Warm-Up Rounds for Choirs

SKU: GI.G-9890

ISBN 9781622774005.

In addition to celebrating the history of male choirs in the United States, Conducting Men’s Choirs provides a thorough and practical guide for working with TTBB choruses of any age or experience. The chapters by Jerry Blackstone, Jefferson Johnson, and J. Reese Norris display knowledge gained from over seventy years of collective experience. Additionally, Trott has designed the book to be an outstanding repertoire resource and a window to future possibilities through the inclusion of Marques Garrett’s chapter ‘Composing and Arranging for Male Choirs’ and Gary Packwood’s chapter ‘From Entertainment to Social Justice: Examining Men’s Community Choruses in America.’ The content in Conducting Men’s Choirs represents theory and practice that will benefit all conductors of TTBB choruses. —Kevin Fenton     Florida State University Inspired by Debra Spurgeon’s pioneering book Conducting Women’s Choirs, this companion resource, compiled and edited by Donald Trott, brings together the expertise of eighteen acknowledged authorities on men’s choirs. Conducting Men’s Choirs addresses the unique challenges, considerations, and joys of making music with male singers. The book is organized into three major sections, the first of which contains historical essays on male choirs in the United States. The chapters in this section span a range of relevant topics, including glee clubs in colleges and universities, an examination of some of the nation’s most esteemed and accomplished male choirs, and the role of male community choruses in America. The second section explores key aspects of working with male singers that are vital to the success of any conductor of male choirs. Topics addressed include: How to start a male choir and recruit male singers. Working with middle school boys and the developing adolescent voice. Pedagogical considerations for male voices. Procedures for improving intonation. Standing formations. Warm-ups. Women conductors of male choirs. How to arrange and compose for men’s choirs. A thorough discussion of repertoire for men’s choirs rounds out this resource in the book’s third and final section. Chapter authors explore men’s choir repertoire from a variety of angles: Renaissance music, works by Schumann, Canadian repertoire, and the music of Veljo Tormis. Extensive repertoire listings with hundreds of titles for men’s chorus are also provided for quick and easy reference. Conducting Men’s Choirs is essential for anyone working with male choirs in any capacity. Equally suited for novice teachers and seasoned professionals, this collaborative resource is the culmination of decades of experience and wisdom by leaders in the profession. Donald Trott is Director of Choral Activities at the University of Mississippi (Oxford), where he conducts the Concert Singers, Men’s Glee, and University Chorus. He is also the director of the graduate program in choral conducting and is past president of the Southern Division of ACDA.

SKU: GI.G-9815

ISBN 9781622773688.

Habits of a Successful Choral Musician is a resource for both choir directors and choral singers that builds music fundamentals (sight-singing and ear training) and vocal functions (from posture to tone). This book has provided a clear and well-organized pedagogy that is helping my students to improve in all facets of being a choral musician. — Alan Davis, Director of Choirs, Hemet High School, Hemet, CA Habits of a Successful Choral Musician by Eric Wilkinson and Scott Rush is a fantastic resource for choir directors who seek to develop all levels of singers. The book provides a pedagogical approach to teaching voice building, rhythm work, tuning exercises, sight-reading, theory exercises, and suggestions to nurture the entire musician. I love how this one method book covers multiple aspects of musicianship, rather than having to use multiple books to build each individual skill. — Emily Chandler, Director of Choirs, Seven Lakes High School, Katy, TX Habits of a Successful Choral Musician is a field-tested, vital, and—most important—musical collection of more than 200 sequenced exercises for building fundamentals and artistry. Perfect for use by an entire choir or soloist, this book contains carefully sequenced warm-ups, vocalises, chorales, rhythm work, tonal patterns, sight-singing etudes, and much more. In one place, this book presents everything an aspiring singer needs to build fundamental musicianship skills and then be able to transfer those skills directly into the performance of great literature. Habits of a Successful Choral Musician: Provides material for use during fundamentals time that promotes a comprehensive approach to developing skills necessary to fill the musical toolbox. Includes a sequential format that leads to the mastery of reading rhythms and, ultimately, to musical sight-singing. Provides chorales and other ensemble exercises for the development of tone quality, ensemble sonority, and musicianship. Includes partner songs, folk songs, and rounds to develop harmony skills. Combines pedagogy, literacy, fundamentals development, sight-singing, and musicianship into one book under one cover. Promotes the idea that technique and artistry are not taught in silos but are simultaneously taught as students build capacity in both areas. Habits of a Successful Choral Musician is the answer to the question, What should I be learning during fundamentals time? Eric Wilkinson is the Director of Choral Studies at Wando High School in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. Scott Rush is the Director of Fine and Performing Arts in Dorchester District Two (SC) and is the lead writer for the Habits series published by GIA. Preview the contents with Erik Wilkinson in this video...