What Does a Chorus Do Before a Concert?

Warming up is important for a chorus.

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There are many things a chorus must do before it is ready to perform a concert. No chorus can simply take the stage and expect to perform to the best of their abilities without first warming up. For a chorus to perform effectively as a group they must be vocally prepared and unified under a common, conscious bond.

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A chorus must warm up by singing scales. Scales are the basic building blocks of choral music. A chorus should warm up by singing scales starting with a scale that is in a low register and building up chromatically to higher and higher scales. The scales that a chorus warms up with may vary from major scales, minor scales, arpeggios and chromatic scales.

Breathing Exercises

A chorus should do breathing exercises before a performance. Breathing exercises are important for breath control and breathing stamina, as singing relies heavily on the respiratory system. Have the chorus take deep, metered breaths, ideally to a metronome. The chorus breathes in for four counts and breathes out for four counts, for example.

Vocal Exercises

Vocal exercises are important for a chorus, especially when there is a unison vowel or consonant sound in a song. A choir should run through various diction exercises before a performance. Diction exercises do not necessarily have to include music. Having a choir recite a line of dialogue from Shakespeare, for example, can unify the choir’s pronunciation of certain vowel sounds and hard consonants. If a choir can collectively execute a tongue twister in unison they will have no problem enunciating a line from a song together.

Touch

For a choir to sing together as one, they cannot have any sense of individual self-consciousness or shame. A choir should ideally become a single entity in a performance with many voices constituting the overarching voice. A great method for achieving this is touch. Have the choir hold hands and run through any scale, vocal exercise or song. This gives a choir a sense of oneness integral in performing well together.

ReferencesMusic for Church Choirs: Warm UpNorthwestern University: Warmup IdeasPhoto Credit Brand X Pictures/Brand X Pictures/Getty ImagesRead Next:

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Dress Suggestions for a Concert

Consider whether you want to blend in with the concert crowd.

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Concerts may be, on the surface at least, all about the music and having a fun time, but many people will have one eye on what others are wearing, too. At some types of concert, such as performances by acts in certain musical genres, a rough dress code is created by the majority of attendees. At other gigs though, dress is less uniform and more relaxed.

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A few general dress suggestions will help you enjoy a concert. For a start, consider your footwear. If you’re going to be standing or even sitting for a prolonged amount of time, you’ll need shoes you’re comfortable in and that don’t cause pain after a few hours. It may be worth ditching high heels, for example, in favor of old sneakers. A trendy jacket may look the part, but if you’re attending an outdoor concert, a hooded sweater may be more useful when the sun goes down and the weather becomes chilly. Items such as jeans are always worth considering, since they’re comfortable and also let you move around easily, making them suitable for dancing.

Rock Concert

Rock concerts tend to welcome a grungier look than many other gigs, so feel free to go for those ripped jeans or that leather jacket you’ve always wanted to wear out. Rock gigs are also the place to don a band T-shirt, especially if it’s well-faded -- you’ll look like you’ve been into that band for years. Specific genres of rock often promote a certain look; for example, at a heavy metal gig you’ll find that black is often the color of choice. While not the most practical of garments, items such as corsets are worn by the girls at Gothic metal concerts.

Classical Concert

While classical concerts in the 21st century are no longer the domain of entire audiences dressed up to the nines, you will fit in better in many such settings if you’ve made some effort with your outfit. Audiences at classical concerts do tend to vary a lot though in terms of their garb, though. While some may dress in cocktail dresses or suits, others will simply wear a button-up shirt and pants. Only for gala-style events do you truly need to don a suit or dress of corresponding elegance if you’re female.

Pop Concert

Pop concerts run the gamut from boy-band gigs to performances by rap superstars, and so the styles you’ll see can vary tremendously, too. You shouldn’t feel a need to dress to a particular style at more mainstream pop concerts, and you can generally get away with a top or shirt and pants if you don’t feel like dressing up. Jeans and other comfortable garments are suitable to fall back on here.

ReferencesMostChic: Fashion Ideas for ConcertsAtlanta Symphony Orchestra: New to the SymphonyPhoto Credit NA/Photos.com/Getty ImagesRead Next:

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How to Seat a Concert Band

Seat your band to best serve the music.

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Each conductor has his own preference when seating a concert band, and musicians must be prepared to acclimate frequently to new arrangements. As you decide how to seat your band, consider sound balance, visual interest and the particular demands of each piece. Don't be afraid to have your musicians move around between pieces -- seat the band to best display each piece of music. Traditionally, instruments are seated in sections, with all the flutes together, all the clarinets together and so forth; however, you can bend this rule if another system serves your ensemble.

Related Searches:Difficulty:Moderately ChallengingInstructions 1

Put quieter instruments in the front and louder instruments in the back. This ensures that the audience can hear the quieter voices. The exception to this rule is when a typically louder instrument is the solo voice; if your first trombone has an evocative solo, put him in front for that piece.

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Experiment with varying the distance between players during rehearsal. Determine whether your ensemble functions better when they are seated close together and can hear each other better, or whether they need to be able to hear their own instruments more clearly.

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Move your section leaders to the inside of the group, then to the outside. Test which configuration works best for your band. According to Paul Fergus of the National Association for Music Education, having them in the center encourages communication between band members, while having them on the outside encourages active listening.

