All-State Choirs Omnibus 2015-2016 1. Overview of 2015-2016 process TABLE OF CONTENTS 2. FVA All-State Participation Contract (required for all students) 3. FMEA All-State Participation Contract (required for all students) NOTE: The FMEA contract MUST be copied on the front and back of the SAME sheet of paper! Students without completed contracts MAY NOT complete ANY portion of the All-State audition process. 4. All-State Musicianship Test guidelines 5. All-State Sight-Reading procedures information 6. All-State Sight-Reading guidelines 7. Sight-Reading Tally Sheet 8. All-State Vocal Quality procedures information 9. All-State Vocal Quality rubric 10. Vocal Quality Recording Verification Sheet 11. Middle School Vocabulary 12. High School Vocabulary 13. 2016 All-State Choir Conductor & Repertoire List
Calendar September 1 Deadline for FMEA/FVA Membership (via www.flmusiced.org) September 1-15- All-State Online Registration (set by District Chair) September 26 Tampa hotel blocks open at 9:00 am and 2016 Conference Pre-Registration opens online October 1 Vocal Quality vocalise and prepared excerpts released (via www.fva.net) November 9 All-State Seats announced (via www.fva.net) November 14- Hotel Cancellation deadline at 5:00 pm November 16- Hotels will charge one night of each room reserved December 11- FMEA Pre-Registration ends at midnight (via www.flmusiced.org) Registration Registration for the 2016 All-State choirs will proceed via the online registration program provided by FMEA (the same program as last year). The voicings for each choir will be as follows: HS- S1, S2, A1, A2, T1, T2, B1, B2; MS Mixed- S, A, T, B and MS Treble- T1, T2, T3. Directors will also provide emergency contact information and height at the time of registration. No changes may be made after the registration window has closed. The window will open September 1st and close on September 15th. Registrations will not be accepted after the window has closed. Musicianship Testing No changes have been made to the procedures for the Musicianship Test from the previous school year. Musicianship study materials will be available on the website for teacher and student use. In recent years, the test itself has been re-ordered with chord quality and interval recognition coming before melodic/rhythmic recognition and questions have been added in which the student must select the note value that best completes a given measure. The vocabulary list has not changed for this cycle. Each student will receive a bar code sticker to use on their Scantron sheet. This identification number will be used throughout the All-State process. PASSING SCORES (out of 50) MIDDLE SCHOOL 35 HIGH SCHOOL (WOMEN S/MEN S)- 35 HIGH SCHOOL (CONCERT/SIGHT-READING)- 40 Sight-Reading Testing No changes have been made to the procedures for the Sight-Reading Test from the previous school year. All districts are encouraged to make use of the tally scratch sheets during the testing. The tally sheets are available in the Omnibus. Sight-Reading examples and study materials will be available on the website for teacher and student use. The top 25 scoring high school students in each section (S,A,T,B) will be placed in the Sight-Reading Chorus. The minimum score accepted into the chorus is 30 measures out of 40. Each student will receive a Sight-Reading adjudication sheet with a pre-printed bar code. This identification number will be used throughout the All-State process. PASSING SCORES MIDDLE SCHOOL 8 out of 24 HIGH SCHOOL (WOMEN S/MEN S)- 10 out of 40 HIGH SCHOOL (CONCERT)- 20 out of 40 All-StateProcedures 2015-2016
Vocal Quality/Music Preparation Testing Adjudicator Selection The FVA Board has selected an Audition Chair for each voice part. The Audition Chairs are spread throughout the state and will be responsible for auditions for selecting two other adjudicators. That panel will meet at a central location and complete the adjudication. They will be paid for their services. Audition Information The Vocal Quality/Music Preparation is an individual audition. Students will perform all four sections as an individual with prepared accompaniment tracks. There will be no retests, unless the first recording attempt is incomplete as determined by the directors in the recording room. The procedure has not changed from the previous year. Vocalise Each student will perform a required vocalise to demonstrate range, quality and intonation. There will be one ascending and one