Blending female
  • canadashcanadash
    Posts: 1,548
    I have a simple choir. We sing simple music. I have two female sopranos who don't blend well. One cannot be helped and I easily "manage her" by telling her to sing quieter when necessary while I'm happy that she sing out for hymns. The other is new and I suggested she sing alto, but she begged to sing soprano. She is the most lovely woman who really works hard to learn music. She is taking singing lessons too. But she just doesn't blend. Do you have any thoughts as to what to do with her voice that would be a general idea that works for anyone? She has an Indian accent, which also may be part of the issue. I have many immigrants in my choir, but I've not come across this yet. I do tell everyone to listen more, but maybe I need a one on one conversation. I'm going to speak with her about switching to alto again. I know that I'm the director and what I say should be the rule, but I'm not that assertive.
    Thanked by 1CHGiffen
  • Chant_Supremacist
    Posts: 268
    A music prof told me to find the vowel she sings better than others (he said there's always one), praise how well she sounds on that vowel, and help her to feel the difference between how she sings that one versus the others.

    Much faster to put her in alto, though.
    Thanked by 2CHGiffen canadash
  • iMalton
    Posts: 11
    I don't know how big your choir is, but I had a choir director (albeit for a university choir) who would place each section in "pods" of 3-5 people within the same vocal section, of a mixture of "blending" voices and "colour" voices. He could get better blending near instantly by rearranging the voices and playing around with the placement of those voices in the pod. It did involve the work of taking a whole section at once, and listening to each voice individually (i.e. sing O Canada opening bars) to identify the voice type, and then he would pick a colour voice and have that person sing alongside one other in the section, moving down the line, and then add a third voice. Everyone got to listen along and provide positive feedback about the combinations of voices that worked better or worse beside each other. It was all about finding the best arrangement for the section and the choir at large.
    Thanked by 4CHGiffen probe canadash LauraKaz
  • SponsaChristi
    Posts: 629
    She has an Indian accent, which also may be part of the issue

    Indian accents are quite nasally. The other issue is vowel shape. I sing in a professional level chorus of almost 200 people. My choir director is always going on about everyone having matching vowel shapes, that our mouths and lips should barely be moving when singing vowels, and that all vowels originate from the “o” sound.

    He’s the most educated and technically skilled choir director I’ve ever had with a Ph.D. His Master’s is in vocal performance and he teaches at the university level.

    I had a choir director (albeit for a university choir) who would place each section in "pods" of 3-5 people within the same vocal section, of a mixture of "blending" voices and "colour" voices.

    Random question: Was your choir director an organist by chance? I noticed every choir director I’ve had who did this was an organist.
    Thanked by 2davido canadash
  • iMalton
    Posts: 11
    Was your choir director an organist by chance? I noticed every choir director I’ve had who did this was an organist.


    No, actually, he wasn't. His main instrument other than voice was actually the Shakuhachi, a Japanese bamboo flute, though he was very into "world music" of all sorts, so picked up all kinds of instruments, be they drums or strings or woodwinds. He was an excellent choir director and I learned a lot from him.
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