While contemporary pop a cappella has increasingly become more of a staple in the choral classroom, there are a number of myths that might be stopping some choir directors from embracing this genre of music. Read more to bust these common misconceptions and gain valuable resources to help you start your own contemporary pop a cappella journey!
Myth 1: “My student’s long choral vowels will suffer!”
Much to the contrary, I would even say that my choir’s vowels improve after spending time on contemporary a cappella music. In my classroom, I have found that the key to student success with vowel formation in any piece of music is differentiation. Once students can hear the difference between correct and incorrect vowel formation and understand why one is better than the other, they are much more successful in making classical choices, such as “Glaaaaaahhhdia” vs. “Glorrrria” in latin. Contemporary a cappella music is a great way to begin teaching them to hear those differentiations because the “why” is a lot simpler. In contemporary a cappella, many of the ensemble’s vowel choices are made to make the singers sound like familiar instruments. For example, most students can understand why a bass line would be sung as “dm” vs. “doohm” because they can easily identify that “dm” sounds much more like an electric bass. Students can often make these connections more easily than trying to grasp the rules of classical diction because that is what their ear is accustomed to. However, once they start making choices and differentiations in contemporary music, they can more easily transfer those skills to other genres as well.
Myth 2: “Contemporary a cappella music is not ‘quality’ repertoire”
Just like every genre of music, contemporary a cappella has a huge range of repertoire for choir directors to choose from. The myth that contemporary a cappella music is not of good quality disseminates from a picture of student run a cappella groups where they arrange by ear and simply sing homophonic doos and dahs to back up a soloist (that you probably can’t hear!). However, as there are more and more “a cappella professionals” out there, the quality of arrangements has not only increased, but it is some of the most intricate and creative repertoire out there. Check out these amazing arrangers to see what I mean:
These are only some of the many amazing arrangers there are out there! Picking contemporary a cappella should be like picking any other genre of music, where conductors use their ear and knowledge base to discern what is the best arrangement for their ensemble.
Myth 3: “Contemporary music isn’t age appropriate!”
Directors who say this generally mean it one of two ways:
- The content of contemporary music isn’t appropriate for my choir to sing!
While yes, there are many songs your students might hear on tiktok that aren’t school appropriate, there are many that are not only appropriate, but empowering for students! In fact they may even connect to the text more easily than traditional choral music. Some examples are these arrangements of “Little Voice,” “you will be found”, and “Both sides now”! Also, keep in mind that many arrangers are exploring genres other than pop music to put in the contemporary a cappella style, like this arrangement of “No one is alone” from Into the Woods, or these jazz arrangements by Highline vocal jazz.
- Contemporary music isn’t vocally appropriate for my choir!
For a long time in the voice teacher community the “ party line” was that classical singing was the best way to build technique, and that all other genres could be dangerous to young singers. However, in the past few years, more and more professionals are agreeing that “healthy singing is healthy singing!” There are some great a cappella arrangements for young voices out there (check out this great Middle school friendly arrangement of “One Call Away” by Bryan Sharpe) that really lend themselves to healthy vocal production. One of the coolest things about contemporary a cappella is that many arrangers are willing to customize their arrangements to your ensemble. Imagine having an arrangement that perfectly fits the balance and passaggio of your group–that is possible in this genre.
Myth 4: “My students won’t want to sing other genres of music if they get to sing pop!”
The validity of this myth depends on how you present repertoire in your classroom. If you present contemporary a cappella as “dessert” in your repertoire meal — in other words, a treat you throw in at the end that doesn’t really contribute to the health of the ensemble — then kids are going to be kids and only crave dessert! But if you treat contemporary a cappella with as much care, love, and detail as the rest of the repertoire, not only will students get more out of the piece, they will also see it as equal to the rest of the music you’ve chosen!
Myth 5: “Contemporary a cappella is about solo and back up singers and not about the ensemble”
While there are many arrangements out there that have a soloist and back up, there are also some fabulous arrangements that put the text into all parts of the ensemble. Check these options out:
- Pure Imagination- Arr. Ben Bram (SATB)
- Cold Water- arr. Ben Bram (TTBB)
- Dance the Night- arr. Rob Dietz (SATB)
- Hide and Seek- arr. Mary Ann Muglia (SSAA)
I have also seen many directors choose a small group of students to solo, who either trade off or sing together, instead of only having one soloist in the traditional “solo/ensemble” arrangement.
Not only does this give more solo opportunities to your ensemble, but it might empower some students who would not otherwise audition to sing a solo.