Leadership

Hello, solfa sentinels!

Shorts and sandals begone!  I looked out my window this morning and saw...

the first snow of the season.

No kidding.  The switch has flipped.

So, my mug of mint tea and I got to thinking about this week's blog, and this is what came up:

Leadership.  I find this topic interesting, maybe because so much of my time is spent not being the boss, but definitely being in a position where I feel responsible for the way things go.  I'm the TA, the big sister, the assistant conductor, the section leader, the Girl Friday.  I have come to believe that there is quite an art to this, and while I've spent a good number of years in this kind of role, it's only more recently that I find myself able to comfortably analyze it and cope with everything it means.  At the moment, I count myself very lucky to be spending the majority of my professional time in situations where the person in charge really is in charge, both in name and in the way s/he chooses to behave.  In this kind of model, it's easy to be a supportive sub-leader -- I just get to do what is asked of me...no fussing, no mind-reading, no power struggles, no secret compensating.  And, it's probably quite obvious from the list at the end of that last sentence that I've definitely been in situations that were less copacetic.  There are many ways of getting around in such environments, and sometimes those getting-around behaviors stay with us unawares, even when things are better and we don't need them anymore.  The upside is that having a whole palette of sub-leader behaviors should theoretically give a person a lot of options in any given situation....and options are powerful when we are able to recognize them as such.

And, since I've grown up in a world where computers have always been present, I tend to think of behavioral choices in terms of a Control Panel -- meaning that there are choices we make actively on a case-by-case basis, but there are also "default settings"...presets that make certain functions automatic.  Over time, I think we become more acquainted with our own default settings, we realize that we have the power to change them, and through experimentation and blind luck, sometimes we come upon what works best for us.  For me, that has had a lot to do with patience, slowing down, and realizing that consistency and small bites are usually the best way to go.  As it turns out, the way I am slowly learning to treat myself is also the best way to lead and to treat other people.

This is perhaps one of the biggest themes of my own pedagogical philosophy, though I don't know if I've ever stated it in so many words before: the best thing I can do for you is convince you that you are your own best teacher.  Or, stated another way: I can only make a series of guesses about how any person learns and set up contexts that get at them, but if you know how you learn, you hold the keys to limitlessness.  It's just a matter of becoming conscious and then taking the time.  In this sense, every student must be a leader.  Hopefully, the teacher is capable and the activities and instruction are sound, and just following directions will get you close to where you want to be.  However, the last step is always for the student to take -- translating what is outside into what lives inside.  That takes guts and patience and knowledge.  It takes leadership.

All of that being said:

Rising Level 2's


Take a look at this lovely piece...only as far as the first measure of p. 3, unless you're feeling more adventurous:
http://www.cpdl.org/wiki/images/2/24/Pergolesi_09_Sancta_mater.pdf


You can take a listen here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zw4GfuclCc

If you only look at the solo parts (up to the top of p. 3, as indicated), you can use the key of E-flat for the entire soprano solo and B-flat for the entire alto solo.  This will mean that you have to cope with one little chromatic syllable (the same one in both parts), but I bet you'll be fine.

I'd advise you to work through the rhythm first, one vocal line at a time - conducting is your friend!

Are there common motives between the soprano and alto lines?  What makes them easy?  What makes them difficult?

If you do decide to go on to the true duet section, be advised that you'll be traveling in the flat direction around the circle of fifths, and that you'll need to watch out for excursions to minor keys.


Rising Level 3's


Look at this little gem:
http://www.cpdl.org/wiki/images/7/79/Pergolesi_08_Fac_ut_ardeat.pdf

I know it looks long, but I bet you can work your way through it little by little...

You can listen to it here (at ramming speed, but with a wicked countertenor!):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnOmk_wAo8c

And here (with a boys' choir, at a much more moderate clip)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afPj4dSuR1Y&feature=related

I'd advise you to print out the score and listen first, then mark the places where the material is repeated.
Once you've set up a little form scheme for yourself, check out the key centers....it does travel a little , but never very far afield.  I bet you can puzzle it out.

From there, use your tonal and form schemes to guide your study of the piece.  How will you break it up?  Would working backwards be a good approach?  Are the voice parts roughly equal?  Will you count in 4 or in 2?  Will going slow actually be helpful or not?  You're in charge!

Rising Level 4's


For you, something a little different:

http://imslp.info/files/imglnks/usimg/9/9e/IMSLP42945-PMLP33670-Strauss--Op_37_6_Lieder.pdf

Check out the first song in the set.  You can read the incredibly sweet translation of the text here:
http://www.recmusic.org/lieder/get_text.html?TextId=10228

And you can listen to a recording here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRNbjDzBBGw

Once you've had a listen, try your hand at figuring out key areas for the vocal line.  If you get stuck, looking at the piano line might be somewhat helpful.  There's definitely some enharmonic and remote stuff going on -- and isn't it magic how it all works out in the end?

Make some decisions about the solfa, and try to sing through sections unaccompanied.  Once individual key areas feel reasonably secure, try stringing them together.  See if you can make it through the whole piece unaccompanied, but in the right keys -- it's a bit of a feat, I must say!

Enjoy!