Rehearsal Notes 7/21
Here are all the handouts from Sunday
• The first file is notes on the song Ahameva
• Second Sheet is notes about the blocking (choir member movement) thoughout the entire piece
• The nine PDFs are part of a packet of Stageplots we gave to everyone Sunday that show our movement throughout the piece visually (we have tons of extras to give you next week)
• The first file is notes on the song Ahameva
• Second Sheet is notes about the blocking (choir member movement) thoughout the entire piece
• The nine PDFs are part of a packet of Stageplots we gave to everyone Sunday that show our movement throughout the piece visually (we have tons of extras to give you next week)
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Helpful Tips in Warm up
•In the warm up of low notes, Ann noted that the lightness of a vowel makes it easier to sing in tune and the heaviness of the vowel can make it go flat. For example Uu is heaviest and E is lightest from the Vowel Spiral. When warming up, first try low or high notes with an E sound, followed by the Ah. It will help you if you are having trouble remaining solid in your pitch.
ACT 2, SEC 2 - Ahameva "Entrainment (Tribal Section)"
•Ann lead us in practice with the Saraswati Raga in preparation to finish the song we began last week accompanied by body percussion (Ahameva)
•Ann distributed a "One Sheet" for ACT 2, SEC 2 - "Entrainment (Tribal Section)" which lists all lyrics and the structure of the song's form attached above.
•Ann played the recording of Modul 11 while Aharon explained a ilttle about what is going on with the the rhythm of the piece:
- The piano in the Modul 11 is playing a 3-note phrase
- The bass and drums come in on the "1" (downbeat) of the phrase, the LOW note of the piano
- We are counting the music in 6 beats. The first 6 counts we sing "Ahameva" the secone "Svayamidam."
- Here is the body percussion part Aharon taught us to go with our singing of the Chorus:
- 1(clap) 2 3(stomp-stomp) 4 5 6, 1(clap) 2(stomp stomp) 3 4 5 6
- The optional "ornamentation on the second half (svayamidam) is:
- slap(right hand on right leg) slap(left hand on left leg)
slap(right hand on chest) slap(left hand on chest)
clap performed on 3, 4, 5.. so the whole phrase goes like this:
1(clap) 2 3(stomp stomp) 4 5 6, 1(clap) 2(stomp stomp) 3 4(slap, slap) 5(slap, slap) 6(clap)
or put another way:
Ahame-eva Ahameva Svyamidam Svya-mi daaa- m
x I I x I I xR xL XR XL x
Blocking for I Cant Hear Myself Think
•Ann lead the choir through the part by part basic blocking for Act 1 - Act 2 in preparation for Erika's choreography work next week at the YBCA.
- Please review the blocking notes attached above to familiarize yourself with the basic movements that will take place. We don't expect you to completely understand this, but it will help if you familiarize yourself with the basic shapes/directions of the blocking.
How To Prep For Next Week
• Learn the body percussion parts. Practice them over and over until you feel comfortable and confident.
• Experiment with improvising different ways you might produce those same rhythms (tapping the flooring, using different body parts, changing directions, etc.)
• Review the "One Sheet" for "Tribal" section, ACT 2, SEC 2 to familiarize yourself with the form of the song.
Try looking at the sheet while listening to the MIDI file of the score for "Tribal Section". (Like we said, more accurate, but not nearly as fun as Modul 11 because it's not a band recording with full drums, etc.)
• Memorize the melody lines and lyrics for "Tribal" song
Things that came up
•Ann has decided to eliminate the small body percussion ensemble in the interest of time and focus.
•Unclogging the pipes: Ann suggested that in order to address the breaks in voice consistency when practicing the sliding low note to high note warm ups, experiment with various levels of effort and volume. Sometimes problems arise when using too little or two much effort. Find a perfect place in between where you are not staining your voice and breath, but also not holding back. More often than not, things gets better when we relax more.
Next Week Rehearsal at YBCA
•Next Sunday, our rehearsal will be in the YBCA Forum. It starts at 4pm, please arrive early and leave time for parking, traffic and getting lost. •This is Located near the corner of Third and Mission at 130 Third Street. Push buzzer to speak with Security for entry. This is our backstage entrance to the Forum, and it is also a loading dock. It might be obvious, but parking is not permitted here.
Events This Week
• Vak Men's and Sruti groups together Tuesday at 7pm, Ann's House.
• Listen to KPFA this Thursday at 10pm to hear Ann Dyer and the Vak Choir featured on Hear and Now.
Visit the Here and Now Website or view live stream here...
• Inspiration Series with Dr. Hafez Modirzadeh, Friday - 7-8:30pm at Mountain Yoga. Featured Vak Choir Soloist. presents on Convergence Liberation in Practice, working with sound and metaphor to reveal human potential within each of us. Only $10 for Vak Choir Members but you must register in advance at http://www.m-yoga.org/0726-convergence-liberation.html
If you missed this week
• See "How to Prep for Next Week" section above.
• Do your best to come to Thursday's rehearsal review from 6-7pm at the Web: 355 12th St at Webster. This was an especially dense rehearsal, so it will behoove you to have a chance to go over what was covered last Sunday/ including the song Ahameva with body percusion and reviewing I cant hear myself think. Please bring your questions and problems - this is a good chance to learn in a small group.
• Listen to Module 11 to understand the sound of the Tribal Section.
• Always print out any files that you don't have and learn the parts that you missed!! Please come prepared when you miss a rehearsal.
