Singing in the Band Rehearsal.

The National Standards for Music Education emphasize both singing and playing instruments as important parts of every student's music education. However, when a child begins the study of a band or orchestra instrument, the use of the singing voice in class is often overlooked. This is an unfortunate circumstance, not only in light of the National Standards but also because an important toot for developing ensemble and individual musicianship is being ignored. What follows is a discussion of possible instructional approaches for including singing in the band rehearsal.

As in the playing of instruments, singing in the band rehearsal should begin with warm-ups.[1] If vocal warm-ups and singing techniques are new to you, consult your school's choral educators or other respected vocal colleagues. They will almost certainly be glad to share their thoughts on the subject of healthy singing. Armed with that information and a piano or an electronic tuner that sounds the pitches, you can begin enhancing your curriculum.

Vocalizing in the band rehearsal can help students develop their aural skills.[2] Despite his other flaws as a teacher, Harold Hill from The Music Man was correct in suggesting that students should "think" the sound they wish to produce before they play it. When students are properly guided, singing can help them develop their aural perception and provide an alternative to a "button-pushing" mentality. This mistaken frame of mind suggests that playing in tune requires simply having the instrument pulled to the correct length while fingering the right note. Students must be taught to hear the music they are producing, not just to simply see it.

Ideally, students should be singing in their beginning band class. The longer you wait to introduce singing in the rehearsal, the more recalcitrant and self-conscious students will be. Perhaps the easiest approach with beginning band students is to simply have them sing the exercises out of their beginning band book before they play them. You may wish to use a solfeggio movable-do system in singing. It has the advantage of consistent harmonic/melodic function (do is always tonic) while making use of pure Italian vowels, which help to foster a beautiful singing tone.[3] Probably the most utilitarian reason for using the movable-do system is that it allows all students to sing the same syllables regardless of their instrument's key of transposition. Most beginning band exercises are in unison or octaves. Thus, in the concert key of B-flat, the saxophonist who sees a written G and the trumpeter who sees a C will sing do, just like the concert-pitch instrumentalists who are seeing a written B-flat.

Do not be surprised if some students have trouble matching pitch with their voices or identifying comparative sharpness or flatness. With encouragement, patience, and persistence, students will develop these skills over time. Reinforce pitch discrimination often by encouraging accurate unisons with the voice and instruments. Try making a game out of tuning practice. Sound a reference pitch have one student play, and quiz another student as to whether the player is sharp, flat, or in tune. Sometimes the difference between pitches is more apparent if the student sings or hums the pitch first and then plays or hears it.

Once students can determine whether they are sharp or flat, they need to know how to properly correct their pitch. After they have tuned and adjusted the length of their instrument, all other pitch manipulations should be accomplished with embouchure, voicing, valve-slide, and so forth. Be prepared to share pitchmanipulation strategies that are appropriate to each instrument, and have the students practice using them on a regular basis. Teaching students how to tune their instrument to one or two tuning notes, although important, does not necessarily enable students to play in tune within a musical context.[4] In addition, it has been shown that students can perceive correct intonation but be unable to duplicate it on their instruments; therefore, teaching strategies that develop the perceptual-to-performance connection may be more effective in improving intonation.[5]

Pitch discrimination and correction skills are necessary for achieving a beautiful and mature ensemble sound. Many educators underestimate the importance of intonation. A number of studies have shown that listeners have a demonstrated preference for intonation over tonal quality.[6] Yet many teachers are reluctant to incorporate singing and ear training into their band classes.[7] In our drive for an efficient rehearsal, we often point out to our students that they are flat or sharp. How much better it would be to empower their individual capacities for pitch discrimination and correction.

Outside class, students can practice interval matching and tuning with the help of an electronic tuner that sounds reference pitches. Encourage the students not to look at the tuner's meter. Instead, sound a reference pitch and have them use their ears. You may want to cover the meter with a piece of tape. After all, the students most likely have 20/20 eyesight. It is their ears that need improvement!

