I believe ludosti is an alto. That is enough for a quartet. So we have what it takes to get started.
The requirements for the choir are:
- have decent mic ($30 should be ok) - have headphones - be able to play mp3 (over headphones) AND record your own singing at the same time. - I suppose singing ability is a plus, but not required (we'll just pitch shift your voice )
[ September 29, 2005, 07:28 PM: Message edited by: human_2.0 ]
Posted by ludosti (Member # 1772) on :
What a cool thing! I'm impressed that you remember I'm an alto!
Unfortunately, I have no recording capabilities, so I can't play. Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :
I'm an alto in our church choir. Ivygirl is a soprano. What kind of songs are you recording?
Posted by Parsimony (Member # 8140) on :
I can play along. I have sung tenor and bass in choirs, so whatever works.
--ApostleRadio
Posted by Brinestone (Member # 5755) on :
I can sing anything you want but bass. But I don't remember if I still have my mic. And as for listening and recording at the same time, I don't know if I have that either.
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
I sing second soprano by preference, but alto and soprano as well. I have a very cheap mic, but it works well. If you doubt me, I can send you a sample of my singing (recorded a while ago when I was recovering from a cold, so not my best work, but to prove the mic is okay.)
Posted by beverly (Member # 6246) on :
Count me in as a soprano, though I can sing alto and harmonize as well. Posted by Avadaru (Member # 3026) on :
I sing alto. I can send a sample of singing too.
Posted by human_2.0 (Member # 6006) on :
Wow. That was a lot of quick responces!
We don't have the music picked yet. I'm thinking a cappella. Anyone know any good songs? Music copies is a problem too. I would prefer not to scan anything in unless it is paid for. If someone has songs they've written, we can always do that. Or we could do without music (see next:)
I'm planning on recording a "rehearsal" track with just your part that you can use to learn your part. This is one way we could do without music for everyone, if you can sing by ear and memory. Not sure it will work for all.
I'm also planning on making a "full rehearsal" track that has all 4 parts and each person plays it to learn how their part fits.
2 other requirements I forgot:
- be a member of hatrack forum - be able to record mp3's.
Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :
What was the objective of this choir again?
(I think everyone who responded is obviously a member of Hatrack)
Hmmm... wonders if I have what is needed to record mp3s. If not, I'm sure I can get it
FG
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
I have all kinds of online resources for free downloadable sheet music, depending on what everyone's interested in doing. Posted by human_2.0 (Member # 6006) on :
Oh, the reason I want to do a cappella is so that we don't have to deal with a piano. I don't want cheeze midi/synth piano. And it is difficult to record a real piano if you don't know what you are doing. But if anyone can, that would be great. Then we could do piano stuff.
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
FG, Audacity is wonderful...
Posted by Raia (Member # 4700) on :
I have access to a very extensive music library. I can pretty much get any classical sheet music I want, as well as some broadway, and possibly other things as well.
Posted by El JT de Spang (Member # 7742) on :
I can sing tenor.
Posted by theCrowsWife (Member # 8302) on :
I can sing alto. Or rather, I used to sing alto in the campus ministry choir. I'm a little out of practice right now. I can't go much higher than the B in the middle of the treble clef without losing quality. The two octaves below that are my range at the moment, although with practice I could probably extend that a bit.
I can't sight read vocal parts, so the "rehearsal track" idea works for me. With sheet music I would have to print it out and go find a piano.
I hope I'm not butting in. I do enjoy singing, even though I haven't done it in a while.
--Mel
Posted by Parsimony (Member # 8140) on :
4 parts is lame, we need 8 parts at least!
--ApostleRadio
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
Uh, 6 is more standard than 8. Posted by Parsimony (Member # 8140) on :
Not in the choirs I have been part of. We almost always had at least 8, if not 10 or 16.
--ApostleRadio
Posted by Brinestone (Member # 5755) on :
Lucky!
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
Yeah, you also must have had a bunch of people!
I've seen compositions for 4, 5, 6, and 8 parts. Once I was in a women's choir and we sang something with 9 parts. But never more. Wow.
Posted by Parsimony (Member # 8140) on :
It wasn't really a whole bunch of people. We only did 16 parts twice, and we only had 30 people. Some people just had to sing their part on their own. They were fun songs though. Most of the time we did 8 parts. Every once in a while 10.
But really, four parts was almost unheard of for us.
--ApostleRadio
Posted by Altáriël of Dorthonion (Member # 6473) on :
Raia can totally sing!!
