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Stephanie Martin: Research

WHAT SINGERS REALLY WANT

AN INTERNATIONAL SURVEY OF CHORAL SINGERS

Spring, 2007 Welcome!

Thank you for participating in this survey.
WHAT SINGERS REALLY WANT is an international survey of choral singers.
My aim is to determine what singers require from conductors in order to give
their best performance. With your help, I hope to give valuable feedback to conductors.

I have presented a preliminary report at the Three Choirs Festival in the UK, as well as at Festival 500 in St. Johns Newfoundland, which will be published in the proceedings of the Symposium, 2005.

We are still collecting data and hope to give another more complete report by the end of 2007.

Who I am

I am Professor Stephanie Martin of York University in Toronto,
where I teach musicianship, conducting, history and historical performance, harpsichord and organ.

My website is found at www.yorku.ca/stmartin and if you have questions,
you can contact me at stmartin@yorku.ca.

Your permission

I would like to use your contributions in a public paper and eventually
for publication.
Please note: By completing this survey, you are granting permission
to me to use your responses in this manner.
Do you wish your submission to be anonymous? YES NO


Completing the survey

Please select (or write) your answer beside each question,
then press the "Submit" button at the bottom to mail it back to me.
It's that simple!


If you prefer to print out the PDF version of the survey, you can mail it to:

Professor Stephanie Martin
231 Winters College, York University
4700 Keele Street
Toronto ON Canada M3J 1P3

Your personal information

Your personal profile is essential to this survey in order to draw accurate
conclusions. Please complete this portion in detail.

Name:
E-mail:
Address:
Region:	Canada United States United Kingdom Australia/New Zealand Europe Other (please specify)
What choir(s) do you sing in?	Choir 1 Choir 2 Choir 3 Choir 4
Your voice part:	S A T B
Your gender:	Female Male
Your age:
How long have you been singing in choirs?
Where did you receive your choral/vocal training?	Private study Church University/College School Through experience No formal training Other (please specify)
Are you also a conductor?	YES NO
Do you also play an instrument?	YES NO
If YES, what instrument(s) & at what level?

THE SURVEY

Instructions:
Each section contains elements of the art of conducting.
How important are these elements to you as a singer ?
Rate each element by selecting a number beside each item.

1 not important
2 somewhat helpful
3 important
4 indispensable

Comment on what you feel is important in each category.
Feel free to express yourself honestly! If you need more space to write,
feel free to expand.

Technique and musicianship
Expressive gestures	1 2 3 4
Clear conducting pattern	1 2 3 4
Cues – showing my entries	1 2 3 4
Conveying the meaning and pronunciation of text	1 2 3 4
Understanding the capabilities of the human voice	1 2 3 4
Extensive knowledge of choral repertoire	1 2 3 4
What aspects of a conductor's technique enable you to give your best performance?
Rehearsal methods
Good use of available time	1 2 3 4
Hearing and correcting mistakes	1 2 3 4
Vocal warm ups	1 2 3 4
Interpreting and shaping music in a unique way	1 2 3 4
Using a variety of teaching methods	1 2 3 4
A sense of humour	1 2 3 4
Explanation of historical or musical context of the piece	1 2 3 4
Conveying harmonic and theoretical aspects of the music	1 2 3 4
What rehearsal methods are least effective?
Leadership
Inspirational leadership	1 2 3 4
Strict expectations	1 2 3 4
Moral integrity	1 2 3 4
Experience	1 2 3 4
Energy	1 2 3 4
Imagination	1 2 3 4
Predictability	1 2 3 4
People skills	1 2 3 4
Money management	1 2 3 4
In your experience, what kind of leadership do you find detrimental?
A final question
Think about a conductor you have enjoyed working with and whose performances were successful. What did you like about his/her conducting style?
Anything you'd like to add?
Thank you! If you prefer to print out the PDF version of the survey, you can mail it to: Professor Stephanie Martin 231 Winters College, York University 4700 Keele Street Toronto ON Canada M3J 1P3 E-mail: stmartin@yorku.ca My website: http://www.yorku.ca/stmartin