Praetorius: Jubilate Deo



      To print a copy of this round, click here.

      VOWELS:

      Beginning vowel sound, though brief, is "i" (ee) --the j glide: (ee)u. So breathe with the u(oo) vowel shaped in the mouth and use the "i" (ee) to focus the sound higher/more forward in the mask.

      All other vowels are not complicated as long as you remember that e and o are open vowels in Latin.

      (ee)oo-bee-lah-teh Deh-aw. Ah-leh (NOT "lay")-loo-(ee)ah.

      Ecclesiatical Latin (Roman usage) has only 5 vowel sounds: a; e (also spelled ae, oe); i (also spelled y); o, and u. They are pronounced as follows:

          a = ah
          e = eh (not aye)
          i = ee (not ih)
          o = aw (similar to "bought," not "boat")
          u = oo

      To learn more about Latin diction, click here

      INTONATION:

      'Tis a slippery slope, unless you take great mental care to sing the descending scale in smaller steps (and the few occasions of ascending intervals in bigger steps).

      Bringing the lighter voice mechanism down into the lower register as you descend will greatly aid both intonation and tone quality. Work for smooth passagio. Sit on nothing. Remember, lower does not mean louder or coarser.

      STRUCTURE OF THE SUNG CANON

      Sopranos will begin in unison.

      Altos enter in unison after the Sopranos have sung their first "Jubilate Deo."

      First Sopranos then begin, with Second Sopranos entering after the First Soprano "Ju-bi", the First Altos after the Second Soprano "Ju-bi", the Second Altos after the First Alto "Ju-bi".

      Continue singing sensitively as four parts for as long as it takes to process into place.

      When processing, keep in mind that you must listen to/follow the singers in front. Don't be a maverick! (however well-intentioned).

      As you process, carry whatever music you have in the hand away from the audience. This hand may vary depending on which side of the aisle(s) you process.






      Go to a brief biographical sketch of Michael Praetorius

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