descending vocalise which will be performed on zaw with the consonant only performed on the initial pitch of each exercise. The vocalise will be performed with a recorded track that will set tempo and pitch. The vocalise tracks for each voice part will be available on the FVA website two weeks prior to the first date of the Vocal Audition window. Students should prepare the vocalise with the track to ensure confidence. The vocalise portion will last approximately 1 minute. NOTE: New Vocalise tracks have been created for this year! Check the website and make sure your students are practicing with the new tracks created by ChoralTracks for FVA. Repertoire to be Auditioned CONCERT CHORUS: Students who score at least 80 % on the Musicianship Test, and score a minimum of 20 measures on the Sight-Reading Test are eligible for the SATB Concert Choir. They will audition on 3 (three) pieces selected from the Concert Choir repertoire (list located at the end of the Omnibus). There are six pieces in the purchased repertoire packet, and one that is available for download online. Learning tracks for all of the repertoire will be available for purchase and download from ChoralTracks. One audition piece will be announced October 1. WOMEN S CHORUS/MEN S CHORUS: Students who pass the Musicianship and Sight-Reading Tests, but score less than 80% and read fewer than 20 measures, are eligible for the SSAA Women s or TTBB Men s Chorus. These students will audition on 3 (three) pieces from their respective repertoire packets (list located at the end of the Omnibus). There are eight pieces in the purchased TTBB repertoire packet, and 6 pieces in the purchased SSAA packet, with three additional SSAA pieces available for download online. Learning tracks for all of the repertoire will be available for purchase and download from ChoralTracks. One audition piece will be announced on October 1. MS MIXED CHORUS: Students auditioning for the Middle School Mixed Chorus will audition on 3 (three) pieces (list located at the end of the Omnibus). There are seven pieces in their repertoire packet. Learning tracks for all of the repertoire will be available for purchase and download from ChoralTracks (separate versions for Districts 1-8 and 9-18, based on the part splits indicated below). MS TREBLE CHORUS: Students auditioning for the Middle School Treble Chorus will audition on 3 (three) pieces (list located at the end of the Omnibus). There are five pieces in their purchased repertoire packet, and one that is available for download online. Learning tracks for all of the repertoire will be available for purchase and download from ChoralTracks (separate versions for Districts 1-8 and 9-18, based on the part splits indicated below).
Part Splits If a voice part splits beyond the part divisions already established, Districts 1-8 will learn the upper notes and Districts 9-18 will learn the lower notes. This is to ensure that there is a somewhat equal distribution for the clinicians to work with in January. Clinicians may decide to re-voice at that time. Part splits will not be considered in the adjudication of Vocal Quality auditions, as long as one of the part options is performed correctly. ADDITIONAL HS PART SPLIT NOTES HS WOMEN "Lift Up the Name of the Lord"- John Helgen Soprano 3 part divisi on pg. 8-11- S1 sing S1, S2 sing S2, A1 sing S3 HS MEN "When I Fall in Love"- James Mulholland 3 part split on pg. 11- follow stems, T1 sing T1, T2 sing T2, B1 & B2 sing B HS CONCERT "Take Me to the River"- Rollo Dilworth Note that the Tenor part is the bottom notes of the treble clef "Tykus Tykus"- Vaclovas Augustinas Choir 1- S1, A1, T1, B1 Choir 2- S2, A2, T2, B2 ADDITIONAL JH/MS PART SPLIT NOTES MS MIXED Antiphonal Alleluia All students sing Choir 1. Choir 2 will be played by instruments only. In the Heart of the World We will have a few places of octave displacement for the basses. Recording will have both octaves, so basses have a choice depending on which notes fit in their range. Page 3, measure 18, last beat, F in both octaves. Same in the next measure. Page 4, measure 24. Beats 2 and 3, C and Bb in both octaves. Same in next measure with Gs Page 7, measure 46, beats 2 and 3, same as measure 24. Measure 47 like measure 25. Page 9, measure 62, beats 2 and 3, C and Bb in both octaves. Same in the next measure with the Gs. Juego a que me Quemo On page 10, measure 59, please sing C in both octaves for the basses. Same on A in measure 63.
