inhalation should be taken from the note which follows 
 respiration, unless the musical phrase requires this note to 
 retain its full value of duration." 
 
 This does not apply to breath taking between phrases. 
 
 t Voice and Vocal Art. 
 
88 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 In general, 
 
 Breath should not he taken : 
 Immediately before the strong pulse of the measure 
 
 * 
 
 i^E^i-^^^^^^^ 
 
 Between a chromatic note and the note next succeeding : 
 
 Rossini — 
 "Stabat Mater. 
 
 fefg a^^^^ i^ 
 
 >^- 
 
 Between the leading tone and the tonic ; see f above, and : 
 
 Handel, — 
 " Dettingen Te Deum." 
 
 m--^ffW^^i^ ^^m^ 
 
 AU. 
 
 Between a suspension and its resolution ; except where 
 the resolution is interrupted by skip : 
 
 Handel— 
 "Samson." " To Man God's Universal Law." 
 
 
 m 
 
 J- 
 
 ^--j ^ gffl ^ 
 
 l Oi'ftsll 
 
 ^ 
 
 W 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 89 
 
 These rules are general, not invariable. 
 Liitgen gives these rules : 
 
 ' ' Avoid taking breath — between the article and a noun ; 
 the article and an adjective ; an adjective and a noun ; a perso- 
 nal pronoun and a verb ; the constituent parts of compound 
 tenses. Avoid taking breath after a preposition. ' ' 
 
 The following selections are suggested for study in regard 
 to ^ ' phrasing : ' ' 
 
 ''Good Night, Beloved," Pinsuti. 
 
 ''Thou Art Mighty, O Eros," (Psyche) Gade. 
 
 "Hail, Smiling Morn," Spofforth. 
 
 "Love Me Little, Love Me Long," H. Lahee. 
 
 ' ' How Lovely are the Messengers, ' ' 
 
 (St. Paul) Mendelssohn. 
 *' Urbs Syon Unica " (Hora Novissima) H. W. Parker. 
 
 Chapter X. 
 
 Varying the power of tone on a note or a group of notes 
 is called shading. 
 
 The ear demands variety. The motive, the phrase, section, 
 period, the movement, should be shaded with a just apprecia- 
 tion of the expressive value of the rise and fall of power of 
 tone, and so as to give each member of the work its due, 
 relative force. 
 
 In order to determine the appropriate shading both text 
 and music must be studied. When words are repeated, (except 
 where they are used merely to furnish syllables on which to 
 
 \ 
 
90 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 sing, as in certain fugal choruses), it is usually for the sake of 
 emphasis. This would ordinarily indicate an increase of force : 
 
 Bach— 
 " Ode of Mourning." 
 
 -tte=f =^=f' 
 
 ^=^:^±=t^^Et-:E^ 
 
 ^^L^ ffzz:.^^^ 
 
 :tr_=ii^=z5zz^=:!^=g?3^ 
 
 Fa - ther, Fa - ther, in Thy mer - cy, 
 
 It is a mistake, however, to place too much emphasis 
 upon details. The shading should be consonant with the 
 general character of words and music, and not degenerate 
 into mere fussiness over particular words or phrases. 
 
 t'^The more complex a passage, and the more metrical, 
 rhythmical, tonal and modal exceptions it contains, the more 
 sonority it requires." 
 
 Ascending passages should generally be delivered with a 
 crescendo, and descending passages with a decrescendo. The 
 crescendo is sometimes indicated for a descending passage : 
 
 E. Elgar — 
 " Spanish Serenade.' 
 
 iftis 
 
 33^^e^ese3 
 
 F=? 
 
 Fold, fold thy pin - ions light, Fold, fold thy pin - ions 
 
 The ''swell" — a gradual increase followed by a like 
 gradual decrease of power of tone — may be made to cover one 
 note, a phrase, or a larger division. 
 
 An old saying runs thus : 
 
 " Do something with a long note.'* 
 
 t M. Lussy : op. cit. 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 91 
 
 Rossini— 
 " Inflammatus. 
 
 iffFF^JH 
 
 gra 
 
 When a section is thus shaded, the effect is good : 
 
 PlNSUTI — 
 
 The Sea Hath Its Pearls. 
 
 
 
 ■ gr o — r^ — ^'=^ ^ — 
 
 4 Ml- 
 
 . my heart hath its love. 
 
 But my heart, my 
 
 The first part of the choral movement following the 
 soprano solo in ' ' Lovely Appear, ' ' ( Redemption ) , has this 
 melodic outline : 
 
 ,fc 
 
 ^P 
 
 P- 
 
 mf: 
 
 -P 
 
 The passage is for voices in unison and is marked p. The rise 
 and fall of the melody, however, would suggest a slightly 
 marked swell, as indicated below the excerpt. 
 
 Repeated notes seem to call for an increase of force : 
 
 Schumann— 
 " Gipsy Life." 
 
 i 
 
 rn~j i i i=i 
 
 A troop of the vag - a - bond gip - sies. 
 
92 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 When a composer repeats an idea, its delivery should 
 ordinarily be varied. Ascending imitation will usually call 
 for greater force : [See note.] 
 
 * 
 
 p 
 
 ^ 
 
 mf 
 
 Schumann— 
 "Gipsy Life." 
 =- mf 2. 
 
 1^=m: 
 
 t=it 
 
 P— =^^ 
 
 ^^ L. U u/- 
 
 s 
 
 tc=t 
 
 Worn out with the dance now in slum - ber they lie, While 
 -= / : -= - 
 
 U L r 
 
 branch - es are 
 
 rust 
 
 ling 
 
 soft 
 
 lul - la - by. 
 
 A fine example of the artistic shading of a descending pas- 
 sage is found in the ^ ' The Sea Hath Its Pearls, ' ' of Pinsuti. 
 Indeed this part-song affords an illustration of many effective 
 uses of variation of accent and tonal power as a means of 
 musical expression. The passage referred to is this : 
 
 Pinsuti — 
 The Sea Hath Its Pearls. 
 
 / 
 
 ^ 
 
 w^^m 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 Are melt - ing a - way with 
 
 love, 
 
 a - way with 
 
 dim. 
 
 P 
 
 PP 
 
 ^mm 
 
 -^1-=1- 
 
 ^ 
 
 love, Are melt - ing a - way, a - way with love. 
 
 Note : — To those who mistakenly habitually seek to express a particular 
 word, rather than to give expression to the general sentiment, and only 
 exceptionally to emphasize a single word, it may seem inappropriate to call 
 for extra force upon the word ' ' slumber ' ' and the word ' ' soft. ' ' A broader 
 view of interpretation will show, in the first placse, that this text is not dra- 
 matic, or emotional, but merely narrative, and mildly descriptive ; and, 
 secondly, that the shading indicated does not antagonize the meaning of 
 either sentence, taken as a whole. It is a purely musical and legitimate 
 effect. 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 93 
 
 It will be noted that the melodic outline of the above 
 excerpt is a descending scale passage : 
 
 II- 
 
 and though there is an intermediate rise and fall of the wave 
 of sound, within the section, the appropriate, natural dynamic 
 variation is a broad decrescendo — like the gradual subsidence of 
 that wave which has been created by a sudden disturbance of 
 the surface of a pool. 
 
 Sometimes a repetition ( imitation ) of an idea is effective 
 when delivered piano, in contrast with a preceding forte : 
 
 IrI 
 
 m 
 
 /I. 
 
 P2. 
 
 Massenet— 
 "Eve." 
 
 ruTJT^ 
 
 -(22- 
 
 # 
 
 feEJ3 
 
 V- 
 
 Viens ! sois tri - om-phan-te, Et sois a - do - re - e 
 
 Sudden changes from loud to soft, or soft to loud must be 
 made with discrimination. 
 
 When a series of high notes has been delivered with 
 force, and the melody drops to a low pitch, the ear welcomes a 
 change to soft power : 
 
 / 
 
 p 
 
 Dvorak— 
 Stabat Mater.' 
 
 ^^ 
 
 Fa<3. 
 
 ut 
 
 te - cum lu 
 
 ge - am. 
 
 The following excerpt shows an effective use of the abrupt 
 change of tonal power : 
 
 Mozart — 
 
 - "Twelfth Mass." 
 
 Allegro, f p p 
 
 $ 
 
 '^^'=M=^- 
 
 Et 
 
 in ter - ra 
 
 pax, 
 
 t=^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 pax, 
 
94 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Also the following from a favorite anthem : 
 
 ^ 
 
 -ff- 
 
 pp. 
 
 Dudley Buck— 
 "Rock of Ages." 
 
 S 
 
 :«: 
 
 d?lzit 
 
 -w^-^ 
 
 Rock of A - ges, cleft for me, 
 
 Let me hide my 
 
 The following excerpt shows a sudden change from soft to 
 loud tone. The poetical and musical ideas are emphasized, 
 upon repetition, by the change of power : 
 
 ftl 
 
 Andante con moto. 
 
 m 
 
 3 
 
 i 
 
 F. W. WODELL— 
 
 " The Lord is Thy Keeper." 
 
 m 
 
 ^ 
 
 p^^-A 
 
 ^=i=^ 
 
 -A— ^ 
 
 pp_ 
 
 He re - stor - eth my soul, He re - stor - eth my soul. 
 
 A well-defined melody, appearing first in one voice-part 
 and then in another, must be brought out by shading : 
 
 ^m 
 
 Andantino. 
 
 J. C. D. Parker.— 
 '•The River Sprite." 
 
 K-^ 
 
 ^ ^ 1 ^' 
 
 ^^"i;j;ji^^^,M . ^ 
 
 The lil - y clos - es its chal - ice, a - float on the riv - er's breast, 
 
 i 
 
 ^ 
 
 mf 
 
 2. 
 
 The 
 
 star of 
 
 eve 
 
 ^ 
 
 2z:± 
 
 H4-r 
 
 etc. 
 
 w 
 
 ^—»- 
 
 ^F=^ 
 
 i ^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 Alto.—'ih6 star of eve is her watch - Hght, 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 95 
 
 ^m 
 
 U-^- 
 
 M^ 
 
 Light 
 
 mists 
 
 f-^^ 
 
 etc. 
 
 ^=W=^=^^ 
 
 i2^ 
 
 Light mists roll o - ver the 
 
 nv - er, 
 
 In excerpt No. 1 above, the melody is given to the 
 alto, and in No. 2 the alto has it ; in No. 3 it is given to 
 the bass ; later on it appears in the soprano, with a change 
 of key. By judicious shading it can always be given the 
 prominence which belongs to it as one of the themes upon 
 which the piece is constructed. 
 
 Where a clearly defined melody appears in the upper 
 voice-part only, the remaining voices supplying merely the 
 harmonic basis, the shading should be so managed as that the 
 upper part obtains sufficient prominence to make the theme 
 easily discernible. This is, in part, a question of balance of 
 voices in the choir. 
 
 Many hymn tunes need this treatment. The relatively 
 high pitch of the soprano part, however, makes it somewhat 
 prominent, and care must be taken not to cover up the other 
 voices. The division having the melody should deliver it as 
 would a good soloist, shading it as one voice, and the other 
 parts should be subordinated to this delivery. In the following 
 excerpt from a favorite anthem, a well-defined theme is given 
 to the chorus soprano, following and carrying on a melody sung 
 by a solo soprano. It should, therefore, be so shaded as to 
 bring out the melody : the alto, tenor and bass being somewhat 
 subordinated to the upper part. 
 
96 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 H. R. Shelley— 
 Hark, Hark, My Soul.' 
 
 fcfe 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^^^^ 
 
 a 
 
 i 
 
 ^=f 
 
 And, thro' the dark, its ech - oes sweet - ly ring - ing, 
 
 ^^ 
 
 -f-^ 
 
 i 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 i^ 
 
 r-r ■ r -r r 'r 
 
 f 
 
 r 
 
 I I , I 
 
 The mu - sic of the gos - pel leads 
 
 us home. 
 
 ^^ 
 
 M,-/ J ^ -^■^- ^.-^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 4==^ 
 
 A composition for chorus, with an independent solo part, 
 (or parts) must be shaded in such a manner as that the vocal 
 obbligato shall be clearly discernible. 
 
 As studies in this department, these pieces are suggested : 
 Contralto solo and chorus — To Dust His Glory, (Samson) 
 
 Handel. 
 Tenor solo and chorus of female voices — The^'Wave 
 
 Sweeps My Breast, (Crusaders), Gade. 
 Soprano solo and chorus — Happy Are We, (Mors et 
 
 Vita), Gounod. 
 Baritone solo and chorus of female voices — On the 
 
 Lake of Traum — F. Thieriot. 
 Tenor or soprano solo and chorus of male voices — Hie 
 Thee, Shallop — Kiicken. 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 97 
 
 Soprano and Contralto duet with chorus — Christmas— 
 
 (Anthem), H. K. Shelley. 
 Soprano solo and female chorus — O Sing to God, (Noel), 
 Gounod. 
 Polyphonic vocal music requires particular treatment. In 
 the old sacred music, madrigal, etc., the voice-parts are of 
 equal importance. Each in turn may announce a subject. 
 Each proceeds as an independent part, as one of the threads 
 used in weaving the contrapuntal web. 
 
 The firm, steady, organ-like sustaining of tone, whether 
 loud, half-loud, or soft, is a prime requisite to the proper 
 delivery of this music. 
 
 Successive announcements by different voices of one sub- 
 ject must be delivered with like power or shading. In the 
 following excerpt, as each voice enters, the first note of the 
 subject is delivered with bold accentuation. The crescendo 
 proper is called for only after all the voices have entered. 
 
 Palestkina — 
 "Stabat Matex." 
 
 Soprano. 
 
 Alto. 
 
 Tenor. 
 8ve. lower. 
 
 Bass. 
 
 Cor - di - me 
 
98 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 (1 
 
 y 
 
 Handel— 
 'Messiah." 
 
 Soprano. 
 
 Aito. 
 
 Tenor. 
 8ve. lower. 
 
 Bass. 
 
 fe fpg^^^ ^^^g^Ngj^ 
 
 1 
 
 A - men, A 
 
 'hjx 
 
 (3)/ 
 
 ^^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 zi±ii 
 
 ^ 
 
 men, A - men. A 
 
 f ^M^\^^h=^r^^^^^ ^ 
 
 men, 
 
 w 
 
 ^ 
 
 y (4) cresc. 
 
 ±^ 
 
 f^^^^m 
 
 men, 
 
 Below is given another suggestive illustration of the 
 management of successive '• ' entrances : ' ' 
 
 mp 
 
 Antonio Lotti — 
 "Crucifixus" 
 cresc 
 
 1st Tenor. 
 8ve. lower. 
 
 2d Tenor. 
 8ve. lower. 
 
 1st Bass. 
 
 2d Bass. 
 
 ^ 
 
 *^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 mp dolce. 
 
 Cni - ci 
 
 ± 
 
 w 
 
 Cru - ci - fi 
 
 mp dolce. 
 
 cresc . . . 
 
 m 
 
 ^ 
 
 :S£ri 
 
 'm 
 
 cm - ci - fi 
 
 xus, cru 
 
 m 
 
 mp dolce. 
 
 cm - ci - fi 
 
 EtEte 
 
 LL JJ ± 
 
 -^-H^ 
 
 p 
 
 a 
 
 f^ 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 99 
 
 See also the madrigal ^ 'Charm Me Asleep, by Henry Leslie," 
 
 The principle governing the shading of polyphonic music 
 is this : To preserve so far as possible the equality of the 
 voices, yet to make clear the announcements of the subjects, 
 points of imitation, etc., as they occur. 
 
 A given voice may have an important part to play in the 
 weaving of the polyphonic web, but if it be overpowered by 
 the other voices, the pattern as worked out will sound faulty, 
 or incomplete. It is the free play of voice-part around voice- 
 part in well-written polyphonic music, in which each voice 
 preserves its identity, yet is heard but as one of several melodic 
 threads of a beautiful musical lace-work, which helps to give 
 such music its peculiar charm. 
 
