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Senior project research paper
1. T.J. Bergquist
11/17/11
1st
Creating A Choral Composition
Composing a musical piece is an endeavor that, for many musicians, is a landmark in
their careers. Though this can be seen as a professional accomplishment, there is also a great
deal of personal, musical, and emotional fulfillment that comes with it. Music, from its very
definition, is not only appealing to the ear but has meaning. One of the many aspects of
composing music that is disregarded or not given enough credit is the joy of creating music in
the first place. Therefore, when attempting to write a musical piece, consideration to both the
technical and emotional aspects of the music is necessary to make a song more than just another
song.
When writing a choral piece, a variety of different aspects need to be considered. When
composing, it is necessary to make the written parts fit the voices they are being applied to.
When splitting vocal parts, for example if lower voices are identified, the quality and purity of
the music will be significantly better when sung (galegroup.com). This identified range will not
only allow for each person to feel comfortable while singing, but also allow there voices to have
a fuller tone. When splitting parts, the standard mixed parts are S.A.T.B. (Soprano, Alto, Tenor,
and Bass). This basic part structure covers the lower and higher voices of both men and women.
However, when making a more layered group, a group with more individual singing parts, even
structures such as S.S.A.A.T.T.B.B., or Soprano 1, Soprano 2, Alto 2, Alto 1, Tenor 1, Tenor 2,
2. Bass 1, Bass 2, are possible. Taking advantage of these vocal part systems can change the
quality of a piece completely.
Though vocal parts are typically assigned based on vocal range, a singer’s personal desire
for a part can carry a great deal of weight within a choral group as well. When a desire to have a
part is held, and the stretch to this vocal part is not too grand, the amount of rubito, or emotion in
singing, can be augmented significantly. Expressiveness within music allows for flows and
legatos to be drastically enhanced, enabling a choral group to grab a listener’s attention and more
importantly, make them feel the music. Though typically a person will be more content singing
within their comfortable range a majority of the time, if pushing your voice occasionally means
having more feeling in the music, it is most definitely worth it (www.haydockmusic.com). With
respect to people’s interest, people’s enjoyment, and for the meaning of the music, pushing vocal
limits with care is reasonable when constructing a choral piece.
This being said, if expressiveness is going to push the vocal limits of your singers, it
makes taking care of the singers’ voices that much more important. In order to make a piece of
music enjoyable while not harming each singer’s voice, and because creating a choral
composition is different from creating other pieces of music, warming up of a voice and other
precautions should be taken to help maintain vocal health. Warming up voices safely increases a
singer’s range, allowing more possibilities in vocal parts when writing the piece. Warm ups
varying from scales, to increased and decreased volume exercises, or “range pushers” can be
used to fully loosen vocal chords to refrain from damaging them. Along with a variety of
different vocal warm-ups that need to be done on a daily basis, drinking water is important as
well. Water thins the amount of mucus within a singer’s throat, which in turn allows for more
free movement of the voice, and decreases the amount of frictional tension felt between the vocal
3. chords (www.howtosing.com). Especially when creating a part for a choral piece that requires a
singer to “belt” at points in the piece, or add volume to give clarity to the part, making sure such
precautions are taken with the voice can be the difference between a good and a bad piece of
music.
Before constructing vocal parts and actually writing music, it is also important to have all
singers working on the group piece to practice proper breathing habits. Though this to many
comes off as limiting vocal expression, it ironically can do the exact opposite. When writing a
piece of choral music, marking points of expression and wording can make a song anything from
smooth and liquid in musical motion, to strong and harsh in verses. This can all be improved and
expressed better with proper breathing, posture, and dynamics (www.novachorus.org). When
constructing a musical piece, introducing these dynamics or changes in the way the song is sung
often is not given ample attention by singers. If dynamics are acknowledged, the ebb and flow
of a grand and expressive piece of music can become possible. This same principal is applied to
posture and breath support. If a section in a piece being written requires the singer to have great
power in their voice, the singer must be able to support their expression through breath support.
In order to add more to a piece, singers are typically instructed to sit up straight, opening their
diaphragms, thus allowing air to travel more freely through their voices. Additionally, marking
breath marks in necessary places in the music you are creating allows singers to have a chance to
recuperate vocally and breathe before starting the next section in the music.
Apart from supporting voices in a piece, while writing, creating musical variation in a
choral arrangement can transform a stagnant and robotic piece into an engaging and meaningful
one. This goal is achieved in a variety of ways by composers. The methods include
embellishing, harmonizing, and compacting vocal parts into melody for volume and emphasis.