Posted by Raia (Member # 4700) on :
We're going to do a 40-part piece later this semester. I can't even TELL you how excited I am!!! We're having 80 people, 2 to a part. I can't WAIT.
Thanks, Alt, sweetheart. Posted by Brinestone (Member # 5755) on :
I can't even imagine writing a piece of music that complex. Is it very dissonant or something? Or do you have some amazingly wide-ranged singers?
Posted by Parsimony (Member # 8140) on :
40 parts! Holy cow. That is insane. Sounds cool though, I wish I was singing.
--ApostleRadio
Posted by pooka (Member # 5003) on :
"This one goes to 11".
I'm a soprano, but I'm probably too busy in the next six months. Maybe I'll sub when beverly has her baby.
Posted by human_2.0 (Member # 6006) on :
40 parts? What is it? Must have lots of doublings. Be like a 2 piano song (like a symphony reduction) where a singer takes every note.
Posted by sarcasticmuppet (Member # 5035) on :
I wish I could play, but I have no mic. I love harmonizing. Maybe I can sing along with beverly on occasion. Posted by JemmyGrove (Member # 6707) on :
I'd be happy to jump in. I sing tenor and I think I have the recording capabilities.
Posted by Dragon (Member # 3670) on :
I'd love to join!
I sing soprano, or alto if you need it.
Posted by Raia (Member # 4700) on :
I don't remember what it's called... or who it's by... but it's a British composer. I haven't actually heard the piece yet, so I don't know how it works, but I'll get to see a score in a few weeks, when we start working on it, and probably hear a recording. It'll be fantastic.
Posted by Kwea (Member # 2199) on :
May I make a suggestion? This is my take on recording this type of stuff, all at different locations and all....
Make the very first track a metronome.
It isn't that we can't sing, or keep a beat...the problem is that if we were all together we could see (and hear) each other, and perhaps even be conducted.
Since we are so far spread apart, we can't do that...and even the smallest deviation from the tempo can make it clash a bit. I noticed that when JenniK sang some multi-track stuff (all recorded with Audacity, the freeware sound program we still use today ) she would get a little bit off....and that was with a piece of music she knew well, singing it herself.
It still sounded good, but it would have sounded better if she had been conducted.
Think of it this way...even professional groups get conducted most of the time, so the metronome track is the "virtual conducter" for the entire groups.
Then at the end remove that track, and you will all be on beat, almost like you had recorded it together rather than half a world apart.
Kwea
Posted by Telperion the Silver (Member # 6074) on :
Mmm.... where is my mike... erm.. mic
Posted by Nell Gwyn (Member # 8291) on :
What a fun idea! I'd love to join, except for the lack of a mic. But it sounds cool enough that I'd consider getting one - any recommendations on where to look? (I know this was discussed a while back re: Raia's voice lessons, but I'm too lazy to find that thread. Plus I'm supposed to be doing homework, not posting.)
I could do 1st or 2nd soprano, or alto depending on what's needed. (When I get a mic, that is.)
For a capella stuff, madrigal pieces are a lot of fun, but those might be kinda challenging without a director. And Kwea's metronome idea is a good one. Is there maybe an online pitch pipe sorta thing in case some people don't have pianos?
Posted by Telperion the Silver (Member # 6074) on :
Good ideas Gwyn.
Posted by human_2.0 (Member # 6006) on :
quote:Originally posted by Kwea: Make the very first track a metronome.
I'll be recording something similar to a metronome track.
Actually I've thought of 2 ways to do this. Both of them require the singer to be able to play audio and listen on headphones and be able to record their voice at the same time.
So the first method. The conductor can do a lot by taking loud breaths. The "conductor" in this case will be the rehearsal tracks. I'm not sure it will work, but I have high hopes.
Second, I could just set up a video camera and you all can actually be conducted by just watching the video. It will be odd because there wont be the give and take response interaction that normally happens between choir and conductor.
Either way, it will take a few tries before I think we will have something that we wouldn't be embarrassed of... But I'm pretty sure we can make it work.
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
I don't know that the video is a good idea. If some of us have slower computers or if something is going on and the video gets out of sync, there could be issues with it.
I like the metronome idea very much. Especially because I don't use rehearsal tapes-- I listen to it once, then prefer to look at the music.
Posted by Parsimony (Member # 8140) on :
Sounds good. The best way to get things going is to...well, get things going. Pick a song and get on with it as fast as possible before people forget.
