My Musical Musings Blog | betsyleebaileymusic.com - The Music of Betsy Lee Bailey

Too Dramatic for Worship Service?

5/17/2023

When is a song -- solo, small ensemble, or choral piece -- deemed too dramatic or long for Sacrament Meeting?

I noticed a thread going around about this question. They were talking about having a professional singer sing "O Divine Redeemer" by Charles Gounod for Stake Conference. There was an opinion that it was too long and too dramatic for use in that service even though it was expressly requested by the Stake President.

Years ago, I sang that piece at least once a year for some worship service or another. Always by request. I think nowadays that the "public" is used to very simple Christian "pop" songs that don't take too much preparation or ability to perform. On the other hand, "O Divine Redeemer" takes a lot of skill and musicianship not to mention a voice with an expanded range to be able to sing it well. If done well, it is beautiful and powerful. If done poorly, it is very painful to listen to.

Yes, that piece is dramatic and yes it is over 3:00 minutes long. Yet, if it is sung well, it is a masterful sermon and testimony served with gorgeous music! Too bad that we have fewer and fewer trained singers and accompanists who could pull off a good performance of such a magnificent piece.

As far as it being too dramatic for Conference goes, it doesn't seem any more dramatic than singing "Master the Tempest is Raging," "I Stand All Amazed," or "I Know that My Redeemer Lives."

As far as it being too long? It isn't longer than singing "A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief" -- all 7 verses, or even shortened to only 4 verses.

I for one, would rather hear a beautiful rendition of "O Divine Redeemer" than any number of the Christian "pop" songs we hear so often, usually done poorly.

Another dramatic hymn we sing regularly is "The Lord Is My Light." This has been a favorite hymn of mine since the day I heard my uncle John Thompson give a testimony about it, then sing it. He was visiting our ward one Sunday while I was in high school. He had the most marvelous heroic tenor voice. This arrangement is a salute to my wonderful uncle John who always said that some of the most powerful sermons are taught through sacred songs and hymns.

Such a Strange Day

5/8/2023

This weekend was between semesters for the college professors who live in our ward. We live very close to campus, so it is understandable that many in our Ward Family are associated with the University. It was still a surprise, though, that for Testimony Meeting we barely filled half of the chapel with a very few in the gym. (We usually fill up most of the chapel and the overflow into the gym.) At choir practice we had five singers. We usually have between 20-25 singers. In Primary we had about half of the children, and only two regular teachers and the Primary President. The other teachers were substitutes.

The Chorister in Sacrament Meeting picked three unfamiliar hymns. Usually, our congregation, that is packed with Music Professors and other people who love to sing, does rather well singing the hymns, familiar or not. But this Sunday, we were quite weak. However, we did have something fun happen. Our organ was just refurbished, and after weeks of only having a piano, it was exciting to hear our fabulous organist play "coronation" music as we left the chapel for Sunday School.

In Primary, we sang "My Heavenly Father Loves Me" which was a favorite song for all of us older teachers and subs. So we were sad when the music leader told us not to sing for one of the verses. She wanted to hear just the children --- all 13 of them --- sing. That didn't go over very well because the kids didn't know the song as well as we older folks did. We loved singing a Primary song we actually knew!

Then in choir practice, we had 2 sopranos, 1 tenor, and 2 basses. I am still scratching my head wondering why our choir director decided to hand out an SSAATTBB piece for us to sight-sing through. I went ahead and sang alto so we would at least have four parts.

It was such a strange day at Church!

Perhaps the Choir Director should have had a plan in place to let us sing something we could have managed better with just 2 parts. Here are some options for those strange days that happen from time to time.
Easy 2-Part Mixed Chorus

But the Organ Bench is Backwards!

5/2/2023

Sometimes disasters happen! Seasoned musicians can usually turn their lemons into lemonade, but what happens if an inexperienced person is faced with the same challenges?

My daughter was in charge of Stake Conference music last weekend. They live in an area where distances are great and Stake-wide participation in choirs is very difficult. This go around she decided to try forming a Women's chorus.

She hoped that she could bypass the problem of not getting enough men to sing SATB and hopefully get support to do some nice SSA pieces. The two rehearsals garnered enough support to balance the sections, but they still were a small group. My daughter usually leads the choirs but this time she needed to accompany. She found someone else to conduct who fortunately was also a trained musician.

