SATB Chorus Research Articles

Effects of a Straw Phonation Protocol on Acoustic and Perceptual Measures of an SATB Chorus

Recent scholarship has suggested that semi-occluded vocal tract (SOVT) exercises may increase vocal economy of individuals by reducing vocal effort while maintaining or increasing acoustic output. Choral singers, however, may use different resonance techniques or change voicing behaviors in an effort to hear their own sound in relation to others. One investigation revealed significant increases in a choir's mean spectral energy after participating in a straw phonation protocol. However, that study reported only acoustic measures and did not include choristers' perceptions of the choral sound and their own voicing efficiency. The purpose of this study was to measure the effect of a straw phonation protocol on acoustic (long-term average spectrum) and perceptual (self-report) measures of the choral sound of an intact soprano, alto, tenor, and bass (SATB) choir. This is a quasi-experimental, one-group, pretest-posttest design. An SATB choir (N = 48 singers) performed a Renaissance motet, participated in a 4-minute voicing protocol with a small straw, and then sang the motet a second time. They completed the same procedure later in the rehearsal. Long-term average spectrum results indicated no statistically significant mean changes in spectral energy after the SOVT protocols. Most participants, however, perceived that the choir sounded better (78.26%) and that their own vocal production was more efficient or comfortable (73.91%) following the protocol. Choristers perceived less vocal effort while maintaining vocal output after straw phonation, which may feasibly align with extant solo research. More research may determine whether this result is due specifically to SOVTs.

Effects of a Straw Phonation Protocol on Acoustic Measures of an SATB Chorus Singing Two Contrasting Renaissance Works

Researchers have found that semi-occluded vocal tract (SOVT) exercises may increase vocal economy by reducing phonation threshold pressure and effort while increasing or maintaining consistent acoustic output. This research has focused solely on individual singers. Much singing instruction, however, takes place in choral settings. Choral singers may use different resonance strategies or unconsciously adjust their singing based on the ability to hear their own sound in relation to others. Results of studies with individual singers, then, may not be directly applicable to choral settings. The purpose of this investigation was to measure the effect of an SOVT protocol (ie, straw phonation) on acoustic changes of conglomerate, choral sound. This is a quasi-experimental, one-group, pretest-posttest design. Participants in this study constituted an intact SATB choir (soprano, alto, tenor, and bass) (N = 15 singers) who performed from memory two unaccompanied pieces of varied tempos from memory, participated in a 4-minute straw phonation protocol with a small stirring straw, and then sang each piece a second time. The long-term average spectrum results indicated small, statistically significant increases in spectral energy for both pieces in the 0-10 kHz (.32 and .20 dB Sound Pressure Level) and 2-4 kHz regions (.46 and .25 dB SPL). These results, although not likely audible to average hearing humans, seem consistent with the assertion that singers enjoy vocal benefits with consistent or increased vocal output. SOVT exercises, therefore, may be useful as a time-efficient way to evoke more efficient and economical singing during choral warm-up and voice building procedures.

Three Songs for Les Illuminations by Benjamin Britten, and: Six Early Songs (1929–31) for medium voice and piano by Benjamin Britten, and: Two Pieces for violin, viola and piano (1929) by Benjamin Britten, and: Two Psalms: Out of the deep, Praise ye the Lord, for SATB chorus and orchestra by Benjamin Britten, and: Variations for piano (1965) by Benjamin Britten

