Katie Gerber
Greetings, Prep 3 Families and Singers,
Thank you for a wonderful first week of rehearsals! I am incredibly excited by the size and enthusiasm of our two Prep 3 classes. Already on their first day of rehearsal, I could see friendships forming, and beautiful sounds being produced. I am grateful and excited to work with such a talented group of young singers, and I know that we have a wonderful year of music-making ahead of us!
Rehearsal Recap:
- We started rehearsal with the fun and engaging African-American circle game, Oboshinotentoten , and the children had a great time joining the percussion band once they were “out.”
- The children kept their instruments and performed the rhythm of their names, first as solos in Call and Response form, then simultaneously, creating multiple layers of rhythm. I was already so impressed by their rhythmic instincts, and their ability to maintain a cohesive beat in such a large group!
- We assembled our chorus rows and did a variety of vocal warm-ups to start work on developing their overall sound and tone, and to engage their minds and focus:
- Gimme 1,2,3 – a fun body percussion exercise featuring improvised sounds at the end.
- Tune A – the singers sustained an A with a beautiful, pure “oooh” vowel, which immediately allowed their voices to blend and work towards excellent intonation and vocal resonance.
- Flee-Flay-Flah-Floh-Floo – listen here:
- The singers worked through the C major scale in solfege, and took turns “composing” different tunes in C major by pointing to the different pitches in the scale.
- They applied this by sight-singing the beautiful canon, Sweetly the Swan Sings – we added steps and claps to emphasize the rhythmic elements! The singers then did a great job singing this canon in 2-part harmony.
- The singers were introduced to one of their recital pieces, Velvet Shoes: We listened to the text being read aloud by 2 singers and then discussed the meaning of the song, and where we might be going if we were taking this magical journey through the snow. The singers trekked through the snow and sang the song beautifully!
- *Tuesday’s Prep 2 also played Telephone Song, and started the super cool Jazz song, Scat Cat!
Action Items for this Week:
- Review our warm-up, Flee-Flay-Flah-Floh-Floo (above) focusing on tall vowels, and a smooth, legato line.
- Review our canon, Sweetly the Swan Sings, in solfege and with the text. Teach it to someone in your family, and sing in 2-part harmony.
- Listen to Velvet Shoes, Scat Cat, and African Noel, while following along in your music.
- Please complete the All About Me sheet in your folder, and bring it back next week!
- Please stay tuned for mp3s of the songs coming in the next week or two!
Have a great weekend!
Katie