5.1 English

English

There are so many details to the study of English diction that one chapter cannot possibly cover the subject. It deserves an entire book by itself and several are suggested at the end of this chapter. The purpose of this chapter shall be to call attention to the principles of good diction and make suggestions that can improve choral diction.

It should be mentioned at the outset that the union of text and music often results in an artistic environment in which music has the distinct advantage. Authors of prose or poetry are usually not enthusiastic about the results of their words being set to music because the music occupies the foreground and the text the background. Words, when sung, can sometimes be difficult to understand. When words are lengthened by extension of vowel sounds, necessary for singing but unnecessary and probably undesirable in text declamation, considerable audience concentration is required to link the fragments of words and phrases together. The length of time occupied by one vowel sound may be so long that the sense of the entire word is lost before the vowel's place in the text stream is defined by the next sound, either a consonant or a new vowel sound. When the text is unfamiliar to the audience it is very helpful to print the text in the program or in an insert. Every text should be carefully enunciated, but to expect even a carefully enunciated text to be always understood is simply not realistic for every occasion. Choral polyphony of any period is only one example when a text will be difficult to understand. Familiarity with the text allows the listener to appreciate the manner in which the composer has set the words. There is certainly merit in allowing the listener an opportunity to become familiar with a new text at a concert before hearing the setting.

Choirs are almost always involved in communicating a text to an audience. Intelligibility of text will come through consonants that are short and clean, and through correctly formed vowels that are uniformly pronounced throughout the choir. Although there are some exercises aimed directly at diction it is rarely necessary to work in that manner. A choir director is always working on diction no matter what other purpose may also be in his mind. For instance, when a director is working on tone, he is dealing with vowels. His choir will not develop a satisfying tone or sing in tune until they are singing the same vowel sound. So, no matter what the concern, diction is always part of it. The key to good tone, good intonation, and good blend lies in a single, unified vowel sound. In the course of this chapter, several techniques will be suggested that will help a choral director achieve the best possible diction with his choir.