Absent Choir Members
Alexis Filippini
Angela Coon
Arwen Lawrence
Deborah Knapp
Jennifer Presutti
Joe Eckhardt
Leah Sirkin
Lila Galindo
Rulick Bilorusets
Sarah Hartwig
Toni Blackstone
•In the warm up of low notes, Ann noted that the lightness of a vowel makes it easier to sing in tune and the heaviness of the vowel can make it go flat. For example Uu is heaviest and E is lightest from the Vowel Spiral. When warming up, first try low or high notes with an E sound, followed by the Ah. It will help you if you are having trouble remaining solid in your pitch.
ACT 2, SEC 2 - Ahameva "Entrainment (Tribal Section)"
•Ann lead us in practice with the Saraswati Raga in preparation to finish the song we began last week accompanied by body percussion (Ahameva)
•Ann distributed a "One Sheet" for ACT 2, SEC 2 - "Entrainment (Tribal Section)" which lists all lyrics and the structure of the song's form attached above.
•Ann played the recording of Modul 11 while Aharon explained a ilttle about what is going on with the the rhythm of the piece:
- The piano in the Modul 11 is playing a 3-note phrase
- The bass and drums come in on the "1" (downbeat) of the phrase, the LOW note of the piano
- We are counting the music in 6 beats. The first 6 counts we sing "Ahameva" the secone "Svayamidam."
- Here is the body percussion part Aharon taught us to go with our singing of the Chorus:
- 1(clap) 2 3(stomp-stomp) 4 5 6, 1(clap) 2(stomp stomp) 3 4 5 6
- The optional "ornamentation on the second half (svayamidam) is:
- slap(right hand on right leg) slap(left hand on left leg)
slap(right hand on chest) slap(left hand on chest)
clap performed on 3, 4, 5.. so the whole phrase goes like this:
1(clap) 2 3(stomp stomp) 4 5 6, 1(clap) 2(stomp stomp) 3 4(slap, slap) 5(slap, slap) 6(clap)
or put another way:
Ahame-eva Ahameva Svyamidam Svya-mi daaa- m
x I I x I I xR xL XR XL x
Blocking for I Cant Hear Myself Think
•Ann lead the choir through the part by part basic blocking for Act 1 - Act 2 in preparation for Erika's choreography work next week at the YBCA.
- Please review the blocking notes attached above to familiarize yourself with the basic movements that will take place. We don't expect you to completely understand this, but it will help if you familiarize yourself with the basic shapes/directions of the blocking.
How To Prep For Next Week
• Learn the body percussion parts. Practice them over and over until you feel comfortable and confident.
• Experiment with improvising different ways you might produce those same rhythms (tapping the flooring, using different body parts, changing directions, etc.)
• Review the "One Sheet" for "Tribal" section, ACT 2, SEC 2 to familiarize yourself with the form of the song.
Try looking at the sheet while listening to the MIDI file of the score for "Tribal Section". (Like we said, more accurate, but not nearly as fun as Modul 11 because it's not a band recording with full drums, etc.)
• Memorize the melody lines and lyrics for "Tribal" song
Things that came up
•Ann has decided to eliminate the small body percussion ensemble in the interest of time and focus.
•Unclogging the pipes: Ann suggested that in order to address the breaks in voice consistency when practicing the sliding low note to high note warm ups, experiment with various levels of effort and volume. Sometimes problems arise when using too little or two much effort. Find a perfect place in between where you are not staining your voice and breath, but also not holding back. More often than not, things gets better when we relax more.
Next Week Rehearsal at YBCA
•Next Sunday, our rehearsal will be in the YBCA Forum. It starts at 4pm, please arrive early and leave time for parking, traffic and getting lost. •This is Located near the corner of Third and Mission at 130 Third Street. Push buzzer to speak with Security for entry. This is our backstage entrance to the Forum, and it is also a loading dock. It might be obvious, but parking is not permitted here.
Events This Week
• Vak Men's and Sruti groups together Tuesday at 7pm, Ann's House.
• Listen to KPFA this Thursday at 10pm to hear Ann Dyer and the Vak Choir featured on Hear and Now.
Visit the Here and Now Website or view live stream here...
• Inspiration Series with Dr. Hafez Modirzadeh, Friday - 7-8:30pm at Mountain Yoga. Featured Vak Choir Soloist. presents on Convergence Liberation in Practice, working with sound and metaphor to reveal human potential within each of us. Only $10 for Vak Choir Members but you must register in advance at http://www.m-yoga.org/0726-convergence-liberation.html
If you missed this week
• See "How to Prep for Next Week" section above.
• Do your best to come to Thursday's rehearsal review from 6-7pm at the Web: 355 12th St at Webster. This was an especially dense rehearsal, so it will behoove you to have a chance to go over what was covered last Sunday/ including the song Ahameva with body percusion and reviewing I cant hear myself think. Please bring your questions and problems - this is a good chance to learn in a small group.
• Listen to Module 11 to understand the sound of the Tribal Section.
• Always print out any files that you don't have and learn the parts that you missed!! Please come prepared when you miss a rehearsal.
Absent Choir Members
Alexis Filippini
Angela Coon
Arwen Lawrence
Deborah Knapp
Jennifer Presutti
Joe Eckhardt
Leah Sirkin
Lila Galindo
Rulick Bilorusets
Sarah Hartwig
Toni Blackstone