 The old-style oratorios, in which the choruses are for the 
 most part written in fugal style, are often performed in a most 
 inartistic manner. The idea seems to be that these choruses 
 can only be sung in the most direct, mechanical way, that is to 
 say, without any attempt at shading or coloring. Perhaps no 
 oratorio has suffered so much in this way at the hands of 
 conductors as has ' ' The Messiah. ' ' There is a power, an 
 effectiveness in its choruses, even when sung with mechanical 
 monotony, which tempts to its performance. 
 Fetis says : 
 
 ^ ' The chorus ' ' For Unto Us a Child is Born, ' ' is instinct 
 with an ineffable joy * * * The notes (of the principal 
 theme and its repetition) should * * * be soft and sweet. 
 * * * Then comes that exclamation, so energetic in the 
 English version — '' Wonderful ! " — here the whole power of 
 the voices should be used. Here should appear with irresist- 
 ible power the happiness with which the whole world is filled 
 at the thought of its salvation. After this burst the first 
 sentiment re-appears, and this alternation of different impres- 
 sions forms one of the most perfect pieces of its kind that 
 could be quoted. ' ' 
 
100 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 The chorus ^'Behold the Lamb of God" ( Messiah ), is 
 charged with feeling, and has many points of musical interest 
 which call for expressive shading. The delivery of the 
 exclamatory phrase '^ Behold the Lamb of God ! " by the alto, 
 soprano, bass and tenor, in succession should, in each instance, 
 be well marked. When all the voices have entered and are 
 sounding, as in measure 9, a ''swell" may begin which shall 
 have its climax at the entry of the soprano at ' ' Behold ' ' in 
 measure 10, and decrease in power to the end of measure 12. 
 At measure 13 a crescendo, culminating at measure 15, may 
 begin. The following phrases (measures 16 and 17) ma}^ be 
 delivered, the first wdth moderate and the next (a repetition), 
 with considerable force. Then begins a long B-flat, the domin- 
 ant, for the soprano, with a strongly marked rhythmical 
 figure, sung by the remaining voices, moving below it. This 
 is followed by another long sustained dominant, D, given to 
 the soprano, with a strong figure moving underneath, as 
 before. These long tones should be sustained with organ-like 
 firmness. The lower parts may be shaded to conform with the 
 variation of force suggested by the rise and fall of the melodic 
 outline, the intensity of all the parts naturally subsiding some- 
 what as the movement, with a well-marked cadence, draws to 
 a close. 
 
 This mode of trea,tment ( by shading ) gives to the standard 
 oratorio chorus an interest which it cannot have when sung in 
 the usual fashion, — namely, as though it were an organ piece 
 WT-itten for an instrument of one stop and without a swell 
 pedal. 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR, ' IvV 
 
 Chapter XI. 
 
 If artistic choral singing be his aim, the conductor 
 must first secure mastery by his choir of the elementary 
 technique of choral singing. This includes : Musical tone- 
 quality ; ability to deliver tone with varying degrees of power, 
 and to sustain tone (organ-tone) ; correct intonation ; precision 
 in attack and release of tone ; rhythmic accuracy ; the legato ; 
 the staccato ; the portamento ; correct pronunciation ; distinct 
 enunciation and articulation. 
 
 The firm sustaining of tone and the binding of tones ( the 
 legato) are the foundation of good stjde in singing. 
 
 Choralists are apt to be careless as to rhythmical accuracy. 
 They must be taught to give each note its full value, and 
 especially to observe the dotted notes. 
 
 Precision in attack — all the voices sounding simultan- 
 eously — is indispensable. The starting of the note should be 
 clear, without either a preliminary breath-rush (aspirate) or a 
 harsh click in the throat. A good pattern given by a singer is 
 of more value in securing correct attack than much written or 
 verbal advice. Exercises for attack, and staccato phrases are 
 fatiguing to the throat and should not be practised over-much. 
 
 All the voices on one part should move from one pitch or 
 one syllable to the next at exactly the same instant. Some 
 singers are slow in passing from an initial consonant to the 
 following vowel ; they make a preliminary murmur of indefinite 
 pitch on the consonant instead of delivering it clearly and 
 coming at once to the vowel sound. Others form the vowel 
 impurely, giving a preliminary sound, as ''u-ah" for ''ah." 
 These faults prevent that precision of attack on each pitch and 
 syllable which is so effective and much to be desired. 
 
10^ • ' • CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING.^ 
 
 Precision and elegance in the release of the last note of a 
 phrase is an important item of good style. Some singers have 
 a vicious habit of kicking out a final note. There are three 
 ways of ending a tone : 
 
 (1) With a sudden snap of the jaw, 
 
 (2) With a quick closure of the throat accompanied 
 by a click or push, 
 
 (3) Clearly, elegantly, by managing the breath and 
 leaving throat, jaw and tongue free. 
 
 The latter is correct. 
 
 The standard of pronunciation varies somewhat according 
 to locality. The usage of educated, refined society governs. 
 In singing, for the sake of good tone-quality, vowels are some- 
 what broadened. Pure, distinct delivery of both vowels and 
 consonants, on the basis of the standard of pronunciation 
 adopted, is imperative. If the words are to be understood, the 
 consonants must have careful treatment. The final consonant 
 is too often suppressed. 
 
 By judicious treatment of consonants much may be done 
 to affect the style of delivery of a phrase or sentence. Some- 
 times the explosives may be sharpened, or softened, in such a 
 way as to intensify the effect of word and music. For example, 
 in the following excerpt : 
 
 PiNSUTI — 
 
 " Good-night, Beloved." 
 pp Andante cantabile. --> 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^iS 
 
 Good -night, good -night be - lov - ed, 
 
 the hard, explosive ' ' g " in ' ' good ' ' should be softened ; so 
 with the ''t" in "night," which should have a soft, velvety 
 delivery almost like the ' ' th " in ' ' thin. ' ' The vocal conso- 
 nants ' ' m " and * ' n " can be so treated as to increase 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 103 
 
 intelligibility and enhance the expressive effect, as at *, where 
 the ' ' m " may be delivered very softly and slightly prolonged. 
 
 D. Buck— 
 •' Twilight." Male Voices. 
 poco rail. ^ 
 
 ^_=^ 
 
 b=b: 
 
 ^t. 
 
 e=f=f: 
 
 Like to a dream, 
 * 
 
 like to a 
 
 -^^- 
 
 dream, 
 
 In light, delicate passages, especially, the harsh sibilants 
 ^' s " and " z," ^' sh " '^ zh '' need modification, so as to mini- 
 mize, as far as is compatible with intelligibility, the unmusical 
 hiss. [See*.] 
 
 i 
 
 ^ P 
 
 D. Buck— 
 ' Twilight. 
 
 ^#=f 
 
 i±:^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 Then, in her shad - ow - y 
 
 wings, 
 
 Sop. 
 
 Alto. 
 
 :ifiS: 
 
 m 
 
 * ^ * *^ 
 
 Saint-Saens— 
 ' Samson and Delilah. 
 
 ^ 
 
 m 
 
 ^=^- 
 
 m 
 
 *t 
 
 Sing, sis - 
 
 sing, your trib - ute bring. 
 
 IP*— 
 
 fTv ( i- rj 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 The following excerpt shows at * an opportunity for height- 
 ening the expressive effect by a forceful delivery of consonants : 
 
 i 
 
 Allegro. 
 
 Saint-Saens — 
 ' Samson and Delilah.'' 
 
 i^^S 
 
 Is - ra - el! break your chain! A - rise, dis-play your might! 
 
104 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 The expressive use of consonants must not be carried too 
 far ; singing is done upon vowels. 
 
 Choralists are over-fond of slurring or '' smearing." This 
 habit must be overcome. The skilful delivery of the portamento 
 is a different matter, and an important item of good style. 
 The refined, elegant delivery of such phrases as the following 
 is a test of the training of a chorus : 
 
 Dolcissimo. 
 
 E Elgab— 
 " Spanish Serenade. 
 
 ^ 
 
 m 
 
 ^3 
 
 fc 
 
 She 
 
 she sleeps 
 
 my 
 
 la 
 
 dy 
 
 sleeps, my la • - dy sleeps. 
 
 At * the portamento is to be used. At ^ there is danger of 
 slurring. To make a crescendo at % passing from the c to the / 
 without slurring, is not easy, 
 
 A distinction is made between the ' ' form ' ' or size of tone 
 appropriate for one or another style of composition. There 
 are three ' ' forms ' ' of tone — the small, medium and large : 
 
 O 
 
 o O 
 
 t Form relates to size, or volume, not to intensity. The 
 small form is appropriate for the delivery of the lighter 
 
 tSee The Voke.—E. J. Myer. 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 105 
 
 compositions, glees, madrigals and part-songs, especially where 
 the movement is rapid and there is a syllable to each note, as : 
 
 f Allegro. 
 
 T. MORLEY— 
 
 Now is the Montli of Maying." 
 
 ?=* 
 
 i^i 
 
 I 
 
 Now IS the month of may - mg, When mer - ry lads 
 
 ^ 
 
 play - ing, fa, la, la, la. 
 
 la, la, la, la, 
 
 The greater part of choral singing calls for medium form, 
 the large form being indicated chiefly for broad, solemn, or 
 dramatic phrases or movements in anthem, cantata, and 
 oratorio. There are phrases in oratorio which require the use 
 of the smaller forms. Usually conductors encourage a style 
 of delivery in oratorio in which there is little variation from 
 the largest form of tone of a sombre color. This is a mistake ; 
 to secure best results in this connection, it is necessary that 
 the conductor understand the voice. 
 
 Hints and Sug'gfestions* — Continuing the study of th'^ 
 items that go to make what is called style in choral singing, a 
 conductor may consider these suggestions : 
 
 Piano passages are not necessarily to be sung more slowly 
 than preceding loud passages. 
 
 If choralists understand that each singer is expected to 
 give only his proportionate, fractional part of the total volume 
 of tone, the shading will be smooth and effective. 
 
 In selections requiring humming accompaniments, the 
 quality of tone can only be musical when the humming is done 
 on true breath control and with looseyiess of throat. 
 
 It is a mistake to hurry the pace in florid passages. 
 Choralists may thus be jumped over a weak or dangerous spot, 
 
106 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 but the music is not really sung. Too fast a tempo makes 
 correct delivery of runs difficult. 
 
 Musical tone quality is only to be secured when voices 
 have no pronounced fundamental defects, are unforced and 
 true to pitch. 
 
 When breath has to be so taken as to divide a phrase, the 
 first note after renewal of breath should be sung with the 
 volume, intensity and color that characterized the note preced- 
 ing the breath-taking. 
 
 Good style calls for breadth of phrasing ; full, firm tone 
 requires a generous supply of breath. The well-trained chorus 
 exhibits both. 
 
 The use of the '' explosive," or its djmamic opposite, the 
 ' ' aspirated ' ' attack is a matter of style in delivery. A force- 
 ful audible aspiration of the word ^ ' Ha ! " at * 
 
 Gounod — 
 " Redemption." 
 
 te 
 
 W^ 
 
 Ha! 
 
 thou that dost 
 
 de - clar«. 
 
 is most effective. 
 
THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. W7 
 
 Chapter XII. 
 
 Singing with good quality of tone, exact intonation, distinct 
 enunciation and articulation, clear delineation of the phrase, 
 rhythmic accuracy, attention to matters of tempo, shading, 
 special effects of accentuation, the legato, staccato, martellato, 
 etc., is giving due thought and effect to the lower or more 
 mechanical side of expression. 
 
 There is an expression of a higher, finer sort which arises 
 from a realization by singers of the emotional content of words 
 and music. 
 
 It is for the conductor to study thoroughly the structure 
 and meaning of a composition — text and music — and then to 
 use every means in his power to bring his singers to compre- 
 hend and appreciate the work as he does. What is not felt 
 cannot be expressed. If the singers do not get hold of the 
 inner meaning of the words and music — the dominant senti- 
 ment — if this does not get hold of the singers, it cannot be 
 expressed by them. It is this feeling for the emotional 
 content of a composition which gives life, glow, fervor to 
 chorus singing, even when deficient as regards the mechanical 
 expression heretofore referred to. 
 
 There is a vocal tone, free, vibrant, rich in harmonics, 
 which, considered merely as a tone, possesses a sensuous beauty 
 that is most attractive to the ear. It gives pleasure. But this 
 is not the '' fervent" tone. It is a matter of natural endow- 
 ment and good voice-production. Let this tone, however, be 
 ''glorified" by the singer's strong emotion; then it comes 
 with mighty force upon the hearer, stirring the depths of the 
 soul, and compelling instant and generous response. 
 
108 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter XIII. 
 
 The original idea of Recitative was to express in musical 
 notation, so far as possible, the natural inflections and move- 
 *ment of the speaking voice. In delivery it requires not so 
 much singing as declamation, with fidelity to pitch and to 
 the true character of the speaking voice. In pure recitative 
 there must be no suggestion of regularity of rhythm. There is, 
 however, a species of choral semi-recitative written by modern 
 composers which, while possessing more or less rhythmic 
 regularity, calls, in a measure, for the declamatory style of 
 delivery. An example is here given : 
 
 C. V. Stanforiv- 
 
 " The Revenge." 
 
 Basses. 
 
 ^ 
 
 gi;^ ^ f r 
 
 And we had not fought them in vain, 
 
p 
 
 1= 
 
 THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR. 
 
 109 
 
 it 
 
 1 •: 
 
 ^=t=t 
 
 :^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 ±=l=t 
 
 But in per - i - lous plight 
 
 were we. 
 
 i 
 
 E 
 
 :C=i3 
 
 f 
 
 ■s-s-H 
 
 ■^ 
 
 f 
 
 1 
 
 ^, 
 
 :*=«^=*=a 
 
 ^ 
 
 Below is given another example of choral semi-recitative 
 in which the smooth, legato, singing style of delivery would 
 be inappropriate. Musical declamation, with fervent expression 
 of emotion, is called for : 
 
 Gounod— 
 " Redemption.' 
 
 ^^^s^m$m 
 
 Ah! 
 
 ye priests who con- 
 
 ye your- 
 
 were in 
 
 i 
 
 ^LA 
 
 j nti^t x g^ 
 
 MM 
 
 • «^ J ;. i 
 
 =Pr=^ 
 
 i 
 
 t=t 
 
 i 
 
 ^ 
 
 -==-^ 
 
 s 
 
 F^ 
 
 "What time. 
 
 -17- 
 
 slum - ber, 
 
 ^d- 
 
 wnat time ye to the 
 
110 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter XIV. 
 
 Where the choice of hymn-tuues is left with the Choir 
 Director, he will naturally study the words, and select music 
 appropriate in its character to the sentiment of the text. He 
 must study the text stanza by stanza, and vary the style of 
 delivery to suit the changing sentiment of the lines. In some 
 churches it is the custom to sing the service at a rapid pace 
 throughout ; in others it is sung in a slow, drawling manner. 
 Change of rate of speed is an important factor of style in hymn- 
 singing. This must be done with judgment, or the people will 
 become confused and refuse to sing. The character of a tune 
 may be radically changed by singing it much faster than its 
 normal speed. Tunes having changing harmony on each beat 
 require a comparatively slow tempo. Those in which the 
 harmony changes infrequently may be sung at a comparatively 
 rapid tempo. This is a matter for careful study and experiment 
 by the Conductor. 
 
Part IV. 
 THE CHOIR. 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 Choral Drills — ^The choir must be prepared, by suitable 
 drill, for its part in the interpretation of words and music. 
 
 This preparation is the work of the Conductor in the 
 rehearsal room. To it he must bring his knowledge, skill and 
 great patience and capacity for taking pains. A good rule, 
 as has been intimated, is for the Conductor to prepare himself 
 for the rehearsal by a few minutes' relaxation and quiet 
 meditation or ''thinking of nothing at all" — a complete 
 resting of brain and body. He should remember that worry 
 induces irritableness, and that a conductor and teacher should 
 have no temper to keep in the rehearsal room ; also that it 
 takes two to make a quarrel, of whom he has no business to be 
 one ; moreover, that many more people can be led than can be 
 driven. Let him rid himself of every vestige of enmity toward 
 any one before entering the rehearsal room ; it will then be 
 difficult for any one to feel at enmity with him. Good temper, 
 patience and perseverance will bring to the choir leader the 
 victory. 
 
