The Rewards and Challenges of Being a Director/Accompanist

The Rewards and Challenges of Being a Director/Accompanist

A few years ago, I read an article by Vern Sanders of Creator Magazine called "5 Shocking Truths About Director Accompanists."

At the time, I was a director/accompanist at a small church with a choir of about 20 people. I found I could direct most things from the piano just fine and I think it helped the choir take more responsibility for their music-making. But, I realize this was a unique situation. There are always rewards and challenges with the job - that goes without saying. And in a larger church with a larger choir doing more difficult music, I can see how the role of director/accompanist would be more challenging and could in fact limit what the choir is able to do.

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75 Hymns that Teach Musical Concepts

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75 Hymns that Teach Musical Concepts

"When we sing a hymn, we are singing history." - Paul Lusher (source) 

Hymn-singing is a tradition that spans the centuries, uniting us with believers in the past, present, and future. But I believe hymns are more than historical relics. Here are three primary things I think we can learn from hymns still today:

Church Heritage

There's so much history and tradition embedded in hymns. We carry on a piece of that legacy when we come together for worship and sing the same hymns that others have sung for hundreds of years. And at the same time, we're preserving important parts of music history: "Much of the musical heritage of the church is encountered in hymnology: such forms as plainsong, chorale, psalm tune, and gospel hymn." - Hanna Katja Elina Powell (source)

How to Create Your Own Doxology Transitions

How to Create Your Own Doxology Transitions

There are lots of ways to add musical creativity into worship:

hymn harmonizations
transpositions for the last verse
a trumpet obbligato for "Now Thank We All Our God" 
traveling music as the choir moves into place
a soprano descant (that your sopranos can sing) for "O Come, All Ye Faithful" 
newly-composed parts for the praise band

But every week? Who has time for that?!

There's one thing I’ve been challenging myself to do every Sunday since July. It’s helped me grow as a musician and proved meaningful for congregation members. And now, it’s something I look forward to as part of my planning and preparation for Sunday each week. It is:

Creating transitions from the offertory to the doxology. 

Tips for Working with Changing Voices in Youth Choir

Tips for Working with Changing Voices in Youth Choir

Voice change.

It's one of the unique aspects of working with a middle school or high school youth choir and it's a process - one that takes understanding, patience, and flexibility.

Voice change occurs during adolescence when the larynx and vocal cords lengthen and thicken (source). For boys, the change is dramatic; for girls, more subtle. However, it is important to recognize the changes that occur in all voices and ways to encourage and support singers throughout the process (and keep them singing!).

Encouragement is vital to the process. Do what you can to make singers feel comfortable experimenting and trying things, help them learn how to be flexible and support one another throughout the process.

Prayers for Choirs: No. 9

Prayers for Choirs: No. 9

One of my favorite things about living in the Northeast is the change in seasons.

I love the white winter landscapes and the first shades of green in spring; the lush, green gardens and the fiery reds and golds of fall. Everything feels new, yet familiar at the same time.

There’s a certain rhythm to the change in seasons. Every few months, we yearn for change—a fresh start, something to wake up within us and come to life again.

But change is bittersweet. Because while we embrace the new season (scarves! apple cider! leaves!), we must leave behind the old. It's part of moving forward, moving on. It's part of growing, maturing, and learning. It's part of life

Music for Communion: 40+ Songs, Hymns, and Anthems

Music for Communion: 40+ Songs, Hymns, and Anthems

Communion may be one of our most sacred traditions in the church. It's a tangible way to remember, to accept the gift of grace and forgiveness, to make Christ's sacrifice real again. Some churches celebrate communion once a quarter; others, once a month. And there are many congregations that share communion every Sunday.

You may not choose communion-themed music for every communion Sunday, but every so often, it can be nice to choose an anthem, congregational song or hymn, or instrumental piece that ties in with this sacred tradition.

Today, I'm sharing a variety of music that would work well for communion Sundays throughout the year (including World Communion Sunday, All Saints' Sunday, the Sundays leading up to Thanksgiving, and Holy Week).

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Breathing Exercises for Choirs of All Ages

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Breathing Exercises for Choirs of All Ages

Breathing is a vital component of singing.

But the way we breathe when singing is different than the way we breathe in everyday life, requiring us to use our respiratory muscles in new and different ways.

The goal when singing is to have breath control and good breath support.

Breath control means being able to inhale quickly and exhale slowly throughout the phrase while maintaining good posture. (source)

Breath support means using other muscles (e.g. abdomen, back) to support the work of the lungs and foster better tone production and the ability to sing longer phrases. (source)

Singing the Psalms: A Guide for Modern Worship

Singing the Psalms: A Guide for Modern Worship

The book of Psalms plays an important role in worship, acting as both a Scripture reading and an act of musical praise. After all, many of the psalms were written as songs. In fact, the word psalm comes the Greek psalmos, meaning "song sung to harp music."

There are many resources available to us today that facilitate singing psalms in worship, including the United Methodist Hymnal (UMH), the Lutheran Book of Common Worship and Book of Common Worship - Daily Prayer, the Anglican Chant Psalter, the Concordia Psalter, and the online Psalter resource, featuring five psalter collections using familiar hymn tunes with recordings and searchable indexes. 

How to Teach Solfege in Children's Choir

How to Teach Solfege in Children's Choir

If you're like me, you first learned solfege from Julie Andrews in The Sound of Music. This film classic is still beloved today - it's a favorite among my elementary piano students!

So, why the funny syllables? What exactly is solfege and how do you use it?

First, a little history.

History

Solfege (do, re, mi, etc.) is a method for introducing and teaching understanding of pitch and a system used for sight singing.

Solfege dates back to the 11th century and the work of music theorist Guido d’Arezzo. There are two primary solfege systems: fixed do and movable do.

In fixed do, syllables are assigned to pitches (e.g. do = C). In movable do, syllables assigned to scale degrees (e.g. do = 1st scale degree of major scale).

17 Instrumental Collections for the Small Church Ensemble

17 Instrumental Collections for the Small Church Ensemble

Instrumental ensembles are a great way to include and involve instrumentalists from your congregation and add a new dimension to worship services throughout the year. But, what if you don't have enough players to create a traditional instrumental ensemble (wind band, brass ensemble, woodwind quartet, orchestra, wind quintet, string quartet, etc.)?

Instead, you have violin, flute, trombone, saxophone, and ukulele. Can those instruments really play together as an ensemble? Where do you find music for that instrumentation?

Don't worry - I'm not going to suggest you write your own!

The solution? Flexible arrangements.

Follow along with my creative work and daily adventures: @ashleydanyew

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