Te Quiero

*very impassioned song, foremost; "find your defiant bones" "put your chin out there and sing it"
-roll r's in general
-notice unison in final 'dos' of refrain: ex. is M16
-4 measure phrasing in the 'du rus' underneath the soloists
-background 'du ru ru' section during solos is very piano, leading to new sound after solos complete >>
-M27 & M54: BIG SOUND; "We are beautiful and we have mouths that can declare what is right!"
-M54: much slower tempo
-M58: crescendo through to M60 and then back off

The Road Home

*focus on fluidity of breath; full open vowels on half notes, especially
-tell the story; sing full phrases, not individual words
-'Oos': very rounded sound; not a MN 'o' and not 'ah'
-'Oos' are us as the breath of life
-feel the 1/8th note pulse in the verses

Rock Me

• Practiced the heart beat pulse
• Wants boyancy on portions like M8, "Oh, Mother, I hear you, on your hear, lies my head", M16 "Oh, Mother , I see you...";
• Worked on the rhythm in M63 "closer" - watch her direction;
• Wants that round, oval sound on all our "Rock me's".

Star Spangled Banner

*of course, most important is be mindful of what we're singing about! what actually happened!
-Breaths are allowed after the following:
     -dawn's early light <breath>
     -twilight's last gleaming <breath>
     -perilous fight <breath>
     -gallantly streaming <breath>
     -rockets red glare <breath>
     -our flag was still there <breath>
     -banner yet wave <breath>
     -of the free <breath>
-big sound on 'gallantly streaming'
-vertical sound on 'light'

This Little Light of Mine

-word SHINE throughout: consistently open and energetic sound; LEAN into it
-word OH also can be interesting
-M10: (light of mine OH this little...) with 'oh' and syncopation, it has a 'call and response' feel
-M30/31: mark downbeats for help with rhythm. ie:
     -M30 = 'I'm;' 'let' 1st 'shine' and
     -M31= 2nd 'shine' of M31
-M56: will NOT be an S2 solo; our whole section will sing; faster tempo here (Mary says getting to the end of the song)
-M64: shine is RIGHT on beat; avoid coming in early

To Sing is to Fly

-M28: vertical sound on 'listen'
-M34 (at E): very quick tempo again, we will 'fly' again
-M54 (at H; last phrase 'to fly and soar'): very soft, piano opening that grows to ff double FORTE!

Tree Song

• ** 'As a tree gives so it receives' is about statement; purpose; a gift of the earth
• Every time we sing "As a tree gives" - open mouth, drop chin, round oval sound when you sing "As";
• Break after "gives" , before "so it receives" in M25-26;
• Be aware of the triplets and douplets, such as in M33-35, and sing them differently;
  When we sing "summer and fall" - open mouth, drop chin, round oval sound when you sing "fall.";
• At section B, things become playful, and move faster; be ready for that with our "popular, persimmon..";
• When singing "juniper, joshua, jellyfish..", wants a big J for all those J words;
• At section C we will start a little softer, so that we can build it to M133 "Roots, trunk, branches, leaves";
• Do not rush the douplets starting at M128- "amla, sal, linden, laurel, lilac, larch".