Basic Conducting Technique
- What it Means to Be a Choir Director
- Why Technique Matters
- Proper Arm and Hand Position
- Proper Stand Position
- Basic Patterns
- Preparatory Beats
- Cut-offs
- Fermatas
- Dynamics
- Phrasing and Articulation
Phrasing and Articulation
It is very important that you scrupulously observe phrasing and articulation markings (i.e. staccato, legato, accents, exact note and rest values, breath markings, slurs, etc.) given by the composer/arranger, as well as by the editor, if you know the edition of your score is a good one. A sound edition of any score has undergone extremely extensive and painstaking editorial processes, so it should be assumed that each marking has been very deliberately placed and is an expected part of performance. When adding your own markings, do so with a great amount of thought and care, learning as much as you can about the piece, the composer, and his or her style and practices.
Give attention to articulation in rehearsal sooner than later, incorporating articulations even as you teach notes and rhythms in the very beginning stages. There are many different possible ways to execute a phrase, or even a single note, and all of these possibilities will simultaneously coexist in your ensemble if you don't specify which one you want.
Many amateur conductors give very pronounced beats, even when it is not called for in the music. Usually this is a well-intended effort to be clear, but it is unnecessary. If your pattern is steady and consistent, your ensemble can easily read where the beats occur without your giving them added emphasis. This is true even when you are conducting a very legato piece with a very smooth, fluid pattern where the beats are barely discernible at all. Experiment with your group and discover how much more you get with less. This is a very striking and eye-opening discovery! It is vitally important that your gesture always accurately reflect the character of the piece. Do not demonstrate articulations that the composer has not specified, and do not conduct in a way that you would not want the music played or sung. For example, don't conduct in a marcato (heavily marked or accented) fashion unless you literally want the singers to execute strong accents on each beat. "But my choir is always behind," some choir directors say, feeling that strong, deliberate beats will rectify the lagging. Though the impulse is understandable, dramatically emphasizing each beat will not resolve the problem; in fact, ironically, because individuals resorting to this supposed remedy don't realize they are showing what is often called an "up-ictus" (when the rebound coming out of a beat is so vigorous that the ictus actually occurs at the top of the gesture, rather than at the bottom), they are actually contributing to the tempo discrepancy!
