Practicing polyphony without a section
  • gregpgregp
    Posts: 632
    A question for directors of smallish groups - what do you do when you have polyphony to rehearse and one of your sections is down to one or none?

    We have three sections, SAB, and at times each section has been AWOL (for perfectly legitimate reasons). So - should we practice the two remaining voices as best we can, or move on to something else until the prodigals return?

    Even allowing for the fact that sometimes the missing section may be the only one singing, it seems to me that unless you hear the whole canvas of sound, you're getting a distorted view of picture (to mix metaphors outrageously).

    What do you do?
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,414
    Are you a necessary and integral part of the SAB? If not, you yourself could sing the missing part.
    Otherwise, you could play it on an instrument.
    You are right about them hearing 'the whole canvass of sound'.
    On the other hand, singing with a missing part could cinch that they know their own parts well.
    I wouldn't skip the pieces in question.
  • jgirodjgirod
    Posts: 45
    If it is occasional, you could train one voice to listen at the other present one. When both move in parallel they can then "help" each other when the 3hird voice is present too. If they move differently that won't work that well.
    The soprano usually having the melody, its absence is the worst case, because you have the most distorted sound.
  • OlbashOlbash
    Posts: 314
    Ah, but polyphony doesn't really have a "melody" per se, so the absense of a soprano should not be a deterrent to rehearsing polyphony. There is SO much to be gained by having two voices singing at one time, in any style of music. Voices become aware of when they are singing in parallel duets with each other, when they are singing in contrary motion, where the points of consonance are for tuning purposes, etc. With the horizontal nature of polyphony, this exercise becomes all the more useful. While the "whole canvas" is important, rehearsing two voices alone is time well spent.
  • CharlesW
    Posts: 11,978
    I usually fill in the missing part on the organ. It's not ideal, but it works.
  • JamJam
    Posts: 636
    I've practiced polyphony for a 4-person schola at home with just the bass (I'm alto) with me. It always meant we were the most solid singers when we got to practice with the entire group, because we knew our parts well alone and together. If I could hear him, I was usually right on (and I hope vice versa). If we needed to hear another part while we sang, we would play it on his keyboard.
  • mjballoumjballou
    Posts: 994
    I practice the parts I have, letting them see how they relate to each other and helping them listen for unison and/or octave points. Having a part missing can also be instructive for the director because you can hear things that might be buried otherwise.

    Then I move on to chant and canons.
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