The problems started at the Saturday night adult meeting. Unbeknownst to her, the audio/visual equipment for the Zoom was set up in between the piano and organ right where the choir conductor usually stands. That meant that during the meeting the conductor would have to stand right at the knees of the Stake Presidency to lead the choir, but what else could she do? The men even took out one of the pews for the choir. They also left some stacked chairs and equipment debris in place of the pew that made it awkward for the choir to negotiate getting into the choir seats and impossible for the organist to gracefully get from the organ to the piano without walking in front of the General Authority visitor!

My daughter did not know about all of these problems because the Leadership meeting had gone 30 minutes over time. She was faced with trying to address these issues in the same 10 minutes that she was supposed to be playing prelude. And as if these troubles weren't enough, the Visiting Authority also decided to change the hymns that were to be sung and wanted to use the big screen for a video during his talk. Well, the screen when dropped would fall right into the laps of the choir!

When she finally got things on the way to being dealt with, she hopped onto the organ --- only to be surprised that the organ bench had been replaced BACKWARDS! As she was playing, she realized that there was no place to rest her feet! She had to carefully dangle her legs during rests so she wouldn't accidentally play unplanned pedal parts!

Imagine if an inexperienced musician had been faced with these challenges! My daughter was able to deal with these problems because she was a seasoned musician and very capable. But it wasn't fair! Obviously, the people setting up the Zoom equipment did not think about how their "efforts" would disrupt other people's efforts down the line.

I'm sure my daughter made everything look like things were normal, but the heightened anxiety didn't allow her to enjoy the meeting!

Building a Church Choir

4/22/2023

Not many of us as Church Choir Directors have the luxury of directing large well-trained groups. Most of the Ward and even Stake Choirs are less than 25 voices, and even then, are not evenly balanced. What then do we do to compensate?

Of course, we try to recruit as many singers as possible. But sometimes getting a large group together is just not possible. Time, travel, distance, other commitments, family distractions, limited rehearsal space and scheduling, etc. --- there are always good reasons for people NOT to support choir. The trick is to figure out ways to help singers WANT to support Choir.

1. Get to know your possible singers. Find out their needs, time constraints, and desires. (Become their friend.)
2. Learn about their family situations that might play into when you might best schedule rehearsals. (Provide babysitting?)
3. Find out what styles of music they gravitate towards and how hard they are willing to work to perfect the singing.
4. Interview them about their musical abilities -- sight-reading skills, flexibility with singing parts, singing solos, etc.
5. Be sensitive to the needs and abilities of your accompanist. Choose music accordingly.

Armed with this information, you can make a plan. You will then be able to guess the level of difficulty you can use when choosing music. You can judge how many rehearsals it will take to reasonably learn the music. And you will be able to look for songs that will be appealing to the group.

It may be tempting to choose pieces that you sang in college with your a cappella choir or that you've heard the Tabernacle Choir sing. Be sure to check if those pieces could work for a small group. Many of those songs were written for hundreds of voices and full orchestras! The vocal parts may start out fairly simple but then suddenly break into a 4-part Men's section!

The trick is to have a selection of good stuff! Have a few pieces that are easy to learn in maybe one or two rehearsals. (Easy 2-Part Mixed Chorus) Then have a couple of challenge pieces or songs for a holiday coming up that might take longer but are really worth learning! Those are the pieces that the good singers will want to come for! Plan your rehearsals to always be working on several pieces and looking ahead to the harder things. Try to sing as often as possible.

Be patient. It takes some time to establish a good group.

Here is a piece that sounds more sophisticated than it really is. If you have a good accompanist with medium level skills, try this 2-Part Mixed Chorus arrangement of "Abide with Me 'tis Eventide."

Sermon on the Mount

4/7/2023

The other evening, I watched the Hollywood epic "Ben Hur." I was impressed by how reverently the movie depicts the scenes with Christ. The audience never sees His face. The audience never hears His voice. It only shows other actors reacting to seeing Christ's face or repeating His words. The powerful music helps the audience imagine for themselves the face and voice of Jesus. The words that are quoted are from what we call the Sermon on the Mount.

I'm sure Jesus gave this Sermon many times because these are the teachings of His doctrine (John 8:12, Matt. 16:25). No wonder, when Jesus appeared to the Nephites on the American continent, He also gave this sermon to them (3 Nephi 15:9).

