Dear Chorale,
First off, you need to know that you sound fabulous! The overall effect is quite stunning and the audience is going to love it.
For our final dress rehearsal, the program is being rehearsed in order, which means you get to sit in the house (quietly) and listen to the first half repertoire. Based on that, please be seated in the house by 6:55pm. I don’t know how long the first half takes, so we need to be on site, and ready for the second half music.
Now, to the nitty-gritty…
Here are some very specific notes from our first orchestra rehearsal:
VIVALDI
MOVEMENT 1
Explode the opening sound/consonant, and then do it again with the second entrance!
m.38 – Be ready and come in (even if he doesn’t cue you!)
“IN” = EEN (there are far too many times where I hear a section sing it incorrectly (INN).
m.45 – quarter rest at the end of the bar (new as of this week)
M.50 – Anticipate the G-L at the beginning of “Gloria”
m.57 – 8th rest at the end of the bar (new as of this week)
m.62 – Soprano/Tenor – he asked for sostenuto (sustained), but not to be softer. Keep the energy in your sound
MOVEMENT 2
Basses – eventually, you were much better with your first entrance. Be sure to nail it on the first try next time.
ALL PARTS – overdo and vibrate the “V” in Voluntatis EVERY TIME.
ALL PARTS – always decay the end of the word “Hominibus”
m.29 – Soprano – be sure you have the 8th rest marked (at least one person is putting the S on the downbeat of the next measure
m.33 – STB – be sure to decresc.
m.45-46 – Soprano – don’t rush from F# into the E
m.56-58 – Soprano – use your air and spin the sound with energy. It just didn’t have life in it.
m.59 – Alto/Bass – be sure your 8th rest at the end of the bar lines up with soprano (listen for them), and then you are right back in for m.60
m. 72-43 – Soprano/Alto – keep the T consonant crisp
m.89 – Soprano – your last note (B natural) is under pitch. Be sure it is the same B as m87-88.
MOVEMENT 4
m.1-6 – THIS SOUNDS GREAT! (Sopranos – just be completely confident in your D# to start m.4)
ALL PARTS – give him the shape he is asking for on the main thematic material. In other words, you can’t sing all the 8th notes with the same volume.
MOVEMENT 6
ALL PARTS – with the faster tempo one thing that has started to really suffer is the text. Two things stand out:
1. Specifically, there are quite a few diphthongs coming thru at the end of the following words: “Domine”, “Christe”, “suscipe”. You have to fight to not let the “American English” –“ay-ee” sound creep in.
2. The following consonants: D…G…T…S…CH need to always be present.
ALL PARTS – as Maestro Bairos said on Monday, within the faster tempo, make sure you still SNAP the 16th note rhythms, so that they don’t start to feel like bouncy triplets.
ALL PARTS – the separation he wants in the rhythm is best described by highlighting m.40-43. In all parts, there is a short break between the first two syllables of “Domine”. Apply this to every spot with that text/rhythm
m.35-37 & 76-77 – energize the “JESU CHRISTE”
MOVEMENT 7
Overall – really great sound.
m.31 – feels the 8th notes inside each quarter note so that the text doesn’t rush, specifically the letter S
MOVEMENT 8
m.8 – BE READY AND BE WITH HIM
m.16 – soft but with intensity!
MOVEMENT 10
ALL PARTS – Stronger K on the first Quoniam
MOVEMENT 11
ALL PARTS – with the word “sancto” – don’t close to the first “ng” to quickly – give the AH vowel it’s due. Then, make sure the K-T sound comes through
m.11 – Soprano – make sure “in” is “een”
m.50 – Sopranos – if you build it, everyone else will follow! I am speaking of the diction for “cum sancto spiritu”
M.56-end – Soprano/Alto – a lot of what you sing is in mid-range, which means you need to energize even more.
BERNSTEIN
Stand Cue – downbeat of m.42
m.47 – I am adding in a quarter rest after “please.”
m.56 – Soprano 2-Alto 1-Tenor 2 – bring out your rhythm.
m.63-64 – COUNT! (1-2-3-1-2-OFF) Energize into cut off.
STAND/SIT CUES
Stand with orchestra when conductor enters to start second half and remain standing when orchestra sits
Maestro give SIT cue after #2
Maestro give STAND cue in m.115 of #3 (in the instrumental ending of the duet). If he forgets he will stand you after #3
Maestro give SIT cue after #4
Maestro give STAND cue before #6
Maestro give SIT cue after #8
Maestro give STAND cue before #10
Remain standing till the end of Vivaldi
Conductor will (most likely) leave stage after Vivaldi and then re-enter with Bernstein soloists. When he leaves the stage, we sit.
We start Bernstein seated, and STAND on the downbeat of m.42
After Bernstein, during final applause, we always sit with orchestra when conductor leaves the stage. How many times we do that depends on how long the applause lasts.
Looking forward to one more rehearsal, and then three performances!
Jack
