Visiting HanGuang-Observation
 

Over half of the members on the Cyberfair team this year are also members of the choir. Everyone was really curious to know how does a young band like HanGuang Vocal Band, which has only been around for about three years, is able to possess such great voice and perform so well as a team. Our teachers told us to observe and take note of the band’s practice session because Teacher Chen of HanGuang Vocal Band does not usually allow visitors into the practice session to avoid disturbing the band’s practice. We all got very well-prepared beforehand to make sure we jot down all the bits and pieces that happen during the practice session.

Team Practice Observation Form
Instructor：Teacher Allegro, Chu Number of band members:6
Date：November 29th Location：Taiwan Choral Music Center
  • Practice song titles:
     -A spray of flowers (Not giving in to old age)- coda
    -Full River of Red
    -Chrysanthemum Terrace
  • Member placement:

No1: Chen, Wei-Ju │ No2: Lee, Hsing-Lei │ No3: Lin, Jin-Ying│
No4: Huang, Ching-Yuan│No5: Kee, Jing Hua│ No6: VP

Content
A spray of flowers Today’s practice session started with this song. The band added ‘whistling’ into the song. Afterwards, teacher Allegro corrected the band on the rhythm of the song, demonstrated how it should be done, and reminded everyone on some singing techniques they need to pay attention to.
Full River of Red

After teacher Allegro modified the stress and techniques of each parts and reminded them on the "action," "tempo," and "tone and pitch," the band got started on the second song - Full River of Red. One of the band members, " Son, Jhih-Ting could not make it today, so her part was reassigned to another member. However, it would be difficult to sing multiple parts by one person, so teacher Allegro discussed with others and tried to figure out how to allocate Jhih-Ting’s part evenly so no parts would go missing, and the singing would not deviate too much from the full version.
After the discussion, teacher Allegro invited Wei-Ju and Hsing-Lei to sing the 41st stanza of Full River of Red. Afterwards, teacher Allegro gave them some advice on their singing techniques, and he asked them to try the chorus part.
Chrysanthemum Terrace

Everyone was grooving on this song, and we could tell they really enjoyed a cappella.
Teacher Allegro asked Wei-Ju to solo and provided her with some suggestions on her volume and technique. Next, teacher Allegro opened the floor to questions, and they discussed among themselves. Then teacher Allegro demonstrated a better way to sing with Ching-Yuan providing body actions to enhance the performance. Teacher Allegro asked Jing Hua to play the piano in order to help the band with its pitch. Teacher Allegro then explained the 19th stanza of Chrysanthemum Terrace on a special note.

Focus of team practice

[Instruction on harmony]
Teacher Allegro specifically asked Wei-Ju and Hsing-Lei to practice the harmony between soprano and alto today. After making sure they were able to harmonize perfectly, teacher Allegro then invited the whole band to practice harmony. Afterwards, teacher Allegro led the group to continue today’s practice, and everyone seemed very into it.
[Discussion by singing parts]
Teacher Allegro asked Ching-Yuan to start a beat, and then everyone snapped their fingers or tapped their feet to join along. He then discussed the problems raised by everyone, adjusted everyone’s singing and parts until everyone understood his or her part perfectly.
[Correction on mistakes]
During the practice, teacher Allegro pointed out everyone’s mistake without hesitation. Everyone then followed his advice to adjust and practice in harmony. Teacher Allegro then asked Ching-Yuan to add some ‘actions’ into it, like snapping fingers or making audible sounds, to give the song its beat.

[Discussing the new song]
Today, teacher Allegro asked everyone to discuss about new songs for the next performance, and a final decision was reached on singing a Japanese song -Tears For You. Teacher Allegro wrote down the numbered musical notation and asked Wei-Ju to play the piano as the chord. Other members followed what teacher Allegro just taught them and accompanied the lead singer. Jing Hua whistled to make a beat. After the practice, everyone took a picture of the numbered musical notation by teacher Allegro with their mobile phones so they would be able to practice at home. Ms. Chen also gave some suggestions on the song. After a few practices, more modifications were made.

Afterthoughts on Band Practice Observation

   

Andrea

Today was our first band practice observation, and I found that when they were practicing, they would ask questions and practice with each other. It made me understand how they cherish the practice time and how hard they try. Sometimes some members might be absent, and they would coordinate and reassign the vocal parts to keep the practice going. They work so well together, and I learned how important teamwork is.

   

Nicole

Today, we went to the Taiwan Choral Music Center to observe HanGuang’s singing practice. In today’s singing practice, “A Spray of Flowers” was my favourite song, because I like its upbeat rhythm. I enjoyed it so much that I almost forgot to take notes while listening to their practice! I have learnt not only from listening to their practice, but also from paying attention to and taking notes of the comments and instructions from their voice coach/teacher. I have learnt a lot more about a cappella, about music and chorus singing.

Source: Observed and Recorded by the Beautiful Voices