Virtual Choir: Community
Thank you!
I am so deeply grateful to each of you giving some time out of your day to help me record this piece! It is a huge part of my upcoming course on creating virtual choir videos, as it will allow me to demonstrate exactly how I go about it. I am really excited to move forward on this project, and receiving your help means so much! Many Thanks!
—Michael Hartigan
Below, you’ll find a selection of guide tracks: Soprano, Alto, Tenor and Bass. You can either download these tracks, or play them right here on the website. Most of you are probably familiar with the process. You’ll listen to the guide for your part through headphones or earbuds and sing along, while recording a video of yourself on another device. There are a few tips to keep in mind when recording your video clip:
If possible, please place your camera, phone, or other recording device on a table or shelf roughly at eye level, so we have a straight-on view of your face.
Please position yourself far enough back from the camera, that entire your head is visible in the middle of the frame.
If possible, try to have a light source illuminating your face, rather than your back, so the camera can clearly see you.
Because of my own range limitations, I sang the Soprano and Alto guides an octave lower than written, but they should be fairly intuitive to sing along with. If singing an octave apart from the guide proves to be too distracting, I have included an instrumental guide track as well, but I’d much prefer your singing along with the vocal guides if possible, because experience has shown that it really helps with the timing!
The tempo for this piece is a bit fluid. To further help with timing, you’ll hear some metronome clicks in strategic spots such as breaths and longer held notes. The tracks will begin with your first note (everyone starts on a D) and a count-in. Please take some time to familiarize yourself with the piece and practice singing it a couple of times before making your final recording. When you have finished your recording, you can upload it to my Dropbox by clicking HERE.
Thank you so much, and have fun!
GUIDE TRACKS:
Sopranos: Please sing an octave higher than the guide
Altos: Please sing an octave higher than the guide
Sheet Music Downloads
To download sheet music of “Community” you can click the links below. The full score is available, as well as individual parts. Each of the parts fits neatly on a single page, in comparison to the score which takes up 4 pages, so if you’d like to save paper and the trouble of flipping pages, you’re welcome to use the individual parts.