One proven technique for teaching beginning students how to match pitches is to have them listen for the interference beats between the sound they are producing and the reference sound.[8] These pulses are created by the compressions and rarefactions of two sound waves sounding at slightly different frequencies (out of tune). As the students move their pitch closer to the reference pitch, the beats will slow and stop altogether when the two sounds are in tune. This is often referred to as "beatless" tuning.[9]

You can continue to develop ear training in class with easy warm-ups, such as singing vowels on whole and half steps. One simple pattern consists of singing vowels up a whole step, then back to the original note, and then down and back up a half step; repeat a number of times by moving the pattern upward or downward. chromatically. This reinforces a typical cadential pattern of do-re-do-ti-do. Reverse the pattern of whole and half steps by singing mi-fa-mi-re-mi. When students master that pattern, expand to intervals of minor and major thirds. You can teach thirds by singing up a portion of the scale and then outlining the interval of the major or minor third—as in the pattern do-re-mi-redo-mi-do. This pattern can also be repeatedly sung through an ascending or descending chromatic pattern.

When your students have mastered melodic thirds, they are ready to begin singing harmonic intervals. Sing up the first notes of the scale; then conclude with the ensemble split to sing the tonic and the third combined—as in do-re-mi-re-do-do/mi. It is recommended that you only sound the starting note or chord on the piano in your vocal warm-ups. Let the students learn to place the third by ear. With minimal coaching, they will automatically find the natural tuning. Remember that a naturally tuned (just intonation) interval of a third differs substantially from what an equal-tempered instrument, such as a piano, will sound. In major chords, for example, the third must be lowered almost 14 cents (half step = 100 cents) on an equal-tempered instrument.[10] Let your students experience what major thirds really sound like.

Once you work your way up to intervals of a perfect fifth, you are ready to begin outlining chords. A pattern such as do-re-mi-fa-sol-fa-mi-redo-mi-sol-mi-do works well, and lowering (flattening) the third scale degree. (mi) will easily accommodate the singing of minor chords. As before, once outlining is mastered, split the group into three sections and have them sing the chord harmonically before moving up or down a half step and repeating the pattern. If you keep working in this manner every day in rehearsal, it will not be long before you are outlining and singing seventh chords.

Those who play instruments have often been encouraged to emulate the voice when playing. In his Complete Conservatory Method for Cornet or Trumpet, J.-B. Arban admonishes readers to "seek out, among singers … the most illustrious modets."[11] Carl Baermann in the Celebrated Complete Method for Clarinet, Op. 63, advises that the clarinet tone should resemble "a full, beautiful soprano voice."[12] Perhaps the best words in regard to singing by instrumentalists were written by C. P. E. Bach in his Essay on the True Art of Playing Keyboard Instruments. He says to "lose no opportunity to hear artistic singing. In so doing, the keyboardist will learn to think in terms of song. Indeed, it is a good practice to sing instrumental melodies in order to reach an understanding of their correct performance."[13]

Singing a part can allow players to become acquainted with the intervals of their line. Conceptualizing and hearing the intervals before playing them can greatly assist brass players with note accuracy and both brass and woodwind players with intonation. A horn player who can sing and hear intervals will be a more accurate player. When you have students sing their band parts, encourage them to ignore the register of the part and sing in a range appropriate to their voice.

Unlike string players, wind players do not benefit musically from the natural inflections afforded by the bow. Consequently, student wind players can produce a mechanical flow of notes with little regard for phrase shape, inflection, or direction. The fact that little or no dynamic marking appears under the notes often lulls the student into simply playing the notes and rhythms. Early in the rehearsal of the music, the teacher should challenge the students to explore the nuances of what they are playing. If the students experience the music in an "unmusical" manner for a prolonged time, they will come to learn and accept this style as the only possibility and look for no greater interpretation.

Try putting a melody from one of the pieces you are studying on the board and ask for suggestions concerning the unwritten dynamic nuances. Mark these nuances in great detail by writing in small crescendos and decrescendos so that every note is part of or has, a shape or direction. After you garner a few suggested phrasings, have everyone sing the melody with the proposed dynamic inflections. It is often amazing how the voice will make the phrase shapes sound natural. In addition, the breathing points will manifest themselves, and the line will take on human, not mechanical, characteristics.

