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A Survey of High School State Choral Festival Repertoire Lists James B University of South Carolina Scholar Commons Theses and Dissertations 2016 Most Recommended Choral Music: A Survey Of High School State Choral Festival Repertoire Lists James B. Watson University of South Carolina Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd Part of the Other Music Commons Recommended Citation Watson, J. B.(2016). Most Recommended Choral Music: A Survey Of High School State Choral Festival Repertoire Lists. (Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd/3801 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you by Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. MOST RECOMMENDED CHORAL MUSIC: A SURVEY OF HIGH SCHOOL STATE CHORAL FESTIVAL REPERTOIRE LISTS by James B. Watson Bachelor of Science Bob Jones University, 1997 Master of Music Bob Jones University, 1999 Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of Doctor of Musical Arts in Conducting School of Music University of South Carolina 2016 Accepted by: Larry Wyatt, Major Professor Gail Barnes, Committee Member Andrew Gowan, Committee Member Alicia Walker, Committee Member Lacy Ford, Senior Vice Provost and Dean of Graduate Studies © Copyright by James B. Watson, 2016 All Rights Reserved. ii DEDICATION This research document is dedicated to my loving family. My wife, Hannah, son, Ben, and daughter, Kate, encouraged me throughout the process, graciously supporting this journey. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to express deep appreciation to the faculty who affected me as a musician. I appreciate the encouragement, feedback, and positive spirit of my mentor and major professor, Dr. Larry Wyatt. His knowledge and commitment to intellectual curiosity greatly influenced this document. I wish to express thanks to Dr. Gail Barnes for her insight and expertise in guiding the research. In addition, I would thank Dr. Andrew Gowan and Dr. Alicia Walker for providing commentary and shaping me as a conductor and pedagogue. Two additional faculty members made a special effort to invest in my development. Dr. Donald Gray patiently cultivated my voice; he displayed significant dedication, perseverance, and interest in the current project. In addition, Dr. Tina Stallard willingly offered pedagogy of voice, which modeled exemplary teaching, informed by research. iv ABSTRACT The purpose of this research study is to determine the most frequently listed choral selections on state choral festival repertoire lists and to survey state repertoire directors regarding their opinions of the most important literature for high school choral students. Five questions guided this research: What are the most frequently listed works on state repertoire lists? Which styles do repertoire directors indicate as most important for a vocal music education? Is there any relationship between the compilation of literature and the state repertoire directors’ opinions regarding the importance of specific styles? What is the process for adding works to state repertoire lists? What are the most important factors in determining what works are added to the state repertoire lists? The researcher provided a music list of the most recommended works. Additionally, listed musical styles appear in rank order by directors’ opinions of importance to the high school choral curriculum. v TABLE OF CONTENTS DEDICATION ................................................................................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................... iv ABSTRACT .........................................................................................................................v LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................ vii CHAPTER 1—INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................1 CHAPTER 2—LITERATURE REVIEW............................................................................5 CHAPTER 3—METHODOLOGY ...................................................................................13 CHAPTER 4—RESULTS .................................................................................................16 CHAPTER 5—CONCLUSIONS AND DISCUSSION ....................................................23 BIBLIOGRAPHY ..............................................................................................................33 APPENDIX A—WORKS, COMPOSERS, AND STYLES .............................................41 APPENDIX B—SURVEY RESULTS ..............................................................................51 APPENDIX C—SURVEY INSTRUMENT .....................................................................56 APPENDIX D—RECITAL PROGRAMS ........................................................................65 vi LIST OF TABLES Table 4.1 Frequently Appearing Works.............................................................................18 Table 4.2 Directors’ Opinions Regarding Musical Styles .................................................19 Table 4.3 Most Recommended Styles ...............................................................................20 Table 4.4 Directors’ Opinions............................................................................................20 Table 5.1 Important Composers of Works Suitable for High School Choirs ....................25 Table 5.2 Composers of Works Suitable for High School Choirs .....................................26 Table 5.3 Directors’ Opinions 2016...................................................................................27 Table 5.4 Directors’ Opinions 1989...................................................................................27 Table 5.5 Moderately Important Styles 2016 ....................................................................28 Table 5.6 Moderately Important Styles 1989 ....................................................................28 Table 5.7 Somewhat Important Musical Styles 2016 ........................................................29 Table 5.8 Somewhat Important Musical Styles 1989 ........................................................30 Table A.1 Most Recommended Works List ......................................................................41 Table A.2 Most Recommended Composers ......................................................................49 Table A.3 Important Styles ................................................................................................49 Table B.1 Directors’ Opinions in Rank Order by Mean ....................................................51 vii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Scholars agree that the choir director’s literature choice is crucially important. “Selection of literature . is an important key which unlocks the doors of success with our singers.”1 The repertoire is the vehicle from which vocal development and music learning occur. Many states provide a repertoire list from which choral music educators must choose literature for the high school state choral festival. Other states provide a body of repertoire as a recommended resource in literature selection. This music list is intended to steer directors toward quality choral music appropriate for the choral festival. For example, the Florida Vocal Association provides a repertoire list intended to provide directors with a resource and encourage the use of quality music.2 These purposes highlight the value of the list as a resource for excellent vocal music. Musical literature is crucially important to a comprehensive vocal music education because music is the vehicle through which students learn. Scholars acknowledge literature choice as an important factor in a vocal music education. The Choral Journal reserves an entire section of each issue to “Repertoire and Standards.” Many state choral festival rubrics include the category, “selection,” as a factor assessed in performance. In fact, many state vocal music associations elect a manager of repertoire 1 Nancy Cox, "Repertoire Standards: Children's Choirs - Selecting Choral Literature for Children's Choirs: A Closer Look at the Process - Part I," Choral Journal 47, no. 5 (November 2006): 101. 2 "Music List," Florida Vocal Association, Note from the Music Committee, accessed February 2, 2016, http://fva.net/mpa/music-list/. 1 resources, called the repertoire director. These directors update, expand, and revise the state music list, and they often oversee the approval process in literature choices for the state choral festival.3 States rely on expert choices when providing music lists. Generally, they elect one or more members to maintain a standard repertoire list. In this process of identifying quality choral works, directors necessarily include and exclude choral works. The profession, then, is valuing one work and omitting another. This practice seems valid, considering the need for a robust vocal music curriculum, rich in the finest choral works. Robinson performed the same task in his standard anthology, Choral Music. He seeks to “document the evolution of musical style,” “illustrate the major categories of choral composition,” and “provide a convenient . library of works by the most important composers of the genre.”4 In this case, the reader receives Robinson’s expert opinion about which choral works are important to
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