15 September 2026

Written By Exeter Choral Society

Dear singers,

Thank you for another good rehearsal this week, with good progress via sectionals - thanks to Matt for taking sops & altos. Attendance was a little down as the first couple of weeks settle into a routine for the term. If you miss any rehearsals please make best efforts to practise the work we cover - these notes are your guide! 

Tips for effective practise on your own: 


I'm not invoking grandmothers and egg-sucking when I remind you that a 2-hour rehearsal has to satisfy many different aims all at once: Learning the notes and words, putting all parts together, blending/matching as a unit, shaping performance-quality singing, developing the confidence to watch and respond to me. You can only do the first of these on your own, so the more you bring 'ready baked' on Tuesdays, the more successful our concert! I am very encouraged so far, thank you.

SINGING IN GERMAN - It's not that difficult and help is at hand!
The Brahms Requiem is often sung in English, but I believe that to get close to the original intentions, and out of respect for the composer and the piece, we should make our best efforts to meet the challenges in the original language.

Learning and practising how to pronounce it will be part of every rehearsal, with someone speaking it properly to model. We will devote time to learning this (by chanting it in rhythm) just like we do the notes. 
If you are daunted by the prospect, have courage, help is always at hand - see the link below.

German is one of the easiest European languages for English speakers - it has some pronunciation differences but it is CONSISTENTLY SPELT, and once you have mastered a given sound/spelling, you can rely on its being the same (mostly!). There are two simple principles:

  1. Nearly all vowels are 'pure' - they stay the same throughout their length (no diphthongs!)

There is no such thing as  'mute' syllable - IF YOU SEE IT, YOU PRONOUNCE IT! 

WHAT WE DID ON 15.09.26
Movt 4 (p51 to the end) 
IMPORTANT  NOTICE FOR TENORS - Bar 136 this note should be D and not B flat.
Two musical ideas here, the legato crotchets (see alto line top of page) and the lighter faster quavers (see T & B). We looked at text from the beginning and will devote rehearsal time to this for everyone - essential!

Movt 2 (p20-25 up to fig N)
Brahms paints the text so effectively here: And the redeemed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with songs and eternal joy upon their heads then 'und Schmerz und Seufzen' (sorrow & sighing), then they flee away ('weg weg'). These contrasts have to be reflected in the way we sing them. 
We had very useful sectionals then put it together - quite successfully!

We ended by reading through movement 7 (p84). This is the most challenging chorus - sustained, unaccompanied in places and very expressive, much breath control and phrasing required.

WHAT WE WILL DO ON 22.09.26
Movt 7 - L-e-g-a-t-o   s-i-n-g-i-n-g  with the opening melody
Movt 4 - Sing through to recap and build on last rehearsal
Movt 2 - Recap from fig H to the end

Looking ahead, there are two fast and exciting emotionally-charged choruses which we need to get under way. These are Movt 3 page 38, and Movt 6 page 73. Any prep work will pay off! 

Thank you everyone.
Peter

Exeter Choral Society
Next

8 September 2026