 In order to do the best work the choir leader must secure 
 and retain interested attention. To this end the singers must 
 be given that to do which they can do with ease and satisfac- 
 
 ill 
 
112 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 tion, and a little of that which calls for special effort. Then 
 they must be kept doing. In this connection it is suggested 
 that the director : ^ 
 
 Have a plan of rehearsal clearly in mind and work to it. 
 
 Be thoroughly in earnest in everything. 
 
 Talk little, have the choir sing much. 
 
 Tell nothing that singers can be led to discover for them- 
 selves. 
 
 Give reasons for exercises and call upon singers to use 
 imagination, to compare and to criticise. 
 
 In announcing page, number, stave, phrase, or point of 
 departure, make each statement clearly and decidedly, and 
 decline to repeat it. Let the inattentive who never know 
 ^ ' where it is, ' ' understand that they treat the leader unfairly 
 and are guilty of discourtesy. 
 
 Alternate easy with difficult numbers. 
 
 Have one division listen while another sings ; then ask 
 questions. 
 
 Vary pitch of exercises ; styles of music studied ; illustra- 
 tions. 
 
 If an individual or division is inattentive, give something 
 to do. 
 
 Keep the rehearsal room well-ventilated. 
 
 Have each singer sit away from back of chair. 
 
 Change singers from sitting to standing position occa- 
 sionally. 
 
 Give the choir something to think about ; keep the singers 
 looking for points. 
 
 Encourage, encourage, encourage. 
 
 As a preliminary to the rehearsal it is well to call attention 
 to the difference between practising and studying, and ask that 
 singers study while they practice. 
 
THE CHOIR. 113 
 
 Chapteb II. 
 
 Happy is ' the choir conductor whose singers are all music 
 readers. 
 
 When there is need of it, instruction in sight-singing well 
 repays a conductor for the trouble it costs. An examination 
 of the various sight-singing methods and text-books offered in 
 this country will show each conductor something that will be 
 useful to him in this part of his work. A good teacher will be 
 able to do much in this line with no more material than a large 
 blackboard ruled with two permanent music staves, without 
 clefs or bar lines. 
 
 AVhere the average ability to read music is good, it is often 
 profitable to give a few minutes at each rehearsal to special 
 drill upon unusual rhythms. If a composition to be rehearsed 
 contains any such, they should be studied on a monotone, at a 
 middle pitch, to a syllable, ^'lah," or '^loo." The item of 
 pitch is thus eliminated from the problem — one thing at a time. 
 
 It is helpful to the soprano and bass divisions to give them 
 drill in singing inner parts. A hymn-tune in which the soprano 
 and alto parts are of moderate compass may be practised, the 
 sopranos singing the alto and the altos the soprano part. So 
 with the tenor and bass. 
 
 Special drill in following the conductor's beat is also best 
 given upon a monotone and a simple syllable ; or upon a tune 
 which is thoroughly familiar. In such case attention is easily 
 concentrated upon the conductor's indications. It is useless 
 to expect a choir, not familiar with words or music, to follow 
 closely a conductor's beat. The choir may, in this exercise, be 
 asked to sing one syllable to a beat, next two, and so on, the 
 con^luctor varying his tempo, for purposes of drill, somewhat 
 erratically. 
 
114: CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter III. 
 
 Purity of intonation is absolute!}^ indispensable to good 
 singing. 
 
 When singing flat or sharp is caused by lack of ventila- 
 tion ; want of attention ; of concentration upon the pitch ; 
 physical fatigue ; or nervousness, the remedy is obvious. 
 
 One voice — a constitutiona,l flatter or sharper, will often 
 draw a division or the whole choir from the pitch. That voice 
 must be removed. 
 
 If the bass division is carefully looked after and kept 
 solidl}^ in tune, the upper voices are not sc likely to fall from 
 pitch. If the bass falls, the other parts are almost certain to 
 follow. 
 
 A muggy atmosphere will sometimes cause flatting. 
 
 Among 'Other causes of false intonation are the following : 
 
 Want of sufficient breath through failure to observe proper 
 breathing-places. 
 
 Failure to support the tone with the breath in piano 
 passages. Choralists frequently act as though under the 
 impression that soft notes will sing themselves. On the con- 
 trary, the soft notes, if they are to be true to pitch and of 
 proper color and carrying power, must be given with concen- 
 tration of thought on pitch and energetic breath support. 
 "Given a phrase, it is indispensable that the same energ}^ of 
 vocal emission should be employed in singing it piano as in 
 singing it forte, or, to express it better, the same intensity of 
 internal effort." — Francesco Lamperti. 
 
THE CHOIR. 115 
 
 Singing flat often results from singing too ^ ' big " on the 
 upper pitches — forcing the voice ; what is technically known as 
 ^ ' carrying a lower register ' ' into the territory of an upper 
 register. The immediate remedy is to call for less volume and 
 sonority at the danger point, with concentration of the mind 
 on the pitch and good tone quality. The tone must, however, 
 be kept clear and intense. The permanent cure, of course, is 
 ear-training and instruction in tone production. 
 
 Wrong classification of voices is a fruitful cause of flat- 
 ting. One alto trying to sing soprano, or one baritone among 
 the tenors is often sufficient to pull down a choir. 
 
 When a high soprano is nervous, fearful, badly taught, 
 or for any reason forces her tones, she usually sings sharp. 
 
 In practising new music, when it is necessary to frequently 
 repeat passages set at a high pitch, they may be dropped an 
 octave. This to avoid fatigue of voice and consequent flatting. 
 
 It is not easy to sing the diatonic scales in perfect tune. 
 These should be vocalized by each division, without accom- 
 paniment, and the pitch tested by tuning-fork or pitch-pipe. 
 
 Some authorities find that the second and third of the 
 ascending major scale are often sung out of tune.. So with the 
 fourth and fifth of the minor scale. The augmented second 
 (six to sharp seven) of the minor scale needs special care as to 
 intonation. Singers should be trained to give these doubtful 
 notes a slight special accent when practising. 
 
 The highest of two repeated notes at the interval of a 
 major second 
 
 is often flatted. Practice of such a passage, with accentuation 
 of the higher note, is beneficial. 
 
116 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Where a choir sings sharp it is usually because of nervous- 
 ness, or the presence of the habitual sharper. 
 
 More thorough drill, giving greater familiarity with the 
 music and confidence in themselves and the conductor will 
 have a good effect. The habitually offending voice must be 
 removed. If several singers who usually sing in tune, show a 
 disposition to sing sharp, the practising of vocalizes and the 
 particular passages on ' ' oh " and ' ' oo " (as in food ) will give 
 good results. 
 
 Chapter IV. 
 
 The study of exercises for ear-training aids in music-read- 
 ing, intonation, and blending. A few minutes may well be 
 given to such work at the beginning of the rehearsal. 
 
 In this connection the singing of chorals, slow-moving, 
 strong hymn-tunes, and suitable anthems, without accompaniment^ 
 and with special attention to intonation, testing with tuning- 
 fork or pitch-pipe, is strongly recommended. '' Hymn of the 
 Homeland," by A. S. Sullivan, and ''Come Unto Him," by 
 Gounod, are suggested as types of anthems that may be used 
 in this work. 
 
 The important point is to form in singers the habit of 
 listening to the pitch ; next, to train them so that they become 
 accustomed to the accurate sounding of the intervals used in 
 music. This latter involves the studj^ of the major and minor 
 diatonic scales, the chromatic scale, and drill in sounding the 
 various chords. To this may be added, with advantage, special 
 study of unusual melodic skips or progressions. 
 
THE CHOIR. 117 
 
 Chapter Y. 
 
 It should not be necessary to present an argument in favor 
 of vocal exercises for adult choirs. The fact is, however, 
 that few choir-leaders fully appreciate their value as saving 
 time and labor in improving the singing of a choir. They 
 save time, as one says, because ^ ' they concentrate attention 
 upon one point at a time," and really educate the choir 
 singers. The choir director who gives a few minutes at 
 the beginning of each rehearsal to voice-training exercises will 
 soon find his reward in the increased efficiency and responsive- 
 ness of his choir. The improvement will come much more 
 quickly than if he depends for it upon the ordinary routine of 
 rehearsal drill. 
 
 These exercises should include work on the following items : 
 
 Breath control ; production of the vowels ; treatment of 
 the consonants ; attack and release of tone ; the legato, stac- 
 cato, agility ; shading ; accentuation ; tone-coloring ; phrasing 
 (with especial reference to the quick or half -breath) ; the three 
 forms of voice ; blending of voices. 
 
 All voice work should be done in as pure an atmosphere 
 as possible, and without undue physical effort. 
 
 With regard to breath-control the problem is (1) to learn 
 to take a full breath quickly and noiselessly, usually through 
 the mouth, without raising the shoulders ; (2) to send out the 
 breath with energy and great slowness, while producing tone, 
 leaving larynx, throat, tongue, jaw and lips free from even a 
 suspicion of stiffness. First exercises require a slow inhalation, 
 and exhalation without tone on a mental (silent ) vowel. 
 Later the inhalation is quicker, and the exhalation slow, and 
 with tone. 
 
118 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING, 
 
 The repetition, on the slowly out-moving breath, of the 
 ordinary numerals, or letters of the alphabet, in an easy 
 conversational manner, each alternate word without tone, is 
 useful in gaining breath control. The breath must always be 
 renewed before the singer feels that he is '^ out of breath." 
 
 It is unwise to force the voice in the least ; power is not 
 thus to be gained. ]S"or must the two extreme notes at either 
 end of the vocal compass be practised. Eight practice on the 
 middle range will ensure the correct production of the highest 
 and lowest tones when these are needed. The extreme tones 
 may be sounded, occasionally, in practice. 
 
 A simple, practicable vowel scheme, for use in choral voice 
 training is the following : 
 
 Lon§f Vowels. Short Vowels* 
 
 E as in Feet i as in Fit 
 
 A as in Fate e as in Let 
 
 Ah as in Farm a as in Sat 
 
 Aw as in Law o as in Cot 
 
 O as in No u as in Cut 
 
 00 as in Food oo as in Foot 
 
 Initial Y is always a very close sound of '^e," written 
 Initial W is always 55 as in Food. 
 
 -r^ T vet — eS-6-t. 
 
 Example : *' - - « 
 
 ^ won — oo-u-n. 
 
 In the production of the vowels, throat, tongue, jaw and 
 lips must be left entire!}^ free from stiffness. The tip of the 
 tongue must lie gentl}^ against tlie lower front teeth on all 
 vowels. The position of the mid,- and back-tongue alters 
 somewhat for certain vowels. It is best to let the tongue 
 alone. If the singer thinks correctly the vowel sound he 
 
 fSee Speech in Song, Ellis. 
 
THE CHOIR. 119 
 
 wishes to utter, and leaves the tongue free, he will most quickly 
 and surely attain to a satisfactory result. A correct pattern 
 sound, must, of course, be given by the choir-director. 
 
 Diphthongfs. 
 Ah-i — 1 in Light; 
 Ah-i — y in My ; 
 Aw-i — oy in Boy ; 
 Ah-oo — ow in Now; 
 In these examples, the first vowel is the long sound, and 
 upon that sound the singer sustains tone, merely touching the 
 second sound as he leaves the syllable. 
 I-oo — ew in Few ; also u in tune. 
 
 In this example the first vowel is very shorty and the 
 singer vocalizes upon the second. 
 
 The vowels may be used singly, upon a monotone, and 
 upon scales and arpeggios. 
 
 They may also be used in combination upon the same 
 musical material. A useful order for securing good tone 
 production is the following : 
 
 -^^ ^ 1 ^ ! ^^4- 
 
 m-. 
 
 00 — ah — e — ah — oo 
 The pitch may be changed to suit the necessities of the various 
 classes of voices. 
 
 In practising vocal exercises, as in all singing, the body 
 sliould be poised upon the ball of one foot ; the shoulders 
 down, chest active (not forced up). Singers should be warned 
 against singing into their music. 
 
 All the vowels should be practised. 
 
 In order to avoid fatigue, vocal exercises may be practised 
 by the men and women of a choir separately. One division 
 should be encouraged to listen critically while another division 
 is practising. 
 
120 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter YI. 
 
 Singers learn to a considerable extent by imitation. That 
 choir is fortunate whose director is able to give a model of 
 good tone quality. In studying the vowel the item of quality 
 of tone is to be always in mind. 
 
 The tone of good quality is clear, resonant, expressive, 
 with intensity or carrying power in both piano and forte. It is 
 neither nasal, palatal, guttural, ''woolly'' nor breathy. 
 
 Nasality, though sometimes the result of disease, is usually 
 caused by habits of speech which induce rigidity of some part 
 of the vocal apparatus. Calling attention to the defective 
 sound and contrasting it with the correct sound of the vowel is 
 helpful. So also instructions as to relaxing neck, tongue, and 
 jaw while singing. The study of attack on the vowel ''Ah,'' 
 with thought concentrated upon the upper front teeth as the 
 point at which tone is first felt and sustained, is also beneficial. 
 
 Breath control, combined with absence of rigidity of any 
 part of the vocal instrument, and intelligent study of attack 
 on the vowels, will usually remedy the defects of tone-quality 
 above mentioned. 
 
 A semi-nasality of tone is caused by prefixing "n," or 
 " m " to a s^dlable, as : "I n-do not know. ' ' This bad habit 
 is easily corrected by proper consonant drill. 
 
 The vowel must always be sung so as to be understood. 
 Badly trained singers change "Ah" into "Aw," at high pitches, 
 finding themselves unable to give the correct vowel. This is a 
 matter of throat rigidity in tone production. The artist 
 unconsciously modifies the quality or color, so as to retain 
 richness and resonance, as the pitch changes, but does not 
 obliterate the vowel. In choral drill the director must give a 
 
THE CHOIR. 121 
 
 pattern for such modification of vowel quality as is necessary 
 in singing the scale on one vowel, and require the class to listen 
 and compare. At high pitches E (as in ''feet") is apt to be 
 made too shrill, and oo, (as in ''food") too dull, lacking in 
 clearness and intensity. These need modification in quality — 
 the one in the direction of breadth and richness, the other 
 toward brightness. 
 
 Chapter YII. 
 
 The use of Ah, Aw, and O, with rather dark timbre, aids 
 in developing volume. 
 
 Resonance — intensity — carrying power — are developed : 
 
 1. By vocalizing with bright timbre, using chiefly E, 
 and A (as in ' ' fate. ' ' ) 
 
 2. By developing vibration throughout the body, with 
 special attention to focusing vibration at upper front teeth. 
 
 3. By increase of (controlled) breath-pressure. 
 Practice for resonance should be done with a smiling eye^ 
 
 and raised and loosely held upper lip. 
 
 f The syllables lah, nee, deh, thah (^^asin "thou ") and vah, 
 may be practised in this connection. Special care should be 
 taken to preserve absolute freedom, of throat, tongue and jaw 
 in practising these syllables. Each of the first four is practised 
 without a movement of the jaw. 
 
 t See Polychrome Lessons. — F. W. Boot. 
 
122 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter VIII. 
 
 As has been said heretofore, the first and most important 
 requisite to the blending of voices is that each voice shall be 
 exactly in tune. Next, each must be free from striking defects 
 of tone quality. Thirdly, all must move from one pitch and 
 one sound (vowel) to another at the same instant. 
 
 The choir director will find it advantageous to spend some 
 time on blending exercises, during the study of which he must 
 insist upon each singer producing a tone of as good quality as 
 possible, listening to his neighbor, and endeavoring to amalga- 
 mate the two voices so as to make an effect as of one large voice. 
 
