marczellm Posted December 9, 2014 Posted December 9, 2014 I'm accompanying our university choir on piano. When performing in churches or rehearsing, our Roland FP-4 is a blessing. However our Christmas concert will be held in the university's main hall, and we have a grand piano there. Now I would be most enthusiastic to get to play the grand. However our choir leader seems to have gotten used to the sound and volume of the FP, and now she insists that I play it instead of the real thing. She claims that the grand is too loud, and the choir cannot be heard. Even after completely closing the lid and playing almost pianissimo she says it's too loud. Can a grand piano acoustically suppress a 30-piece (albeit amateur) choir? Life is subtractive.Genres: Jazz, funk, pop, Christian worship, BebHop Wishlist: 80s-ish (synth)pop, symph pop, prog rock, fusion, musical theatre Gear: NS2 + JUNO-G. KingKORG. SP6 at church.
Sven Golly Posted December 9, 2014 Posted December 9, 2014 Can a grand piano acoustically suppress a 30-piece (albeit amateur) choir? Apparently, yes.
Joe Muscara Posted December 9, 2014 Posted December 9, 2014 Sorry, that Ferrari is too fast. Please drive this VW Beetle instead. "I'm so crazy, I don't know this is impossible! Hoo hoo!" - Daffy Duck "The good news is that once you start piano you never have to worry about getting laid again. More time to practice!" - MOI
Brettymike Posted December 9, 2014 Posted December 9, 2014 Sounds unlikely , but you could throw a couple of woolen blankets over the grand to quiet it down Brett
mate stubb Posted December 9, 2014 Posted December 9, 2014 Or, throw a couple of woolen blankets over the choir leader to quiet her down. Moe ---
DulceLabs.com Posted December 9, 2014 Posted December 9, 2014 Oh hell no. I went to a Christmas concert in a large hall. 9 foot concert Steinway, lid fully raised and a small brass ensemble. The choir was plenty loud. That being said, she is the leader so you probably need to acquiesce. But it would be such a shame if the power cord to the Roland went missing the night of the performance and you HAD to use the acoustic.
Kawai James Posted December 9, 2014 Posted December 9, 2014 But it would be such a shame if the power chord to the Roland went missing the night of the performance and you HAD to use the acoustic. Employed by Kawai Japan, however the opinions I express are my own. Nord Electro 3 & occasional rare groove player.
EscapeRocks Posted December 9, 2014 Posted December 9, 2014 s someone who used to sing in choirs of 20 the 50 people, in large halls, all I can say is horseshit!! We always had someone accompany us on 9 foot grands. It was NEVER an issue. David Gig Rig:Yamaha CK88 | Roland Jupiter 80
xKnuckles Posted December 9, 2014 Posted December 9, 2014 Depending on the acoustics of the hall, sometimes the placement of the piano can have a huge impact on whether singers can be heard. Tell her to give it a go with the piano behind, rather than in front of the singers. It may do the trick. If not.......invite Scott to be your roadie...... "Turn your fingers into a dust rag and keep them keys clean!" Bluzeyone
DulceLabs.com Posted December 9, 2014 Posted December 9, 2014 Tell her to give it a go with the piano behind, rather than in front of the singers. It may do the trick. Not sure how that would work. The piano player and choir leader need to see each other. Every choir I have ever seen the accompanist was off to the side so they had line of sight view with the leader.
ElmerJFudd Posted December 9, 2014 Posted December 9, 2014 I do this gig a lot, especially around December. They also are typically on a Wednesday or Thursday evening when I've got nothing going on so usually just a few rehearsals and put it up on the stage. A 20 - 30 piece group is about the size of a chamber choir, they don't carry in a hall like a 100+ concert choir, so I have no doubt that in general you'd have to close the top and play a little softer - that would be just so that YOU can hear them over the instrument. Otherwise you are 100% reliant on the conductor to keep tempo since you can't hear what the heck is coming out of the singers. Of course this depends on the room and your distance from the singers and from the conductor. If I were directing this event would I want a Roland FP-4 over the university's acoustic grand? Heck no. However, for sure, you would need to close the lid on it, particularly if it's a 9 footer. Don't they have acoustic shells up behind the choir or something to get their sound out front? Anyway, it's her group, it's her gig, and if she wants the FP, play the FP. No doubt it will look a bit silly with that lovely piano sitting there... But I've run into a lot of temperamental sorts on the accompanying circuit, particularly with choirs. I enjoy the sound of a good one, but temperamental indeed. Yamaha CP88, Casio PX-560
MuzikTeechur Posted December 9, 2014 Posted December 9, 2014 As Elmer above said; I've played this gig a lot too (and I agree with everything he said). An acoustic piano is MILES more controllable than any amplified piano. Usually the problem is that the piano can't be heard, not the choir! Suggestion (and if someone else suggested it, sorry): situate the piano in front of the choir such that the lid opens toward the singers, not the audience. Use the short stick if available. The singers will hear you, as they need to, but the bulk of the sound will broadcast toward the singers, not the audience. At the end of the day, however, it's what the director wants. What is the difference between a Choral Director and a Terrorist? You can negotiate with a Terrorist. Good luck. Muzikteechur is Lonnie, in Kittery, Maine. HS music teacher: Concert Band, Marching Band, Jazz Band, Chorus, Music Theory, AP Music Theory, History of Rock, Musical Theatre, Piano, Guitar, Drama.