NEWLY PUBLISHED MUSIC BY BENJAMIN BRITTENBenjamin Britten. Three Songs for Les Illuminations. Orchestration for high voice & strings by Colin Matthews. Words by Arthur Rimbaud. Full score. London: Boosey & Hawkes, 2012. [Pref. in Eng., Fr., and Ger.; texts in Fr., Eng., and Ger.; score, p. 1-22. ISMN 979-0-060-12030-5; ISBN 978-0-85162-767-0; pub. plate no. 15072. $26.95.]Benjamin Britten. Six Early Songs (1929-31) for medium voice and pi- ano. London: Faber Music, 2013. [Texts in Eng.; pref. in Eng.; score, p. 2-14. ISBN10 0-571-51190-2; EAN13 978-0-571-51190-7. £10.99.]Benjamin Britten. Two Pieces for violin, viola and piano (1929). London: Faber Music, 2013. [Introd. in Eng.; editorial notes in Eng.; score, p. 1-25 and 2 parts (violin and viola). ISBN10 0-571-52361-7; EAN13 978- 0-571-52361-0. £24.99.]Benjamin Britten. Two Psalms: Out of the deep, Praise ye the Lord, for SATB chorus and orchestra. Full score. London: Chester Music, 2012. [Score, p. 1-67. Pub. no. CH79750. £21.95.]Benjamin Britten. Variations for piano (1965). London: Faber Music, 2013. [Introd., editorial note, and performance note in Eng.; 1 facsimile; score, p. 1-7; appendices. ISBN10 0-571-52057-X; EAN13 978-0-571- 52057-2. £9.99]Since Britten's death in 1976, and in particular since the opening to researchers a few years later of the extraordinarily comprehensive archival collections of the Britten-Pears Library at his home in the Suffolk town of Aldeburgh, keen interest has constantly been aroused by the steady stream of posthumous publications of unknown works which, for various reasons, he had kept firmly under wraps during his lifetime. While all such publications, no matter how slight, will inevitably be of con- siderable interest to scholars and die-hard Britten enthusiasts-and it might be ar- gued that this alone is a compelling reason for their public dissemination-it is rather less certain whether every morsel of this rediscovered music deserves a strong foothold in the concert hall; and, at times, some listeners have feared that the com- poser's reputation might become a shade tarnished by the realization that he did not always attain his customary level of genius. Nevertheless, the level-headed can always find consolation in the equally important realization that he himself, unlike some other prodigiously prolific writers, well knew which of his pieces warranted a place in his official canon, and which didn't. Whatever one's personal view, Britten en- thusiasts owe an enormous and ongoing debt of gratitude to Colin Matthews, chair of The Britten Estate, who has for several decades overseen the preparation and pub- lication of projects of this kind in a skillful and sensitive way.Britten's posthumous publications fall into three broad categories, each well rep- resented by the batch of five new scores re- viewed here (all of which appeared in the run-up to, and during, the composer's cen- tenary year in 2013). Arguably the most im- portant category, and one in which indis- putably impressive compositional standards are virtually assured, is the small but fasci- nating body of mature songs that Britten wrote for his well-known song cycles, but chose not to include in their definitive for- mats. Just how brilliant some of this dis- carded music could be was first demon- strated in 1983 by the performance of two songs jettisoned from Winter Words (1953), and even more spectacularly in 1987 by the discovery of the haunting Tennyson setting Now sleeps the crimson petal, which had been composed for inclusion in the Serenade for tenor, horn, and strings (1943). Self-evidently, then, Britten some- times consigned pieces to his bottom drawer not because they were substandard, but simply because he had too many of them for his specific needs. The second, and largest, category is the huge body of ju- venilia composed by Britten when he was a precociously gifted schoolboy, which is in- evitably of variable quality, though the best of it is truly astonishing in its technical as- surance. …

Isaac Watts' Lullabye

A setting of a Christmas carol by Isaac Watts. For soloists, harp or piano, and SATB chorus.

Ngano (1983-1984) for Solo Mezzo-Soprano, Solo Tenor, SATB Chorus, Flute, Percussion; Texts from Traditional Songs of the Venda Africans

Ngano (1983-1984) for Solo Mezzo-Soprano, Solo Tenor, SATB Chorus, Flute, Percussion; Texts from Traditional Songs of the Venda Africans

The Seasonings, Oratorio for Soprano, Alto, Tenor, and Bass Soloists, SATB Chorus, and Orchestra

The Seasonings, Oratorio for Soprano, Alto, Tenor, and Bass Soloists, SATB Chorus, and Orchestra

Adam and the Creatures, a Morality with Music, for Narrators, SATB Chorus, Organ, and Percussion

Adam and the Creatures, a Morality with Music, for Narrators, SATB Chorus, Organ, and Percussion

Jonah. Opera-Cantata for Stage or Concert Use. For Speaker, Baritone Solo, SATB Chorus, Boys' Voices, and Orchestra

Jonah. Opera-Cantata for Stage or Concert Use. For Speaker, Baritone Solo, SATB Chorus, Boys' Voices, and Orchestra

The Passion According to Saint Luke. Baritone and Tenor Soli, SATB Chorus, and Piano

The Passion According to Saint Luke. Baritone and Tenor Soli, SATB Chorus, and Piano

Mass of the Word of God. SATB Chorus, Congregation, and Organ

Mass of the Word of God. SATB Chorus, Congregation, and Organ

Rejoice in the Lord, O Ye Righteous. Anthem for ATTB verses, SATB Chorus and Organ

Rejoice in the Lord, O Ye Righteous. Anthem for ATTB verses, SATB Chorus and Organ

The Nativity. A Sequence for Christmas, for Soprano and Alto Soli, Mezzo-Soprano, Tenor, and Bass Soli (Optional), SATB Chorus and Strings (Piano or Organ)

The Nativity. A Sequence for Christmas, for Soprano and Alto Soli, Mezzo-Soprano, Tenor, and Bass Soli (Optional), SATB Chorus and Strings (Piano or Organ)