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Steven Kronauer, of the LA Children’s Chorus Young The Changing Voice and Matching Pitch
Men’s Ensemble, clearly expresses our charge. Instructors Having the students singing in comfortable ranges is a
must possess: bit more complicated than simply assigning them a voice
part. To choose repertoire and other vocal exercises that
an intense knowledge of the physiological changes build self-efficacy, the director must first know every sing-
the boys are undergoing, strong knowledge of vo- er’s voice. Where are they comfortable singing? Where are
cal development, knowledge of choral repertoire their voices most resonant? How well does the male tran-
suited to this unique time, and a sensitive, kind soul sition from head-voice to their chest-voice? The truth is,
who builds an environment of trust alongside art- from grades 6 to 9, directors will have a bit of everything—
istry. 5 from unchanged high voices, to voices going through vocal
change, to students with newly changed baritone and ten-
or voices. One thing that is common through these stages
The Singer’s Self-Efficacy of change, however, is that some of your singers will have

Self-efficacy can be defined as the individual’s judgment difficulty matching pitch.
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of their capability to accomplish a given task. Individu- Matching pitch is an important component toward
als with higher self-efficacy beliefs tend to exert more effort building higher self-efficacy. In fact, even while participat-
and show higher levels of perseverance toward their goals ing in the most casual of singing environments, the ability
than do individuals with lower self-efficacy beliefs. Using to match pitch has been observed as a prerequisite if that
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these operational definitions, self-efficacy, which is closely experience is to be viewed as successful. When the singer
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related to self-confidence, expresses that if our students is aware of their lack of pitch matching ability, percep-
have higher confidence in their ability to sing in a choir, tions of non-musicality can develop to where the singer
they will show more effort and perseverance during our may believe that they “can’t sing” or “can’t hold a tune in
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long and focused choral rehearsals. Furthermore, to take a bucket.” These perceptions can have detrimental effect
a direct transfer from the realm of athletics, there is a key on their self-efficacy, which could result in a lack of partici-
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figure who is largely responsible for maintaining and build- pation in any form of music making.
ing collective efficacy beliefs, and that person is the team Because our students will have a wide variety of pitch
leader—the coach. In our world of choral education, we, matching ability, it is important to have a clear idea as to
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the director, shall take primary responsibility in the devel- where the students’ singable range is before any work is
opment of an environment that builds the efficacy beliefs started to correct pitch matching issues. Evaluating the
of all our singers. singable ranges can be done individually in a separate
There are many ways to go about building self-efficacy. room or by having them sing one at a time in front of their
While participating in beginning or introductory ensembles, peers. Facilitating this task as a group may be less trau-
students will feel more assured and confident when they’re matizing and a more efficient use of time. Irving Cooper
singing the melody that is well within their operational vo- provides an easy model to follow, which has been adapted
cal range. Of course, we want all our singers to experience by Judy Bowers as follows:
the joy of singing harmonies; however, when students are
new to your school, to the ensemble, or to singing in gen- “Jingle Bells” Group Test Model for Identifying Singable Ranges 13
eral, it can be quite advantageous to their self-efficacy if
they can develop their initial singing habits while singing Step 1:
melodies. Higher self-efficacy beliefs can also be reinforced
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in rehearsals where the director appropriately scaffolds in- Have the group sing “Jingle Bells” in the key of D ma-
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structional steps, being careful not to overwhelm the stu- jor. This will place the initial pitch on F . As they sing, take
dents, so that the new knowledge and/or skills can be built note of the males who are singing the melody down the
affirmingly. The director must also have patience to allow octave and matching pitch; these are likely changed voices
for consistent productive repetitions over time to allow for and you will want to seat these students together in a sec-
the knowledge and skills to become habit. tion.

ChorTeach Volume 15 • Issue 2 11 Winter 2023