--ApostleRadio
Posted by human_2.0 (Member # 6006) on :
We can't really do a metronome track because most choral music doesn't have a steady beat. And cut offs and actual entrances are hard to match with just a clicking.
The 4 part rehearsal track idea is mainly to get the tempo down (including any speed ups or slow downs--but to start with we could try to stick with something with a consistent beat). And it will also help with entrances (choral conductors use their own breathing half of the time to get the singers together). The 4 part rehearsal track will not be included in the final mix.
Also, each person's mp3 is going to sound different because of reverb, different mic artifacts, and the distance from the mic to singer. So I'll tweak with the audio to try to get them to blend.
I knew all of this ahead of time and I think we can overcome them. It may just take a few attempts.
Raia is finding music. It may not be until end of next week before we have music and tracks. I had no idea there were so many singers here. If I knew that, I would have had the music all picked out and the rehearsal tracks all recorded before I brought it up.
I'm really excited to see how this turns out!
Posted by Kwea (Member # 2199) on :
I think you should start on something simple at first, to see what real problem occur trying to meld together...something with a fairly steady tempo...also, you could give vocal cues for the first few times as well, and then discard that track.
Next time you do this, JenniK will probably be interested, but right now she is in FL at Disney, so she can't do it. She loves playing around with Audacity, and even made a round with her mother, who is her voice teacher.
[ September 23, 2005, 06:29 PM: Message edited by: Kwea ]
Posted by Dragon (Member # 3670) on :
Human, do you realize the awesomeness of your member #?
Posted by Lyrhawn (Member # 7039) on :
I'm on board with this, I have no idea what I sing though. Maybe tenor?
I have all the equipment.
Posted by raventh1 (Member # 3750) on :
Interesting. I'm busy with my choir though. Let me know when you start. 1st Tenor.
Posted by human_2.0 (Member # 6006) on :
quote:Originally posted by Dragon: Human, do you realize the awesomeness of your member #?
Yes Posted by human_2.0 (Member # 6006) on :
Our sheet music version (might still need tweaking):
This is for practice only. I will be posting some sort of conductor mp3 later.
Posted by Parsimony (Member # 8140) on :
I've done this song before. It didn't particularly leave an impression on me, good or bad.
Better than it being a song I've done before and hated, I suppose.
--ApostleRadio
Posted by Raia (Member # 4700) on :
The music does need tweaking, and has in fact been tweaked... I just need to figure out how to get my file onto a website that everyone can see.
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
The music needs more tweaking? Haven't heard the audio file, is that what you're talking about?
Other than a slight moral objection to the sentiment, the music looks fine to me. Posted by Raia (Member # 4700) on :
Hehe, too late... the tweaking has already occurred!
(That's what you get when two music majors get together on this project...)
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
I just couldn't figure out what needed to be tweaked.
Glad it's fixed. Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
I would like to bring up my slight moral objection to the words, though. Posted by Brinestone (Member # 5755) on :
I've always loved this madrigal. If kq has an objection to the sentiment of the other one, this might be an alternative. At the same time, mine talks about a mistress and her bosom, so maybe it's no better. Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
Oh, it's not that big an objection.
I'm just being a brat.
I'm good at that.
Posted by Raia (Member # 4700) on :
Haha, you're so cute, though. Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :
Okay - printed the music from human's link and saved the practice sound files. (Is your "tweaking" Raia, also on our copies? How do we know what your "tweaking" is?)
So what is next? We each record out part and then send the audio file to human?
Farmgirl
Posted by human_2.0 (Member # 6006) on :
Next: learn your part. If you know it, then wait for me to come out with a conductor track, which will be this magical mp3 that everyone will listen to while they record their voice. It will make you all sound perfect so that I don't have to do anything special when combining everyones' recordings into one.
Um, tweaking meant there was at least one thing in the bass part that was vague, and perhaps there are others but I haven't looked at the other parts yet.
Posted by Diosmel Duda (Member # 2180) on :
Can we have a consolidated list of everyone's part? I for one will choose a part depending on what is needed most.
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
I'm second soprano! I'm second soprano!
(Thank you for choosing a piece with a second part! )
Posted by human_2.0 (Member # 6006) on :
1st Sop (or 2nd...) Raia Ivygirl (? not sure if she is participating) beverly pooka (but probably too busy for next 6 months) Dragon
Wow. I'm surprised all guys are tenors! Does this, perhaps, mean something? (I can sing bass, but I prefer tenor).
Since this is a recording, we could actually sing multiple parts. But that means you have to learn them.
