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FA ’19: MUED 376

A.S.C.A.M. Rehearsal Guide Template
Suggested BEST ORDER: I. IV. II. V. III. & then Final Questions

A.S.C.A.M =
Audiation Decisions
Singing Decisions
Conducting Decisions
Analysis Decisions
Marked Score Decisions

Auditation Decisions:
Title of Piece Version 1: Version 2: Version 3: Version 4: St.
The Angel Gabriel Kings College The Sixteen The Kings Katheryn
in Cambridge Singers Parish Choir-
John
My Raymond Favorite
Tempo 178= steady 171= 169= steady 178= Steady Sound
is: beat eighth note beat beat The
Key B minor A minor F minor to A minor sound
from Ab minor the
(and back)
Style Octavo 4 part 4 part Unison
British
Octavo modern church choir
arrangement arrangement
Type of soloist NA NA 2 counter- NA
tenors, 1
baritone
Type of Acapella Acapella Acapella Piano
instruments
Solo ornamentation None None None None
Choral Style British choral White tone White tone Community
tradition chamber chamber choir
Golden Mean 1:31 1:32 2:27 1:53
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choral tradition sung by both the King’s Singers as well as the Kings College in
Cambridge

I will achieve it with tall and rounded vowels

I will achieve it with a moderate to darker placement

I will achieve it with correct diction rules with some rubato

I will achieve it with a lowered conducting style

Singing Decisions
Sound:
Breathing: I will indicate the whole-choir breaths after the words:
came, flame, Mary, lady, Gloria. The spots those words are
will also have whole-choir breaths on the second verse.
Placement: I would like the vocal placement to be very tall, similar to
the “counter tenor” sound of the King’s Singers. I would
like any natural vibrato to come through and would like a
very powerful sound through the use of the appogio method.
Vowels and Modification: I would love pure vowels without many, if any, diphthongs.
If I had time to explicitly tell the singers, I would use an
example of “eyes” as “ahz”.
Consonants: Crisp diction and flipped “r’s” whenever possible.
Type of Blend: I would like each voice section to sound like one body and
would love to have the Bass section truly carry the energy of
the piece with their powerful low notes.
Preferred Balance: Listed off by level of importance:
 Bass
 Tenor
 Soprano
 Alto
(this is unless the Alto section has a cluster note in which
case they would take the Tenor spot)
Vibrato: Any natural vibrato, as long as it won’t cause blending
issues.

Interpretative IPA:
The angel Gabriel from heaven came Thee ehndgehl gehbree-ehl frahm hehvuhn
kehm (uh)
His wings as drifted snow Hihz weengz æz drihftuhd snoh
His eyes of flame Hihz ahz ahv flehm (uh)
“All hail” said he “thou lowly maiden Ahl hehl sehd hee thah-o lohly mehduhn
Mary mehree
Most highly favored lady,” Gloria Mohst hahlee fehvuhd lehdee glohreeah
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“For known a blessed mother thou shalt be
All generations laud and honor thee
Thy son shall be Emanuel
By seers foretold
Most highly favored lady” Gloria
Foh nohn ah blehsehd mahthuh thah-o
shælt bee
Ahl dgehnuhrehshahnz lahd ænd (uh)
ahnuh thee
Thah sahn shæl bee eemæneeooehl
Bah seeuhz fohtohld (uh)
Mohst hahlee fehvohd(uh) lehdee
glohreeah

Musical Decisions:
Translations: It is in English, there is no need for translation.
Word Stress: Highlighted in the lyrics above
Phrasing: In the first verse phrases 1 and 2 are softer; phrases 3 and 4 and the Gloria
are forte. In the second verse, phrases 1 and 2 are mezzo forte, phrase 3 is
forte, phrase 4 has a decrescendo, and the Gloria will be mezzo forte.
Breathing In the first verse, singers will breathe after came, snow, flame, Mary,
stagger on Gloria, and will breathe after Gloria. In the second verse,
singers will breathe after be, thee, foretold, lady, and Gloria.

Emotional Decisions:
Buzz Words: Hope, Peace, and Elation
Placement: I would like a lot of backspace to create a darker sound in the balance between
forward and backward placement.

Kodaly Considerations:
Tone Sets:
Soprano: mi-la-do’-ti-re’-do’
ti-la-ti-mi
la-sol-la
do’-re’-do’-ti-do’-re’-mi’
mi’-re’-do’-ti
do’-re’-do’-ti-la-ti-mi
Alto: mi-fa-ti,
mi-fa-mi
mi-sol-mi
Tenor: mi’-do’-ti-do’
do’-la-si
ti-do’-re’-mi’
re’-do-ti-la-ti
la-re’-do’-ti-la
Bass: mi-la-mi
la-fa-re-mi
fa-mi-la
la-si-la
ti-do’-sol-la-mi
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mi-re-fa-me-la
fa-re-mi-la

Tone set defined:

Diatonic, using la-based minor.

