Listen to the recording from 5/1/09 and comment on what we can do better.  Pay extra attention to vowel and consonant sounds.  What words are good?  Which ones need more work?

 

 The Pasture 5/1/09 [4:31m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Listen to how each “performer” phrases the vocal line.  Which do you like best? Why?

 

 Going Over Home 5/1 [3:16m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is the Bass 2 file and the full file.  Sorry, I had to do two posts.

Bohemian Rhapsody from wikipedia

Main article: Bohemian Rhapsody

“Bohemian Rhapsody” was written by Mercury with the first guitar solo composed by May. All piano, bass and drum parts, as well as the vocal arrangements, were thought up by Mercury on a daily basis and written down “in blocks” (using note names instead of sheets) on a phonebook. The other members recorded their respective instruments with no concept of how their tracks would be utilised in the final mix. The now phenomenally famous operatic section was originally intended to be only a short interlude of “Galileos” that connected the ballad and hard rock portions of the song.

During the recording, the song became affectionately known as “Fred’s Thing” to the band, and the title only emerged during the final sessions.

Despite being twice as long as the average single in 1975, the song became immensely popular, topping charts worldwide (where it remained for an unprecedented nine weeks in the UK) and is now widely regarded as one of the most significant rock songs in history.^[5]

 

 Bohemian Rhapsody Bass2 [4:48m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Bohemian Rhapsody Full [4:48m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Men’s Ensemble;

Listen to and sing with the track for your voice part first.  When you get solid on your pitches, try singing with the full track.

 

 Bohemian Rhapsody Soprano [4:48m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Bohemian Rhapsody Alto [4:48m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Bohemian Rhapsody Tenor 1 [4:48m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Bohemian Rhapsody Tenor2 [4:48m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Bohemian Rhapsody Bass1 [4:48m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Listen to your singing from 3/12/09.  Do we have a good balance between all four parts, or is one louder than the rest?  Remember, Soprano’s have the melody and should be the loudest, right?  Also, how are your vowels?  Do any words jump out at you as being too bright?  Are we over-compensating to fix other words?  Remember, “Too much ‘ah’ in your ‘a’ is worse than no ‘ah’ in your ‘a’ at all.”  If we do too much, the word becomes affected.  It is starting to sound pretty cool.  When are we supposed to stop clapping?

 

 Give Us Hope 3/12/09 [3:02m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Here is a professional recording to wrap your ears around.  Notice the great tone quality and phrasing they use.  They also have nice balance between parts.  Enjoy!

Antonio Vivaldi

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (March 4, 1678 – July 28, 1741),^[1] nicknamed il Prete Rosso (”The Red Priest”), was a Baroque music composer and Venetian priest, as well as a famous virtuoso violinist, born and raised in the Republic of Venice. The Four Seasons, a series of four violin concerti, is his best-known work and a highly popular Baroque piece.

Portrait of Antonio Vivaldi, by François Morellon de la Cave

 

 Gloria - Antonio Vivaldi [2:48m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Our pitch and rhythm is good.  Listen to see how else we can improve.  Any bad vowels?  How about ending consonants?  Do all four parts sound balanced, or is one section too loud?  Does each section sound like one voice, or do you hear individual voices standing out?  Please leave out names, remember to be respectful!  I am excited to add the orchestral parts to this.

 

 Gloria 3/5/09 [2:12m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

So far, this is coming along real nice.  Sopranos are doing a good job with sounding like a section!  Listen for balance between all four sections.  Does one section sound too loud or heavy?  Also, can we sing our pianos softer so our phrases have more room to grow during crescendos? See what you think.

 

 Standard Podcast [4:25m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Have a listen to this professional recording. It is the same vocal arrangement as ours, only with full orchestra instead of piano.  Listen closely to the vocal styling, and how well the text is enunciated.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Aaron Copland

Aaron Copland (November 14, 1900 – December 2, 1990) was an American composer of concert and film music, as well as an accomplished pianist. Instrumental in forging a distinctly American style of composition, he was widely known as “the dean of American composers.” Copland’s music achieved a balance between modern music and American folk styles. The open, slowly changing harmonies of many of his works are said to evoke the vast American landscape. He also incorporated percussive orchestration, changing meter, polyrhythms, polychords and tone rows in a broad range of works for concert hall, theater, ballet, and films. Aside from composing, Copland was a teacher, lecturer, critic, writer, and conductor (generally, but not always) of his own works.

 

 Stomp Your Foot with Orchestra [3:12m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Sorry it took a while to get this up.  Busy, busy!!  What can we do to make this better?

 

 Windy Nights 11/20: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download