Students should be reminded that in regard to shape, direction, and phrasing, every note is either coming or going. It either belongs in a phrase with the notes that precede it or with the notes that follow. Long note values are often the most puzzling. It may be useful for students to consider what happens to long sounds in nature. After being struck, does a gong or drum become louder, stay the same, or become softer? What is the impact upon dynamic shaping of the underlying harmonic goals and cadences? Once again, the voice can often inform us if we listen with sensitivity to how we sing a line.

It is important that all ensemble members take part in the phrasing exercises even though most may not play the melody You may want those who are performing the accompanying role to support the shape and direction of the melodic line. Once again, their music will indicate nothing dynamically, and if they do nothing, your efforts at nuance wilt be undermined. The entire group's involvement also makes all students aware of their importance in regard to balance.

In this way, singing in the band rehearsal becomes a tool to discover pitch, balance, and, most importantly, musical syntax. By exploring the musical shapes and nuances that stir musical emotions, you and your students share in an artistic journey that leads to the "heart" of the subject.

Many compositions that make up the wind-band repertoire are based upon songs or chorales. If you are willing to include a developmental curriculum of vocal warm-ups and ear training in your rehearsal, then you should consider extending the singing process to the next level. It may take some research, but, with a few tools and a bit of determination, you can discover the sources that inspired many band compositions. This can provide your curriculum with very natural paths to the other areas of the National Standards for Music Education.[14]

For the band that is just beginning to sing, folk songs are good choices because they are often monophonic. As the band's singing ability becomes more advanced, you can begin adding works that require more than one part. The advantage of learning the source song for an instrumental piece is that students come to understand what the composition is about. This has an impact upon the manner with which they sing and how they phrase the song. This leads to a deeper understanding of the composer's intentions and affects the way in which students play the composition on their instruments.

For example, let us say that you wish to explore with your high school students the "Variations on a Korean Folk Song" by John Barnes Chance. Chance uses the Korean folk song "Ari-rang"[15] as the basis for his composition. For lesson plans dealing with Standard 6 ("listening to, analyzing, and describing music"), knowledge of the folk song is crucial for understanding the variations in the Chance composition. You may wish to turn the process around and create a lesson plan that deals with Standard 4 ("composing and arranging within specified guidelines") by having students compose their own variation of the folk song. An analysis of the folk song will also lead you and your students into an exploration of pentatonic scales. Lesson plans concerning Standard 3 ("improvising melodies, variations, and accompaniments") could be easily structured around the pentatonic scale.

For lesson plans dealing with Standard 9 ("understanding music in relation to history and culture"), the Korean folk song has much to offer. In translation, it can be difficult for students to understand the poetic metaphors of the verses. The first verse of this old song is about a loved one who leaves. He is told that he should stay, presumably in order to overcome the difficulties that cause him to want to leave. During the thirty-six years of Japan's occupation of Korea in the beginning of the twentieth century, the singing of the song came to evoke nationalistic feelings.[16] After you explore the song's connection to Korean history and culture, the way you and your students sing and play this work will be forever altered

For your first foray into having your high school band sing in parts, you may wish to explore a Bach chorale from one of the many collections that choral directors use for warm-ups. Depending on the age of your singers, you may need to start out by singing just the upper parts. As the male voices in your ensemble mature in high school, full four-part singing will become possible. If possible, locate and use the original version of the chorale with German text. Your school's choral educator or the choir leader at a local church may be able to help. If that is of no avail, consult your local university library. A good source book, if available, is The Four-Part Chorales of J. S. Bach by C. S. Terry.[17] The chorale can serve as part of a cross-disciplinary project with your school's German instructor. If you have students who study German in your band, have them help you translate and/or teach pronunciation.

