Cary Academy Singers

Division:  Upper School

Department: Fine and Performing Arts:  Vocal Music

Course Title/Code:  Cary Academy Singers                   Art 304

The Cary Academy Singers is an auditioned class, open to 9^th – 12^th grade students.  The class meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays each week.  Members of the Cary Academy Singers must be strong vocalists as well as being accurate sight readers.  The Cary Academy Singers are expected to learn an extensive amount of music and to learn it quickly.  As a chorus, the Cary Academy Singers perform more often than the Concert Choir; therefore students who are not truly dedicated to singing and performing should not audition for the group.  Students are required to attend all rehearsals and choral activities that are scheduled throughout the year.  A listing of choral activities can be found by visiting the Chorus web site listed on the Cary Academy Homepage under Arts Corner. 

Goals

The Cary Academy Singers is designed as a performance class.  It is designed to offer students a comprehensive choral music experience and to continue personal musical growth by teaching and expecting correct vocal technique for individual and ensemble singing, strengthening reading skills, and continuing ear training in rhythm, pitch, and harmony.  In an effort to offer students a comprehensive view of choral music and the rich history that surrounds it, students will perform stylistically diverse music.  Students are expected to perform at a superior level of musicianship.  

Activities/Content

• On a daily basis, students practice correct vocal technique through vocal exercises and breathing exercises.  The vocal exercises not only warm the voice and focus the mind, they are designed to be utilized when singing choral selections.
• Students participate in daily music reading exercises, rhythm exercises and/or melodic exercises.  The exercises are designed to be fun, stimulating, as well as very challenging.  They incorporate choral technique such as tone, blend, balance, diction, enunciation, and dynamics that is designed to transfer to singing choral selections.
• Listening to each other either in small vocal groupings, in a recording of our group or as we are singing as a group fosters an advanced level of listening skills, a strong sense of ensemble, and a high level of musicianship.
• Song selection will represent a variety of styles and difficulty from historical to pop as well as sacred to secular so as to challenge students to appreciate historically important and diverse styles of music.  Students are expected to understand the role of the performer, which is to offer an audience an esthetic experience through musical sound and poetic lyrics.  Students are expected to demonstrate an open minded attitude toward all music that is studied in an effort to learn about music history and music of many cultures and differing beliefs. 
• Students will be expected to effectively work as individuals, in vocal sections and within the entire group during each and every class period.
• Students will participate in approximately three performances each year and at least one choral festival or competition.  During one trimester each year, students will have the opportunity to put choral talents to the test by performing a staged concert that includes choreography of simple movements and some costuming.
• “Enrichment” opportunities are offered for individual students who may wish to participate outside the expected classroom requirement.  Examples of such opportunities are North Carolina High School Honors Chorus, High School All-State Chorus and voluntary performance by smaller groups of students.  Participation may be through an audition process, a selection process or through an honorary earned opportunity.  Other “enrichment” opportunities allow students to attend choral or musical performances and write a review of the performance or to audition for a musical opportunity outside the school. 

Assessment

• Students are evaluated on in-class participation, preparation, and commitment to the ensemble work ethic. 
• Students are often asked to critique a rehearsal, personal effort, or a concert.  Sometime a choral section will critique each other for the practice of verbalizing correct music and singing terms as well as developing listening skills.
• Written quizzes, tests and/or vocal evaluations are given.  Vocal evaluations may include singing in quartets, individually onto a cassette tape or as the entire group.
• Choral performances are a major portion of the assessment each trimester.  Students usually have one performance each trimester that they are expected to participate.  This is where the group and each individual demonstrate what has been learned and how far the level of musicianship has developed.