[musictlk] Choir Question

[Teresa Haifley]

I really think talking with the director to ask if he would give more
audible cues during rehearsals would be the best thing to do.  It also helps
the rest of the choir because they have that reinforcement.  Most directors
are willing to do what it takes when they know what it is we need.
 
You will also want to be careful of coming across to the other members as a
helpless blind person because if they see you that way you will never fit in
and they will not treat you with respect.  You will find that if you come
across as self-sufficient they will be more willing to assist when you need
it.  Otherwise they feel like they are going to get stuck babysitting and
will avoid you, or worse,talk down to you.  You can buy those little plastic
tabs and stick them on your own music to flip through more quickly.  They
work great!  You don't need someone else to do that for you and they don't
need to be in print.  Arrange your music alphabetically or in order of
performance or whatever works for you.
 
The more you rehearse with a director the more you are going to feel the
music as he or she feels it.  You will naturally sing it that way.  You will
feel the cutoffs intuitively.  Just know your music well.  You may want to
ask the person next to you to cue you for the bow at the end because you
can't hear that and you don't want to be bowing while the rest are coming
back up.  I walk on stage with the person who will be standing on my left
and off stage with the one on my right. (I'm a soprano, so an alto would do
the opposite.) 
 
I've always gotten along fine in choirs by listening closely and asking for
specific help when I need it, which puts people at ease because they aren't
guessing what to do.  Because of that I have several friends, I'm seen as an
equal, and no one freaks out when I go high on the risers.   
 
That's my two cents.