tips for directors | Sound and Silence

Singing is Athletic: The Importance of Warming Up the Body

I coach a liturgical sports team. Sounds bizarre, right? When we think about it, though, singers really are athletes. Singing (when done...

Respecting Singers' Time (and Other Etiquette)

I joined my first performing ensemble at age 5, and from that point to the present, there's one thing that I hate with the burning...

Rehearsal Spotlight: The All-Holy

Note: this is the first in a new series of posts focusing on a single choral-liturgical element, with notes about potential pitfalls and...

Handling Mistakes and Misfires

Smooth recovery from mistakes — those made by themselves, those made by the choir and those made by the clergy — is where directors earn...

Intonation in the Passaggio

Ever notice that intonation problems occur much more frequently on certain pitches? There's a reason for that, and although it's tricky...

Vocal Fatigue: A Tactical Plan for Holy Week and Pascha

While proper hydration and technique reduce the risk of vocal fatigue during most of the church year, Holy Week and Pascha really test...

Developing Breath Awareness

It takes a lot of time for singers to learn proper breathing, but not because it's a novel action; we all breathe constantly, but...

The Effect of Conducting Gestures on Choral Breathing

Conducting gestures have a substantial impact on how singers breathe, not just when. Effective breath gestures assist the singers in...

Conducting Gestures and Dynamics

A good general principle is this: the softer the dynamic, the smaller the gesture. I also find it effective to lower my hands slightly,...

Conducting Gestures and Tempi

Conducting is about far more than "keeping the beat"; conductors also use gestures to convey phrase shaping, tempo and dynamics. Choral...

Training the Choir to Watch

The only way to learn how to do anything, other than by divine revelation, is to practice, practice, practice. Even professional choirs...

Getting Pitches From Clergy

So...you need to grab choir pitches from the clergy. Oh Lawd! Talk about terrifying. Normally, directors can sneak in new pitches between...

On Giving Pitches

Giving pitches to the choir is among directors' most important tasks, and like so many other things in Orthodoxy, there are several...

Accurate Vocal Onset

The vocal onset, or beginning of sound, has a huge impact on the rest of the musical phrase. An accurate onset can only happen when the...

Effective Rehearsal: The Importance of Self-marking the Music

In rehearsal, one of my non-negotiables is that singers must mark their own music, and I'd encourage every director to adopt this...

Vowel Unification

All choirs, especially amateur ensembles singing without instrumental accompaniment, struggle with intonation, and there's no easy fix....