Who's Loud? Hands Up!

Who’s Loud? Hands up!

Sometimes singers fail to implement a solid dynamic plan. Mental energy focused on reading, tuning, target vowels, counting, etc. can lead to dynamics being left out of the mix. Sometimes entropy takes its toll and the extremes of loud and soft turn into a homogenous mezzo-forte.

I saw Ben Spalding coach an a cappella group by having them sing in a circular formation. He asked them to move towards the center of the circle when they sang softly, and back up from the center as they got louder. This was an easy way to see who remembered the dynamic plan, who was cueing off other singers, and who was lost. It also gave the singers a way to stay physically involved in their singing, reminding them of their dynamic level.

Recently, my middle-school choir assistant was struggling with getting the choir to make significant dynamic changes, so I suggested a modified version of Ben’s plan, one that the choir could do on the risers: show your dynamic level with your “free hand” (the one not holding the music). All the way down for pianissimo, up through chest height for mezzo-forte, all the way to as high as possible for fortissimo. Who’s loud? Hands up!

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Such practices not only help the singers to be mindful of their dynamics, they help the director see who is most successful vs. who is struggling. Remember in math class where they said “show your work?” This is one of several ways choir singers can “show their work.”

What are some other ways you help singers reinforce their dynamic plan? Let’s all help each other out - put your favorite dynamics tips and tricks in the comments!