MS TREBLE Estrella Brillante We re singing this SATB piece as a treble choir piece. We ll sing in Spanish only. No one is performing the bass. Descant will be learned on site as a small group. Treble 1 - Second staff from the top (labeled Sop 1). When the second staff splits at m. 23, Treble 1 sings the top notes. Treble 1 sings the top staff (the a ) in the final three bars of the piece. Treble 2 - Second staff from the top (labeled Sop 2). When the second staff splits at m. 23, Treble 2 sings the bottom notes. Treble 2 sings the second staff (the e ) in the final three bars of the piece. Treble 3 - Third staff from the top (labeled Alto) Treble 3 sings the third staff (the C#) in the final three bars of the piece. Sanctus/Benedictus Recorded under tempo. Treble 1 -Sing the Soprano 2 part throughout AND the Soprano 1 part in mm. 12-23 and 54 66. Treble 2 -Sing the Alto 1 part. Treble 3 - Sing the Alto 2 part. Ergen Deda The score has several errors: 1. m. 17, top staff: there should be no grace note before the first note. 2. m. 17, top staff: please add the two grace notes on the third C# as in m. 9. 3. m. 18, bottom staff: delete the final C# of the bar. Stay on the B. 4. m. 26, top staff, bottom notes: G# G# G# F# (as in m. 92) 5. m. 27, top staff, bottom notes: F# F# (as in m. 93) 6. m. 29-30, top staff, bottom notes: F# D C# C# (as in mm. 95-96) 7. m. 36, top notes: omit the grace notes and omit the final F#. 8. m. 91, top staff, bottom notes: last dotted eighth should be an eighth and a sixteenth (the same rhythm as the top notes) 9. m. 91, bottom staff: last dotted eighth should be an eighth and a sixteenth (the same rhythm as the other parts) 10. mm. 91 92, all parts: text should be Na o-ro-to do mo-mi-te 11. m. 99: text should be Svi-te instead of Svi-to 12. m. 102: m. 36, top notes: omit the grace notes and omit the final F#. In addition to the changes above, please: 1. Sing the three voice parts in mm. 57 60 as Treble 1; G# then B then C#, changing to the D in m. 60
Treble 2: G# only (sustained) Treble 3: C# then F# (sustaining the F#) 2. Sing mm. 123 126 EXACTLY THE SAME as you did mm. 57 60 (disregarding the notation). Then OMIT mm. 128 to the end of the piece. By the River of Babylon Treble 1 mm. 5 12, Soprano 2 mm. 13 end, Soprano 1 Treble 2 mm. 2 12, Alto 1 mm. 13 47, Soprano 2 mm. 48 59, Alto 1 mm. 60 94 (first note), Soprano 2 mm. 94 (last 3 notes) - 104, Alto 1 mm. 105 end, Soprano 2 Treble 3 mm. 4 12, Alto 2 mm. 13 20, Alto 1 mm. 27 59, Alto 2 mm. 60 94 (first note), Alto 1 (omitting alto 2) mm. 95 end, alto 2 Rehearsal Tracks and Purchasing Music STUDENTS MUST ARRIVE ON SITE AT THE VOCAL AUDITION WITH A COMPLETE PACKET OF MUSIC! Photocopied music or sharing music is not permitted and will result in disqualification. ChoralTracks is our vendor for rehearsal and audition tracks this year: http://choraltracks.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=florida There are 5 permutations of each track: Balanced voices, Part Predominant, Part Muted, Part Left, and Accompaniment only. MASTER LICENSE- Allows the teacher to distribute as many copies as needed. Each school that purchases a Master License receives a secure and free digital download of all tracks. Students also have access to free mobile app. Choral Tracks accepts PayPal, Credit Card, or check. singer s Concert Chorus= $99.99 SSAA or TTBB Chorus= $49.99 MS Concert or MS Treble Chorus= $49.99 Note: Schools with small numbers should consider purchasing the track for only their voice part for $13.99. CDs are also available for an extra charge. Audition Procedures Students will be organized and sent to recording rooms using whatever method the district traditionally uses for assigning students to rooms. The student will enter a recording room that is equipped with a recording device, a playback device and a music stand. Two directors will also be need in each recording room. It is not nec-
essary to prevent students from recording their audition in a room with their own director. The directors will greet the student, issue short instructions (get music in order, a reminder of what to say at the beginning of the recording) and begin the audition. The student will stand at the music stand approximately one to two feet from the microphone of the recording device. The directors will need to determine the optimal distance for clear recordings before beginning. The student will begin by stating their voice part and their All-State ID number (example: H12-1234). One director will begin the playback of the prepared tracks and the other director will press record on the recording device. The student will perform the four sections of the audition. When the recording is completed, the student will have the opportunity to hear random sections of the track to verify that the recording is complete. The verification sheet will also serve as a paper record of the order in which the students were recorded. Then, the student will affix their barcode sticker to a verification sheet and sign that their recording was complete. There will be no retests, unless the directors agree that the recording is incomplete. In the event that two recordings are made, both tracks should be saved and the District Chair should be notified and will verify that the first recording was unusable. The directors will save the files after it has been verified. All files must be recorded