Comparisons of Choral Text Interpretation

Our interpretation of choral texts will show itself in musical ideas performed by a group. These three versions of "For Unto us a Child is Born" from Handel's Messiah show how unique a director's interpretation can make a choir sound.
In this interpretation, there is a stress on the beginning of the phrase on the word “for” with a slight space before the following word. The “Uhh” sound of “us” is lengthened lending stress to that word as well. The “r” consonants throughout the piece are generally not pronounced and are lightly flipped when they are.

In this interpretation, the word “for” is quite subdued. The phrase pushes forward to the stress on the word “Born”. The “uhh” of “us” is slightly less lengthened than the one in the previous interpretation. The “r” consonants throughout the piece are generally not pronounced and are lightly flipped when they are. This choir’s vowels and sound is on the brighter side in terms of color and the staccato treatment of this piece keeps it light and animated.

In this interpretation, there is less space between the words “for” and “unto”. This choir focusses on rounded and lengthened vowels with stresses mainly resting on the ends of phrases as well as on keywords like “Son”. In the word “government,” this choir uses an “r flavored” vowel rather than a flip. This version of this piece is more legato than the previous version. It also has a slightly darker sound due to the treatment of the vowels giving this interpretation more intensity and fullness.
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