Joining a new choir can be daunting. This page contains everything you need to know prior to coming to your first rehearsal.
Is there an audition?
Not as such, no. But as a performing group, we need to ensure all our singers can hold a tune and are in the correct part for their voice.
At the end of your first rehearsal, you will take a voice test. This is not as scary as it sounds! All it involves is you and the section leader of whichever part you are gravitating towards along with our musical director Jack singing a couple of scales to check tuning and whether the chosen part suits your vocal range.
After this, should you like to continue, you will get another five weeks of free rehearsals. During those weeks, there will be a few more chances for you to sing with Jack, with and without your section leader as well as the other three section leaders. The purpose of this is not only for us to know new joiners will be able to sing independently in harmony but also for you to decide whether this is the right group for you!
What is your repertoire?
The short answer is “a bit of everything”. No, that’s not an easy cop-out, it simply is true. Currently in our repertoire are arrangements of songs ranging from Side by Side (written in 1927) to What Makes You Beautiful (2011 – One Direction) – which we learned in one of our Come and Sing events, with most decades in between represented (A Chocolate Sundae on a Saturday Night, 1947; Orange Coloured Sky, 1950; If I Can Dream, 1963; Lean On Me, 1972; Fame, 1980, and many more).
What all the songs we sing have in common is that they are all sung a cappella (without music accompaniment), and in four-part close harmony, which gives us that distinctive barbershop sound. Click here for more information about the barbershop style!
We also learn rounds (also known as canons) and tags, very short tunes that are either the ending of a barbershop song or standalone arrangements. These give us the chance to learn something quickly, put it together, and have the satisfaction of ringing those chords.
Which part should I sing?
You do not have to choose before coming along, but this breakdown may give you a rough idea:
From lowest to highest, the voice parts in barbershop are bass, baritone, lead (melody), and tenor. These roughly correspond to alto II, alto I, alto I, and soprano in traditional choral music. More information can be found on the Barbershop Harmony Society’s website.
Jack, our musical director, likes to compare barbershop parts to a Christmas tree:
The bass part is the trunk, forming the foundation of most arrangements; the lead part, singing the melody, is the branches, the most obvious and recognisable part; the baritone part is the tinsel, weaving in and out of the other parts, often difficult to pick out but adding a lot of depth to the sound; and the tenor part is the baubles or the star, sitting on top, adding a touch of twinkle to the ensemble.
Many of our current singers tried several parts before settling on one, so whichever you try out first does not have to be your final choice!
How do you learn the music?
We use a separate website to store all our sheet music – for those who read music – and learning tracks. The latter are an invaluable learning tool: each part to every song is recorded and can be played in isolation or in the full four-part mix. Many of our singers learn their parts while driving to work, cooking dinner, or walking the dog!
We are first and foremost a performing group. This means we are always seeking opportunities to perform and bring our music to an audience. We perform off-copy, after months of rehearsal and hard work, as we find it most rewarding to have an unimpeded connection with our audience!
When new members join, there is always a plan in place to allow them to learn parts of our repertoire and be able to perform those with current singers without the pressure of learning 15+ songs in just a few months. It is all very manageable and exciting!
Hear from current singers!
As much as information can be useful, we firmly believe nothing is better than hearing straight from people who have been through the process. To that end, we have gathered testimonies from current singers about their experience of joining Three Crown Sound. We strongly encourage prospective members to go read those!
Contact us
If you have any questions or worries, please do get in touch either via our Facebook page, through our contact form, or by sending us an email at threecrownsound@gmail.com.
Ready to take the plunge?
Fill in this form, or simply come to one of our rehearsals (giving us notice will ensure we can make any necessary adjustments and be fully ready to welcome you)!