CHOIR SHADE
Okay, so last Friday I drove up to Sierra College for a local-ish choir festival. All of the choirs but one were local(ish), another came up from San Diego which kind of made everyone O.o but we're not talking about distances.
Nope, this post has a very specific purpose:
Because dear sweet fuck.
We were given an assignment, of course: to write 4-6 sentences about two other performances.
I, however, went a wee bit overboard.
So here are my opinions, preserved for prosperity. And also shade.
Mesa College Vocal Ensemble
They did an amazing job for the most part, though they seemed stiff and one woman didn't change her facial expression at all, thus standing out in a bad way. I didn't like Zigeunerleben as much as I did when Chamber performed it. Green Broom, on the other hand, was a lot of fun to listen to. They did get a little thin during A Glimpse of Snow and Evergreen, but were overall enjoyable.
We need to keep the Zigerunerleben bass for our choir.
Santa Rosa JC Concert Choir
The tone is a little bright, and they're about 50/50 on facial expressions. It's really a shame, because they sound good. It would be nice if they all looked like they were having fun. Two Shaker Hymns wasn't very convincing to me, but Som stjärnorna på himmelen was lovely. The tenor soloist has a very rich voice; we need to keep him, too. Alma llanera got the most expression out of the most people; especially the men and sopranos. The altos, unfortunately, appear to be dead and must be returned to the grave or resurrected. Again, the sound is mostly fine. The facial expressions just take away from the vocals.
Shasta College Chamber Choir
…the gowns are lovely but a bad idea. Not a lot of facial expression. Constellation just isn't as effective when most of the choir is blank-faced. The soprano soloist had a good tone, but looked very worried. They have seen no stars sliding down the sky, that much is clear. They could enunciate a little more. Also, the constant pitching in between the three segments detracts from it overall. It seems very junior high-ish; not at all collegiate. Ce Beau Printemps… the less said about the French, the better. Parts of the song were just… thin. It's interesting that they added their own percussion to Jai Ho, but… my God, have fun with it! It sounds like it could be fun, but basically we are watching singing mannequins. Someone make them watch some actual Bollywood, please. The percussion almost drowned out the singing, though other than that it fit.
Contra Costa Singers
They seem a bit quiet, and could use more intensity. Needs more joy on Dance, Dance My Heart, though the overall sound is good. A soprano sticks out a little on The Seal Lullaby, but not in a painful way, she just needs to dial the volume back a bit. Basses could enunciate better. At least two of the choir seem to be falling asleep, which drags the energy level down. Only one of them is joyful in the Lord, unfortunately: the countertenor. He is the only having fun. In conclusion: I would buy the CD, but I wouldn't watch them in concert.
Sierra College Chamber Choir
The dresses are a real head-jerker - the tops make them too casual. Thank God four people haven't had botox injected lately and can be expressive. The sound is very good. "Day-oos". The Latin could use some work. I don't feel a lot of amor. More acting in the Lighthearted Lovers, which came as a bit of shock. The best pair all around were the Asian boy with longish hair and the brunette with a white headband and a braid. They react well to each other, and also were expressive outside of the Lighthearted Lovers.
This has been your dose of CHOIR SHADE.
Tune in on Twitter for when Puck continues to bitch about the fucking sopranos because
Nope, this post has a very specific purpose:
Because dear sweet fuck.
We were given an assignment, of course: to write 4-6 sentences about two other performances.
I, however, went a wee bit overboard.
So here are my opinions, preserved for prosperity. And also shade.
Mesa College Vocal Ensemble
They did an amazing job for the most part, though they seemed stiff and one woman didn't change her facial expression at all, thus standing out in a bad way. I didn't like Zigeunerleben as much as I did when Chamber performed it. Green Broom, on the other hand, was a lot of fun to listen to. They did get a little thin during A Glimpse of Snow and Evergreen, but were overall enjoyable.
We need to keep the Zigerunerleben bass for our choir.
Santa Rosa JC Concert Choir
The tone is a little bright, and they're about 50/50 on facial expressions. It's really a shame, because they sound good. It would be nice if they all looked like they were having fun. Two Shaker Hymns wasn't very convincing to me, but Som stjärnorna på himmelen was lovely. The tenor soloist has a very rich voice; we need to keep him, too. Alma llanera got the most expression out of the most people; especially the men and sopranos. The altos, unfortunately, appear to be dead and must be returned to the grave or resurrected. Again, the sound is mostly fine. The facial expressions just take away from the vocals.
Shasta College Chamber Choir
…the gowns are lovely but a bad idea. Not a lot of facial expression. Constellation just isn't as effective when most of the choir is blank-faced. The soprano soloist had a good tone, but looked very worried. They have seen no stars sliding down the sky, that much is clear. They could enunciate a little more. Also, the constant pitching in between the three segments detracts from it overall. It seems very junior high-ish; not at all collegiate. Ce Beau Printemps… the less said about the French, the better. Parts of the song were just… thin. It's interesting that they added their own percussion to Jai Ho, but… my God, have fun with it! It sounds like it could be fun, but basically we are watching singing mannequins. Someone make them watch some actual Bollywood, please. The percussion almost drowned out the singing, though other than that it fit.
Contra Costa Singers
They seem a bit quiet, and could use more intensity. Needs more joy on Dance, Dance My Heart, though the overall sound is good. A soprano sticks out a little on The Seal Lullaby, but not in a painful way, she just needs to dial the volume back a bit. Basses could enunciate better. At least two of the choir seem to be falling asleep, which drags the energy level down. Only one of them is joyful in the Lord, unfortunately: the countertenor. He is the only having fun. In conclusion: I would buy the CD, but I wouldn't watch them in concert.
Sierra College Chamber Choir
The dresses are a real head-jerker - the tops make them too casual. Thank God four people haven't had botox injected lately and can be expressive. The sound is very good. "Day-oos". The Latin could use some work. I don't feel a lot of amor. More acting in the Lighthearted Lovers, which came as a bit of shock. The best pair all around were the Asian boy with longish hair and the brunette with a white headband and a braid. They react well to each other, and also were expressive outside of the Lighthearted Lovers.
This has been your dose of CHOIR SHADE.
Tune in on Twitter for when Puck continues to bitch about the fucking sopranos because