13 - Ensemble singing

Summary

Since polyphony evolved out of plainchant sometime around the end of the first millennium there has been a tradition of people coming together to sing in harmony. The polyphony associated with the cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris specifically contrasts the singing of the chant choir with that of soloists who sing in up to four parts. These are likely to have been the best singers available, able to hold their own as soloists and yet sing with one another as a unit; they predate polyphonic choral singing by several generations and opera singing by hundreds of years. The successors of those early polyphonists are found today in all branches of Western music from barbershop to Berio's A-Ronne, from Corsican folk polyphony to the King's Singers. What all these musicians share is an ability to communicate with each other as well as with their listeners, and that is what this chapter is about. It will focus primarily on ‘classical’ ensemble singing, or consort singing as it is sometimes called, i.e. one voice to a part (usually no more than about eight parts, though larger groups are possible), but the same principles apply to any group of solo singers, whatever the music they are singing.

If you are getting together for the first time, the first thing you need to think about is how you are going to work together. Ensemble singing is a co-operative activity and it is very important that everyone's input is used to its fullest extent. This is one of the great differences between singing in a small one-to-a-part ensemble and singing in a choir.