Interpreting choral music

Interpreting choral music

From the last part of the twentieth century until today choral conductors have become increasingly aware of stylistic considerations and performance practices. This chapter is intended to be a guide to an understanding of the styles of the various musical periods. As brief a study as this must be considered as an introduction to style; a door to a continued study that should never stop. One's understanding of style must be constantly reviewed as new information is gained through research.

General compositional characteristics are listed for each period. These represent general elements of style with the understanding that exceptions are found throughout each period. Crosscurrents exist in every style period. While the mainstream of composition may be going in one direction, composers may also be found working in another direction. The final test is a thorough examination of the music itself.

Performances of early music require each conductor to decide exactly how authentic he intends the performance to be. A totally authentic performance, of course, is not possible since original performance conditions are impossible to duplicate. Conductors must research performance practices as carefully as possible and respond artistically to the musical implications of the score. This may mean that instrumental substitutions must be made. It is the conductor's responsibility to make these substitutions as compatible as possible with the musical style of the work.

Discussion questions

1. What musical style is the most difficult for amateur singers to perform?

2. Is it stylistically incorrect to perform Renaissance motets with a fifty or sixty voice choir? Can performances of Renaissance music by a large ensemble be musically rewarding?

3. How far can one go toward authenticity in the performance of early music?

4. How would performance practice differ between music of the Renaissance and the Baroque; the Baroque and Classic; the Classic and Romantic?

5. What are the difficulties encountered by a conductor who wishes to perform Baroque music as it was originally performed?

6. To what degree should a performance represent the composer's wishes? To what degree should it represent the conductor's wishes?

Suggested readings

Apel, Willi. Harvard Dictionary of Music. 2d ed., rev. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1969.

Brown, Howard Mayer. Music in the Renaissance. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1976,

Bukofzer, Manfred F. Music in the Baroque Era: From Monteverdi to Bach. New York: W. W. Norton&Company, Inc., 1947.

Cope, David. New Directions in Music. Dubuque, Iowa: Wm. C. Brown Company, Publishers, 1971.

Crocker, Richard L. A History of Musical Style. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1966.

Dart, Thurston. The Interpretation of Music, rev. ed. London: Hutchinson University Library, 1960.

Dolmetsch, Arnold. The Interpretation of the Music of the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries. London: Oxford University Press, 1946.

Donington, Robert. The Interpretation of Music. London: Faber and Faber Limited, 1963.

Green, Elizabeth A. H. The Modern Conductor. 2d ed. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1969.

Grout, Donald Jay. A History of Western Music. New York: W. W. Norton&Company, Inc., 1960.

Hansen, Peter S. An Introduction to Twentieth Century Music. 2d ed. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, Inc., 1967.

Hillis, Margaret. At Rehearsals. American Choral Foundation, 1969.

Klinka, Theodore M. "Rehearsal Efficiency." The Choral Journal September 1971, p. 23.

Lang, Paul Henry. Music in Western Civilization. New York: W. W. Norton&Company, Inc., 1941.

Lenaerts, R. B. "The 16th Century Parody Mass in the Netherlands." Musical Quarterly, XXVI, 1953.

Machlis, Joseph. The Enjoyment of Music. 3d ed. New York: W. W. Norton&Company, Inc., 1970.

Neumann, Frederick. Ornamentation in Baroque and Post-Baroque Music. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1978.

Pauly, Reinhard G. Music in the Classic Period. 2d ed. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1973.

Pooler, Frank, and Pierce, Brent. New Choral Notation (A Handbook). New York: Walton Music Corporation, 1971.

Reese, Gustave. Music in the Renaissance. New York: W. W. Norton&Company, Inc., 1954.

Rothschild, Fritz. Musical Performance in the Times of Mozart and Beethoven. London: Adam and Charles Block, 1961.

Stress and Movement in the Works of J. S. Bach. London: Adam and Charles Block, 1966.

Schmidt, Georg, Joseph. History of the Mass. Cologne: Arno-Volk Verlag, 1968.

Sparks, Edgar H. Cantus Firmus in Mass and Motet, 1430-1520. Berkeley: Univ. of California Press, 1963.

Strunk, Oliver, Ed. Source Readings in Music History. New York: W. W. Norton&Company, Inc., 1950.

Ulrich, Homer, and Pisk, Paul A. A History of Music and Musical Style. New York: Harcourt, Brace&World, Inc., 1963.

Vinquist, Mary and Zaslow, Neal, ed. Performance Practice: A Bibliography. New York: W. W. Norton&Company, Inc., 1971.