So You Want to Sing Sacred Music by Hoch Matthew;

Author:Hoch, Matthew; [Hoch, Matthew]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Incorporated
Published: 2016-08-15T00:00:00+00:00

“Clearly, a Palestrina motet must be approached with a different vocalism than a Verdi opera aria. However, the physical characteristics of the singer whose voice is suited to Palestrina are likely as different from a Wagnerian as a virginal is from a modern Steinway, yet we do not expect these two instruments to play all repertoire written for the keyboard. Perhaps we should think about singing the same way.”

—Scott McCoy, DMA, Ohio State University4

Last, it must be mentioned that just as there are stylistic differences between romantic opera and baroque oratorio, there are also certain choral styles that do not fit neatly into the paradigm articulated above. In large symphonic works like Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony or genres like the African American spiritual, some of the attributes from the left-hand column might be welcome and valued. The attributes listed in the right-hand column, however, will ring true for most choral situations, including the majority of sacred repertoire sung in church music programs.

Some Thoughts on Vibrato

It is the elephant in the room that everyone is afraid to talk about. In the Harry Potter series, the evil Voldemort is known as “He-Who-Must-Not-Be Named.” In Scotland, superstitious Shakespeare lovers refer to the “Scottish Play” to avoid saying Macbeth. And among singers and singing teachers, there is a certain, ubiquitous term that is so thoroughly offensive in some circles that you find pedagogues doing somersaults in an effort to avoid saying it. The term is “straight tone”—to some, the most dreadful thing that a singer can possibly hear or say.

Regardless of how one feels about this term, and regardless of the decades of pedagogical literature and practice that have encouraged choral directors and organists to move away from using it, the term is still widely used and probably always will be. Teachers of singing should actively and directly engage in discussion about vibrato with their students. There is no question that control of vibrato (for lack of a better phrase) is an essential aspect of choral style and something that choral singers of all levels must discuss and confront.

Choral artists should think of vibrato the same way that early music singers do: as a device used for ornamental purposes as opposed to something that is omnipresent in one’s tone quality. This concept provokes some controversy. Many pedagogues and voice scientists will argue that there is in actuality no such thing as a straight tone and that vibrato is always present on some level. Technically, these critics are correct. What we hear as straight tone is actually a minimized extent (pitch variation) of one’s vibrato. Extent is the aspect of vibrato that one can adjust with good vocal technique, whereas the other variable—rate (the number of pulses per second)—is something that is more individually hardwired and not as easily controlled.

Before proceeding further, let’s summarize some basic facts about vibrato:

Vibrato is a variation of pitch.

Vibrato is a muscular resistance to the flow of air.

Since muscles and airflow can be controlled, so can vibrato. (Think of popular music styles.

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