MUSC 344: Teaching Choral Music
Prerequisites: Completion of MUSC 354 with minimum grades of 鈥淐鈥�
Credit Hours: (3)
Two hours Lecture, one hour lab. Techniques for developing K-12 school choral music
programs. Curriculum, pedagogy, materials, and program administration. Clinical experience
in schools required.
Detailed Description of Content of Course
1) The Meaning and Value of Choral Music
a. What do you believe?
b. Creating your philosophy of choral music education
c. Communicating the value of music education
2) Designing and Managing Your Choral Program
a. Which choirs should be offered?
b. Recruiting and retaining singers
c. Programming and producing concerts
3) Choral Curriculum and Assessment
a. Developing a Choral Curriculum
b. Grading
c. Selection of repertoire
d. Adapting and arranging music
4) Group Vocal Techniques
a. The choir director as group vocal instructor
b. The vocal warm-up
c. The changing voice
d. Building musicianship skills
5) Planning the rehearsal
a. Score Analysis
b. Mind-mapping
c. Shaping the rehearsal
d. Rehersal plans
6) Rehearsing the choir
a. The step by step rehearsal
b. Effective rehearsal techniques
7) Administering the Choral Program
a. Parent organizations
b. Student leadership
c. Budget
d. Choral library
e. Technology and equipment
f. Attire
g. Tours and travel
h. Fund-raising
Detailed Description of Conduct of Course
Techniques for developing choral music programs. Curriculum, pedagogy, materials,
and program administration. Clinical experiences ins chools required.
Goals and Objectives
By the conclusion of the course, students will:
1) Identify and demonstrate philosophical values for conducting/teaching in the scondary
choral classroom;
2) Explore and demonstrate teaching as imagination: the art of planning instruction
based on a system of score analysis and acquired teaching strategies;
3) Examine and demonstrate knowledge of relevant developmental, social, and vocal
issues in the middle school and high school choral classroom;
4) Develop and demonstrate a working knowledge of arranging/adaptation/revoicing for
pragmatic needs of the secondary classroom;
5) Explore concepts of choral tone including diction, vowels, and voice-building techniques;
6) Experiment with and demonstrate various teaching tasks including vocal warm-ups.
sight-reading, teaching from the keyboard, and rehearsal of repertoire.
Assessment Measures
Grade will be based on writing assignments, arranging project, and conducting-teaching
demonstrations.
Other Course Information
None
Review and Approval
April 18, 2017
Revised 2013
Revised February, 2009