A STUDY GROUP FOR CHORAL RESEARCH

Abstract

For me as a Scandinavian, it seems quite natural to use the term choral research as a direct translation of the Swedish term k?rforskning. But I understand that such a term does not exist in English. The two words are of course good English but their combination does not sound idiomatic ally correct, although it is vaguely understandable. The same is true about the two elements of the German word Chorforschung. I believe, however, that the nonexistence of the therm choral research and Chorforschung, respectively, is not primarily due to linguistic rules. One can instead see it as the result of the strategies followed by scholars till now. But strategies can be changed and I think there are good create a content for which choral research would be an adequate term. There is already a vast literature dealing with music written for choral ensembles. And newly a special Journal of Research in Choral Music has be founded by Dr. Chester L. Alwes, University of Illinois, its chief editor. There are also studies about choral ensembles as music institutions and so on. But what is still lacking is a joint effort to investigate all rele vant aspects of choral activities. Considering the important role choral singing plays around the world and has played through the centuries, it seems necessary to make such a joint effort. In this perspective, historical and analytical studies concerning cho ral music cover only part of the wide field of research which rightly ought to be called choral research. Apparently this is not a matter for music historians exclusively. It is not even limited to musicologists: it depends on how narrow a definition the term ?musicology? is given. In order to establish choral research as on independent field of research it is necessary to bring scholars from different disciplines in touch with