[musictlk] Choir-directing

Tue Feb 9 15:08:09 UTC 2010

	It went pretty well last time, though I didn't have much of a chance to ask for feedback afterward.  What I did hear was favorable, though.  I did face them just so they could hear me better.  There was one instance where someone didn't get the right pitch, which I thought was my fault, but I've noticed that she sometimes gets it wrong even when I'm not leading.  The only thing that was frustrating for me was trying to assign solo verses in one hymn.  I kept trying to point to myself or whisper people's names to have them sing, but no one did what I wanted.  I found out later that unbeknownst to me, the choir actually has a pattern for doing the solos, starting from the far left in the front and then going down the line.  It had just seemed kind of random until someone pointe it out, but once I realized, it made me feel better because it was one less thing I had to worry about in the future.  There are still a couple things that are spontaneously assigned, but if I can't get people's attention in time, they usually look at each other and figure it out themselves.  I guess it seemed to go just about as well as it could have last time, but I'm wondering if there's any way of improving upon what I'm already doing and whether conducting is necessary.  Unlike last time, the assistant director will be around but would rather have me lead, , so I could ask him to watch how things go and give me suggestions afterward.
On Feb 9, 2010, at 8:29 AM, Cindy Ray wrote:

> How did it go the last time? We have a tiny choir in our church and we 
> really have no director. We just have to do our own counting. I would say 
> that you don't want to try something out on them like the hand things if you 
> haven't done hem because you could end up confusing them more. Did you face 
> them before or did you just stay in the line or whatever formation they use?
> 
> Linda probably will have bett3er things to say than I. I had to do this once 
> for a final in a class; the teacher was kind, but I did a horrible job of 
> it. I felt it was like exercise, it needed way more practice for me to have 
> good form that I had the time for.
> 
> Cindy
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Jessie Kirchner" <jckirch at umich.edu>
> To: <musictlk at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Tuesday, February 09, 2010 7:07 AM
> Subject: [musictlk] Choir-directing
> 
> 
> Hi list,
> 
> Has anyone ever led a small choir before?  I've been asked to direct my 
> church choir this weekend while the director is away.  We usually range from 
> five to ten members.  I did lead once before, but it consisted only in 
> giving pitches, designating the correct musical settings for the day, and 
> singing loudly enough to keep the tempo.  I'm totally blind and haven't 
> studied conducting motions in any great depth yet.  It didn't seem to be a 
> problem last time but i'm wondering if any of you have found them important. 
> If I'm not conducting, should I still stand facing everyone in case my 
> pitching carries better?  There are a couple times when the director points 
> out someone to chant alone, but I figured I could assign those ahead of time 
> or have the assistant director point at people during the service.  I was 
> also thinking of emailing the choir this week to see if they have any 
> suggestions about what they'd like me to do, but since this is pretty new to 
> them, they probably won't
>  be much help.
> The director has no qualms whatsoever about my leading, which is very 
> refreshing, but I'm a little nervous myself.  Any tips or reassurances would 
> be greatly appreciated.  I do know a very talented blind choir director who 
> hasn't needed to conduct much, but I think it's always good to learn from as 
> many people in this situation as I can.
> 
> Thanks,
> Jessie
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