Although this song is not precisely an Easter song, it expresses the teachings, doctrine, and majesty of Jesus Christ. "Live By the Light of His Love" actually compares some of the different words used in these separate accounts that are interesting. In the New Testament, while he was was still with the people, Jesus says, "I am the Light and the Life, come follow me." When he visited the Nephites, after His resurrection He says, "I am the Law and the Life, look unto me."

The song also gives ways that we can look unto Him and follow Him.

I have also created a shorter, slightly simplified version of "Live By the Light of His Love" for Primary children.

At this Easter season, may we look unto Christ and follow his ways. May we live by the Light of His Love.

Congregational Singing

3/13/2023

For the past few weeks, our chapel has been minus an organ. We were informed that the organ was getting updated with some new registers. Okay. We'll see if any of our organists will know what to do with them. At least one very accomplished organist will know, but will the others?

In the mean time, the organist has been playing the piano for our services. I gave a talk on the first week of this situation. Then, I actually was gone on a trip last weekend, so this Sunday was the first week that I was in the congregation during Church. What I'm getting at is that without the organ, the voices in the congregation were easier to hear.

As we sang the hymns, I was delighted to hear all of the vocal parts -- Soprano, Alto, Tenor and Bass. Sure, I heard a few male voices singing melody with the Sopranos, but mostly, I could distinguish the parts in a remarkably equal distribution. And even though we sang a couple of less familiar hymns, they still sang!

What surprised me the most was how joyfully the congregants sang out --- IN TUNE!!! In other chapels where I have attended recently, the people in the congregation hardly sang or they sang out of tune. Many people didn't sing at all. Not my ward. They really sang and we have many really beautiful voices among us, too. Now, I was seated on the second row up front, so all of the voices were aimed my way. I loved it!

One of the hymns we sang was "How Wondrous and Great." I have loved this hymn since I was a young teenager. I eventually made an arrangement of it for Choir using Classical styling. At the time, I had a very fine pianist who loved going off on some grand musical adventures through many keys. So each verse gets a modulation. Since the choir I was writing for had an Alto section that always begged me for a featured part, I gave them the melody on one verse and bumped the Soprano section up to a descant. A win-win for everyone!

Peace, Peace Be Still

2/23/2023

After reading the accounts of many people whose stories tell of times when they have been in real peril, I look at my life and think how blessed I have been. Yes, my husband has passed, and there are many things I am having to learn that he took care of that are difficult for me. Besides, I miss him. But all in all, I have family members close by that are very willing to help me.

Still, last month was hard. The cold and grey of January was just bringing me down. My neighbor wrote an article for our Ward news letter about how to deal with the "doldrums" and it sounded just like how I felt. Turning to the Savior with renewed energy of heart and serving as He did really helped. When the storms of life seem too much for us, we can take hold of the Savior's promise that we can find peace in Him.

In Maryland, when I was serving as the Stake Music Coordinator and Choir Director, I was amazed that every time Stake Conference was on the horizon, I would be inspired to write an arrangement. I never knew if the music that was going around in my head would be on the theme the Stake President wanted. And sometimes it wasn't. Still, it was nice to get some inspiration to write a song or create a choral arrangement of a hymn.

One time, the Stake President asked me to have the choir sing two specific hymns. I shook my head and said, "You realize that these two hymns are very similar, in fact they have the same tempo and feel. Don't you think you need a little variety?" We did a little compromise and settled on slower hymn near the beginning and "Master, the Tempest Is Raging" SATB to lead into his talk.

It just so happened that it was the arrangement I had been working on. Because it has such a narrative text, I decided to treat each verse with a little different flavor. The first two verses are sung mostly in unison with urgency and in a minor tonality. The accompaniment has motion as if the boat is riding terrifying waves. The first part of chorus is sung in parts rising to a big crescendo. Then, the mood changes at, "They all shall sweetly obey His will. Peace, peace be still."

The transition is reminiscent of the parting of storm clouds with the sun shining over a calm lake. The third verse, "Master the terror is over, the elements sweetly rest..." is sung lyrically with relief in the voices. The chorus follows the shape of a crescendo, but with testimony instead of fear. Ending very quietly with the Savior's words, "Peace, peace be still."

