Monday, November 01, 2004

A Magical Day

Wow. What a tremendous rehearsal yesterday (last Wednesday). Im not exactly sure why everything worked the way that it did, but the end result was fantastic.

Here is what I remember:

What I did: I spent several hours the previous day listening to our recording. I knew exactly where the trouble spots were and I typed my notes out to you so that you could make comments in your music and know precisely what I wanted to fix.

What you did:

1. People listened!
On Salmo, the blend was superb as people listened more dosely than ever before to exact pitch. We finally personified the definition of blend: exact same note, exact same pitch and exact same volume.

2. The McNeil effect:
We witnessed a spectacular transformation in Jonathan McNeil's tone and Volume yesterday. I've heard Jonathan sing like thct before in opera. Yesterday, he gave us the benefit of that training and expertise.

And then- all the men modeled his sound and the overall tonewas just incredible. And it just got better- the rest of the choir picked up the idea and 47 people made enough small adjustments to what they were already doing that a radical new creation emerged from what was already quite good.

And it all went back to one person- Jonathan Mc Neil. Yesterday, he gave a little more effort/volume than usual and the Choir was transformed.

Will you be that person in our next rehearsal?


11 comments:

Jessie said...

Copie,
I think last Wednesday we got a lot accomplished because we weren't worn out. We normally are singin our souls out the entire time, and by the time we find an area that we need to fix, we can't fix it because we're exhausted. I noticed we WEREN'T pushing so much at the beginning, so when we tried to fix things, we ACTUALLY fixed it because we had the energy to fix it. (how many times did i say fix it? haha) Anyway, does that make sense?

Unknown said...

Jessie,

A couple of observations:

1. Don't call me copie. It is a bit disrespectful.
2. What you say makes sense and is worthy of consideration. However, I am fairly certain that it was a change in the dynamic in the choir and not the change in my methodology that made the difference. Many times, I am training you to perform and not trying to fix mistakes. We'll talk more about it later . .

Dr. Copeland

Anonymous said...

Hey Dr. Copeland -

It just a fellow Bush supporter saying that George W. kicked democratic ass today!!! (like the donkey - get it) Just felt like voicing my opinion of the matter! We'll forgive all those misguided souls who voted for mankind's best impersonation of a bassett hound.

-JDM

Anonymous said...

"If you're not a liberal when you're 25, you have no heart. If you're not a conservative by the time you're 35, you have no brain." -Unknown

Unknown said...

not to be a kill-joy, but i think the nasty politics should stop. It's disrespectful and out of line. not to mention, it is a case of the majority picking on the minority which sucks. It's awesome to take a political interest. It is completely rude to put down people who have a different opinions. and last time i checked, making fun of people certainly won't warm them up to you and your group. and, for the love of jehovah, the election is OVER. let it go.
with love,
the newest least popular member of choir

Katie Mo said...

it's okay Frannie, I still love ya. i hate politics. i almost wish i hadn't voted (although that WAS fun! yay! Scantron I won't be tested on!) but, um, yeah. I almost feel bad when people ask who I voted for. Blah.

Choral Advocate said...

OK so I am at work and a little bored so I check out the webpage and I see politics??? Choir---politics...hmmmm...well nonetheless I think Francesca and Katie bring up a point...why argue over politics now...two days ago maybe...Bush,Kerry,Waylon Hinkle...I voted for Waylon by the way...sorry...just trying to intereject some humor...I miss you guys and Katie I'm sorry I missed seeing the infamous red fish nets on Halloween...peace

Katie Mo said...

haha, oh man, Nick! WAYWAY 2008! hahaha! did you know that 2% of the population votes for Mickey Mouse every year? COPELAND FOR PRESIDENT! oh, those silly singing Americans ;)

Chris R. said...

Hello there. Long time reader, first time poster.

Dr. Copeland as President? Let's examine what that would entail:

-Tax breaks for any corporation related to coffee and caffeine

-Improved music programs in schools

-Waltzing lessons for everyone

-Very interesting yet confusing State of the Union addresses, containing references to stabbing, or as Maggie calls it, the P&S

All in all, I'd say those first four years would be very entertaining.

Katie Mo said...

hahaha! No kidding! But America would be a better place, right? What do you say, Dr. Copeland? And what would they call you? None of the presidents have been Drs, right? So would you be Dr President Copeland? hehehe, sorry, i'm feeling silly, i had a lot of coffee..

Anonymous said...

just joking about the whole politic thing. it isn't a big deal, don't make it one fellow singers. poking a little fun during political races is to be expected - it isn't meant to be disrespectful, and I apologize if anyone took it as such. but seriously now, it's a joke. don't take it so seriously. if you guys make this such a big deal, i can't imagine how'd you would be with other issues.