This isn't exactly the easiest song for people out of practice. So don't feel too bad if it seems too hard. Record it anyway. Not like we are going to burn and sell a CD...
[edit: added voices and moved voices]
[ November 07, 2005, 01:50 AM: Message edited by: human_2.0 ]
Posted by Diosmel Duda (Member # 2180) on :
I'll do second soprano with kq (I'm Brinestone). That's my favorite part to sing anyway--my voice is soprano, but I prefer to sing harmony.
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
Oh, good, I'm not alone. (I can sing first soprano. But we've got plenty of those, and I like harmony, too, and also, it's right in the naturally comfortable part of my range.)
Posted by Parsimony (Member # 8140) on :
I can do bass instead of tenor since we need more. I've done both depending on the needs of the choir, so no problem for me.
--ApostleRadio
Posted by Dragon (Member # 3670) on :
yay! I've done this song before too!
Posted by human_2.0 (Member # 6006) on :
*Bump*
I'm almost ready to record my Sing We and Chant It audio. I know, it took me long enough... Anyway, when I get something, I'll post a new thread.
Hopefully everyone else has printed out the sheet music and in moments of extreme bordem looked at it so you know it by now! Posted by Brinestone (Member # 5755) on :
Do we have a metronome track? How are we going to match speeds?
Posted by human_2.0 (Member # 6006) on :
Metronome is bad because you wont get dynamics, cut offs, and tone the same if we all record over a click. There are rehersal and performance tracks here:
I am pretty sure I do not want to use their performance tracks though. I'll come up with something when it is time... (meaning I will record me and maybe somebody else).
Posted by human_2.0 (Member # 6006) on :
So it turns out that 170 bpm is about the speed I think this should go. So if you want to practice this at 170, you will be ready. And it turns out that there isn't much variation in tempo.
BUT. I noticed while recording that if I didn't have another voice to match, that it was very hard to get my entrances and exits the same. In fact, they still aren't as good as I would like, but I think it is good enough for now. And it was harder than I thought too.
Again, sorry everyone for getting you all excited and then dropping the ball on this. I still plan on getting this all together.
Posted by Kwea (Member # 2199) on :
You don't sing over the click..you use headphones, silly!
I bet a metranome track would work if there was soft singing in the background. Or even voacl cues for entrances.
I HAVE done chamber singing as well, you know, and it is the same thing, sort of....no matter how good a band or a choir is, it is always easier if someone conducts.
JenniK and I were just at Epcot, watching they Voices of Liberty sing, and even THEY use a conductor for the beginning and end of every song.
If you have ever heard them sing you wouldn't doubt their professionalism, or talent, but some things work better with visual cues...or lacking the ability for doing that, vocal ones.
You can find metronome programs online, you know...
I've taken conducting lessons and conducted choirs so I know that visual ques means everything in the world. That is why I say a metronome is a bad idea. But, I also believe audio ques might be good enough. I've used them a lot with children choirs and it works. I'm not sure if it will work in this setting. This is kinda an experiement to see if we can pull it off.
But probably the more important thing we will be missing out is the interaction between conductor and choir, and between choir members. A choir gets to know itself by just rehearsing. People who know all the songs still need to rehearse so that they know how the particular choir they are with sings the songs.
I'm hoping to overcome this obstacle by recording the same thing a few times... Kinda like long distance rehearsals. Not sure how this will go over well, especially since I think I got everyone's hopes up and then didn't keep the ball rolling.
Posted by human_2.0 (Member # 6006) on :
Did you see the ad on that page? Online flute lessons? Wow. If that is possible, well, doing this choir should be a piece of cake. Can you imagine having online music lessons?
Posted by Kwea (Member # 2199) on :
Some of the metronomes have a visual cue rather than a sound.... Posted by human_2.0 (Member # 6006) on :
Yes. But! Really! A metronome can't breathe. The number one rule to get every one to sing an entrance together isn't to lift your hand and drop it, it is to lift your hand and drop it *while* taking a nice big breath! That is what the audio part is for. Everyone will hear a breath. On the final cut, it will be edited out.
Anyway, I've almost got my audio ready to post! I'm hoping others have been practicing the song! It was a lot harder than I thought it was at first. I'm planning on posting it and having you all listen to it while you make you recording. That will be the "metronome" track.
![[Wink]](wink.gif)
)![[Frown]](frown.gif)
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
![[Kiss]](graemlins/kiss.gif)
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) she would get a little bit off....and that was with a piece of music she knew well, singing it herself.![[Razz]](tongue.gif)