"Look to me in every thought. Doubt not. Fear not." D & C 6:36

"Master the Tempest Is Raging" Solo

Style Changes

2/17/2023

Johann Sebastian Bach 1685-1750

My daughter and I like to play a listening game in the early mornings when I drive her to the train station. We listen to the music and try to guess what style period it belongs to. Some are very easy to determine because we already know the piece or can recognized a famous composer's style such as Bach or Mozart or Beethoven. But sometimes we are completely stumped.

Yesterday a piece was playing (of course we turned on the radio after it had been introduced by the announcer) that had a lot of Baroque characteristics, but the instruments used and the phrasings made it seem wrong for that period. Besides, some of the articulations were very modern. Happily our guesses were validated because it was a French Impressionist composer from the late 19th century who had made an arrangement of a Baroque composer's themes.

Nearly every composer learns by studying and using techniques and ideas from previous style periods, at least to start out. Then, as they grow their own skills, and listen to music by contemporaries, they develop their own style characteristics. Then there are those composers who borrow from so many styles and mix and match ideas from many sources, that some pieces sound rather befuddled. That's when "NEO" is applied to their work. For example, if a composition from the 20th century hearkens back to the Classical period it is then called NeoClassicism, and so forth.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) and Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

But how does a composer truly become an original? I'm sure that Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven didn't analyze their own music and consciously say to themselves "I think I'll create a completely new STYLE PERIOD in music today." They may have wanted to push the envelope of music in their day, but I doubt that they worried about how musicologists would categorize their music for future generations. I think Genius plays a big role in whether a composer becomes a transitional figure or not.

Then there are Church Musicians, people who compose for worship services. Those composers have a difficult job because they need to please the worshippers more than themselves. People like what they know. Older people in particular dislike CHANGE. They feel comfort in styles that are familiar in a sacred way. Changes in adopting newer musical idioms for worship services are SLOW in coming, but they do come. Older generations eventually die off. That's partially why we get new hymnals and Children's Songbooks.

But who's to say when adopting newer styles are good or not? When popular styles are used for worship is it because that's the only style of music the song writers or congregants know? I for one am troubled when I hear the Primary children belt out loudly singing a very sacred lyric about the Savior's atonement to a pop power ballad. When the focus of the singing is about how the performer is performing and not about WORSHIP, I cringe. To me that has the same effect as scraping on a chalkboard. (Oh, that's right, we don't do chalkboards anymore.) But that's also true of any performance -- be it Operatic, Classical, Contemporary, Modern, World, Pop, and the list goes on.

True worship can be offered in any STYLE, but only when done intentionally. For that to happen, the performers must think less of themselves and more of giving their offering to God.

For example, here's a piece that could potentially focus more attention on itself than was intended. This is an arrangement of a newer LDS hymn "From Homes of Saints Glad Songs Arise" SATB. It has been given a bit of a lilt by lopping off an eight note every so often. Some people might get mixed up trying to count this one. That was not the intent. The intent was to propel the message forward with a joyful lift. The syncopations should be light in the first two verses, then when the beats become regular 4/4 near the end, the meaning is emphasized and powerful. Enjoy!

Camelot

1/25/2023

Whittier Stake Center on Mulberry Lane

When my husband and I were first married, we moved from college life in Utah to his home town in Whittier, California. Ellis had tried to explain that the people in the Stake where he grew up were my "people." I just smiled and nodded, but didn't really believe him.

He had said that there were some tremendously talented musical people in the Whittier 7th Ward and that I would instantly love them. They were always doing big events like Roadshows, Dance Festivals, full-scale Musicals, and other programs at the drop of a hat. In fact, their Roadshows were known to win "All Church" honors and be presented at June Conference in Salt Lake City.

Betsy and Ellis Bailey 1978

I confess that I listened to Ellis talk and found what he said very hard to believe. But it wasn't long before I learned that what he told me was absolutely true! From the first time I met Joan Haskins, Marylyn Thorn, Joan Ostler, Joyce Nuttall and many others, I was duly impressed. Soon, they had me singing for any and all events. Who knew that Wards even had monthly Elegant Dinners, Talent Shows, dances and other get-togethers? And the ward choir was huge --- easily 40+ people. Who could resist coming to rehearsals when the reward was Joan Haskins' homemade pancakes?