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Watch your ensemble and see which instruments are the most visually interesting to an audience. If it will not cause the sound to suffer, put those instruments in the front or on the outside, where the audience can see them more clearly. According to Kenneth Amis, assistant conductor of MIT's wind ensemble, audiences understand music better and respond to it more strongly when they can see it as well as hear it.

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Seat instruments that can create an overwhelming amount of sound, such as the timpani or tuba, near the middle of the band. This helps prevent balance problems.

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Adjust your seating arrangements until you find the ones that display your ensemble and its music to their finest. Experiment until you are fully satisfied.

Tips & Warnings

If you have instrumentalists move between pieces, make sure you know where your musicians are in each piece.

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ReferencesAmis Musical Circle: Musical ChairsNational Association for Music Education: Concert Band Set-UpPhoto Credit Ablestock.com/AbleStock.com/Getty ImagesRead Next:

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How to Hook Up a PA Horn's Power

FoodHomeStyleMoneyFamilyHealthShiftMore This SeasonSimplify the SeasonFriendsgivingTailgating HomeMusicMusic Entertainment & ConcertsSet up a PA SystemHow to Hook Up a PA Horn's PowerHow to Hook Up a PA Horn's PowerPrint this articleThe use of a crossover when hooking up a PA horn's power amp is vital, as full-range frequency output from the amplifier will damage the horn's voice coil and diaphragm. To achieve frequency separation, electronic crossovers filter frequencies and route signals to dedicated power amps connected to horns and speakers.

Related Searches:Difficulty:ModerateInstructions Things You'll NeedActive electronic 2-way crossover3 Shielded interconnect cables2 Unshielded speaker cablesSuggest Edits1

Power off all switches, including those for the mixer, crossover, amplifier and other connected equipment. Turn down all volume controls.

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Plug one end of a shielded interconnect cable into the sound mixer's main output jack and the opposite end into the crossover's main "Input" jack.

3

Insert the connector of a shielded interconnect cable into the crossover's "High" output jack, then connect the other end into the horn amplifier's "Input" jack.

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Connect another shielded cable between the crossover's "Low" output jack and the woofer amplifier's "Input" jack.

5

Plug an unshielded speaker cable into the speaker "Output" jack of the horn amplifier, then connect the other end into the "Input" jack of the PA horn.

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Insert the end of an unshielded speaker cable into the "Output" jack of the woofer amplifier, then insert the other end into the "Input" jack on the woofer.

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Power on all equipment, set crossover frequency points to the settings recommended by your equipment's manufacturer, then adjust volume controls to desired levels.

Tips & Warnings

Stereo 2- to 5-way systems are connected in the same manner with additional connection cables, amps, speakers and compatible crossovers.

Passive crossovers, those with non-changeable preset frequencies, are connected in the same manner.

Read the crossover user manual for proper settings, and the PA horn and woofer specification sheets for frequency ratings. Failure to do so will result in poor sound and possible damage to the horn and amplifier.

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ReferencesAstralsound: PA System SchematicSabre International: Crossovers as Used in Pro Audio SystemsResourcesYorkville Sound: What Is A Crossover and How Does It WorkElectro-Voice: The PA BibleRead Next:

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Things to Do Near the Grand Ole Opry

The vibrant city of Nashville has plenty to do.

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The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly stage concert located in Nashville, Tennessee. Beginning as a radio concert in 1925, the Grand Ole Opry now features live music and acts in country, gospel, bluegrass and comedy either at the Ryman Auditorium or the Opry Originals: The Shop on Broadway.

Related Searches: Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

Located on the west bank of the Cumberland River in Nashville just blocks from the Ryman Auditorium (ryman.com), visiting the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum (countrymusichalloffame.org) can enhance a tourist's appreciation for the Grand Ole Opry (opry.com). The museum has a large collection of exhibits and collections dedicated to country music spanning decades. It features sound clips which can be heard from many of the great artists, beginning in the 1940s.

Farmer's Market

Located near the capitol building and the open-air shopping pavilion on 8th Avenue, The Nashville Farmer's Market provides tourists with a sampling of local fare. From seafood to specialized barbeque sauces and briskets, to vegetables and fruits from local farms, fill your stomach before visiting a Grand Ole Opry show.

Frist Art Center

Located in the downtown area of Nashville, the First Art Center (fristcenter.org) features local, regional and globally-famous art. It's known for its Art Deco building collection and exhibits, which change every six to eight weeks. It also has 30 interactive stations where visitors can paint with watercolors or create their own sculptures.

The Parthenon

Located in Nashville's largest urban park, Centennial Park, the Parthenon is a recreation of the original building in ancient Greece. The Parthenon includes replicas of Athenian sculptures, including a 42-foot Athena statue of Athena. It also has plaster replicas of Parthenon Marbles, according to the city's official website, which are actual casts of the original pediments which date back to 438 B.C.

ReferencesGrand Ole Opry: About the OpryRyman Auditorium: AboutNashville Music City: Things To Do in Nashville, TNCountry Music Hall of Fame and MuseumBlueShoe Guide: Nashville Farmer's MarketThe Frist Center: Frist Center for the Visual ArtsNashville Government: The ParthenonPhoto Credit Rick Diamond/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty ImagesRead Next:

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