 A good plan is to have the voice of best quality, say 
 among the sopranos, sustain a tone for several beats, the others 
 of that division listening, and then one by one sounding the 
 same pitch, endeavoring to produce a tone of similar general 
 quality and to melt the voices into each other, so that no one 
 will be distinguishable from the mass. This exercise may be 
 sung at various pitches, and after two or more divisions have 
 been practised separately, they ma^^ be blended on the notes of 
 a chord. [See paragraphs upon ^' Ear- training."] 
 
 A forced tone will not blend. It is inherently untuneful. 
 
THE CHOIR. 
 
 123 
 
 Chapter IX. 
 
 Flexibility of voice is that characteristic which enables the 
 singer to pass easily and smoothly from one degree of power to 
 another. 
 
 The correct study of the swell is essential. A preliminary 
 exercise is the following : 
 
 Slowly. 
 
 lE^^ 
 
 ^^ 
 
 e — eh — ah — eh — e 
 00 — oh — ah — oh — oo 
 
 The pitch should be varied. 
 
 The order of study for the swell is this : 
 
 (1) Slowly. 
 
 ^^^^^^^^ m 
 
 ^^^ 
 
 ah — eh — e 
 
 e — eh — ah 
 
 e — eh — ah — eh — e 
 
 ah — oh — 00 
 
 00 — oh — ah 
 
 00 — oh — ah — oh — oo 
 
 ah 
 
 ah 
 
 ah 
 
 Soft tones must have intensity — carrying power. For 
 these breath must be controlled, and thought fixed upon con- 
 centrating tonal vibrations behind upper front teeth. 
 
 Tones of full power and good quality can only be gotten 
 on perfect breath control, with freedom from rigidity of throat, 
 tongue and jaw. 
 
 The increase and decrease of tone in the swell must be 
 gradual ; not : 
 
124 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 The swell may cover a note, or a phrase. Practise on this 
 item may be had on a suitable hymn-tune, used first as a 
 vocalize, and next with words, as : 
 
 Duke Street. 
 P <= ^ /= = - P 
 
 ^^ 
 
 r—r 
 
 -^^ 
 
 ^3 
 
 Ah, 
 
 Drill should be had (1) in sustaining long notes, evenly, 
 with soft, medium and full power ; (2) in quick, soft singing, 
 for which '^ Mght," by Gounod, is recommended ; and (3) in 
 the rapid alternation of soft and loud tones on different pitches 
 and syllables. 
 
 Chapter X. 
 
 The rapid, clear, fluent delivery of scales, runs, arpeggios, 
 and ornaments, calls for vocal agilitj^, and is most easil}^ 
 accomplished at less than full power of voice — the ' 'half-voice. ' ' 
 
 A useful preliminary practise is the following : 
 
 Moderaio. 
 
 Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha. 
 
 The '^ h " should be very light — felt, but almost inaudible. 
 
 & 
 
 ^^^^^^^ 
 
 ^z^ 
 
 ^S^^ 
 
 Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, 
 
 ah. 
 
 ^^ 
 
THE CHOIR. 
 
 126 
 
 The short notes must be detached, and delivered clearly, 
 but without a harsh stroke or explosion in the throat. 
 
 Scales, runs, and ornaments must be sung legato ( the 
 notes must be closely connected) unless specially marked other- 
 wise. There must be no slurring of one note into the other — 
 each pitch must be articulated clearly. 
 
 First drill for agility may be made on small groups, as : 
 
 pi^pi 
 
 -6- 
 
 - y y 1 
 
 Y^Wj'M 
 
 f^ M II P 
 
 Lah, lah, lah 
 Ah 
 
 Lah, lah, lah 
 Ah 
 
 Lah, lah, lah 
 Ah 
 
 v>>> >>>> 
 
 
 Lah, lah, lah, lah, lah, lah, lah,lah,lah,lah,lah, . 
 Ah* ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah 
 
 Lah, lah, 
 Ah, ah. 
 
 lah, lah, lah . 
 ah, ah, ah , 
 
 Lah, lah, lah, lah, lah 
 Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah. 
 
 The ^' 1 " must be very quick and the jaw must not move. 
 
 The scale, ascending and descending, may next be prac- 
 tised, the accentuation being so varied that the notes fall into 
 groups of two, three and four each. All vowels should be used. 
 
126 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 In descending scales particular attention should be paid to 
 intonation and clear articulation of each note. 
 
 Drill may next be had upon the arpeggio : 
 
 ^1 1^1 ^ 
 
 m 
 
 ^m 
 
 ^ 
 
 m 
 
 ^ 
 
 m=± 
 
 Ah. 
 
 Ah. 
 
 i 
 
 ^t# 
 
 ?5^1 
 
 f 
 
 Ah. 
 
 As to embellishments, drill may be made upon the figure 
 used. Medium pitches should be selected, and the principal 
 vowels used. 
 
 The Appoggiatura proper ('"^long^' — '' variable " appog- 
 giatura) is indicated in the old music by a small note preceding 
 the principal note. It varies in length, receives ^n accent, and 
 takes its time from the succeeding note. Usually it takes half 
 the time of the following or principal note : 
 
 Written. Executed. 
 
 ^ 
 
THE CHOIR. 
 
 127 
 
 When the principal note is dotted, the appoggiatura takes 
 the time of the note, and the principal note takes the value of 
 the dot ; 
 
 Written. Executed. 
 
 $ 
 
 t * ' The variable appoggiatura only precedes notes which 
 occur on the accented part of a bar ; occasionally, also, in slow 
 movements, each beat may have one. ' ' 
 
 In modern music the long appoggiatura is usually written 
 in full-sized notes as it is intended to be sung. 
 
 The short appoggiatura (sometimes called the Acciacca- 
 tura, ) is properly indicated by a small note with a stil^ke across 
 its stem and hook, preceding the principal note. It receives 
 no accent, takes practically no time from the principal note and 
 should be executed very quickly : 
 
 $ 
 
 The double acciaccatura is composed of two short notes, 
 one above and one below a principal note : 
 
 I 
 
 i=^ 
 
 ^^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^^ 
 
 These notes are to be sung very quickly, the principal note 
 retaining its accent. So with the slur : 
 
 ^ ^^PJ N 
 
 t Method of Singing, J. Stockhausen. 
 
128 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 The Mordent consists of three notes — a principal tone, the 
 tone on the degree next below (or above), and the principal 
 tone : 
 
 Written. Executed. Wrilten. Executed. "Written. Executed. 
 
 fL. A. Russell, in whose work on ^' Embellishments" the 
 subject is treated in a most comprehensive and thorough 
 manner, says : 
 
 " In modern music accent first tone of mordent. In music 
 of and prior to Bach's time, accent the third tone. <r., with 
 upper auxiliary, triplet form, no delay. Accent first tone." 
 
 The Turn is composed of a principal (written) note and 
 an upper and lower auxiliary. When not written in small 
 notes next the principal note it is indicated by the sign 7^ : 
 
 I 
 
 fc 
 
 or{A5 
 
 5^^ 
 
 m^ 
 
 or 
 
 s 
 
 m 
 
 It may begin with the upper, or lower auxiliary as above ; or 
 with the principal note : 
 
 i 
 
 Written. Executed. 
 
 The upper and lower, or both auxiliary notes may be chromat- 
 ically altered. The accidentals are usually placed above or 
 
 below the sign .^, w ; or both <sss> 
 
 V^' t| ' 
 
 t Embellishments of Music, L. A. Russell. 
 
THE CHOIR. 
 
 129 
 
 In the old (classic) music the signs for the appoggiatura 
 are sometimes wrongly printed, one being used where the effect 
 of the other is really desired. For a full discussion of this 
 subject, and of the rules for the delivery of the ''Turn," the 
 reader is referred to Mr. Kussell's work.f 
 
 In the delivery of embellishments regard should be had 
 to the particular character of the music ( light and gay, or 
 heavy and sad ) and the legato should be carefully preserved. 
 
 The rapid delivery of the chromatic scale presents especial 
 difficulty in the matter of intonation. It should first be 
 practised slowly, with ' ' half- voice, ' ' and breath thoroughly 
 under control. A ''pushed" breath will make its rapid, just 
 delivery impossible. This scale may with advantage be first 
 studied in small rhythmic sections, so constructed as that the 
 ear may retain a note of the common chord as a point of rest, 
 or guide ; for example : 
 
 S: 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^-^^ 
 
 Ah, 
 
 ah,, 
 
 Passages calling for agility are frequent in the oratorios 
 and cantatas of the old masters. These furnish good material 
 for choral drill in this department : see " Messiah," " Samson," 
 "Creation," " Matthew Passion." The choruses "Wretched 
 Lovers," and "Galatea, Dry thy Tears," from "Acis and 
 Galatea, ' ' ( Handel ) , are particularly recommended. 
 
 tOp. cit. See also Art of Singing, Part II. 
 Method of Singingj J. Stockhausen. 
 
 Wm. Shakespeare ; 
 
130 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter XI. 
 
 The prompt, simultaneous attack of the first note and 
 release of the last note of a phrase is indispensable to good 
 delivery. 
 
 To this end the singers must be drilled until thoroughly 
 familiar with the music, especially as regards time and pitch. 
 
 The conductor must not give the signal for the attack until 
 he is sure he has the attention of all the singers. 
 
 Promptitude in attack depends largely upon breath-taking. 
 Choralists should take breath in good season, before the moment 
 for attack arrives. 
 
 For drill in attack a slow-moving hymn-tune may be used 
 in this way : Let each division sing, in turn, one or two words 
 of the text, taking care to begin at exactly the right moment 
 so that the tempo is strictly maintained. For example : 
 
 4 
 
 ±=i^ 
 
 Sav - iour, bless - ed Sav - iour, List - en while we sing. 
 (Sop's .) (Altos ) (Tenors )(Ba8ses.) 
 
 Next, require one division to sing until the signal is given to 
 another division to take up the melody, which may be done at 
 any point. This will keep attention concentrated upon the 
 conductor. The power of tone must be maintained, so far as 
 circumstances will allow, by each division as it begins to sing. 
 
 The choir may then be drilled to sing the line in unison, 
 taking breath as marked, but without altering the tempo. The 
 repetitions may be hastened, so as to give drill in taking the 
 
THE CHOIR. 131 
 
 half-breath after '^ Saviour," and making the attack on 
 ' ' listen ' ' in strict time and with pure vowel, and full voice. 
 
 A line in which the first word and the word after the 
 half-breath begin with a vowel should also be used for drill on 
 the open or vowel attack. 
 
 Initial consonants should be delivered swiftly, so that the 
 vowel shall be reached as quickly as possible. This rule is 
 subject to an occasional exception, as when a special effect in 
 delivery is desired and only to be gained through dwelling upon 
 an initial consonant. 
 
 Precision in release must be worked for. Drill may be 
 given on hymns in stopping the tone at the end of the phrase, 
 exactly at the right moment, and simultaneously. Of twenty 
 sopranos in a choir, not more than six may ordinarily be 
 trusted to utter a final consonant, concluding a phrase, at the 
 same instant. 
 
 When a phrase ends with a vowel, as 
 
 ' ' Jesus Christ is risen to-day, ' ' 
 
 the tone is correctly released simply by witholding or taking off 
 the breath at the right moment, leaving the jaw and tongue 
 motionless. If tongue and jaw move there is likely to be a 
 click in the throat. 
 
 When a phrase ends with a consonant, the final consonant 
 must be sounded within the time of the note alloted to the 
 syllable. 
 
 The tempo must not be delayed by the taking of the half- 
 breath. The utterance of a final consonant preceding a half 
 breath must be clear and very swift. 
 
 Technically, as an item of tone-production, correct attack 
 is a matter of great importance. The mode of attack on a 
 vowel influences the quality of the tone. The clear attack, 
 without breath-rush or cl^k in the throat, is the correct, 
 
132 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 normal attack. The explosive attack with click at the larynx, 
 and the soft, aspirated (breathy), attack may occasionally be 
 used for special, expressive purposes. 
 
 The acquisition of the normal attack by a choir may be 
 aided by the practise of '' Ha ! ha ! ha !," three tones on one 
 pitch, at first with a well-marked, audible ''H," gradually 
 reducing the force of the ''H" until it disappears, and the 
 tone begins as a clear ^ 'Ah ' ' without aspirate or click. Neither 
 jaw nor tongue should move during this exercise. The pitch 
 may be varied. Later the exercise may be used in this form : 
 
 rf — ^ 
 
 ^ ^ ^ 
 
 \ \ 
 
 
 t¥=^i^ 
 
 ^— i^ i^^ 
 
 ^-^-iM— iM- 
 
 fJ 
 
 
 
 Ha! ha! ha! ah, . ah, ah. 
 
 Special technical exercises on attack should not be practised 
 longer than two minutes. 
 
 Each division of the choir should be encouraged to attack 
 with boldness. ' ' If you make a mistake, make a decided 
 one," is a frequent saying of a conductor whose chorus is 
 noted for boldness and precision in attack. 
 
THE CHOIR. 138 
 
 Chapter XII. 
 
 The foundation of the singing style is the legato. 
 
 First drill in this department is had on vocalizes. 
 Familiar hymn-tunes may be sung to each of the principal 
 vowels in succession, with the object of acquiring the ability 
 to carry the tone from one pitch to another firmly, smoothly, 
 and with clear articulation of each pitch, avoiding smearing of 
 the intervals. Later a change from one vowel to another may 
 be made upon each note. This involves the equalization of 
 the vowels, if- a true legato is to be obtained. Singers are apt 
 to change the color of the tone when they change the vowel. 
 Consequently, the phrase does not present to the ear, as it 
 should do, a smooth, unbroken line of tone : 
 
 E EH AH 00 
 
 but an effect something like this : 
 
 V 
 
 E EH AH 00 
 
 fThe AH is the central vowel in pitch and color, and the 
 high-pitched and high-colored E and EH should be brought 
 down, and the low-pitched and dark-colored 00 and O be 
 brought up toward the pitch and color level of a rich Ah. 
 This by no means prevents variation of tone-color for expres- 
 sive purposes. It simply means equal freedom and beauty of 
 tSee Vocal Reinforcement— E. J. Myer. Pronunciation for Singers. — 
 Ellis. 
 
134 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTIIs'G. 
 
 tone on all vowels, with a true legato in passing from one 
 syllable to another, as well as in going from one pitch to 
 another. The enriching quality or color of the full-throated 
 Italian Ah, the noblest of vowels, is blended wdth, or diffused 
 through each of the other vowels, and this without causing 
 any vowel to lose its individuality. 
 
 First drill on equalization may be given, at one pitch, thus : 
 
 Ah— Eh 
 
 Ah— Eh— E 
 
 Ah— O 
 
 Ah— 0—00 
 
 Ah— E 
 
 Ah— 00 
 
 E— Ah 
 
 00— Ah 
 
 E— Ah— 00— Ah— E 
 
 00— Ah— E— Ah— 00 
 
 In making these vowel changes there should be little move- 
 ment of the jaw ; tongue and lips should be free. 
 
 Drill for the staccato with a vowel is subject to the same 
 instructions as are given for the vowel attack. It should never 
 be long-continued, as it is a severe gymnastic for the throat. 
 
 The sol-fa syllables, doh, re, mi, etc. , furnish good material 
 for staccato practice. Preliminary practice may best be made 
 on one syllable, as lah, at a medium pitch. 
 
 A good legato delivery can only be attained on the basis 
 of breath-control. The tones are drawn or spun into each 
 other, yet with each pitch distinctly indicated. 
 
 Breath-control is equally important for the correct delivery 
 of the staccato, for without it, the successive short tones are 
 certain to be struck with a click or explosion in the larynx, 
 which is most dangerous to the throat and voice. 
 
THE CHOIR. 135 
 
 Chapter XIII. 
 
 In singing runs and scales in an ascending direction, 
 choralists are likely to strain or force the voice and conse- 
 quently to smear the intervals, or to sing out of tune. It is 
 wise to practice upward runs and scales decrescendo, taking care, 
 however, to keep up the relative pressure of the breath, with 
 freedom of jaw and tongue. 
 
