Practicing Music at Home

 

Top 5 Techniques for Practicing Your Choral Part at Home

As we prepare for our 51st season, it’s important to practice your choral part at home so you can feel confident and polished when we rehearse together. Here are five effective techniques to help you learn your music efficiently:

1. Listen to Recordings of the Piece

One of the easiest ways to learn your part is by listening to professional recordings of the music. Look for performances on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Music. If the choir is singing in multiple languages (like Latin or German), listening helps with pronunciation and phrasing. Try to find recordings that highlight your specific section (soprano, alto, tenor, or bass).

Source: ChoralNet, a leading online resource for choral musicians.

While preparing for our first rehearsal, I was listening to all the YouTube clips and reading through the music.  One of the most difficult pieces for me is The Battle of Jericho because it goes so fast and the words are tight together.  My mouth doesn't work like a rapper!  But YouTube makes that a lot easier.  I went to settings and chose playback speed, then set it down to 50%.  After running through the music several times at that speed, I just moved it to 55%, and each time I sang through without issues, I bumped it up 5%, until I got to 100%.  After trying at full speed, I bumped it to 125% and amazingly, my brain was perfectly fine singing at that speed a few times.  When I went back to 100%, not only had I found that I could sing it easier, I had also nearly memorized the whole thing without even trying.  

So use YouTube and practice a song every day for about 30 minutes or so.  It will help tremendously and you'll be that much more prepared when you get to rehearsal..  Everyone will be asking you for help on the music!!

2. Use a Piano or Keyboard App to Play Your Notes

If you have a piano or keyboard at home, play your part slowly to hear each note. If you don’t have an instrument, try a free piano app like Simply Piano or Virtual Piano. Playing your notes helps with pitch accuracy, especially in tricky sections.

3. Try a Music-Scanning App to Hear Your Part

Some apps can scan sheet music and play back individual parts with correct rhythm and pitch. Two great options are:

• SmartMusic (by MakeMusic) – Lets you isolate vocal parts and adjust tempo.

• PlayScore 2 – Scans printed music and plays it back accurately.

Source: MakeMusic and PlayScore 2 official websites.

4. Practice with a Metronome for Rhythm Accuracy

Complex rhythms can be challenging. Use a free metronome app (like Soundbrenner or Metronome Beats) to keep steady time. Start slow, then gradually speed up as you get comfortable.

5. Record Yourself Singing and Compare

Use your phone to record yourself singing your part. Listen back to check for pitch, rhythm, and diction. Compare it to a professional recording to see where you can improve.

Final Tip: Break the music into small sections and master one at a time. Happy practicing, and let’s make this our best season yet!