Name and Date: Brooke Niblett, 4/15/15

Topic: High School Advanced Choir:

Subject: Advanced Choir -

Refining the Music

New Heritage Singers

(Grades 9-12)

SOLs:
HCAD.3 The student will demonstrate vocal techniques and choral skills, including
1. modeling proper posture for choral singing;
2. modeling breathing techniques that support proper vocal production;
6. increasing vocal independence, agility, and range by singing appropriate vocal exercises,
including use of head and chest voices;
7. adjusting intonation for balance and blend;
8. singing an assigned vocal part in complex harmony;
9. consistently applying proper diction (i.e., pure vowel sounds, diphthongs, voiced and unvoiced
consonants);
10. singing music literature with and without instrumental accompaniment in at least two
languages other than English; and
11. singing music literature from memory and from score.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

HCAD.4 The student will sing expressively, including

interpreting and applying various tempos while singing;
performing complex rhythmic patterns that include syncopations and hemiolas in duple and triple
meters;
consistently applying dynamic markings in musical scores and exercises while maintaining correct
intonation;
modeling expressive phrasing;
responding to advanced conducting patterns and interpretive gestures; and
consistently using facial and physical expressions that reflect the mood and style of the music.

Rationale:
This group has worked hard to learn their parts to both songs Let Everything that Hath Breath and
Fa una Canzona and can get through the entire song almost effortlessly. However, now is the time to
fine tune the songs and focus on how to make them sound even better! This lesson will focus on
vocal technique including tall vowels, resonance, crisp consonances (diction), and musical expression
so that when this group performs at both the spring concert and the choral festival at Kings Dominion
this May, the audience and judges may be able to understand what the group is singing, and to improve
a larger and fuller sound from such a small ensemble.
Objectives:
During this lesson, the choir will be able to...
1. Sing the entirety of Let Everything that Hath Breath with accompaniment using proper diction and
articulations.
2. Look up at the director while singing Let Everything that Hath Breath and Fa Una Canzona and

use facial expressions to convey the meaning of the song.

3. Sing Fa Una Canzona from memory, with taller vowels than heard at district assessment several
weeks ago.
4. Feel an internal physical pulse by moving the body appropriately while singing Fa Una Canzona

Content Outline:

Direct instruction: Modeling for warm-ups, answering questions as students ask,

leading discussion about expression

Skills Learned/Strengthened: Singing from memory, Proper diction, internal pulse

Opening (Gaining Attention)

Today we are going to move around

Connection (prior learning)

Students have already

the room a little bit rather than just sit or stand,

worked on both songs, and have

but we have a few things to do first before we

heard the concepts of tall vowels and

can do that so let us get focused!

diction frequently through rehearsal.

Instructional Strategies
Warm Up (5 min)
Sol Mi Do Yah, Yah, Yah -- full rich sound
Do Sol Fa Mi Re Do Ee-yah, ee-yah, ee-yah -- The leap from do to sol must be relaxed and
not strained
1 8 5 3 1 I Love to Sing -- Relaxing, Happy and expression, moving of arms
1 3 5 3 1 Yah -ah- ah-ah- ah -- Expression; HAPPY; moving arms to tell a story
Let Everything that Hath Breath
Refresh: Starting at measure 59. SW sing from here to the end of the song; this is the part we
learned yesterday. (2 min)
Add concept: Dynamics. TW highlight the crescendos in measures 67-76. (2 min)
Repeat: SW sing through measure 59-end with new concepts added. Reminders for proper
diction/tall vowels given as needed (3 min)
Correcting from yesterday: Measure 34-48: TW review bass part by playing on piano, basses
will sing with piano, then without. All students sing parts together. (Basses must remain on
their A-flat and not move notes to sing with the melody part) (5 min)
Expression: TW ask What is this song about? What is it saying? What emotions should you
be feeling? How should your face look? TW remind students our job is to tell a story, so tell a
story to your audience with your facial expressions (3 min)
SW sing through the song with proper facial expressions and with proper diction and
articulations, TW give vocal reminders while students are singing (3 min)
Fa Una Canzona
Refresh: SW sing through the first half of the song unaccompanied and from memory to get
their parts back in their ears (2 min)
Concept Added: Vowels are more important than consonances in this song! Try reading the
words with only the vowel sounds in rhythm.. (very hard to do) TW instruct on open mouth

and pulling the vowels out from the back of their throat. Add full text in chanting-style (with
taller vowels). Add the notes and sing in the same way. (7 min)
SW get into one giant circle in the center of the room. TW be in the center of circle. TW
model chanting with a physical pulse while stepping/marching. Stress on the down-beat.. the
feel of a duple meter. SW begin stepping in place while they chant the rhythm, then marching
around in the circle while chanting and maintaining proper vowels. SW sing while marching
around the circle (8 min)
Wrap-up (3 min)

TW ask: Why do you think I care so much about taller vowels? Discussion about telling a story and

the importance of an audience who understands your words and the meaning
TW have brief discussion of the importance of a group mentality rather than the individual we are a

team!
Tomorrow: Memorizing Let Everything that Hath Breath

Products:

Assessments:

1. TW conduct while Mrs. Elliott

Greater understanding of internal

group pulse

Singing with expression, dynamics,

accompanies; TW listen critically for diction

proper articulation

The mentality that choir is not just

needed to fix issues and keep moving along.

and articulations will stop the choir as

2. TW be in the center of the circle, looking at

singing, but an important job!

facial expressions while students sing. TW

meet eyes with students those who engage
and have appropriate facial expressions are
meeting the objective.
3. TW hear all parts of Fa Una Canzona
while students do not have their music, TW
hear taller vowels and see wider
mouths/dropped jaws.
4. SW move around the room by marching
and sing while maintaining the steady beat
pulse through their feet and body.

Closure:

Homework:
N/A
Materials Needed:

See Wrap-Up described above.

Differentiation:

Visual learning: Using musical notation, printed Keyboard/Piano

lyrics, teacher conducting (which is an added asset

Music: Let Everything that Hath Breath by

because typically when Mrs. Elliott is alone, she

cannot conduct and play piano at the same time --

Ames; Fa Una Canzona by Vecchi

Room with a large space to make a circle
with the group

students are not used to having someone conduct Chairs for students to sit in
and instruct while another person plays much
more beneficial!)
Auditory learning: SW listen to each other and to
Mrs. Niblett/piano for modeling purposes of
proper technique vs. improper technique
Kinesthetic learning: moving around the room
establishes a steady pulse internally