 Where a run passes from a low or middle note into the 
 highest part of the range of a given class of voice, it is 
 better that it should be commenced with somewhat less than 
 normal power at the lower pitch. In this way the danger of 
 forcing the upper notes is lessened, and the run may be 
 delivered clearly and smoothly. 
 
 Chapter XIV. 
 
 Pfonunciation relates to the sound and stress given to the 
 syllables of a word. 
 
 Enunciation relates to the manner of utterance of the 
 sounds of a language ; as — distinct or indistinct. One may 
 enunciate well, yet mispronounce. 
 
 Articulation^ for the purposes of this chapter, relates to 
 the utterance of consonants. Pronunciation and vowel enun- 
 ciation may be correct, while the articulation or delivery of 
 consonants may be faulty. 
 
 Pfonunciation. — In preparing for drill in pronunciation, 
 the Century Dictionary and ''Pronunciation for Singers," by 
 Ellis, may be consulted. As has been remarked, the usage of 
 cultivated society largely governs local pronunciation. 
 
lae 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 In deciding upon pronunciation for singing, it should be 
 remembered, as a principle, that singing, or the sustaining of 
 tone, is done upon vowels. For the sake of broader, richer 
 tone quality in singing, vowels may be somewhat modified, as 
 compared with their use in speech. AVhere two pronunciations 
 have equal authority, that having the broadest vowel should 
 be chosen for singing. 
 
 If a syllable is to be sustained, it should be furnished with 
 a vowel, as: '^spoken" and not '^spokn," ^^peopul," not 
 '^peopl." 
 
 A vocal consonant is a poor substitute for a vowel : 
 (Written.) (Wrongly sung.) 
 
 4 
 
 ^E3 
 
 Fails. 
 
 .Fai - 1 
 
 (Rightly sung.) 
 
 Fai - Iz. 
 
 There are six short vowels, so-called. Of these the ^ (in 
 sat, lament) may be much broadened toward ^'Ah," as ^'3," 
 is thin and unmusical. Of the remaining vowels, i, as in 
 pity ; e, as in let ; o, as in lot ; and oo, as in foot or put, 
 may be given somewhat of the color of ^'Ah." The u, in 
 cut, is closely allied to ' ' ah, ' ' and needs but slight modi- 
 fication. 
 
 Yowel modification must be kept within bounds, so that 
 the individuality of the vowel may not be lost. Otherwise the 
 words may become unintelligible. 
 
THE CHOIR. 
 
 137 
 
 The short i of ^^pity" must not be changed to the e of 
 ' ' feet, " as is likely to be the case with those singers who have 
 been trained much upon e in the ^^ placing " of the voice. 
 
 Of the long vowels, a as in '' fate " has a second sound, 
 or ' '■ vanish ' ' like i in ' ' pity " : ' ' eli-i " ; o as in ' ^ so " has a 
 ' ' vanish ' ' like oo in ' ^ food. ' ' In singing, the tone must bf 
 sustained upon the first or primary vowel, and the second o) 
 vanish lightly and quickly touched as the syllable is ended. 
 
 (Written.) 
 
 (Rightly sung.) 
 
 (Not. 
 
 m^ Ei=I=^= S!=}=S 
 
 Fate. 
 
 Fa 
 
 Fa 
 
 In such words as ' ' are, peer, near, there, four, ' ' there is 
 a tendency to dwell upon a second vowel, immediately preceding 
 the ' ' r. " In all such cases the vowel effect is enhanced by 
 pronouncing the primary vowel long, almost eliminating the 
 secondary vowel, and giving the ''r" a short, soft trill. 
 
 (Correct.) 
 
 (incorrect.) 
 
 ffi 
 
 m 
 
 Ne 
 (Near.) 
 
 ^r. 
 
 Ne 
 
 The vowel ' ' e " in ' ^ let, ' * as used in final syllables, for 
 instance : ' ' speak-eth, " ' ' start-ed, " ' ' an-them, " ' ' an -gel, ' ' 
 should be given with care, but may be shaded slightly toward 
 ' ' ah. ' ' It must not be changed to ' ' u " in " cut, ' ' thus : 
 ^^an-thiim." 
 
 The intermediary vowel found in 'Svhether," '^ pearl," 
 
 burn, 
 
 " ^Hhird," '' 
 
 were, " ' ' worthy, ' ' approximates or leans 
 
138 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 toward ' ' u " in ^ ' cut. ' ' Tone should be sustained on this 
 vowel, and not on the ' ^ r " element, as : 
 
 i -^— I 1—1 : 
 
 Uu - - - m. 
 
 (Not) Bur - - - n. 
 
 Care should be taken to give final ^ ^ r " a soft, short trill. 
 
 '^Bu— rn" not '^Bu— n." 
 Such words as '^ light " ( lah — it ) must be sung : 
 
 (Correct.) (Incorrect.) 
 
 Lah - - it. Lah - eet. 
 
 ''Aye" meaning ^'yes" is pronounced as is the personal 
 pronoun I. ' ^ Aye ' ' meaning ' ' ever, ' ' as the ' ' a " in ' ' fate. ' ' 
 
 ''The" before a vowel, or ''h," is pronounced ''thee;" 
 before a consonant, " thu." 
 
 In "listen," "often," and similar words, the "t" is not 
 sounded. 
 
 " Heaven," "leaven," etc. may sometimes be pronounced 
 as of one syllable ; if as of two syllables the second must have 
 a distinct vowel before the final consonant. See general prin- 
 ciple above. 
 
 The requirements of rhyme will usually decide whether 
 "wind" shall have the long or the short I. When possible, 
 for the sake of sonority, the word should be pronounced with 
 the long sound. 
 
THE CHOIR. 139 
 
 The chief diphthongs must be treated thus : 
 
 
 1/ o 
 
 ___^ 
 
 
 
 
 
 -i^-4'- 
 
 — ! 1 h 
 
 =1- 
 
 ^- 
 
 
 
 Vy'y T- 1 ' J ' 1 J ' ,' ' 
 
 Ah-1— i in ^' light." 
 
 Lah 
 
 « 
 
 
 It. 
 
 Aw-i — oy in ' ' boy. ' ' 
 
 baw 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 1. 
 
 Ah-oo — ou in ' ' sound. ' ' 
 
 sah 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 oond 
 
 I-oo — u in ^ ' tune. ' ' 
 
 
 tioo 
 
 _ 
 
 _ 
 
 n. 
 
 In the last case the vocalizing is done upon the ^^ oo^ 
 
 For the sake of distinctness it is better to give ' ' r, " wher- 
 ever found, a trill. The length and force of the trill will be 
 governed by circumstances. At the beginning of a word it 
 may usually be stronger and longer than at the end of a 
 word. In tender passages it may be delivered with a soft 
 distinctness, which is effective. 
 
 Distinctness, with ease of emission, are prime considera- 
 tions in deciding upon the division of words for singing. 
 
 The consonants, m, n, 1, r, v, z, and the diphthongs ng, 
 th, (the), zh, (azure), have more or less vocality, and if 
 properly delivered are always distinct. 
 
 The explosives p, t, and k, are most distinct when allotted 
 to the following vowel, as : '' ta-ken," not '' tak-en," ^' pi-ty," 
 not ^'pit-y," ^'to-pic," not ''top-ic." 
 
 In most cases ease of emission is promoted by allotting the 
 consonant to the vow^el following ; this is especially so when 
 the second syllable is taken by skip, as : 
 
 ^; 
 
 bro - ken thy 
 
140 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 When a consonant immediately precedes r or 1, as : pr, br, 
 tr, dr, kr, gr, pi, bl, tl, dl, kl, gl, the combination is to be 
 treated as one sound, and usually allotted to the vowel 
 following : ' ' i-dler, ' " ' se-cret, " ' ' tri-plet. ' ' 
 
 Words such as '^ supply," and ''suffer" should be con- 
 sidered as having but one medial consonant and that allotted 
 to the following vowel, as : '' su-ply," '' su-fer." 
 
 Avoid errors such as : Prefixing m or n where not part of 
 the word : "n-do " for ''do," "m-benighted " for " benighted." 
 Failure to repeat a consonant which ends one word and begins 
 the next, as : " thatrain " for " that train." Failure to sepa- 
 rate words by distinct utterance of final and initial elements : 
 as ' ' awakright ' ' for ' ' awake right, " ' ^ thevening ' ' for ' ' the 
 evening," " thateavenly" for " that heavenly , " "gloriousope" 
 for ' ' glorious hope. ' ' 
 
 Enunciation* — In this chapter, as indicated, enunciation 
 refers to the utterance of the vowel sounds. The pronunciation 
 of a word having been decided upon, its vowel elements must 
 be delivered with fidelitj^ and clearness. If "Ah " is intended, 
 then "Aw" must not be sung. The first and great requirement 
 for enunciation is that the vowel sounds shall be so uttered as 
 to be easily understood. In order to effect this, the utterance 
 of the consonants must not be permitted to modify the vowel, 
 or ' ' blur "it in the least degree. Further, the vowel must 
 have as much as possible of the time of the note to which it is 
 placed ; the longer the duration of the vowel, the more likely 
 is it to be understood. The true ' ' singing style ' ' demands the 
 sustaining of tone ; this is done on the vowels. 
 
 When syllables change rapidly on one pitch, great care 
 must be taken to give the vowels purety — with true, 
 full sound. Short words, "at," "an," "and," etc., are 
 often much slighted as regards enunciation, as well as in the 
 
THE CHOIR. 141 
 
 articulation of consonants. When one vowel, (syllable), is 
 given to several pitches, care must be taken to keep the vowel 
 distinct on all pitches. 
 
 The practice of the syllables ^ ' 1-2-3-4-5-6-ah ; " ''lah,- 
 beh,-nee,-po,-too;^^ a,nd^^ doh,-re,^mi,-fah,-sol,-lah,-si,^^ on mono- 
 tones, and scales, at tempi ranging from very slow to very fast, 
 is recommended for study in enunciation. The thought, in 
 this exercise, must be centred on the vowels, that they may be 
 kept true and full. The features must be kept free from rigidity. 
 
 The diphthongs may be practised in this order : 
 
 i 
 
 5^d 
 
 i — 00 ah — 1 aw — i ah — oo 
 (tune) (my) (oil) (now) 
 
 (view) (light) (boy) (town) 
 
 The tongue tip should lie lightly against the lower front teeth, 
 and the jaw remain motionless. 
 
 Articulation* — If consonants are constantly over-empha- 
 sized the legato is destroyed — the singer does not sing. If too 
 little attention is given to the utterance of consonants, the 
 singer is not understood. 
 
 The larger the auditorium, the more forceful should be the 
 delivery of consonants. Exaggeration, however, should be 
 avoided. 
 
 The delivery of a consonant may be emphasized or modi- 
 fied for a special, expressive purpose. 
 
 Final consonants are most often slighted. 
 
 The '' vocal " consonants are : m, n, 1, r, and the combina- 
 tion ng. 
 
 They should be given sufficient duration to make them 
 distinct, but not to take the place of a vowel. Properly 
 
142 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 delivered they contribute greatly to the preservation of the 
 legato and to intelligibility. 
 
 The ^ ^ semi-vocal " consonants v, th (as in ^'thou,") z in 
 ''ooze," and zh, (the " z" in "azure") have a sound which 
 is of the nature of a buzz. These elements are inherently 
 unmusical, and should be dwelt upon only long enough to 
 render them distinct. 
 
 The " sub-vocal " consonants b, d, j, (as in John and soft 
 "g" as in "gem,") with g (as in ''go,") have a very 
 brief moment of vocality preceding the explosion which 
 characteristically closes their utterance. 
 
 All the consonants so far named may be practised upon a 
 monotone, and also upon the pitches of the scale, without 
 the aid of a preceding or following vowel. Such practice is 
 useful in securing intelligibility and good tone production. 
 
 An absolutely essential requirement for this exercise, how- 
 ever, is complete freedom from stiffness of jaw, tongue and 
 lips. Done with rigidity at either point it is dangerous 
 to the voice. 
 
 To gain a sense of the vocality of b, d, j, and hard g, this 
 exercise may be practised : 
 
 Slowly 
 
 The effort should be to sustain the tone on the second note a 
 moment, before permitting the explosion which completes the 
 articulation of the consonant. 
 
 The consonants p, t, k, are non-vocal, ("mute") and 
 explosive. 
 
 The consonants f and s, together with the consonantal 
 
THE CHOIR. 
 
 143 
 
 combinations sh ( ^ ' shall " ) ch (' ' chill ' ' ) and th ( ^ ' thin " ) are 
 of the nature of ' ' hisses. ' ' These are thoroughly unmusical, 
 and their force and duration must be minimized as much as is 
 consistent with distinctness. 
 
 All consonants or consonantal combinations having vocal- 
 ity should be sung upon the pitch of the accompanying vowel, as : 
 
 i 
 
 3 
 
 = b - ee 
 
 A common fault in this connection is to practically rob the 
 consonant of all vocality. Another is to pitch it lower than 
 the pitch of the vowel, as : 
 
 a 
 
 B 
 
 Fundamental requirements for good tone production and 
 delivery of the text are, that the breath shall be under genuine 
 control, and the throat and articulating organs free to act 
 vigorously and rapidly. 
 
 All consonants having an explosive element in their forma- 
 tion, tend to destroy control of the breath. They can and 
 ought to be sounded without sacrificing breath control. Thus, 
 p, t, k, which are essentially explosive, may be practised 
 with great energy, on a perfectly ho^ld breath — witliout a voAvel 
 and without breath escape from the lungs. The explosion in 
 the mouth cavity on this method is much more distinct and 
 the consonants can be heard at a greater distance than when 
 the explosion is accompanied by a rush of air from the lungs, 
 as is the ordinary method. 
 
144 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 The ' ' sub- vocals, " b, d, " hard ' ' g, and j , may also be 
 practised with vigor, yet without waste of breath. 
 
 In the case of f , th ( ' ' thin " ) s, sh, and the aspirate h, 
 there is usually a waste of breath. When rightly done the 
 control of the breath is not for an instant abandoned. 
 
 If the singer will rightly control his breath, managing it 
 constantl}^ as though singing only on vowels, he may sing 
 legato and at the same time deliver the consonants with 
 distinctness. 
 
 This method of delivery holds good no matter what the 
 consonant or combination of consonants used. 
 
 Drill on the consonants may be made : 
 
 (1) On the consonant alone, 
 
 (2) With a vowel preceding, 
 
 (3) With a vowel following, 
 
 (4) With a vowel preceding and following. 
 
 A good work on elocution wall furnish a list of consonant 
 combinations which may be used for special drill as needs may 
 indicate. 
 
 The sol-fa syllables, do, re, mi, etc., ^^ah, beh, nee, po, too,^^ 
 and ordinary numerals from one to eight, may be used on a 
 monotone and scales for drill upon consonants. The staccato 
 delivery is particularly useful as a first step ; afterward the 
 legato may be used. 
 
 These consonants can and should be practised without 
 movement of the jaw : 
 
 tailk, cZawn, chedk, corn, kill, g,o, thou, la,w, rod, no, ring. 
 No matter what the action of the tongue in forming a conso- 
 nant, it must lie lightly against the lower front teeth on all 
 vowels. 
 
 The words of a hymn-tune, anthem or chorus may be 
 
THE CHOIR. 145 
 
 analyzed, and used for drill in enunciation, and in articulation 
 
 of CQnsonants, according to the principles herein given. As : 
 
 12 3 4 5 6 
 
 ^ ^ Savior, I my cross have taken. ' ' 
 
 (1) Consonants — s, v, r ; vowels — eh-i, 1-ii. 
 
 (2) 
 
 Vowels — Ah-1 . 
 
 
 
 
 (3) 
 
 Consonant — m ; 
 
 ; vowels — ah-1. 
 
 
 
 (4) 
 
 Consonants — k. 
 
 r, (or kr), s ; vowel- 
 
 —Aw. 
 
