Children's choir
Choir of children and young people.
What it means
A children's choir consists of children and young people and sings usually in one to three parts in a high register. The child's voice sounds poorer in overtones and slimmer than the adult one, has less volume and a natural vibrato to a small degree; from this results a bright, clear overall sound. The available range is smaller than with adults and changes with age. During the change of voice at puberty, special consideration is necessary; with boys the change is more pronounced, but girls' voices change too.
Musical use
There is a repertoire of its own for children's choirs, and numerous large works expressly call for children's voices — in operas, oratorios, and symphonic choral works — because their sound stands out distinctly from that of the adult choir and often stands for a special layer of expression. Historically, boys' choirs carried a large part of church music, since women's voices were in many places not provided for in liturgical use; correspondingly, many upper voices of older sacred music are written for children's voices. For performance practice this is important information, because register and conception of sound are matched to it.
Children's choirs sing in churches, schools, and at opera houses, where they appear, for instance, in Carmen or La Bohème. Voice training watches for a light head voice.
Performance practice
Choose registers that lie comfortably and avoid permanent singing at the upper limit; power and volume are not goals. Work with short, varied rehearsal units and with movement, because concentration and body tension are connected. Let the children sing a lot from memory so that posture and eye contact stay free. During the change of voice, watch for changed ranges and adapt parts instead of excluding young people. Warm up the voices carefully and plan breaks.
Bear in mind that endurance is limited and overexertion shows late: short units, frequent changes, and breaks are more effective than long rehearsals. Watch for signs of tiredness and break off in time. Choose repertoire with limited range and easily singable lines. Warm up the voices carefully.