Polkahero Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 What is the difference between a Choral Director and a Terrorist? You can negotiate with a Terrorist. Good luck. I'm not buying this either. I'm accompanying voice majors right now for their end of semester juries on a 9-foot Steinway and even pounding through Schubert's "Erlkonig" volume isn't an issue. Your choir director is clueless. . . '57 Hammond B-3, '60 Hammond A100, Leslie 251, Leslie 330, Leslie 770, Leslie 145, Hammond PR-40 Trek II UC-1A Alesis QSR
JeffLearman Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 See if you can agree on a 3rd party to judge. If I saw a concert where the player used a DP with a nice grand already there, I'd think it was a sin. And, clearly you haven't been playing the FP4 loud enough!
stoken6 Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 As Jeff said: get someone "neutral" to judge the balance from the audience's location. Also - could it be that the balance is fine for the audience, but too loud for the performers? +1 on trying and relocate the acoustic piano and using that. My son's school concert was held in a church last night. 100-strong kids choir right at the back, and a (6ft?) baby grand at "midstage". No problems with balance. Cheers, Mike.
RudyS Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 What is the difference between a Choral Director and a Terrorist? You can negotiate with a Terrorist. Good luck. I'm not buying this either. I'm accompanying voice majors right now for their end of semester juries on a 9-foot Steinway and even pounding through Schubert's "Erlkonig" volume isn't an issue. Your choir director is clueless. . . I agree with you. However, be aware that there is a big difference between trained (skilled) singers and amateurs. An amateur is not able to give the same direction to his/her voice as a pro can. A good solo singer can be louder than an orchestra (to some extend...). Rudy
Tobias Åslund Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 Can a grand piano acoustically suppress a 30-piece (albeit amateur) choir? I would say - if it's an amateur choir, I would say yes. Actually, I had that problem last year, when accompanying a local choir with about 25-30 people. The concert was to be held in the hall in the music building of the university, and I was looking forward to play the nine foot Steinway D. The repertoire was a mix of xmas songs and a couple of pop/rock songs (and I got to play Bridge over trouble water on that grand piano... :smile:) Now, the concert hall is state of the art, where you can adapt the acoustics to your liking. During the first rehearsal the singers where a bit unsure of themselves, and I had the grand fully open - even though we closed the lid and I played real softer than I used to, members of the choir said they had trouble hearing the choir, when they were sitting in the auditorium, and even then the choir was miked, but it didn't help much at that point. During the last rehearsal, when the acoustics had been changed to help project the sound of the choir, and more importantly - the choir sang as loud as they should, there was no issues at all of the Steinway being to loud. Too much stuff, too little time, too few gigs, should spend more time practicing...! 🙄 main instruments: Nord Stage 3 compact, Yamaha CP88, Kurzweil PC4, Viscount KeyB Legend Live
Polkahero Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 I agree with you. However, be aware that there is a big difference between trained (skilled) singers and amateurs. An amateur is not able to give the same direction to his/her voice as a pro can. A good solo singer can be louder than an orchestra (to some extend...). The OP stated it's his university choir performing. Seems like there should be some music majors in there with some skills! '57 Hammond B-3, '60 Hammond A100, Leslie 251, Leslie 330, Leslie 770, Leslie 145, Hammond PR-40 Trek II UC-1A Alesis QSR
marczellm Posted December 10, 2014 Author Posted December 10, 2014 The OP stated it's his university choir performing. Seems like there should be some music majors in there with some skills! More specifically, the choir of the Faculty of Information Technology and Bionics. So, no professionals. Life is subtractive.Genres: Jazz, funk, pop, Christian worship, BebHop Wishlist: 80s-ish (synth)pop, symph pop, prog rock, fusion, musical theatre Gear: NS2 + JUNO-G. KingKORG. SP6 at church.
ADino Posted December 11, 2014 Posted December 11, 2014 Sorry, that Ferrari is too fast. Please drive this VW Beetle instead. Nooo.
Griffinator Posted December 11, 2014 Posted December 11, 2014 Or, throw a couple of woolen blankets over the choir leader to quiet her down. +1 internets for you sir. Thread is won. http://i43.tinypic.com/w8nls5.png A bunch of loud, obnoxious music I USED to make with friends.
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