 
 (5) 
 
 Consonant — v ; 
 
 aspirate — h : vowel- 
 
 -Ah. 
 
 
 (6) 
 
 Consonants — t, 
 
 k, n ; vowels — eh-1 and ^' e " 
 
 (as 
 
 in whether 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Special < 
 
 care must be taken, in recitative, to deliver the 
 
 consonants distinctly. 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter XV. 
 
 Drill upon the three forms of voice [see page 104] may be 
 given thus : 
 
 Small Form — Mouth slightly open ; tone upon the lips, little 
 volume. Preliminary practice on a monotone : 
 
 '' Lee,-nee,-tee,-dee,-thee,-vee,-mee," enunciated rap- 
 idly and smoothly, ^, m/, and /. Next some light glee or part- 
 song, as ' ^ You Stole my Love, ' ' by Macfarren. 
 Medium Form — Mouth more open ; preliminary drill as above, 
 on 
 
 '^Leh,-neh,-teh,-deh,-theh,-veh,-meh," with the three 
 degrees of force. Next use an anthem of praise (not of 
 devotion or aspiration) such as ''I will Sing unto the Lord," 
 by C. H. Tebbs; '^The Lord is Thy Keeper," by F. W. 
 Wodell, or a selection, such as '^ The Wreck of the Hesperus," 
 by T. Anderton. The greater part of secular and sacred 
 
146 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 music is to be sung on medium form. A given selection may, 
 by reason of change of style, require the use of each form in 
 alternation. 
 
 Large Form — Mouth well open. Preliminary drill, as above, 
 on 
 
 ''Ah," "aw," and ''oh," prefixed by 1, n, t, d, th (in 
 ' ' thou " ) V, and m. Next a solemn or grand anthem, requiring 
 breadth and fulness in tone and plirasing for its adequate 
 interpretation, as, "Blessed Jesu, Fount of Mercy" by 
 Dvorak; " Inflammatus," Rossini; "Hear Jacob's God," 
 (Samson) Handel ; "Credo," {Messe Solennelle) Gounod. 
 
 Time is saved by giving some drill in accentuation, primary 
 and secondary, on a monotone to the syllable ' ' lah. ' ' This 
 develops a feeling for accent, while the mind is not troubled 
 with problems of changing pitch, enunciation, and accent at 
 the same time. 
 
 All kinds of measure and rhythm should receive atten- 
 tion. Particular care should be taken to develop a feeling for 
 secondary accents. For example : 
 
 i 
 
 may be accented in two ways. [See Chapter on "Time- 
 beating."] 
 
 A very light pressure should be given to the first note of 
 each group of notes taking the time of a beat. In this way 
 rhythmic grouping is made clear. For example : 
 
THE CHOIR. 147 
 
 Drill on special dynamic effects, such as the fp. is best 
 given on a monotone, to " lah " and later ''Ah," taking care 
 in the latter case to avoid a click in the throat on the attack. 
 Choir singers will perhaps more quickly grasp the effect desired 
 if it is represented thus : 
 
 / p 
 
 fj 
 
 f=: 
 
 Special accentuation {marcato, martellato) for expressive 
 purposes, is also best taught first on a monotone to ' ' lah. ' ' 
 Later a familiar chant or hymn-tune can be used. [ See page 
 83.] 
 
 Drill in shading, for which the exercises on the swell [see 
 page 123.] are an excellent preparation, may first be given on 
 a monotone to ' ' lah ' ' and ' ' Ah. ' ' The singers must follow 
 the conductor's signals for the increase or decrease of force. 
 To do so they must know the music by heart. For this reason 
 the chant and familiar hymn tune on the syllables given, and 
 later with the text, furnish best material for this drill. 
 
 In this drill the conductor will make many changes in the 
 order of use of the various degrees of force in the delivery of 
 a single line, as : 
 
 forte, mezzo-forte, piano, pianissimo, 
 mezzo forte, forte, piano, fortissimo. 
 and so on. 
 
 All vowels can be colored dark or bright, clear or sombre, 
 or one of many shades between these extremes. The ' ' e " in 
 '' feet" is, however, normally a bright or clear vowel, and the 
 "oo" in ''food" a dark or sombre vowel. Preliminary drill 
 in coloring tone may therefore best be given on a monotone 
 with sentences containing these two vowels, uttered with the 
 purpose of noting the characteristic and contrasting colors, as : 
 
 " I am well pleased.''^ 
 
 ' ' I am in a sad mood. ' ' 
 
148 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 The first sentence may be uttered with bright tone, and 
 the second with dark tone throughout. To do this successfully 
 the singers must be asked to assume, for the moment, that they 
 are actually expressing their own feelings in the language used. 
 The tone, if the vocal organs are free, will naturally be darker 
 or more ' ' sombre ' ' in the second than in the first sentence. 
 This is the great principle underlying artistic tone-coloring for 
 singing. 
 
 Easy pieces in which the sentiment is alternately joyous 
 and sad may next be used, and the choir asked to describe, 
 in their owm language, the change of sentiment or mood, line 
 by line. Next, they may be asked to sing, retaining the mental 
 ' ' picture ' ' as described. This will aid in giving appropriate 
 color of tone, as the text is delivered. 
 
 Sentences for drill on bright tone are : 
 *' Hail, smiling morn.'^ 
 ^' Brightly glows the day.'' 
 ^ ' Sweet spring is here. ' ' 
 '' Hark, hark, the lark.'' 
 ^'May, lovely, smiling May." 
 For dark tone : 
 
 ^ ' I am so sad. ' ' 
 '' Thou art gone to the grave." 
 ''Weep, Israel, weep." 
 '' Hark, from the tombs a doleful sound ! " 
 The tones of the scale have each a special effect. Doh is 
 described as ' ' the strong and firm tone ; " Be '^ the hopeful or 
 rousing tone ; " Mi ' ' the calm tone ; ' ' Fah ' ' the desolate or 
 awe-inspiring tone ; " Sol ^^ the grand, clear or trumpet tone ; " 
 Lah ''the w^eeping or sorrowful tone;" Ti (or Si,) "the 
 sensitive, piercing, or beseeching tone." Obviously, drill for 
 skill in tone coloring can be made more effective when con- 
 ducted with the use, not only of appropriate text, bul also of 
 
THE CHOIR. 149 
 
 appropriate intervals. The bright tone can, then, be most 
 quickly developed on the arpeggio, ' ' doh, mi, sol ; ' ' and the 
 dark tone on the arpeggio, ' ' Za/i, doh, mi. ' ' 
 
 The Choir Conductor may expect to meet difficulty in 
 teaching or developing tone-coloring. Americans, (or the 
 Anglo-Saxons,) are so self-conscious, self -repressed, that they 
 feel embarrassed, as though making themselves ridiculous, 
 when endeavoring to give themselves up to the feeling of the 
 text, and to sing emotionally. But quiet, kindly perseverance 
 by the teacher will do wonders in this connection. A little 
 work on the exercises given, will soon form in the singers the 
 habit of giving themselves up to the emotional content of the 
 text and music, and the result will be choral singing which, 
 though possibly technically defective in some respects, will 
 thrill the heart. 
 
 Chapter XVI. 
 
 The singer needs more than the living breath. 
 
 It is the breath in the chest under controlled pressure on 
 which the voice is said to lean and which gives the full, clear 
 note. 
 
 The vocal instrument is sometimes referred to as an 
 Aeolian harp. The breath is not to rush but to float across 
 the strings (through the throat) and thus make sweet music. 
 
 Drill for breath control has already been dealt with in a 
 general way. 
 
 In order to phrase well the lungs must at all times be well 
 supplied with breath. Singers must therefore learn : 
 
 (1) To measure the phrase with the eye, holding it in 
 mind as a unit, not as a series of individual notes, before 
 
150 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 drawing breath. This will ensure the taking of a supply of 
 breath commensurate with the length and character of the 
 phrase. 
 
 (2) To husband the breath, especially that which 
 remains at the end of a phrase. This prevents the collapse of 
 the chest so common with bad singers, and a consequent jerky 
 inhalation for the succeeding phrase. 
 
 (3) To take the quick or half -breath noiselessly, and 
 without disturbing shoulders, throat, jaw or tongue. 
 
 Drill for No. 1 will suggest itself to the choir-director. 
 Singers should be encouraged to read ahead in music, as in 
 reading ordinary print. 
 
 •f Drill for No. 2 can be given on a hymn tune, asking the 
 singers to stop for one beat at the end of a line, (taking no 
 new breath,) and then to sing ''Ah " for four slow counts with 
 full voice and good quality. 
 
 Drill for No. 3 may be had on the scale sung to the vowel 
 "Ah." Breath may be taken after each group of two notes, 
 then three, etc. The scale must be sung strictly in time, and 
 the breath taken in the time of the last note of a group, b}^ a 
 quick, light, outward movement at waist-centre in front, and 
 at back under shoulder-blades. 
 
 t See Art of Singing. — Wm. Shakespeare. 
 
THE CHOIR. 151 
 
 Chapter XVII. 
 
 Each choir-director must plan his rehearsal as best suits 
 the circumstances in which he finds himself placed. The plan 
 hereinafter given is merely by way of suggestion, and may be 
 helpful to some. 
 
 Plan for Choir Rehearsal, 
 Time :— I hour, 30 minutes. 
 
 Drill in Voice-culture and Singing 15 minutes. 
 
 Hymns or simple anthems already in rehearsal .... 15 minutes. 
 
 Taking up new music 30 minutes. 
 
 Rest 10 minutes. 
 
 Perfecting one or more numbers 20 minutes. 
 
 The time allotted to voice-culture is likely to be as 
 fruitful in good results as any other portion of the rehearsal 
 session. The drill on hymns and simple music may well 
 follow as part of voice preparation for the new music. The 
 interval for rest, conversation, moving about, airing the room, 
 is also a feature, the value of which is likely to be overlooked. 
 At least one number should be perfected — that is, thoroughly 
 prepared for performance — at each rehearsal. Thus is a 
 genuine repertoire accumulated. Some choirs have many 
 selections partially learned, but practically no one piece 
 thoroughly prepared. 
 
152 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter XVIII. 
 
 Hymn-singingf* — Choir-hymns should be practised with 
 especial reference to expression. The object is either to make 
 an impression upon the congregation — to create a mood ; or to 
 voice, for the people, prayer, aspiration, praise, etc. 
 
 Drill in these hymns should be especially directed to the 
 following points : 
 
 (1) Study of the meaning of the words of each line, as 
 well as of each stanza. 
 
 (2) Variation of tempo, as well as of power and tone 
 color. 
 
 (3) Distinctness of enunciation and articulation. 
 
 (4) Avoidance of the spirit of choir-display or concert 
 performance. 
 
 The hymns ^^Lux Benigvia/^ by Dykes, (''Lead, Kindly 
 Light"); and '^Merrial,^^ (''Now the Day is Over,") by 
 Barnby, are suggested for study in this connection. 
 
 Congregational hymns should be studied with especial 
 reference to the following points : 
 
 (1) Precision of attack and release. 
 
 (2) Steadiness of tempo. 
 
 (3) Sharp definition of rhythm. 
 
 The choir-preparation should be for leading and encour- 
 aging the congregation in the hymn-singing. 
 
 When a congregation lags these devices may be used : 
 
 (1) Demi-staccato delivery of a line or two by organ 
 and choir. 
 
THE CHOIB. 163 
 
 (2) The release of the final note of the phrase a moment 
 too soon. This will usually break a congregation of the habit 
 of holding on to the final note of the phrase. 
 
 (3) The slight anticipation of the first beat of the 
 phrase. 
 
 Organ and choir must, of course, work together in the use 
 of these devices. It is of little use to sing more loudly, or try 
 to hurry within the phrase. 
 
 All that has heretofore been stated as required for artistic 
 choral singing applies to the delivery of the choir hymn. It is 
 a question how much can be done in the way of expressive 
 delivery by the choir and organ in the congregational hymn. 
 Circumstances must govern ; what is possible with one congre- 
 gation is not with another. The point to be borne in mind is 
 to train the choir to lead, and to encourage the people to sing 
 in the congregational hymns. 
 
 ''Gospel " hymns call for no special drill, except possibly 
 in the matter of rhythmic accuracy. — giving all notes their due 
 value — and in the avoidance of slurring. 
 
 Some time may be given to chanting, following the drill 
 upon hymns. This drill should be directed to the following 
 points : 
 
 (1) A distinct, dignified ( not hurried ) delivery of the 
 Recitation. 
 
 (2) The delivery of the cadence in strict time. 
 
154 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter XIX. 
 
 Taking: up new music* — The following suggestions are 
 made with a view to the saving of time and labor, as well as 
 to securing artistic results : 
 
 Have the words of the text read in concert, omitting 
 repetitions. Ask for opinions as to general character of the 
 text, as : joyous, or sad. 
 
 Call attention to variation of sentiment, emotional climaxes, 
 imagery employed and descriptive passages. 
 
 Have the four vocal parts played in strict tempo. Require 
 each division to follow with the eye while listening. 
 
 Have one movement sung through at a moderate pace, 
 making no stops, no matter what errors are committed. 
 Instruct the singers to go forward as well as they can. This 
 develops confidence, and ability to read notation readily. 
 
 Ask for opinions as to the general character of the music, 
 as sad or joyous, etc., also variation, if any, in character of 
 phrases or sections. 
 
 Call attention to the characteristic rhythmic and melodic 
 figures of which the movement is composed ; also to its tonality 
 and predominant harmonies. Use an instrument to illustrate 
 what is said. 
 
 While the singing is going on, the Director should note 
 errors and points of difficulty, especially as to rhythm, interval, 
 intonation, compass, length of phrase and execution. 
 
 Practice unusual or difficult rhythms upon a monotone, 
 at medium pitch, to ' ^ lah ; ' ' next with words, and lastly with 
 words and music. 
 
 An unusual or difiicult interval should be played until its 
 
THE CHOIR. 155 
 
 quality as a mere interval is impressed upon the ear ; then its 
 relation to the harmony should be made apparent. It may 
 then be sung, repeated, and finally sung in connection with the 
 notes of the phrase which precede and follow. 
 
 If the difl&culty arises from undue height or depth of 
 pitch the interval may be transposed and studied until it is 
 well-known, and then taken as written. 
 
 !N'otes or phrases sung out of tune may be practised 
 separately on lines heretofore suggested. 
 
 Passages offering difficulty in execution, should be practised 
 separately, at an easy pitch and moderate tempo, and lat^r 
 sung as written. 
 
 When the especial difficulties of each voice-part have been 
 dealt with, each division should be required to sing its part 
 through, without stopping, and with especial reference to 
 accuracy in tempo, rhythm, interval and intonation. 
 
 The divisions may usually best be taken separately in the 
 following order : 
 
 (1) Bass, (2) Tenor, (3) Alto, (4) Soprano. 
 Tenor and alto may then be combined ; next bass, tenor and 
 alto, and lastly the four parts. 
 
 When one movement has been read, succeeding movements 
 may be treated in the same manner until the whole composi- 
 tion has been traversed. It should then be read through with- 
 out stop, and laid aside for future perfecting in precision, 
 phrasing, shading, tone-coloring, enunciation — all the items 
 which go to make up what is called an artistic, expressive 
 delivery. 
 
 It is well to provide at least two selections of different 
 styles for reading at each rehearsal. A portion of each, only, 
 need be read. In this way interest is kept up. 
 
 Where the grade of musical knowledge and feeling permits, 
 and time serves, it is helpful to demonstrate the formal 
 
156 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 construction of the music. A choir which has been led to 
 discover how a new selection is made or put together, is sure 
 to sing with intelligence and to retain an interest in its work. 
 
 In reading new music, mistakes as to rhythm and interval 
 should never be overlooked. After the first reading without 
 stop, the errors must be dealt with as separate items. It is of 
 little use to sing a whole section or phrase repeatedly in the 
 hope that errors will somehow disappear. They a-re much 
 more likely to become confirmed. 
 
 When practising a difficult passage it is usually best to 
 first take it slowly, and to gradually augment the rate of 
 movement. 
 