4. Though much of embellishing can be done in a very technical and correct way, for some
advanced and knowledgeable singers, occasionally allowing quick flickers of harmony can allow
a piece to gain much needed differentiation (composerfocus.com). If a composer is willing to
risk this improvisation, however, he must make sure that the singer attempting the embellishment
has the musical knowledge or feeling to not let the embellishment take away from the piece
rather than add to it. This ensures the piece is an exact representation of the emotions and
feeling intended to be portrayed. Constructed musical harmony is used in a similar way by
composers. Composers use harmony to add layers to a musical piece, at times building great
musical suspense, and at others adding a more gentle aspect to the music. This understanding of
harmony is important to those writing music, and is a skill held by the greatest of composers.
When you shift tones and pitches to different levels in a progressing melody, an intricate and
highly beautiful picture can be painted, allowing writers a whole new avenue of musical
opportunity (www.menc.org). This variation is usually used by writers to add resolution at the
end of a piece, or a return to the main key of the song. If in the climax of a moving piece, all
singers meld into the same pitch, it adds a weight to the piece that can only be attained by a
switch to unison. If a writer executes this transition with proper timing, it can make a piece heart
moving and clear at its end. These different variations allow writers to create a more satisfying
work than if the song only had melody.
If a choral composer is constructing a group piece that requires a large number of people
for the proper sound of the music to be achieved, a variety of choral skills must people
addressed. In a large choral group, many singers frequently get lost on parts due to the
overwhelming qualities of a large chorus. Ensemble awareness at this point becomes a very
important part of creating and singing a song. Ensemble awareness is described by composers as
5. the ability of any musician, in this case singers, to be able to identify their part and other parts
being sung in a piece. This awareness allows for a singer within a large group to identify and
vocalize the right pitch, or note in a song. If a song that is intended to be very bright and
uplifting to listeners is dragged because different parts may go flat from sheer group size, making
sure singers within the group can hear their own part becomes a very important aspect of
composing (www.chorus.neu.edu). Along with group awareness of pitch while performing the
constructed piece, solo singing techniques while in a large group should be addressed as well.
When singing a solo, typically the singer will be the only one singing within the choir. However,
many times background singing is put into composed pieces while the soloist is simply the only
one singing their part. Due to this being an entirely different way of singing, it is important for
those singing a solo to remember a variety of individual techniques. This includes different
kinds of precision, such as deciding when to take breathes, choosing when or whether or not to
do improvisations, and identifying consonance. Group composing requires the composer to
realize a variety of different vocal techniques.
Music that has emotional significance has some non-technical, but important aspects that
help make them works of art. Many times when pieces are made, the composer intends for the
piece to be long. This being said, the natural flow of the music must be able to move the listener
throughout the piece. This musical aspect called balance can be added to a piece with previous
mentioned methods, and through meaningful singing. If the chorus that performs a musical piece
sings with the rise and fall of a long piece, interest will be more easily achieved by the listener.
This “rise and fall” can be provided by contrasts, or in quick musical changes to keep listeners
anticipating and waiting for the next bit of a song (www.dolmetsch.com). Another way to write
music to allow singers and the audience to feel change and meaningful progression in a piece is
6. adding different groups of singers. Many composers will have pieces switch from the main
chorus of a song to a small group of singers, in order to focus on a more clear and blended
harmony. With the careful use of different choral groups, a composer can allow a small part
harmony to add an entirely new level from which to move the rest of the piece. An example of
this was when I was performing a piece for my school’s choir, when the song went from a solo,
to a quartet, to a triplet, a second solo, and finally a full choral singing. Composers add this
element to choral pieces sometimes to completely change direction of a song, even making a
different group end a song. This allows a composer to form an abundance of different sounds
that contribute to their musical works (www2.nau.edu.). Another way that composers can add
this emotional significance is by focusing on the expression of each singer. Having a singer
focus on character, or the specific person, place, of feeling directed towards in the piece can lead
to a more sincere piece of music (www.articlesofnote.com). This is one reason why many
composers use history or nature for inspiration, creating a truly moving and genuine experience
for listeners. Many important facets of singing with emotion help create a magnificent musical
piece.
Composing a musical piece requires a great deal of work on both technical and
inspirational levels. When composing a piece for an organized chorus, paying attention to group
wants and maintaining vocal health prove imperative in the song creating process. Proper
posture and breathing that is incorporated into a piece can greatly enhance the vocal quality of
those who are singing. Using harmony and embellishment in a way that helps aid the music
being written can drastically change the depth and intricacy of a well constructed composition.
Along with this, introducing character to singers and looking for sincere inspiration when writing
7. the piece can create a very meaningful and genuine experience for listeners. Through technical
and emotional exploration of musical creation, truly incredible compositions can be made.