Rhythmic set: Rhythmic set defined:

Di Taa-di Taa-di Taaa Taaa Taaaaaaa. Taaa ta-ki-da taaaaadi taaa.

Counting system:
I use either the ta-ka-di-mi system or a system based on the rhythmic positioning in a measure
(1-and-a 2-and-a etc.). Based on the use of two types of grouping within a measure, it would be
more productive to use the ta-ka-di-mi system for this piece.

Developmental strategy:
Familiarizing singers with the tone-sets used in the piece and then speaking rhythms so that the
two could be put together with proper diction and annunciation will be my developmental
strategy to get them working on musicality and performance as soon as possible.

Prepare, Present, Practice:

Prepare:  I intend to prepare for rehearsals by outlining exactly the information that
needs to be conveyed to the singers on a piece of paper or on a digital
document.
 I will form a script that will help me relay the information on this document in
a natural way
 I will make markings of separate scores of the piece for when there will be
breath marks, which conducting pattern to use, and which solfege to look out
for from each section.
Present:  I will bring both the practice and the conducting scores to rehearsals.
 I will use my planning and knowledge of the piece to adjust the direction of
my lesson plan if needed during rehearsal.
 I will present myself the way I practiced.
Practice:  I will practice the prepared pieces of musical information, whether they be
tone/rhythm sets, diction, or buzz words, in a mirror until they become easy
for me.
 I will practice my script.

Conducting Decisions:
Conducting goals:
Level 1 Kinesthetic:  I will be tall and grounded, like I would sing a solo piece.
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 I will demonstrate excellent posture

Level 2 Somatic:
Level 3 Technical:
Level 4 Informed:
 I will demonstrate low breathing
 I will demonstrate facial expressions that reflect the buzzwords of
the piece, despite the intense key.
 I will maintain a steady and clear beat through my use of
controlled movement.
 I will use my left arm purposefully during the piece.
 I will move between a 4/4 and 3/4 beat pattern smoothly
 I will know how to move from one verse to the next
 I will know the story behind the piece and the emotional aspect of
it.

Is Movement or Choralography needed, and if so, how do I deliver it?

No Choralography is needed with this ensemble, so I do not need to deliver instruction for
movement.

Analysis Decisions:
Historical Aspects:
Composer:
History of the Piece, Date:
Performance Practice Elements:
This piece is a traditional Basque carol, but the translations
we sing in English is written by Sabine Baring-Gould (1834-
1924). He was known for translating religious pieces and has
at least one self-composed piece.
In an article by Margaret Ashworth, I found the piece’s tune
and message came from a hymn from the 13th or 14th century.
It was sung throughout history as the message remained just
as relevant. A French. Music teacher, Charles Bordes (1863-
1909) added it to his collection where the Sabine Baring-
Gould translated it to English from its Latin version. The
translation to English has been sung in churches ever since.
The most important part of this piece is the message and
melodic line, which can then be interpreted again and again
into different settings, as shown by the King’s Singers
arrangement of the traditional piece. This piece can be sung in
any setting, as long as it isn’t used to offend anyone.

Program Notes:
Theoretical Analysis:
Structural/Phrasal: If we were to apply Romantic-era structural analysis onto this piece, I
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would call this octavo strophic. It is up to the words to determine phrase

analysis, which is on page 3 alongside lyrical decisions.
Chordal: i-v7-VI-ii˚-v (HC)
i-v7-i-VI-v-I (PAC)
i-v7-i-V&-i-VII-III-i-v7 (HC)
v-iv-ii˚-VI-v-i-VI-iv-v-I (PAC)

Marked Score Decisions:

Score Preparation:
Prepared Edition: There are more verses in the song than what we will be performing, so I
will need to mark the score for them to reflect that by crossing out the other
two verses in the score they receive.
Study Score: This score will include breath marks, highlighted words, a chordal analysis
and solfege in both la-based and do-based minor for every voice part. I will
write buzz-words in one color, and highlight focal points of each phrase in
a different color.
Conductor’s Score: This score will contain only the breath marks, buzz-words, and focal points
of the phrase within it. It will all be in one color to avoid taking my
attention away from the connection between the singers and I.

FINAL QUESTIONS:
Do I see my A.S.C.A.M decisions in
my gesture?
Do I hear my A.S.C.A.M decisions
in the sound and performance of my
choir?
I, for the most part, was able to see my A.S.C.A.M.
decisions in my gestures. There were definitely times
when I would loosen my wrist a bit too much, but I
remained engaged with them and I believe that if we had
either fewer pieces for one concert, or more time to
rehearse this one, I would have reached the goals set in
this document.
The singers were so close to reaching all the goals set by
this document for them, however they sang a large
number of pieces and their minds were trying to go from
one song to the next. I know if they had more time to
rehearse with me, we would have more opportunity as an
ensemble to connect to each other and the audience.