in.mp3 format. They will save each file in this format: All-State ID Number.mp3 (examples: M31-014.mp3 or H31-015.mp3). Approved Recording Devices ALL FILES MUST BE RECORDED IN.MP3 FORMAT! PC or MAC computer (laptop or desktop) with Audacity or GarageBand (RECOMMENDED) NOTE: Audacity is FREE audio editor available at audacity.sourceforge.net. It is also necessary to download the LAME.mp3 encoder from lame.buanzo.com.ar to record into.mp3 format automatically. Tutorials on the use of Audacity, the LAME encoder and GarageBand will be available on the FVA website. The FVA Board has determined that internal microphones or external microphones may be used, depending on what each district has available. The recommended brand is Blue Microphones (www.bluemic.com), which sells USB-input mics of good quality and USB mic converters that can be used with an XLR mic. COMPLETE INSTRUCTIONS FOR WORKING WITH AUDACITY AND GARAGEBAND CAN BE FOUND ON THE FVA WEBSITE. Approved Playback Devices PC or MAC computer (laptop or desktop) with.mp3 player or Audacity, itunes or other.mp3 capable playback program (RECOMMENDED) CD player (.mp3 compatible) NOTE: If the internal speakers on the playback computer are not adequate, it is strongly recommended that external speakers be used to ensure that the student can hear the track clearly. Auditioning students will not listen to the track on headphones/earbuds while making the recording. Post-Audition The District Chair will need to collect and upload all audition recordings. It is recommended that USB drives and external hard drives be used to quickly move the files onto one computer. Files will be uploaded to the FMEA website.
Adjudication Adjudicators will receive adjudication instructions via e-mail, and will have about one week to finish their adjudication. Scores will be input directly into the MPA Online program. Each recording will be scored to using a rubric based on the Vocal Solo and Choral Performance MPA adjudication sheets. The maximum Vocal Audition score will be 60. Each recording will be adjudicated by three judges. The final score will be an average of the 3 judges scores. Each adjudicator will listen to a minimum of 5 recordings at random to help set a baseline. A random button will be used for this purpose and will not show the All-State ID number of the student being heard to establish a baseline. Judges will have the option to indicate that they do not recommend a student for All-State, based on the student s recording. If 2 out of 3 judges do not recommend the student, that student will not be seated in an All-State chorus unless they are needed for balance purposes. Seat Allocations Seat allocations for the 2016 Florida All-State Choirs will be conducted as in the previous year. Please note that representative students will be seated based on the balance needs of the All-State Choruses, rather than the highest score of the represented school. Seats will be announced on the FVA website on November 9, 2015. Every effort will be made to get this information out as early as possible while still ensuring that all results are properly verified and checked by multiple eyes. Thank you for your patience!
FVA All State Audition Contract FVA District Dear Parents and Students, We are pleased that your child has chosen to audition for this year's Florida All State Chorus. This process is a most rigorous one and will challenge the musicianship skills of each student. There are six choruses, two of which are Select (Reading and Concert) while the other four (Women, Men, MS Concert and Treble) are Representative. Select choir seats will be allocated to the students receiving the highest composite scores throughout the state. Schools that do not receive a select allocation will receive a representative All State seat based on that school s highest qualifying score and available voice part. All-State Chorus participants are expected to perform the complete All-State program for their assigned choir. The repertoire has been selected by the clinicians to educate the students musically and challenge them artistically. The all-state chorus audition is made up of three sections: the Musicianship Exam, the Sight-reading Exam and the Vocal Audition, which combine for a composite score. The Musicianship Exam, worth 30% of the total score, is a written test measuring the singer's music theory skills. This year a minimum score of 80% is necessary to be eligible for a seat in the Sight-Reading or Concert Choruses. The Women s, Men s, MS Mixed and MS Treble choruses still require a minimum score of 70%. The Sight-reading Exam measures the singer s ability to sight-sing unaccompanied exercises. It is 35% of the total score. Singers in the 7 th and 8 th grades must read at least 8 measures correctly. Minimum sight-reading scores for eligibility in the Women s and Men s Choruses remain at 10 measures. High school students vying for a seat in the Concert Chorus are expected to sing a minimum of 20 measures correctly and unless a student opts out, the top 25 sight-readers in each section will be awarded the select 100 seats in the Reading Chorus. In the Vocal Quality audition, students will be adjudicated based on recorded excerpts of the All-State material and a vocalise. Their vocal quality, musicality and technical preparation (pass/fail) will be assessed. Students will have one opportunity to make their audition