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First Soprano rehearsal notes

November 11 Rehearsal Notes

Please note for next week: first sopranos sit in back. Also, call time next Tuesday (the 18th) is 10:15. Please arrive already warmed up. 

Rehearsal began with great counsel from Jane about avoiding/minimizing vocal fatigue. Here are my takeaways:
  • The part of our range that tires most quickly is the passaggio around C-F. The trick is to find the Goldilocks zone between under- and overweighting the voice. Keep it light but supported.
  • Nasal exercises help you find the right air placement. Start with air, and keep pitches high.
  • Stay relaxed and “non-frowny.”
  • Keep the tongue down and loose.
  • Navigate break points with increased breath support, and crescendo slightly on ascending phrases, adding breath.
  • Puppy noises as a warm-up help activate the diaphragm. 
If you have other observations to share from our sectional, I'd be happy to add to my notes next week. 
Forrest II: Lux in Tenebris (whole piece)
  • Universal: Be really aware of how Jane is beating the meter changes–mark your scores
  • Universal: Give Lux a really good, fluty oooo with a big X at the end
  • Universal: “In” is eeen
  • Universal: “Eam” does not have a y
  • Universal: In 6/8 sections, think of each measure as two groups of three rather than six individual notes
  • That said, Jane is beating in 6 at A (measure 15)
  • Mm. 27 & 33: Give the rising notes a little crescendo
  • Measure 38: Jane is beating in 2
  • Measure 48: Tempo is quicker–watch Jane
  • Letter D (measure 80): Jane is beating in 4 here; not too much vibrato
  • Mm. 86-88: Tricky brace here–watch for the cutoff (which is as written), note the 2/4 bar in the middle, and be aware that S2 and A1 switch staffs
  • Measure 91 (high F): Put an H right before the ee of “in” to get the air going and not punch the entrance
  • Measure 93: No swooping
  • Measure 104: Jane is beating in 2–watch for the tempo change (poco meno mosso); practice the entrance pitch
  • Letter E and wherever this pattern occurs (e.g., from measure 129): Sing pinpoint staccato notes, and produce more energy and sound
  • Mm. 111 & 112: Keep the Gs high
  • Letter F: We are not the featured performer here–change the dynamic marking to MF, and listen to and support the bottom staff; no vibrato in this section
  • Measure 117: Keep the energy going–don't let the held note dissipate
  • Measure 122: Drop the “br” of “-bris”–let the S2s handle it
  • Measure 129: Practice the entrance pitch
  • Measure 136: Watch Jane for the cutoff here, and note the S2/A1 staff switch
  • Section beginning measure 142: “With courage”–but Jane adds: but romantic and FF: strong!; also, be diligent about duplets vs. triplets and duplets over triplets (or vice versa)
  • Page 13 into 14: Be prepared for the page turn–know what you're doing in advance
  • Measure 155: Don't push
Forrest IV: Gloria in Excelsis (whole piece)
  • Jane's advice (for this piece and, no doubt, generally): The more you use the body, the less tired you'll get. Also, knowing what's coming makes it easy.
  • Measure 81: “Don't be namby pamby”
  • Measure 83: Don't be softer
  • Letter G: Don't yodel; forget the accents
  • Mm. 88 & 90: Be aware of the G-to-C and G-to-D intervals
Forrest V: Creator of the Stars of Night (whole piece)
  • Letter B (measure 22): Put a reminder in your score that this is in Latin
  • Letter C (measure 35): Put a reminder in your score that this is in English
  • Letter C: Jane will be conducting the bloom on the arc of each line in this section; we are responsible for our individual cutoffs, which are as written
  • Letter C: The canon here is the hardest part of the movement; practicing it is advised
  • Measure 35: Entrance is “hwen” (start with air)
  • Measure 36: Deemphasize “the”
  • Measure 37: “Thou” is on beat 3 (I don't remember why I marked this, but there it is)
I hope I caught everything! See you next Tuesday at 10:15. Have a great week!

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