in Schools
The singers show school children what their profession consists of, how the choir functions and the work done during rehearsals.
Based on a given concert programme, a class of students chooses from an array of textes and melodies, as well as a historical, geographical and cultural context to their composition.
A series of preparative workshops take place in the school in order to train the ear of the school child : tessitura, vocal warm-ups, and the learning of a musical piece. The learning opportunities, which call upon a quatuor of singers from accentus (soprano, alto, tenor and bass), demand active participation from the students as well as the teacher. Its the occasion for the students to learn about the vocal repertoire (choir or soloist singers, classcial or contemporary).
The children will also learn about the musical instrument that each one of them has: the voice.
_possible workshops:
jeu vocal / vocal play workshop
initiation to contemporary vocal music workshop
a quatuor and a musical piece workshop
vocal technique workshop
public rehearsals
meeting the conductor, a soloist or a composer
cultural outreach programmes in classrooms
conferences
EXAMPLE: THE WORK DONE WITH KELLER, SAINT BERNARD AND COLLEGE ANNE FRANCK SCHOOLS
Over a period of three years, a progressive approach and a follow up of the learning programme of the vocal technique is proposed in association with the teachers.
The perparative work with the teachers will allow them to learn about the jeu vocal / vocal play method and to determine the themes to be worked upon with the students during the sessions.
First year: (10 year olds) - Discovering the voice as a musical instrument with the help of “jeu vocal” / vocal play by Guy Reibel. Over a period of eight workshops based on “jeu vocal” - Guy Reibel, which are animated by an accentus vocal artist, this playful approach to the learning of music is given to the children. Each workshop is organised according to a specific theme: listening, energy, relaxation, intensity, consonant, etc... in order to enable the child to discover the different capacities of his own voice.
Second year: (11 year olds) - Initiation to polyphonic singing with the help of a musical piece by Brahms. Whereas the first year allows the child to approach singing with improvisation, the second year will allow the child to discover and acquire certain fundamentals in vocal technique. This programme is based on a musical piece by Brahms , which is also part of the programme Querelle in accentus’ 2008/2009 season.
Third year : (12 year olds) - In-depth work around a musical piece
The third year follows the next logical step in the continuity of work over the two previous years.. The aim is to strengthen the work done in the previous year around a musical piece which is part of the 2009/2010 accentus concert programme. More than just vocal technique, we will focus on the work done by the singer around a musical piece before getting on stage. Special attention is paid to the text, to the work of diction, and the historical context of the piece and to the work of interpretation. A learning CD for melody will allow the class to accompany the piece. A rendition of the work, conjured by the teachers of the middle school, may be considered at the end of the season.
SCHOLASTIC AUDIENCES