ENSEMBLE UPCOMING DATES & TIMES:
Wednesday, May 13: Regular Ensemble rehearsal at FCC, normal time
Friday, May 15: Dress Rehearsal for All Choir Concert at First United Methodist Church in Palo Alto. Call Time: 4:45 pm, Release: 7:15 pm.
Arrive at dress rehearsal wearing exactly what you will wear in the concert:
EITHER: Full Cantabile concert uniform
OR: Full Cantabile concert uniform with an accent piece eg. scarf, sash etc that represents your family's ancestry and heritage (no hats)
OR: A full costume that represents your family's ancestry and heritage (no hats)
Saturday, May 16: All Choir Concert at First United Methodist Church in Palo Alto. Call Time: 11:30 am
Arrive wearing exactly what you will wear in the concert:
EITHER: Full Cantabile concert uniform
OR: Full Cantabile concert uniform with an accent piece eg. scarf, sash etc that represents your family's ancestry and heritage (no hats)
OR: A full costume that represents your family's ancestry and heritage (no hats)
Ensemble Rehearsal Notes
Goza mi calipso:
·
This piece must be
completely memorized. No music allowed.
·
Practice the
choreography at home every day. The
concert is next week and you want the audience to feel like they are invited to
a party, not to be able to see you thinking about what move comes next. Do not perform the movements
halfheartedly! Get the choreography ingrained in your body. It should feel
automatic. Practice in front of a mirror
to make sure your face looks engaged and excited!
·
Using this video clip
to help you practice the movements.
Remember to mirror the dancers and make sure to notice the
movements your part is doing!
Day Break:
·
This piece must be
completely memorized. No music allowed.
·
This was tremendously
improved on Wednesday! Good job putting
in the time and effort to get this piece feeling more comfortable! Now use this week to take it one step
further, making real music rather than just getting the notes/words/rhythms
correct.
·
Speaking of
notes/rhythms, remember page 4, rehearsal marking 1, the word “the” enters on
beat 4, not beat 3. The time signature
changes to 4/4 at that point.
·
At rehearsal marking
3, be ready for the quick move to 2/4 time signature! Altos and Soprano 2’s, make sure “scattering
the darkness” in right on time!
·
Soprano 1’s, on page 15,
beginning at rehearsal marking 10, remember the pattern for “stretching her
arms” changes – B-flat, A, C, G. Please
solidify this.
·
Altos, page 13
rehearsal marking 8, remember that the two patterns of “as the sun rises” are
not the same.
Bedu Pako Baramasa:
·
This piece must be
completely memorized. No music allowed.
·
The choreography
looked very elegant and beautiful on Wednesday.
Great work! Keep in mind those
few small spots we adjusted the height of your arms and the movements of your
hands.
·
Altos, keep the little
train moving, do not allow the tempo to drag through pages 4 and 5.
·
Watch this video to practice the choreography! Pay attention to the details in
her hands. They are very important in
Indian Classical Dance as you are telling a story!! Remember to mirror the dancer!
Shine:
·
For this piece, one
person will hold the music and the person next to them will clap.
·
Sopranos, remember
when you have the “Shine in me” figure, such as on page 4 measures 57-62, each
time you sing those words the pattern is different. It does not repeat the same way all three
times. Please spend time taking note of
this. Again, when the pattern returns on
page 7 measures 89-99, it is extended and not the same as the first time
through.
·
This piece is quite
new and you have not had as much time with it as the other songs for the
concert. Make sure you look at it and
sing through it every day before next week so it can feel as comfortable as
your other pieces.
Imagine:
·
Refresh your memory on
this piece please.
·
Sopranos, remember
that in the first verse, page 3 measures 17-18, you do not add the extra “oo”
figure yet. That comes for the first
time in verse 2.
·
We reworked the
ending, starting at measure 56, on Wednesday.
Please give this area some extra attention so you do not forget what was
fixed, particularly in the alto and soprano 2 lines.
Ol’ Time Religion:
·
All three parts need
to review and solidify parts on page 3, measures 5-8. During memory checks at musicianship time,
this was the weakest section in terms of memory and intonation. Give it some extra care! Also please review measures 38-45, the “Daniel
in the lion’s den” section. This
·
Remember the pattern
on layering on page 9: Soprano 2 part first, Altos add in second time through,
Soprano 1 add in third time through, Sing all together forth time.
Blue Skies:
·
This piece feels
“easy,” which can be dangerous. Do not
be sloppy when you sing it! Make sure to
give it just as good of attention as your give to “Daybreak” or “Bedu Pako.”
·
Please review the
four-part harmony on page 6 and 7, measures 52-68
Peter, Go Ring-a Dem Bells:
·
Please review the opening
section, as this was where the most mistakes happened, measures 5-25.
·
Remember, “mother”
comes first, then “Sister Moses!”
·
Make sure to get this
back into your voice so it does not feel tentative.
Come and Sing:
·
Soprano 1s, please be
careful of your notes in measure 9. You
descend a minor third, not a second, on the word “forever.”
·
Be ready for the
second ending. Don’t forget about the
“Ah’s” in measure 17!
·
As with “Peter, Go
Ring” and “Imagine,” get this back into your voice so you feel comfortable
singing it.
Aural (Listening) and Theory Skills:
·
Please practice
singing the following at home:
1.
Major Scale on
Solfège with hand signs
2.
Natural Minor,
Harmonic Minor, and Melodic Minor Scales on Solfège with hand signs
3.
Scale Intervals both
ascending (going up – Do Re, Major Second) and descending (going down – Do Ti,
Minor Second)
