Choir
A choir is a group of people singing together in which every voice part has several singers. A composition for such an ensemble is also called a “chorus”, in German likewise Chor. On the page you recognise a four-part choir arrangement by the voice labels to the left of the staff: soprano, alto, tenor and bass.
- Meaning
- singing group in which every voice part has several singers
- Second meaning
- composition for such an ensemble
- Distinguish from
- vocal ensemble: each voice part sung by one singer or at most two
- Word origin
- Greek chorós, “dancing ground, round dance”
What makes a choir
What matters is not that many people sing together, but that every voice part has several singers. If each voice part is sung by only one singer or at most two, it is called a vocal ensemble: the voices then do not blend in the choral way. The German word Chor also means the composition that such an ensemble performs, in English a “chorus”. It goes back through Latin to the Greek chorós, which meant “dancing ground” or “round dance”.
The usual division: SATB
In a mixed choir the women usually sing in the high soprano and the lower alto range, the men in the high tenor and the low bass range. The abbreviation for this is SATB, and it counts as the standard scoring. Besides that there are equal-voice choirs, for example women’s, men’s or children’s choirs. Each voice part can also be divided; its letter is then doubled in the abbreviation, for instance SSAATTBB for eight parts.
Soprano and alto on one staff
The upper voice is the soprano (E5, D5, C5), the lower the alto (G4, G4, E4). Both share one staff, as in “Der Mond ist aufgegangen” in the sheet music archive.
Tenor and bass in the bass clef
The tenor (C4, B3, G3) lies above the bass (C3, G2, C3). If you put this line under the first, four notes sound in each of the three chords, one per voice: C major (C, E, G, C), G major (G, B, D, G), C major (C, E, G, C).
The two lines show how four voices are distributed over two staves. You can count it in the notes: in each of the three chords there is one note per voice.
Choir arrangements in the sheet music archive
In the archive you recognise a choir arrangement by the voice labels to the left of the staff, and on many sheets also by the marking “Chorsatz SATB” under the title.
| Piece in the archive | Voices on the page | What the sheet says |
|---|---|---|
| Der Mond ist aufgegangen (Schulz) | soprano, alto, tenor, bass; two voices share each staff | no scoring given; the four labels are at the first staff |
| Nachtwache (Brahms) | six staves: soprano, alto I, alto II, tenor, bass I, bass II | “Chorsatz SATB” (choir arrangement SATB) in the header |
| Caligaverunt (Naujalis) | four staves: Cantus, Altus, Tenor, Bassus | “Chorsatz SATB” (choir arrangement SATB) in the header |
| O How Amiable Are Thy Dwellings (Weelkes) | five staves: Soprano, Alto 1, Alto 2, Tenor, Bass | “Chorsatz SATB” (choir arrangement SATB) in the header |
For “Nachtwache” the header says SATB, but the page shows six staves: alto and bass are each divided into two voices. By the notation for divided voices that would be SAATBB. From the page alone you cannot see how many singers sing a line; that is a question of scoring, not of notation.
Choir arrangements with voice labels
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Der Mond ist aufgegangen Johann Abraham Peter Schulz (1747–1800) · four-part setting · 1 page
Two staves joined by a brace, one ♭ in the key signature, time signature C, an upbeat. At the top are soprano and alto in the treble clef, below them tenor and bass in the bass clef. The stems show who sings which voice: for soprano and tenor they point up, for alto and bass down.
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Nachtwache Johannes Brahms, op. 104 according to the sheet · choir arrangement SATB · 3 pages
Six staves, two ♯, time signature C, tempo marking “Langsam” (slow). Soprano, alto I and alto II enter in the first bar with pp, tenor, bass I and bass II in the second. The tenor is in the treble clef with a small 8 beneath it, both basses in the bass clef.
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Caligaverunt Juozas Naujalis (1869–1934), op. 7 No. 1 · choir arrangement SATB · 2 pages
Four staves with the Latin labels Cantus, Altus, Tenor and Bassus, one ♯, time signature C, tempo marking “Largo”. Cantus and Altus begin in the first bar; Tenor and Bassus rest there and enter in the second bar. In the sixth bar all four voices have a fermata.
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O How Amiable Are Thy Dwellings Thomas Weelkes · choir arrangement SATB, five parts · 4 pages
Five staves with the labels Soprano, Alto 1, Alto 2, Tenor and Bass, three ♭, time signature C. The voices enter one after another: the tenor in the first bar, the bass only in the fifth, after four bars of rest. The tenor is in the treble clef with a small 8 beneath it.
Common mistakes
- Reading SATB as a number of people: The four letters count voice parts, not singers.
- Taking six staves for “SATB” to be a mistake: Divided voice parts get a staff of their own, here alto I and II and bass I and II.
- Equating choir and vocal ensemble: The difference lies in the scoring, not in the number of voice parts.
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Related terms
Choral singingChoristerVoice / partSopranoAltoBassAltusUpper voiceScoreA cappellaCanonEnsemble
Editor: Maik Krohm · reviewed on 3 October 2026
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