First Soprano rehearsal notes

Please note for next week's rehearsal: first sopranos sit in front. 

OK, on to the rehearsal notes. 

• Universal: No “r”s (feathers, perches, never, bird, heard, etc.)
• Universal: Familiarize yourself with the lyrics so they don't trip you up
• Universal: Be exact about cutoffs throughout
• Measure 4 and similar: Don't punch the syncopation–keep it light
• Measure 9: Change the final 1/8 to an A# (not G#) (Jennifer to verify)
• Measure 11 and similar: Don't be afraid of the F# “And”–but don't squeak it, either; focus on keeping the E that follows high and on time
• Measure 11: Note the word accents: sweet[-est] … gale … sore … storm, and enunciate final consonants
• Measure 19: Vowel of “warm” is “aw”
• Measure 20: Crescendo
• Measure 25: Breath between “sea” and “Yet”
• Measure 30: Stay in time–don't slow
• Measure 35: Good “m” on “storm” (but no “r”)
• Measure 37: 1/4 out at the end of the measure for a “huge” breath
• Measure 44: Beat 2 is a dotted-1/4 rest
• Measure 45: Beat 3 is a 1/4 rest followed by an 1/8 (“and”)
• Bottom of page 5: Turn early
• Measure 52: Beat 2 is a 1/4 rest followed by an 1/8 (“and”)
• Review the 2nd ending

These are my take-aways from Jane's input about alder trees; feel free to let me know if there's additional information I should include in next week's notes:

The alder tree is central to an ancient Celtic celebration from mid-March to mid-April. It is a remarkable tree that thrives in water. The bark above the water rots, but below the water, the roots give nutrients to the land, and the wood becomes as hard as stone. Because of these qualities, the wood was used for the pilings on which the city of Venice was built. The strong wood was also used for forging metal. The tree's fundamental strengths inspired the poet (Kathleen Jamie) to give it human characteristics. When singing this piece, be equally inspired by the tree's amazing qualities.  

• Universal: ENERGY
• Universal: Sopranos and altos have different cutoffs throughout; accurate cutoffs are critical, so don't be swayed if another part is singing on our rests–be aware of the “dripping” overlay
• Mm. 4-5: Vowel of “wea-“[ry] is a rounded “eeee”; flip the “r” of “-ry”–and give “wea-” its full value before singing it
• Measure 6: Observe the accents
• Measure 8: Observe the rest–but give the preceding 1/4 its full value
• Measure 11: Cut off measure 10 on time–don't sing in this measure until beat 4
• Measure 13: The alder tree turns from white to red when cut, so think of the spirit of the tree when singing “clots of lichen”; also, get the “cl” of “clots” out of the way and land the vowel on time
• Mm. 21-22: No breath
• Mm. 23-25: Observe the crescendo, and put a good “k” on the downbeat of measure 25
• Mm. 27 & 31: Go right to the “aw” of “Squalls,” and don't let the “Squ-” pull down the pitch
• Beginning measure 32: Don't overdo the “sts” of “mists”
• Measure 33: Cut of on beat 3, as written
• Measure 40: Put the “sts” of “mists” on the downbeat
• Measure 43: OK to leave off the “sts” of “mists”
• Measure 44: Breath between “mists” and “alder”

• Universal: Be accurate about cutoffs
• Mm. 72-74: Vowel of “blo-“[ssom] is “aw,” and land the vowel on the beat
• Mm. 78-79: No breath
• Measure 79: Observe the 1/4 rest
• Measure 82: Observe the “critical lift”
• Measure 81: Keep the vowel of “we” broad, not pinched
• Mm. 86-88: Don't close to the diphthong on “fail” too soon

• Universal: Keep it in the body and supported
• Mm. 39-43: Vowel of “smi-“[ling] is “aw”
• Bottom of page 3: Be prepared for the page turn–what's coming up might not be what you expect
• Measure 51: Watch Jane for the entrance cue
• Measure 58-page 5: Lots of tempo changes–watch Jane
• Mm. 70 & 73: Observe the rests

• Universal: Simon reminds us that a little flag/widget on the right side of a note means it's on the click; if it's on the left, it's before the click
• Universal: Sing long vowels
• Mm. 20-26: Per Jane, PRACTICE–learn this passage before next week; listening to the recording she provided will help
• Measure 20: No “r” in “perhaps”
• Measure 21: Vowel of “not” is “aw”
• Mm. 22-23: Learn the rhythm
• Measure 23: The “per-” of “perhaps” comes in fast (end of beat 4)–be ready and count