Chant Workshops - five one-hour evenings
  • Pes
    Posts: 623
    I'm preparing materials this summer for chant workshops I'm going to run in the fall. You all have a lot of experience. Can you tell me what can be accomplished in an hour-long block? I'm thinking of a week-long workshop, an hour (thereabouts) each evening.

    The goal is this: "Sing the right note, at the right time, in the right way, to convey the meaning of the text." This breaks down into:

    Monday - Sing the right note - reading chant music (by learning the dialogues et al of the Mass)
    Tuesday - At the right time - chant rhythm (by learning a simple Mass Ordinary)
    Wednesday - In the right way - good singing fundamentals (incl. pronunciation) (by honing simple Mass Ordinary)
    Thursday - To convey the meaning of the text - incl. different kinds/functions of chants (examples of Introit, Communio)
    Friday - Putting it all together - rehearsing a Mass (with participation of ringers to sing Gradual and Offertory)

    The college kids will get Latin. The parish will get English -- maybe. I'm thinking about it. This looks ambitious, but if the chant difficulty is pitched just right, I think newbies could do it.

    Any input would be welcome.
  • priorstf
    Posts: 460
    Pes -

    Your topical days setup is brilliant. If you're not a professional educator then you should be teaching them! Nicely done.

    What is your audience at the church? If it's folks taking their own time to participate I suspect they'd do well to hear the Latin just as well as the college kids. Vernacular chant is okay for the Psalms at Mass, but serious study can only benefit from working with the original You'll want to provide an accompanying workbook thst includes translations. Homework assignments even.

    My only change might be to swap Tuesday and Wednesday. Monday can be done using solfege, but the classic line "But it doesn't mean anything!" is quite true. They'll understand rhythm a lot better when they see it as a vehicle to tie the words and the music together.

    I hope you'll be generous enough to share your finished work!
  • RagueneauRagueneau
    Posts: 2,592
    Jeffrey and Arlene put out a really nice set of guidelines for these type of things sometime back.

    I thought it was really well done, and showed they have done MANY of these and gotten a lot of experience!
  • miacoyne
    Posts: 1,805
    Pes, It really really looks good. On Monday, singing the right note. I don't know it''s necessary to do solfege, you have only an hour. (You need to help them feel successful.) Singing simple responses by rote might be eonugh. Maybe you can try both English and latin. (If you still have time you can introduce or mention solfege as a tool to learn notes.)
    Rhythm: basically there are only two kinds, binary and ternary. You can sing simple responses (or Agnus Dei XVIII is a good one, ictus are all marked in PBC.) with 1-2 and 1-2-3 ,if you still have time.
    Good singing fundamentals, remind them that deep breathing is healthy for them. (We have a Tai chi instructor. He really supported that. He even showed some move and breathing.)

    I think 'convey the meaning of the text' is very important, not just the words. In order to do that you really have to feel the meaning of the words you sing. Visual images in your mind of those words help.

    I'm sure it will work out well. I hope you have a great time. Please post your work here.
    Thanks
  • mjballoumjballou
    Posts: 993
    Looks good. If they know any short chants already, an Agnus Dei for example, use that as the introduction to the notation. While lots of folks know the Salve Regina, I don't use that because too many people sing it just the way Sister taught them (or they think she taught them) in Cleveland in 1952.

    Make sure that the ratio of singing to talking is 80:20. Scott Turkington is a master of this. Be careful not to confuse or overwhelm.

    And of course, you'll let us know how it goes.
  • Pes
    Posts: 623
    I really appreciate all this good advice! I take it all to heart.

    Here's a first draft, reasonably complete, of how I'd like to approach the "sing the right note" part of the series.

    At the workshop, I won't read this verbatim (deadly!) but the material is there, and I want people to take away some description and guidelines, not just a sequence of examples.

    Your comments are welcome, as this is a work in progress.

    PS -- As you can see, we'll be singing right away!
    tutorial-reading.pdf
    186K
  • miacoyne
    Posts: 1,805
    This is excellent. Starting with something that most people are familiar with, a short modern notaion, and gradually moving into a bit more complicated neums. And it covers most of the singing parts of the congreagation in Mass. (in your parish do you have Mass where people sing those parts? If they don't, they are very lucky to learn them. If they do, they will be glad to learn to sing them from the music and want to apply to learn other chants. )
    You must have lots of teaching experience. I think people will really have fun and learn.

    (just in case, some might ask what the little note means in Easter 'Alleuia' (liquescent note. This can be controversial, because you don't want to sing 'Allelu-i-a. you might have to prepare for a short answer for that.)
  • David Sullivan
    Posts: 355
    Pes, I liked your tutorial, and I hope to use some ideas from it. Here's the twist--I have 1 hour or probably less--to 'introduce' chant to a group of 3-6 graders who will be attending my parish's "Catholic Camp for Kids" (a Catholic version of Vacation Bible School).

    My basic idea is to keep it simple, little talking, mostly singing. I want to introduce a couple of chants our parish uses (Agnus Dei XVIII, Kyrie VIII) and try to give the kids a sense of accomplishment.

    I'm looking for the esteemed forum's practical tips and idea. What should I cover, what should I avoid? I have no experience working with children on music, but I'm looking forward to it.
  • Pes
    Posts: 623
    David

    I've only observed others teaching children. Grades 3-6 means ages 8-10. These kids are old enough to learn some abstract things, but keeping it oral and by rote still makes a lot of sense. You want them to sing, sound good, and feel mastery.

    Start orally. Consider starting with perfect "unison" ("one sound"). Use vowels and the chants they already know. Get them to breathe properly. ("Monks have big lungs!") Tell them that you want to see if they can all sing and make it sound like one person singing, that they shouldn't hear any one voice in particular. This is hard, but they can do it!

    Praise specific things they do well. ("Wow, did you hear how pure that 'Agnus' sounded!?")

    I wouldn't shy from then introducing them to the four-line staff and clef. Make a game of it. They've heard triads, so point to lines and spaces (to form triads) and ask them to raise their hand if they know what the pitch you're pointing to sounds like. Then ask them to sing the pitch on "la." This will get them to hear and form the pitch internally. Toss them treats.

    Don't say "you sound like angels!" Not enough of them will consider this a compliment. Say instead that they are singing "expertly."

    Then introduce some linear lines onto the staff, and ask them to sing the pitches along with syllables. Get them to sing whole words (connected pitches), not isolated pitches, so they're encouraged always to sing legato and think about words.

    I find that boys and girls like to do things well. They are kids though, so sometimes you have to get their attention. Saying "look at my nose" (or other body part) usually works.

    Others here will have more experienced advice. My kids are all in Suzuki, so that's where I'm coming from.
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,368
    I think your lesson plan sounds excellent! Just a little suggestion - I have found that one of the easiest ways of getting neophytes to singing with confidence rather quickly is to teach them right off to sing one of the simpler hymns, such as Jesu Dulcis Memoria, etc. These are easily singable and readable without even any instruction in notation and are a fine psychological boost to start off with. Very best wishes for your Chant Workshop. (Another result-producing manner of starting off is to have them sing the Our Father recto tono at a very deliberate pace. This gives an early sense of blend and togetherness.)
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