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Discovering the Magic of Children’s Voices Composing and Programming for Elementary Choirs

learning by rote, even if they’re holding music in their Harmonies that Add Depth
hands. Until they are competent note-readers, a skill Once singers are able to create a beautiful unison to-
that requires practice and experience, sheet music will gether, developing choirs will be ready to journey into
still be a basic guide and teaching tool for most elemen- part singing. Likewise: once a beautifully crafted melod-
tary singers. Consider how well the melody and text ic idea is in place, composers are ready to add harmonic
can be caught. (Tom’s singer was right on the money depth. First, let’s address various ways young singers can
when they advised him to write a song that was catchy!) be introduced to the wonderful world of part singing.
Here are two important clarifications:
1) Echo songs
• Catchy doesn’t mean trite or childish. A beautifully
crafted line can, indeed, be catchy. A well-crafted 2) Ostinatos (rhythmic or melodic)
melody that’s fun and memorable engages young 3) Independent descants
singers, making it easy to “memrize.” Strive to
select and write music that is child-friendly, not 4) Partner songs
childish. Does the road map make sense to a 5) Canons and rounds
fourth-grade student? Does the rhyming scheme
flow naturally to a second grader? Is the melodic 6) Parallel harmony
idea interesting to a sixth grader?
This is not an exhaustive list, as there are other cre-
• Dr. Heather Potter had this to say about a well-crafted ative ways we can build part-singing skills with our en-
unison line: “Basic and simple do not mean the semble (like chain phrases, call-and-response, staggered
same thing.” Our musical choices must keep our harmony, complementary melodies, vocal chording,
children’s basic skill level in mind, but it doesn’t etc.). Assess your singers and determine which type of
mean we should dumb-down our craftmanship or harmonic structure is a good fit for your ensemble’s skill
oversimplify elements, stripping them of beauty level. In the above list, number 1 is an accessible intro
and meaning. A well-crafted melody engages to part singing, perhaps the first type your children may
the singer while encouraging them to grow and encounter. Number 6, parallel harmony, is an advanced
stretch their musicianship. part-singing skill.
The majority of harmonic depth in unison/two-part
When I was in seventh grade, “I’m Goin’ Up a- music may not be present in the vocal parts. It is, instead,
Yonder” (Hawkins/Sirvatka) was a conference festival provided by the accompaniment. Whether it’s a secular
piece that our school choir kept in our concert reper- concert piece or a sacred anthem for worship, the first
toire that year. I would sing this song all day, every day. few bars of a piece establish character. Is this something
The melodic movement felt natural and comforting, new and unique that piques the interest of the audience
and I loved the way my voice felt as I sang it. The long and compels us to keep listening? How does it set the
phrases in this song were not easy, but required me to tone for the piece as a whole? Piano interludes can be
utilize my full breath capacity. I learned what my body similarly assessed; be sure they propel the musical story
was capable of as I prepared for each phrase. The rise and don’t simply act as a filler.
and fall of each phrase showcased the wonderful reso- Strong children’s anthems have accompaniments that
nance and sparkle of a developing voice. The song al- strike just the right balance between too little and too
lowed me to sing in my sweet spot, communicating a much. Use the following questions to evaluate the ac-
musical message about embracing faith and purpose: a companiment of a children’s piece:
combination that made my heart soar.
• Does the accompaniment effectively lead into the
choir’s entrance? For example: an up-tempo piece

CHORAL JOURNAL March/April 2023 Volume 63 Number 7 21