recording and will have the opportunity to verify that there were no technical difficulties in the recording. The Vocal Quality section of the audition is 35% of the composite score. The Florida Vocal Association utilizes a seat allocation system to help ensure that the highest scoring students are seated in the select choirs and that as many schools as possible are represented in the representative choirs. While it seeks to award the highest scoring students the majority of the time, it does on occasion admit a lower scoring student in its implementation. We want each parent and student to understand that it is possible for a lower scoring student to be placed in a choir over a higher scoring student. Additionally, each schools test scores and student names will be posted on the FMEA MPAOnline website and can be accessed by your choral director. Each student, parent and director must sign and return this contract prior to the musicianship test and sight singing test in order to participate. It is the responsibility of the director, parent, and student to consult the rehearsal schedule posted on the FVA website. The address is: www.fva.net. While all choirs have similar rehearsal schedules, some do have times that are different than others. All groups begin on Thursday and conclude on Friday or Saturday at different times. Attendance is required at ALL rehearsals, concerts and clinics, including Saturday events. I have read and accept the contract. / / Student Name (printed) Student's Signature Date / / Parent Name (printed) Parent's Signature Date / / School Name School Director's Signature Date
FVA ALL-STATE: HIGH SCHOOL MUSICIANSHIP TEST The format of the test remains the same from the previous cycle. The first four sections of the exam are administered with a recorded audio track and narrative. Section 1: Chord Quality Recognition 10 pts - Students identify Major, minor, Augmented, and diminished chords when played melodically and harmonically. Section 2: Interval Recognition 10 pts - Students identify Major and minor intervals when played melodically and harmonically. Section 3: Melodic and Rhythmic Recognition 16 pts - Students identify correctly and incorrectly played measures in a melody. Section 4: Rhythmic Recognition 4 pts - Students identify correctly and incorrectly played rhythmic exercises. Section 5: Complete the Measures 4 pts - Students select the best possible rhythmic pattern to complete a partial measure of rhythm. Section 6: Time Signature Recognition 4 pts **CHANGED IN THE 2014-2015 CYCLE** - Students identify the correct time signature of a two measure example of rhythm. Section 7: Key signatures, major and minor 16 pts - Students identify Major and minor key signatures Section 8: Vocabulary 36 pts - Students select correct definitions to vocabulary words from the FVA HS Vocabulary list. TOTAL 100 points A comprehensive battery of FVA All-State Exams is available on the FVA website. These exams are very helpful in understanding the format and style of the Musicianship Test. Revised August 24, 2014
REVISED AUGUST 2014 PROCEDURES 1. Student enters room and gives adjudicators completed adjudication sheet. 2. Adjudicators determine what clef the student will use (Treble, Bass, Changing Voice). 3. The FVA example CD will be played for each student. Treble/Bass clef students use track 1, Changing Voice students use track 2. 4. Adjudicators should confirm that the student is looking at the correct examples and that no marks have been made on the SR examples. Every student should be reminded of the procedures how tonality will be established, how much study time they have for each exercise and the rules for stopping and starting over. Remember to be positive and encouraging, without commenting on the student s performance (no congratulations! or good jobs! ). FOR EACH EXERCISE... 1. Establish key, ask student to sing beginning pitch, establish tempo by counting off one measure 2. Inform student of study time limit and tell them to begin studying SILENTLY. One adjudicator keeps time. Students may use hand signs while studying. 3. Establish key, ask student to sing beginning pitch, establish tempo by counting off one measure. 4. Student reads exercise. 5. Both adjudicators use individual cross-off sheets to mark measures sung incorrectly. 6. After all exercises have been performed and the student has left, the adjudicators confer on the measures sung incorrectly and place their agreed upon result on the score sheet. PLEASE DO NOT GIVE STUDENTS A RUNNING TOTAL OF THEIR SCORE. PLEASE DO NOT INFORM STUDENTS OF WHETHER OR NOT THEY HAVE PASSED THE SIGHT READING EXAMINATION. KEY ESTABLISHMENT The key for each exercise will be established by playing an eighth note ascending and descending scale and arpeggio in the manner demonstrated on the CD (quarter note = 60). Students should be encouraged to sing along with the key establishment. Students may continue to establish the key beyond what is played, if they choose. High School Only The minor exercise (#3) should be established using the harmonic minor scale (raised 7th). Tablet-style computers with piano keyboard applications may be used to establish tonality in the FVA All-State sight-reading audition. Volume should be turned up for the student to adequately hear. If a student has a limited range and is uncomfortable in the established key, find a key that fits the singer.