These were indeed my "people." Those were the days when the Church provided much of its own "culture." We were encouraged to do many activities in Music, Drama, Art, Dance, and Sports. In fact, these kinds of activities were outlined by the General Board of the Mutual Improvement Association (MIA) for the Youth. My growing up years in the Church were filled with lots of glittery, sparkly events. Everywhere we lived (many places across the country) my mother made sure that these Church-sponsored events were done "to the nines." The people in Ellis' ward growing up did the same -- maybe even more so since there were simply more like-minded folks.

Apparently, those years of the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s were very special to a lot of the Whittier locals. So special and unique, they called it Camelot --- a time and place most people only dream about. It truly was a special time, a time probably never to be repeated. So glad I was privileged to be part of at least some of those good times!

Clever Conducting Cues and Clues

1/6/2023

January begins the Ward Conference gauntlet for Stake Music Coordinators. Sometimes they also need to arm themselves with ideas of how to help the Church Musicians in the various wards they go to visit. Working with the Ward counterparts on how to grow Conducting skills is usually high on that list. Here is a repost from 2014 about Conducting Cues and Clues.

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Once upon a time, I taught a lot of conducting workshops to budding church musicians. We used a handbook that had a section on conducting styles with comical descriptions of incorrect methods.

The cartoon caricatures (from the old LDS Conducting Manual put together by Ralph Woodward) were delicious - Flamboyant Flossie, Tremulous Thomas, Stolid Stephan, Amiable Annie and Down-the-Line Dorothy. Each of these characters demonstrated how "clueless" these put-upon conductors were. Obviously, most of these characters were thrown into the opportunity to conduct music with very little training or experience.

Where Flamboyant Flossie thought that she needed big, showy motions to direct the singing, Tremulous Thomas barely moved a muscle beyond the shivering in his boots from stage fright. Stolid Stephan could keep the beat but nothing more, and Amiable Annie kept the same sweet facial expressions no matter the pathos of the song. Then, there's Down-the Line-Dorothy who was so intent on following the music that she never took her eyes up, out of the score.

Obviously, a good conductor must keep a good solid beat. And, yes, there are times when a conductor will use big, showy motions. It goes without saying that he will pay close attention to the score. Hopefully, he won't be shaking in his boots from stage fright. But one of the most important jobs of the conductor is to give expressive facial clues to help the performers know how to emote and create a good performance.  Conducting is all about giving easy to follow cues and clues.

As I have studied what good conductors do, I have noticed the vast repertoire of CUES and CLUES they use to get the job done. Facial expressions are easily the most fun to remember such as:

The "Look Alive, People!" face -- the conductor holds his fingers up at his eyebrows indicating you may need toothpicks to keep your eyes open to look engaged.

The "Evil Eye"-- indicating that there are certain singers in your section allowing their voices to come out of the fabric of the dynamic.

The "Stinky Diaper" face -- indicating that the passage just sung was terribly out of tune, SO FIX IT!!!!!!!!

The "Come On, Everybody, Let's Do This" face -- indicating his great expectations of the singers with just a twinge of anxiety. This face is usually employed just before the beginning of the first downbeat of the first number.

The "Good Job, You Finally Did It" face -- Oftentimes employed in conjunction with a thumbs up, indicating a satisfied conductor.

Other interesting CUES and CLUES include:
1. The sudden, intense tapping on the chest to indicate the correct TEMPO.
2. The index finger pointing up, up, up bidding the singers not to sing FLAT.
3. The sudden grabbing of the cheeks to thrust the lips FORWARD (creating
fish lips) hoping to quickly better the vowel sound.
4. The frantic arching of the hands and arms in the "I'm a Little Teapot"
stance to urge the singers towards a more perfect placement of the tone.
5. The conductor holds his arms still with palms flat in the STOP! pose
indicating that "nobody had better move or even breathe until I give the
RELEASE."

Conductors are fascinating to watch. To the untrained eye, their motions may seem clueless and even comical, but to the trained choral singer, all of those idiosyncrasies are full of deep meaning and have power to build great performances. We performers depend on those quirky CUES and CLUES!

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With Ward Conferences in January - March, the Ward Choir Directors may need choir pieces that are quick and easy to put together. Hymn Arrangements for Easy 2-Part Mixed Chorus may be just the ticket when there is little to no time to prepare!

The Music of Betsy Lee Bailey copyright 2020