 Perfecting Music. — It is well to perfect one selection, if 
 possible, at each rehearsal. 
 
 The singers should be note-perfect in the selection, so that 
 time can be given to points of expression and style. 
 
 When this selection has been gone through without a 
 break, with the accompaniment, it may be sung, a capella. 
 Only when a number has been well sung, without the aid of 
 Instruments, can it be said that it has been perfected by the 
 choir. 
 
THE CHOIR. 157 
 
 Chapter XX. 
 
 Hints on Choif Pfeparation, — For giving a choir confi- 
 dence nothing equals much drilling in unaccompanied singing. 
 
 A selection should be sung throughout at least once with- 
 out error before it is performed. 
 
 Some directors and choirs spend much time upon the 
 most pleasing or least difficult parts of a composition. On 
 the contrary, the more difficult parts should have most 
 attention. 
 
 Points of danger, (such as a sudden change of measure or 
 tonality, the placing of one chorus after another without break 
 or pause, or the association of declamatory and detached 
 phrases with a continuous solo part, ) should be rehearsed until 
 they are the best-known portions of a composition. 
 
 In an oratorio the final chorus is usually one of the most 
 difficult and is often slighted. This is a mistake. It should 
 be thoroughly prepared. The last impression made ought at 
 least to be a good one. 
 
 Interest is increased and labor lessened by rehearsing diffi- 
 cult and easy selections in alternation. 
 
 It is well to put in rehearsal, when possible, selections for 
 male and female voices separately. This gives variety and 
 rests the voices. 
 
 The simultaneous rising and sitting of a choral body is to 
 be practised in the rehearsal room — not before an audience. 
 The singers should be instructed to rise at a given signal — (the 
 quieter the signal the better) and to stand motionless when 
 once upon their feet. 
 
 Singers should not sing into the music book. 
 
158 CHOIR AND CHORUS COXDUCTING. 
 
 The singer who wants to be heard above or longer than 
 the choir should be suppressed. 
 
 Singers should not be kept long upon pitches in the upper 
 third of their range. Expert vocal teachers do not permit 
 their pupils to practice upon their extreme notes. They may 
 touch them occasionally — that is all. 
 
 In cases where solo and choral parts of a number alternate, 
 and the solos are to be sung by a foreign artist, it is well to 
 have a local singer take the solo part at rehearsals, so that the 
 chorus may become accustomed thereto. In such case, too, a 
 substitute will be ready should the foreign singer fail to arrive. 
 
 The Director should sing for the choir, in illustration, 
 never with them. 
 
 He should listen to the choir, occasionally, at a consider- 
 able distance. Defects will thus be discovered which would 
 otherwise be overlooked. 
 
 The organist who is also accompanist, should arrange his 
 registration and have another play, occasionally, while he 
 listens, at a distance, to choir and organ. 
 
Part V. 
 SERVICE AND CONCERT. 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 Seating: of Performets. — Whenever possible each row of 
 players or singers should be seated somewhat higher than the 
 row immediately in front thereof. 
 
 When both orchestra and chorus are engaged in a per- 
 formance of cantata or oratorio, it is usually best to seat the 
 chorus in such a way as that a goodly proportion of the voices 
 are as near the audience as is the orchestra. The point to be 
 aimed at is to secure to the listener an effect of properly 
 balanced and blended instrumental and vocal sound. Where, 
 as is too often the case, a powerful orchestra is seated between 
 the audience and the chorus, the singing is heard as through 
 a veil of orchestral tone, and fails of its proper effect. The 
 chorus and orchestra, may therefore, be seated in this way : 
 
 ^ o o 
 
 
 
 o 
 o 
 
 o 
 
 o 
 o 
 
 o 
 o 
 
 o o 
 o 
 
 o 
 
 o 
 
 ° 
 «^^ O 
 
 O >v o 
 
 o 
 
 
 
 o 
 
 ORCHESTRA. 
 O 
 
 o 
 o 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 o 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 
 CONDUCTOR. 
 
 159 
 
 
 
160 
 
 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Where the male contingent is comparatively weak it is 
 well to bring the tenors and basses nearest the audience. This 
 is sometimes partially accomplished thus : 
 
 OONDyCTOR. 
 
 The most common arrangement of a small body of mixed 
 voices is this : 
 
 TENORS. 
 
 o o o o o 
 
 o o o o o o 
 
 SOPRANOS. 
 
 
 
 O O O O o 
 
 O O O O O O 
 
 ALTOS. 
 O O O O O O 
 
 CONDUCTOR. 
 
 When works calling for a double choir are performed, it is 
 best to arrange for a complete choir on either side of the 
 conductor. 
 
 The orchestra may be seated thus : 
 
 CONDUCTOR. 
 
 The performers should be seated quietly, and in their 
 places before the appearance of the conductor. 
 
SERVICE AND CONCERT. X&i 
 
 Chapter II. 
 
 The Choir m Concert Performance* — The choir should 
 know its music so well that the failure of accompanying organ 
 or orchestra will cause no embarrassment. Organ motors are 
 particularly unreliable. A choir trained to sing without acGom- 
 paniment is independent of the organ. 
 
 If an orchestra is to be employed, it should be thoroughly 
 rehearsed. Orchestral players are often indolent and sometimes 
 indifferent. They will rehearse as little as possible. The choir 
 should know its music very well before rehearsing with the 
 orchestra. Otherwise there will be confusion and a great 
 waste of time and labor. 
 
 ^ ^ Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse, and again rehearse. ' ' 
 After the chorus knows its music, as many rehearsals as 
 possible of chorus with orchestra should be held. 
 
 Special rehearsals of the ladies by themselves and likewise 
 of the gentlemen alone are economical. 
 
 A choral body, as well as a solo singer, may be affected by 
 nervousness or stage fright. The music sounds very odd, to 
 the amateur choralist, in the concert hall, as compared with 
 its effect in the rehearsal room. For this and other reasons it 
 is well to have at least one rehearsal in the auditorium in 
 which the concert is to be given. Well-meaning but fussy 
 friends and critical admirers should be kept out of the chorus 
 room until after the concert. 
 
162 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Chapter III. 
 
 The Condifctof in Performance* — The conductor will do 
 well to look over his music, or at least the more important 
 numbers thereof, immediately before a performance. 
 
 The conductor should face his forces with a smiling coun- 
 tenance. Should he be nervous or anxious, he must not betray 
 his feelings, or the performers will become troubled and fearful. 
 
 At all points of possible danger, such as difficult entries, 
 etc. , the conductor should watch his forces to see that they are 
 ready before the moment for attack arrives. Neither choral- 
 ists, orchestra players, nor soloists can be depended upon to be 
 always ready. 
 
 The conductor stands between the composer and the 
 listener as an interpreter. Upon him rests the responsibility 
 for securing an adequate interpretation of the composition. 
 He is therefore of necessity clothed with equally comprehen- 
 sive authority. Soloists as well as chorus singers and orches- 
 tral players are properly under his direction. If a singer be 
 incompetent, he will refuse to conduct for such. If a singer 
 be competent and experienced, the conductor will not try to 
 impose his will upon the artist as to matters of style in deliv- 
 ery concerning which persons of taste may differ, but will 
 furnish a discreet, sympathetic accompaniment which shall 
 do justice to the vocal, as well as to the instrumental part of a 
 composition. If, however, the soloist should for any reason 
 indulge in a delivery which would tend to rob the music of its 
 legitimate effect, it is the conductor's duty to protest. The 
 soloist has his rights ; he must be given a large measure of 
 
SERVICE AND CONCERT. 163 
 
 liberty in the performance of his part, for he, as well as the 
 conductor, has a responsibility, and will be judged by his 
 work. To the conductor, however, belongs the wider and 
 superior responsibility and authority. 
 
 The conductor who is really fitted for his work will never 
 be the slave of the metronome. Brahms is reported to have 
 said : 
 
 ' ' I am of the opinion that metronome marks go for 
 nothing. As far as I know, all composers have, as I, retracted 
 their metronome marks in later years. ' ' 
 
 A writer in the '^Monthly Musical Record,'^ of London, 
 England, has given a description and analysis of the conducting 
 of certain orchestral directors, extracts from which may be 
 useful to the readers of this work. 
 
 Of Lamoureux of Paris, ( recently deceased ) , he says 
 that the principal characteristic of his conducting was that it 
 brought an effect of accuracy. 
 
 Felix Mottl is described as "a, virtuoso, expressing 
 himself. ' ' 
 
 Concerning Levy it is intimated that he sacrificed general 
 effect to detail. He often laid down his baton, leaving the 
 orchestra for a while, in a measure to itself. Richter, also, 
 did this. 
 
 As to Arthur Nikisch, ( for a time conductor of the Boston 
 Symphony Orchestra), our author says : ^' He is not a person- 
 ality and seeks to make up for want of personality by a pose. 
 Nikisch the artist, not necessarily Nikisch the man, is the pose. 
 He does not so much try to interpret the music he plays, or 
 to use it as a medium for the expression of himself, as to play 
 it in a manner totally different from any other conductor. 
 Sometimes he makes a lucky hit : oftener he makes an unlucky 
 miss. He never lets the music play itseK in a natural manner ; 
 he plays everything a tempo rubato. ' ' 
 
164 CHOIK AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Of Hans Eichter's conducting this English writer says it 
 is marked by splendid breadth, solidity and richness, and above 
 all, by unvarying accuracy and high seriousness. ^ ' He has 
 worked up detail, so far as he thinks proper, at the rehearsals. 
 At the performance he lets it look largely after itself. And so 
 we get that feeling of breadth, of restrained strength, of deep 
 and splendid calm ; the conductor bends himself to the task of 
 getting only what can be got easily before an audience, the 
 strong lights and shadows, the subtle variations of tempo. 
 That is the most obvious part of Eichter's technique ; and no 
 one should overlook the fact that his beat means something to 
 every member of his band, that he has practised and observed 
 until he has learned how to make his men play softer or 
 louder, faster or slower with the smallest possible expenditure 
 of effort upon his own part. ' ' 
 
 In these matters Theodore Thomas of the Chicago Orchestra 
 and Richter are much alike. And they are excellent models 
 for growing conductors. Excess of effort and gesture on the 
 part of a conductor detracts from the effectiveness of a 
 performance. If a conductor must saw about and beat the 
 air, let him do it only in the rehearsal room. 
 
 Hints» — When a conductor knows a score by heart he has 
 power over his forces. 
 
 When a conductor falls to stamping with his foot it is a 
 sign of weakness. He has lost control of himself and of the 
 performers. 
 
 When a conductor beats time for a solo voice or a quartet 
 accompanied by one instrument only, it is a sign that the 
 performers are not fit to appear or that the conductor has an 
 itch for waving the stick. 
 
 The continuity of the story of a work : cantata, or 
 oratorio, should not be broken by the repetition of a number 
 in answer to applause. 
 
SERVICE AND CONCERT. 166 
 
 When a choir sings flat with organ accompaniment it is a 
 mistake to draw additional powerful stops. A softer organ, 
 with much string tone, and four-foot flute stops is helpful. 
 
 When giving a work in which there are frequent and 
 extreme changes of tempo, it is well to go over these parts 
 with a metronome shortly before the performance. 
 
 The conductor should arrange for the simultaneous rising 
 and sitting of the chorus during the performance of a cantata 
 or oratorio. It is well to mark the score ^^ Rise " and ** Sit,'^ 
 as there is danger that, in the multiplicity of details which 
 crowd upon the conductor, he may overlook this one at some 
 point during the performance, with resulting embarrassment 
 to all concerned. 
 
 The serious-minded conductor will discourage the encore 
 fiend. A program, if properly made, is complete, and repeti- 
 tions or interpolations injure it. 
 
 When an orchestra is employed opportunity should be 
 given for tuning between the parts or divisions of a cantata or 
 oratorio. 
 
 The Need for a Conductor* — A time-beater during per- 
 formance is not necessary for a quartet or double-quartet choir. 
 The director who is also one of the singers is in closer touch 
 with the quartet in performance, and has better control of the 
 singing, than the director who is also the organist. The 
 organist-director is usually placed behind the quartet, and, 
 therefore, cannot well judge of the effect of the singing. 
 
 '^ There was never an ideal church service in which the 
 musical part was conducted by an organist, engaged in playing 
 the organ." F. H. Tubbs. 
 
 The chorus choir, for the best work, needs the direction of 
 a competent conductor in performance. 
 
 ^ ' The church choir is but a choral society having a special 
 
166 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 ofi&ce. * * * In essential requirements in the leader, 
 a church choir needs the same kind of a man and musician 
 which the society has. " F. H. Tubbs. 
 
 '^ In cathedrals and churches where much elaborate music 
 is being done, the only way to get the best performance, is by 
 having a conductor. This is becoming more and more 
 customary, and in this case the organist would be subordinate 
 to the conductor." Sir George Martin, of St. Paul's, London, 
 England. 
 
SERVICE AND CONCERT. 167 
 
 Chapter IV. 
 
 A good accompanist is a rarity. The accompanist for a 
 choir or choral society must be interested in the work of the 
 rehearsal room. He must be a ready reader, able to transpose 
 at sight, and to play the four parts of the vocal score ; a good 
 timist ; and alert to note errors as quickly as the conductor 
 himself, and so save time by knowing, almost without being 
 told, where to try again. He should understand the singing 
 voice sufficiently at least to know when a little more or a little 
 less force will bring to the singers support and comfort. He 
 should be quick, at rehearsal, to note danger-points as to pitch 
 and rhythm, and to treat them so as to give the singers 
 needed confidence ; also ever watchful in performance to follow 
 closely the conductor's indications. 
 
 If a singer, or ex-singer, with a good technique for the 
 piano, can be found, a conductor can, with a little trouble, 
 soon bring such an one to a satisfactory state of efficiency as 
 a choral accompanist. A pianist who does not sing is rarely 
 satisfactory in that position. 
 
Part VI. 
 LITEMTURE. 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 It is hoped that the classified list of books given below 
 may prove useful to some of the readers of this work. 
 
 The Voice and Singingf^— ''Art of Singing."— Francesco 
 Lamperti. Ricordi, London. Translated into English by 
 Walter Jekyll, M. A. Observations upon the Art of Singing 
 according to the traditional Italian school. 
 
 ^^Art of Respiration." — Liitgen. Donajowski, London. 
 Small pamphlet. 
 
 ^'The Art of Breathing." — Leo Kofler. E. S. Werner, 
 N. Y. 
 
 ''Gymnastics of the Voice." — O. Guttman. E. S. 
 Werner, N. Y. 
 
 ''Pronunciation for Singers." — A. J. Ellis. J. Curwen 
 & Sons, London. Deals with English, Italian, German and 
 French pronunciation. 
 
 "Child's Voice." — Behnke & Browne. O. Ditson Co., 
 Boston. 
 
 Mttsic Reading:* — ' ' Standard Course. ' ' — John Curwen. J. 
 Curwen & Sons, London. Tonic Sol-fa method. 
 
 "How to Teach the Staff to Tonic Sol-fa Pupils."— Ed. 
 Mason. J. Curwen & Sons, London. 
 
 "Popular Method of Sight-Singing." — Frank Damrosch. 
 G. Schirmer, IST. Y. 
 
 "New Exercises for Sight-Singing Classes." — Books I, II, 
 III. W. W. Gilchrist. Theo. Presser. 
 
 "Method of Solfeggio."— L. A. Russell. G. Schirmer, 
 N. Y. A high grade text-book. 
 
 168 
 
LITERATURE. 169 
 
 ^^ Supplement to Method of Solfeggio." — L. A. Russell. 
 G. Schirmer, N. Y. Class work for two or three voices. 
 
 " Rudimental Class Teaching." — H. R. Palmer. John 
 Church Co., Cincinnati. 56 pp. 
 
 ^'Teachers' Club."— George F. Root. John Church Co. 
 62 pp. 
 
 "Teachers' Manual." — John Curwen. J. Curwen & 
 Sons, London. Deals with class work and the art of teaching. 
 