TEMPI Adjudicators must establish the tempo for the student for each exercise at quarter note = 60. Students may choose a faster tempo, but may not choose a slower tempo. High School Only The compound triple exercise (#4) should be established at eighth note = 90 or dotted quarter note = 30. STUDY TIMES ROOM SET-UP 10 seconds HS #1, MS #1 Keyboard 20 seconds HS #2-4, MS #2 CD Player 30 seconds HS #5, MS #3 Music stand with SR examples placed face down AWARD MEASURES IF... all pitches and rhythms sung correctly, rests are held for the correct length Students may use any sight reading method or neutral syllable and may switch between systems in the same exercise as long as pitches and rhythms are correct. DO NOT AWARD MEASURES IF... incorrect pitches or rhythms are performed Modulations do not give credit for the measure where the modulation occurred, but do award credit for the remaining measures if they are sung correctly in the new key. Students may modulate multiple times in the same exercise. The measure of each modulation would NOT be awarded. RESTARTS Each student is allowed ONE restart. Adjudicators should use their discretion about what is a significant stop and what is a stumble, hitch, or pause. No measures sung after a stop should be counted towards the student s score. If the adjudicators determine the student has stopped they will ask the student immediately if the restart will be used. If the student says yes, establish tonality, starting pitch and tempo but do not give study time. If the student says no, continue to the next exercise. If a student wishes to use their restart after reading an entire exercise, no correct measures from the first reading may be counted. Adjudicators should establish tonality, starting pitch and tempo but do not give study time.
HIGH SCHOOL TALLY SHEET
MIDDLE SCHOOL TALLY SHEET
PROCEDURES 1. Student enters room and gives directors their note card and extra label. 2. The directors perform a sound level check while the student sings a major scale on the pitch of their choosing. 3. The directors verify that the student has their music in order and open to the correct page. The audition measures should be marked into each score before the student enters the room. 4. The student then performs their audition with the prepared auditon track containing the vocalises, the prepared excerpts and the two unprepared excerpts. One directors operates the recording device while the other operates the playback device. The student must clearly state their All- State ID number on the recording before the audition track has begun to play. Once the recording process has begun, neither the recording nor playback device will be paused or stopped until the student has finished recording all audition material. 5. The track is immediately played back for the student s verification. The entire track does not need to be played, but should be skimmed through checking that the recording is audible and there are no technical difficulties. The student may opt to not listen to their recording. If technical difficulties occur, a second recording may be made at the discretion of the directors (see information below). 6. The directors save the file in.mp3 format under the student s All-State ID number (example: H12-3456.mp3). Refer to the student s label on the note card and double check that the correct ID number is used. 7. The student affixes their label to the Verification Sheet, signs that their recording was made and reviewed, each director initials and indicates whether it was necessary to make a second recording. WHEN TO RE-RECORD AN AUDITION... REVISED AUGUST 2015 There is audible hissing/popping/crackling due to malfunctioning equipment that obscures the voice. The voice is not audible due to malfunctioning equipment (this does not apply if the student cannot produce an audible sound when placed a reasonable distance from the microphone). A cell phone/announcement/other noise interrupts the audition and obscures a portion of the vocal audition. Auditions will not be re-recorded if a student becomes emotional, nervous or distressed. This is the nature of auditions each performer gets one opportunity to perform at their best in that moment.
