What makes a new piece readable?
Putting a brand new piece in front of your choir is often a stressful moment, especially because the first reading can determine a lot about the trajectory of their relationship with the piece.
A key factor is readability: how fast the ensemble can get to singing it accurately. Without taking into account the reading skills of the ensemble, there are still some things that make a consistent difference. You can look for them when choosing repertoire and write with them in mind if you’re composing your own works.
The most readable pieces are:
- Repetitive. Repetition of figures at some level makes for a more readable piece.
- Melodic. Every part should feel melodic – a shape to each phrase, and often leaning on pentatonic or diatonic shapes that feel natural to sing.
- Homorhythmic. Each part should spend at least some time singing in rhythmic unison with another part.
- Legible. Clarity of notation is often overlooked, under-appreciated, and plays a much bigger role in readability than many people think.
What else do you look for from a readability perspective when you’re considering repertoire?