 "Practical Course in Ear-training." — Dr. S. Jadassohn. 
 Breitkopf & Hartel, N. Y. 76 pp. Adapted for classes and 
 sell-instruction. 
 
 " Ear Training." — Arthur E. Heacox. Theo. Presser. 
 
 ^'Intervals, Chords and Ear- training. " — J. P. Brown. 
 O. Ditson Co., Boston. 110 pp. 
 
 "Rudiments of Music." — W. H. Cummings. Theo. 
 Presser. 72 pp. Well-planned for use in classes. 
 
 Harmony and Composition. — '' Practical Harmony." (On 
 a French Basis) — Homer A. Norris. H. B. Stevens Co., 
 Boston. Parts I. and II. with key. Covers modern chromatic 
 harmony, 
 
 '^ Harmony: A Text-Book."— H. A. Clarke. Theo. 
 Presser. 
 
 ''Art of Counterpoint." — Homer A. Norris. H. B. 
 Stevens Co., Boston. The author's aim has been to make 
 counterpoint a delightful study, and to adapt the same to our 
 modern harmonic system. 
 
 "Counterpoint, Strict and Free." — H. A. Clarke. Theo. 
 Presser. 
 
 '' Composition." — Dr. J. Stainer. Theo. Presser. 140 pp. 
 
 (1) "Counterpoint." (2) "Double Counterpoint and 
 Canon." (3) ''Fugue." (4) "Musical Form."— E. Prout. 
 
 "Musical Form." — ( Bussler). G. Schirmer, N. Y. 
 
 Musical Forms. — E. Pauer. Theo. Presser. 186 pp. 
 
 Homophonic Forms. — P. Goetschius. G. Schirmer, N. Y. 
 A recent work. 
 
 " Musical Analysis." — A. J. Goodrich. John Church Co., 
 Cincinnati. 
 
 The Ofchestf a* — ^ ^ Instrumentation. ' ' — E. Prout. Theo. 
 Presser. 144 pp. 
 
 " Treatise on Modern Instrumentation." — Hector Berlioz. 
 O. Ditson Co. , Boston. 
 
170 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 ^'Orchestra, and How to Write for it." — F. Corder. A 
 recent work. 
 
 ^^ The Orchestra."— E. Prout. Vol. I. , the technic of the 
 instruments. Vol. II., the instruments in combination. 
 Augener & Co., London. A recent and most comprehensive 
 work. 
 
 '^ The Orchestra and Orchestral Music." — W. J. Hender- 
 son. C. Scribner's Sons, N. Y. Helpful talk about the 
 orchestra and its work — not a text-book on instrumentation. 
 
 ^'Course of Instruction in Instrumentation." — S. Jadas- 
 sohn. Breitkopf & Hartel, N. Y. A modern, comprehensive 
 work. 
 
 G^nductingf* — ''Art of Conducting." — H. Berlioz. Jean 
 White, Boston. 44 pp. Small pamphlet. 
 
 ''On Conducting." — R. Wagner. C. Scribner's Sons, JST. 
 Y. 124 pp. 
 
 "Handbook of Conducting." — C. Schroeder. Augener & 
 Co. , London. 99 pp. 
 
 Accompany ingf^ — "How to Play from Score." — F. J. 
 Fetis. Wm. Reeves, London. 56 pp. with 40 pp. of music 
 plates. 
 
 " Illustrations in Choir Accompaniment." — T>. Buck. G. 
 Schirmer, N. Y. 
 
 Books of Reference* — "Dictionary of Music and Musi- 
 cians." — Sir George Grove. Macmillan & Co., N. Y. Four 
 large volumes. A most valuable work. 
 
 " Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Music." — One large volume. 
 Dr. H. Riemann. Theo. Presser. 
 
 "Embellishments of Music." — L. A. Russell. Theo. 
 Presser. A comprehensive and clear presentation of the 
 subject. 
 
 "History of Music."— H. G. B. Hunt. C. Scribner's 
 Sons, N. Y. 184 pp. From the beginning of the Christian 
 Era to the present day. 
 
 "Lessons in Musical History." — J. C. Fillmore. Theo. 
 Presser. 
 
 "Music and Musicians." — A. Lavignac. H. Holt & Co., 
 N". Y. 492 pp. Comprising : A Study of Musical Sound ; 
 The Materials of Sound ( Musical instruments and orchestra- 
 tion) ; The Grammar of Music ; Esthetics j History of Music 
 
LITERATURE. 171 
 
 ( Including Music in America) . The style is interesting and 
 the work valuable to the student musician. 
 
 General Readingf* — ''Beautiful in Music." — E. Pauer. 
 ISTovello, Ewer & Co., N. Y. ('^ Primer " series) 48 pp. 
 
 ''Beautiful in Music." — Eduard Hanslick. Novel lo 
 Ewer&Co., N. Y. 
 
 "Boundaries of Music and Poetry." — W. A. Ambros 
 G. Schirmer, N. Y. 
 
 "Treatise on Choir and Chorus Singing." — F. J. Fetis. 
 Novello, Ewer & Co., IST. Y. (" Primer series) 31 pp. 
 
 "Theory of Interpretation." — A. J. Goodrich. Theo. 
 Presser, Phila. Modern, fully illustrated. 293 pp. 
 
 "Musical Expression." — M. M. Lussy. Novello, Ewer 
 &Co.,]Sr. Y. 236 pp. 
 
 "Sound and Music' — J. A. Zahm. A. C. McClurg & 
 Co., Chicago. 
 
 "What is Good Music?"— W. J. Henderson. C. Scrib- 
 ner's Sons, N. Y. 
 
 " Evolution of the Art of Music."— C. H. H. Parry. C. 
 Scribner's Sons, N. Y. A valuable modern "history" of 
 music. 
 
 "Studies in Worship Music." — J. S. Curwen. C. Scrib- 
 ner's Sons, N. Y. Secoyid series. 
 
 "American Composers." — Rupert Hughes. L. C. Page 
 Co., Boston. 
 
 Chapter II. 
 
 The list of publishers' catalogues given below refers to 
 Octavo editions unless otherwise stated. It represents an 
 immense amount and variety of material for the use of choirs 
 and choral societies. The annotations may be of service to 
 directors seeking selections for special uses. 
 
 Novello, Ewer & Co., London and JSTew York, Special 
 Catalogues; "Music for the Church," for the "Home," 
 for the "School" and for the "Choral Society." Music for 
 all combinations of voices. Extensive list. Special lists for 
 the Episcopal Service. Songs and Cantatas for children's 
 
172 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 voices. Special Catalogues of music for occasions, as Christmas, 
 Easter, etc. Specimen ' ' Service List ' ' issued monthly gratis. 
 The Standard Oratorios, Masses and Cantatas. 
 
 Oliver Ditson Co. , Boston. Special Classified Catalogues. 
 ''Choir Leader's List of Music for the Protestant Church." 
 Music for all combinations of voices. Oratorios and Sacred 
 Cantatas. Special catalogues of secular music for all voices. 
 Secular Cantatas and large Choral Works. Music for the 
 Eoman Catholic Church. The standard masses. Monthly 
 bulletin of new publications. 
 
 G. Schirmer, N. Y. Special Classified Catalogues : ' ' The 
 Choir-Master's Guide;" Music for the Protestant Church. 
 ''The Chorus Conductor's Guide;" Music for all combina- 
 tions of voices. List of Standard Oratorios and Choral works. 
 Special lists of ancient choral music, and of sacred music for 
 male voices. Special list of easy two and three-part songs for 
 children's voices. Collection of music ( Folio) for the Eoman 
 Catholic Church. The careful classification of these catalogues 
 adds to their value. 
 
 Arthur P. Schmidt, Boston. Special classified catalogue, 
 of church music, anthems and part-songs. Several of the 
 best American composers represented. Music for all combin- 
 ations of voices. Special list of larger choral works by .leading 
 American composers. Music for the Roman Catholic Church. 
 
 Boston Music Co. , Boston. Classified catalogue. Church 
 music, chiefly by leading American writers. Higher grade 
 secular choruses and part songs. Music for all voices. 
 
 White-Smith Music Co., Boston. Special Catalogue. 
 Church music for male and female voices. Secular trios and 
 quartets for all combinations of voices. 
 
 B. F. Wood Music Co., Boston. Publish the "Choir 
 Journal " semi-monthly. Text and music-plates. Short cata- 
 logue of part-songs. 
 
 W. H. Gerrish, Boston. Special catalogue of sacred and 
 secular music for male voices. Also male quartets for use in 
 connection with fraternal society work. 
 
 H. B. Stevens Co., Boston. "Tremont" Collection. 
 Sacred and secular music for all combinations of voices. 
 Strong English and American writers. Short list of Oratorios 
 and Cantatas. 
 
LITERATURE. 173 
 
 John Church Co., Cincinnati and New York. Special 
 Classified Catalogue. '' Octavo Music for all choirs. " Music 
 for special occasions. Music for the Roman Catholic Church. 
 Oratorios, Cantatas. Also a list of easier choral music, and 
 music for children's voices. Works for use in Choral Classes 
 and Conventions. Monthly Bulletin, ''Music and Musi- 
 cians. ' ' 
 
 S. Brainard's Sons Co., New York and Chicago. Choir 
 music ; many compositions for solo voice and chorus. Secular 
 music : Classified Catalogue of choruses for all combinations 
 of voices. Books for choral classes and conventions. List 
 of easier music for male quartets. 
 
 J. Fisher & Bro., New York. Extensive catalogue of 
 music for the Roman Catholic Church. 
 
 W. A. Pond & Co., New York. Music for all choirs, 
 chiefly by American composers. Music for the Episcopal 
 service. Service for male voices. Glees, madrigals and part- 
 songs. 
 
 Boosey & Co. , New York. Classified Catalogue. Choruses 
 from Standard Oratorios. Sacred Choral works. Music for 
 the Episcopal Service and the Roman Catholic Church. A 
 series of "Masses." Secular music for all combinations of 
 voices. Operatic Choruses. Arrangements for four mixed 
 voices of National airs of England, Ireland, Scotland and 
 Wales. 
 
 Edwin Ashdown, New York. Extensive catalogue. 
 Sacred and secular music for all combinations of voices. 
 Selections and cantatas for children's voices. 
 
 Luckhardt & Belder, New York. Classified Catalogue. 
 Special list of high-grade secular music for men's voices with 
 accompaniment for orchestra. 
 
 Clayton F. Summy Co., Chicago. Short list of choir 
 music. Agent for publications of several London firms. 
 Music with German text for mixed and male voices. Monthly 
 Bulletin ; ' ' The Music Review. ' ' 
 
 Fillmore Bros., Cincinnati and New York. Sacred and 
 secular music for all combinations of voices. Special lists of 
 books for classes and conventions. Easy cantatas and music 
 for juveniles. Arrangements of "Gospel Songs" for female 
 choir. 
 
174 CHOIR AND CHORUS CONDUCTING. 
 
 Silver, Burdett & Co., Boston. Series of choruses from 
 Masses, Oratorios and Operas, arranged for school choirs. 
 
 ''The Parish Choir," Boston, Mass. Music for Episcopal 
 Service. Published weekly. 
 
 George Molineux, New York. Classified Catalogue. 
 Sacred and secular music for all combinations of voices. 
 Special list of sacred and secular music for male voices. Male 
 quartets for fraternal society work. 
 
 Augener & Co., London. Special lists of secular music 
 for female voices, in two, three and four parts. Also music 
 for children's voices, including high-grade cantatas. 
 
 THE END, 
 
175 
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 PART I. 
 
 ORGANIZATION 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 Introduction— The Church Choir — Quartet of Men's Voices, and of Women's 
 Voices — Trio, Women's Voices — Chorus of Men's Voices, and of Women's 
 Voices— Quartet of Mixed Voices— The Balancing and Blending of Voices. 5 
 
 Chapter II. 
 
 Quintet Choir— Double Mixed Quartet 12 
 
 Chapter III. 
 
 Choir of Boys and Men— Training of Boys' Voices 13 
 
 Chapters IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX. 
 
 Chorus of Mixed Voices— Table of "Best Notes "— Classification of Voices- 
 Securing Material— The " Seat ' ' Question — IneflBcient Members 15 
 
 Chapter X. 
 
 Choir of Children's Voices 30 
 
 Chapter XI. 
 
 Choral Society — Plan for Organization — Conductor as Organizer 32 
 
 PART II. 
 
 THE CHOIR DIRECTOR 
 
 Chapters I, II. 
 
 Personal Qualifications , 37 
 
 Chapter III. 
 
 Technical Qualifications 39 
 
 Chapters IV, V. 
 
 In the Rehearsal Room— Director s Record Book— Discipline 40 
 
 Chapters VI, VII. 
 
 Planning Services and Concerts — The " Local " Soloist Question — Concert Adver- 
 tising.— Unity with Variety in Service Music 44 
 
 Chapter VIII. 
 
 Program-Making 50 
 
176 CONTENTS. 
 
 PART III. 
 
 THE CHORAL CONDUCTOR 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 Introduction 52 
 
 Chapter II. 
 
 " Manner " in Conducting— Use of the Baton 53 
 
 Chapters III, IV. 
 
 Time-Beating — In Recitative 56 
 
 Chapters V, VI. 
 
 Interpretation— Development of the Imagination — Feeling— Study of the Text 64 
 
 Chapters VII, VIII, IX, X. 
 
 Interpretation— In General— Study of the Music — Tempo— Accent — Emphasis — 
 
 Phrasing— Breath-Taking— Shading 72 
 
 Chapter XI. 
 
 Choral Delivery— Precision in Attack and Release— Expressive Treatment of 
 
 Consonants — Three " Forms " of Voice 101 
 
 Chapter XII. 
 
 '* Higher " ( Emotional ) Expression, The 107 
 
 Chapter XIII. 
 
 Recitative— Modern Choral Semi-Recitative 108 
 
 Chapter XIV. 
 
 Hymn-Singing 110 
 
 PART IV. 
 
 THE CHOIR 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 Choral Drill— Securing and Holding Attention ^ 111 
 
 Chapters II, III, IV. 
 
 Sight-Singing— Singing Flat or Sharp— Ear-Training 113 
 
 Chapters V, VI, VII. 
 
 Voice-Production— Breath-Control —The Vowels — Diphthongs —Volume — Inten- 
 sity — Resonance 117 
 
 Chapter VIII. 
 
 Blending of Voices 122 
 
 Chapters IX, X, XI, XII, XIII. 
 
 Singing— Flexibility— The "Swell" — Agility— Scales, Runs, Ornaments— Attack 
 
 and Release — Legato — Vowel Equalization— Staccato 123 
 
 Chapter XIV. 
 
 Speech in Song— Pronunciation— Enunciation— Articulation 135 
 
CONTENTS. 177 
 
 Chapter XV. 
 
 Expression —Special Dynamics— Shadi ng — Tone-Coloring — Emotional Expres- 
 sion 145 
 
 Chapter XVI. 
 
 Breath-Management —The Half-Breath 149 
 
 Chapter XVII. 
 
 Plan for Choir-Rehearsal 151 
 
 Chapter XVIII. 
 
 Delivery of Hymns— Chanting 152 
 
 Chapter XIX. 
 
 studying New Music 154 
 
 Chapter XX. 
 
 Choir-Preparation, ( Hints on ) 157 
 
 PART V. 
 
 SERVICE AND CONCERT 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 Seating of Performers— Chorus and Orchestra 159 
 
 Chapter II, 
 
 Choir in Concert Performance — Rehearsals of Chorus with Orchestra —" Stage- 
 Fright." 161 
 
 Chapter III. 
 
 Conductor in Performance -Conductor and Soloist — Celebrated Conductors at 
 
 work 162 
 
 Chapter IV. 
 
 Choral Accompanist 167 
 
 PART VI. 
 
 LITERATURE 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 Text-Books— "Works of Reference — General Reading 168 
 
 Chapter II. 
 
 Catalogues of Choral Music, (Annotated) ^ 171 
 
V 
 
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