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FA ’18: MUED 376

A.S.C.A.M. Rehearsal Guide Template
Suggested BEST ORDER: I. IV. II. V. III. & then Final Questions

A.S.C.A.M =
Audiation Decisions
Singing Decisions
Conducting Decisions
Analysis Decisions
Marked Score Decisions

I. Auditation Decisions:
Discography: Summary of important recordings and
performances, with notable comparisons:
I couldn’t find any recordings of the version I have, which to me is a good
thing because I have a clean slate to work with, and I’ll be able to craft this the way I
want it without being previously influenced by any other recordings I hear.
Title of Piece Version Version Version Version
1: 2: 3: 4:
conductor conductor conductor conductor
and and and and
ensemble ensemble ensemble ensemble
Tempo

Key

Style

Type of soloist

Type of
instruments

Solo
ornamentation
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Choral Style

Golden Mean

My Favorite Sound is: Reverant

I will achieve it with _____pure british______________vowels

I will achieve it with ________back_______________placements

I will achieve it with _____steady beat____________rules

I will achieve it with ________hymn__________style

Other notes…
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II. Singing Decisions

Sound: Breathing
Placement
Vowels and modifications
Consonants
Type of blend
Preferred balance
Vibrato

Interpretative IPA
Decisions: Translations
Word Stress
Phrasing and Breathing

Emotional Buzz words

Coloration: Placement

Soloists: Kind and type

Kodaly Considerations:

Tone set:
Tone set defined: (pentatonic, modal, diatonic, chromatic)

Rhythmic set:
Rhythmic set defined:
Counting system:

Developmental strategy:

Prepare
Present
Practice
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III. Conducting Decisions: big/small, in/out, up/down

What does my Level 1 look like in this piece?

(My kinesthetic set-up, my Laban dimensions [time, weight & space],
effort actions & feelings, marked in the score)
Should look very floaty and horizontal. The more I can smooth things out with my
conducting, the better it will be.

A. My improvement goal for Level 1 Kinesthetic is:

Keep it low.

What does my Level 2 look like in this piece?

(My somatic facial affect, my emotional connection to the piece and my
facial affect, my mouth shape and my vowel shaping, my Laban
dimensions [time, weight & space], effort actions & feelings, marked in
the score)
Longing. I need to convey that emotion with my facial affect.

B. My improvement goal for Level 2 Somatic is:

Get rid of “Resting bitch face”. Look engaged.

What does my Level 3 look like in this piece?

(What are my beat patterns, my cues, my levels, my word stress, my
releases, my size of gesture, my entrances, my melded gestures, my eye
tracking, etc., and how do I execute them, my Laban dimensions [time,
weight & space], effort actions & feelings, marked in the score)
and what do my Rainbow Lady drawings look like?)
This piece is in 4. I need to keep this horizontal and flowy as much as possible.
There are two times in the piece where I may not conduct the fourth beat, and that
is at the end of the fourth and eight measures.

C. My improvement goal for Level 3 Technical is:

Keep it low and flowy.

What does my Level 4 look like in this piece?

(When do I move out of the “patterns” and how, and WHY, my Laban
dimensions [time, weight & space], effort actions & feelings, marked in
the score) and what do my Rainbow Lady drawings look like?)
My level 4 stays in my pattern most of the time. I only move
out of it at the end of phrases.
D. My improvement goal for Level 4 Informed is:
Moving in and out of my pattern smoothly. Making all of my cues
smooth and keeping the pattern in my other hand.
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Is Movement or Choralography needed, and if so, how do I deliver it?

No

IV. Analysis Decisions

Everything you study in order construct and develop an aural image of the
piece and to build a fluid, transparent, informed interpretation of the piece.

Historical Aspects: Composer – history and considerations

History of the Piece, date

Performance Practice elements

Program Notes

Theoretical Aspects: Analysis – Structural/Phrasal – (see Template)

Analysis – Chordal – (see Template)

Kinesthetic Aspects: DRAWINGS on Rainbow Lady Template

V. Marked Score Decisions

Score Preparation: Prepared Edition – Do I make a prepared edition

for the choir?

Study Score – What is included in my study score?

Conductors Score – What is included in my concert

score?

~FINAL QUESTIONS~

Do I see my A.S.C.A.M. decisions in my gesture?

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I do see them in the videos that we have. I still have work to do on
it but I can see where I’m going with it.

Do I hear my A.S.C.A.M. decisions in the sound and

performance of my choir?

Yes, this choir does a great job responding to all of the feedback I
give them and responding to the gestures I make.