ROOM SET-UP Audio recording device (computer,.mp3 recorder, etc.) Audio playback device (CD player, computer, etc.) Music stand Vocal Quality Verification sheets RECOMMENDED POSITIONS ~2 ft. ~1 ft. Playback Device Student Recording Device ALL-STATE VOCALISES The following vocalises should be performed on the syllable zaw (IPA: [za]) without reiterating the consonant sound on each pitch. Each vocalise will be performed SIX times the first two repetitions will be accompanied by the piano, the remaining repetitions will be performed a cappella with a click track and chromatic cues in between each repetition. The vocalises are performed at a tempo of 100 beats per minute. NOTE: The Vocalise tracks have been replaced with new tracks produced by ChoralTracks. The new tracks can be found on the website. VOCALISE #1 (ascending) VOCALISE #2 (descending) VOCALISE RANGES HS S1, MS S, MS Tr1 HS S2, MS Tr2 HS A1, MS A, MS Tr3 HS A2 HS T1, MS T HS T2 HS B1, MS B HS B2
Florida Vocal Association 2016 ALL-STATE CHOIRS VOCAL QUALITY RUBRIC 1) Each student will receive a score from 1-5 in the categories listed below, with a maximum of 5. The maximum possible score is 60. 2) Each judge will listen to 5 recordings randomly before beginning to score to help establish a baseline for consistent scoring. 3) Vocal quality scores should reflect expectations for ideal middle school and high school choral tone. 4) The expectation for the prepared example should be significantly higher than the unprepared examples. 5) If the student is obviously unprepared, the judge should select the appropriate button to indicate that the student has failed the audition. If 3 of 5 adjudicators indicate the student has failed due to lack of preparation, the student will be INELIGIBLE to participate in the 2013 All-State Choirs. VOCALISE 5 4 3 2 1 Freedom & Beauty Register Adjustment A healthy, vibrant, resonant, and free tone that is consistently well-supported. Register changes properly made throughout vocal range and without obvious transitions. An energized tone that often displays focus and resonance in extreme registers Extremes in volume and register do not hinder the overall beauty of tone, though some transitions are not handled well. A generally good tone but excessive vibrato, tension, and/or breathiness are present. Problems sometimes occur in extremes of volume or range. Register shifts are apparent and. Tone seldom possesses space, resonance, and focus. Freedom and support, and/or beauty of tone are seldom achieved. Beauty of tone is seldom present in extremes of registers and volume. Obvious register shifts hinder the overall effect. Tone completely lacks space, support, focus, freedom, and beauty. Freedom and beauty of tone is not achieved due to forced volumes and inappropriate register adjustments. Range is insufficient for voice part. EXCERPTS 5 4 3 2 1 Technical Preparation Musicality Intonation OVERALL Pitch accuracy, rhythmic precision, and pulse awareness confirm a well-prepared performance. The composer s intent regarding tempo, style, and markings are consistently followed. Dynamics, phrasing, articulations, and interpretative nuances are artistically executed. Intonation and tonal center are consistent throughout vocal registers. Control of pulse and accurate knowledge of pitches is evident with a few minor problems. Recovery from any problems is immediate. A musical performance that often exhibits proper tempo and style. Markings are often followed. Dynamic contrast, artistically shaped musical line, and appropriate articulations are present most of the time. Intonation is often accurate, with adjustments made in extreme ranges Accuracy of pitch and rhythm, steady pulse, and releases and entrances are at times accurate, indicating average preparation of the musical score. Tempo, style, and phrasing sometimes follow the composer s intent. Uses of dynamics, articulations, and nuances are sometimes stylistically correct, but contrived. Pitch is sometimes correct, with problems caused by lack of breath support and vocal faults. Rhythmic and/or pitch accuracy is seldom achieved. Pulse is dragging or rushing most of the time. Performance seldom exhibits proper tempo and style, or does not follow musical markings. Phrasing is mostly mechanical or contrived. Dynamic range is very limited and/or too much contrast is used. Intonation is seldom accurate, showing a lack of listening skills and understanding of vocal adjustment. Pitches and rhythms are poorly prepared. Entrances and releases are not executed. There may be an overall lack of understanding of the score due to poor preparation. Tempo and style are never correct. There is an inaccurate use of dynamic ranges. There is never a feeling of phrase shape. Tonal center is never established. Basic pitch matching skills are absent. The adjudicator may award up to 5 points for overall quality based on their impression of the entire audition.
BARCODE STICKER By signing below, I verify that I have made and reviewed a complete and audible Vocal Quality Audition recording for admission into the 2012 Florida Vocal Association All-State Choirs. ROOM # DIRECTOR 1 DIRECTOR 2 STUDENT SIGNATURE DIR. INITIAL DIR. INITIAL Rerecorded? (circle) YES NO YES NO YES NO YES NO YES NO YES NO