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For Choirbuilding: Devise your own exercise. It must employ chorister use of the Curwen hand signs to some extent. Some examples: A four part chordal progression, an ostinato with melody, melody with descant, short canon. The whole group does not need to use solfegge, but the whole group may use solfegge. If you are presenting a melody with ostinato or descant, for example, those singing the ostinato or descant may use solfegge and hand signs, those singing the melody may use words.

Your choirbuilding exercise needs to be relatively short, and designed to be taught in a brief period of time. Its purpose is to allow the choir to make harmony and/or practice certain rhythms or intervals without the use of a score. WRITE OUT ONE COPY OF YOUR CHOIRBUILDING EXERCISE WITH ANY DIRECTIONS NEEDED FOR OTHERS TO UNDERSTAND AND USE YOUR EXERCISE, AND GIVE IT TO THE INSTRUCTOR ON THE DAY YOU TEACH IT.

For Sightreading: Use an exercise from the sightreading book, the literature you are rehearsing, or one of your devising (in which case, bring copies or write it on the board beforehand).

Follow this sequence:

*ask class to find which note is "Do" (do not ask what key the piece is in)
*ask class for the syllable name of the starting pitch
*have them visually scan the exercise (allow sufficient time)
*ask them, as appropriate, one or more of the following:
    does the melody proceed mainly stepwise or are there skips? what kind of skips? are there any rhythmic challenges? where? any symbols or signs not encountered before?

*sing the tonic triad
*sing the exercise. Be sure your hand signs are fluent, and you use them. Do not conduct or snap.
*sing the exercise again to give opportunity for self correction. Before singing the second time you may briefly point out one thing, if needed