Anna, would it be worthwhile to rehearse, or at least to read in rehearsal, the upcoming hymns?

I've had good results (although of course I don't have a long director experience) with rehearsing very quietly: the singers-out then pull back, and everyone can hear his own voice and the singers-in gain confidence.

Is it can't, or won't?

If it's can't, it means they need a bunch of voice work during rehearsal time.

If it's won't. it's probably because they don't feel confident with the notes. The best solution is to make sure they are confident with the notes. The next best solution is to give your singers permission to fail. To go to Hell for a wrong note requires active participation of the will, and nobody wills to sing wrong notes. It may be that the occasional cluster heard sung vibrantly is preferable to a note-perfect but anemic performance

The other reason is that they've been taught they must "blend". Voices that are being properly produced and singing the correct vowels will blend. But if you insist on "blend" before anything else, it's a race to the lowest common denominator of volume; every choir blends perfectly while singing rests.

You could encourage people to "use their opera voices". One has to be careful here, as there are all kinds of mistakes they can make in this: carrying chest up too high, tongue or larynx depression, etc. If I have baritones singing tenor (and we all do), I'd rather have a weaker falsettoish sound than screaming.

Gentle good-natured shaming can help. "Jeffrey and the Chantettes" is a phrase that appears at my rehearsals.

wanted us to conform to a more operatic style, instead of making us use our voices better so that he didn’t have to change

I'm not sure I understand what you're saying here

I'm not sure I understand what you're saying here

I mean, don't we all speak English? If you're the one sticking out and singing in a different style inappropriate for the style of music being sung (i.e. chant, but the same applies for Renaissance polyphony: I would not qualify e.g. the sound of the Tallis Scholars or the various groups which sing early music as "operatic", but they are just some of the best chorists in the world) than the rest of us, you are the problem, the point about "blending before all else" notwithstanding.

I think it is a mix of reasons and Jeffrey, you nailed it, so to speak.

1. Not secure about the notes (and the text!). We don't practise hymns. Sometimes I would prefer ppl just sing the melody and lets get a good sound, but the altos ADORE singing their part. But they are often lost and slightly confused and this has partly to do with this new hymnal we have that has parts that are different from what they have been singing for the last two decades. So, then they are searching for their notes a bit and not singing out. The problem too is that I don't have time to sing through hymns at rehearsal. We have so much to do for Easter.... I have some really good singers, and I have to keep them a bit happy and engaged so they don't quit.

2. Afraid to make a mistake: I tell them that I really don't care (for hymns, not motets) if every note is perfect, but just to sing out and sing a line, not an individual note.

3. Breath support. For sure. At yesterday's rehearsal I worked through some breath support exercises and VOILA! (Thanks for the reminder!)

4. I'm always telling them to sing like opera stars. I don't have a crew who will really sing like an opera singer (vibrato and whatever else) but it does make them more engaged, from the core. They sit up straighter. They drop their jaws. They sing rounder vowels that are much more mellow and they sing OUT.

Thanks all!

Speaking for myself, I find the more annoyed I am the more it pays to proofread.