For lesson plans dealing with analyzing music (Standard 6), using chorales provides a wonderful opportunity to analyze simple chords and identify nonchord tones. After students identify one of Bach's chord progressions, they can compose a melody over the progression (Standard 4). An alternate activity might lead students into devising an alternate orchestration that is appropriate to the text. Like the Korean folk song, Bach chorales can be useful in lesson plans exploring music in relation to history and culture (Standard 9). Your lesson plans can engage students in an exploration of Bach and the late Baroque period of music or perhaps the writings of Martin Luther and the history of the Protestant Reformation.

Most importantly, however, your students will have the opportunity to sing in harmony This can help your students learn to aurally identify the members (root, third, and fifth) of the chords they sing or play With this ability, they can begin to more fully understand their role in tuning and balance.

When dealing with tuning issues, always begin by identifying the students who have the root and fifth of the chord. After these students sing the perfect fifth in tune, have the remaining students sing the third. Then, have them transfer that sound concept to their instruments. Remember that the third only provides the color of the chord and should be placed inside the sound of the root and fifth for proper balance.[18]

Our singing adventures need not be limited to the rehearsal. Why not present singing at the band's concerts? It can be invaluable in helping an audience understand the works that the band performs. For example, singing the Persichetti chorale "Turn Not Thy Face"[19] prior to performing the rather abstract wind-band prelude of the same title can allow the audience to embrace the composition in a way that would be impossible without first hearing the origins of the work.

Examining the songs upon which our wind-band literature is based is a wonderful way to explore issues of composition, melody, phrasing, history, culture, and context. Both teacher and student gain a richer and deeper understanding of the music being studied by examining and singing the songs upon which the music is based. The sidebar lists a number of resources for finding the vocal source-material used in many band compositions. Through singing in the band rehearsal, your students will be able to develop aural skills crucial to great-sounding ensembles.

• 1994).
• 15. J. D. Kim, The Korean Folk Song Encyclopedia (Seoul: Se-Kwang Music Publishing, 1987), 186.
• 16. Ibid., 305.
• 17. Charles Sanford Teru, The Four-Part Chorales of J. S. Bach, with the German Text of the Hymns and English Translations (London: Oxford University Press, 1929).
• 18. Lisk, Creative Director, 62–63.
• 19. Vincent Persichetti, Hymns and Responses for the Church Year, vol. 1 (Bryn Mawr, PA: Elkan-Vogel, 1956), 11.

Giving instrumentalists opportunities to sing can help them develop better intonation, pitch discrimination, and musical understanding.

Examining the songs upon which our wind-band literature is based is a wonderful way to explore issues of composition, melody, phrasing, history, culture, and context.

Singing in the bond rehearsal becomes a tool to discover pitch, balance, and, most importantly, musical syntax.

Bronson, Bertrand Harris, and Francis James. The Traditional Tunes of the Child Ballads with their Texts, according to the Extant Records of Great Britain and America. 4 vols. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1959–72.

Drinker, Henry Sandwith. The Bach Chorale Texts in English Translation, with Annotations Showing the Use of the Melodies Elsewhere by Bach in his Vocal and Organ Works, and a Musical Index to the Melodies. 4 vols. New York: Association of American Colleges, 1941.

Miles, Richard B., and Larry Blocher. Teaching Music for Performance in Band. Chicago: GIA Publications, 1997.

Nathan, Hans, ed. The Complete Works of William Billings. 4 vols. [Charlottesville, VA]: University Press of Virginia, 1977–90.

Nettl, Bruno, Ruth M. Stone, James Porter, and Timothy Rice, eds. The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music. 9 vols. New York: Garland Publishing, 1998–2002.

Persichetti, Vincent. Hymns and Responses for the Church Year. 2 vols. Bryn Mawr, PA: Elkan-Vogel, 1956.

Sharp, Cecil James. Folk-Songs of England. 5 vols. London: Novello, 1908–12.

Temperley, Nicholas, Charles G. Manns, and Joseph Herl. The Hymn Tune. Index: A Census of English-Language Hymn Tunes in Printed Sources from 1535 to 1820. 4 vols. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998.

Vaughan Williams, Ralph. Folk Songs. London: Dent, 1983.

Wasson, D. DeWitt. Hymn-Tune Index and Related Hymn Materials. 3 vols. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, 1998.

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