In this paper, I analyse the rehearsals of a choir and focus on sequences during which participants correct and practise the pronunciation of an item. In order to sing in a choir, singers orient both to musical relevancies (such as melody, pitch and rhythm) and to the linguistic features of the words they sing (such as articulation of consonants or vowels, cutting of the syllables, accent): these features are fundamental to singing and can be the object of correction. I hereby take into consideration "second language" singing and show that, during this activity, the correction of a word pronunciation can be initiated and realised either by the director or by the singers themselves. I analyse the structure of these sequences and show their implication for the organisation of the activity and for the participatory dynamics of the rehearsals. Based on the video-recordings of the rehearsals of the choir of a music school, my analyses take into account both the audible and visible resources participants orient to; they thus contribute to a conversation analytical and multimodal perspective on the interactional and institutional activity of music rehearsals. © 2014 © 2014 Taylor & Francis.

Merlino, S. (2014). Singing in "another" language: How pronunciation matters in the organisation of choral rehearsals. SOCIAL SEMIOTICS, 24(4), 420-445 [10.1080/10350330.2014.929390].

Singing in "another" language: How pronunciation matters in the organisation of choral rehearsals

Merlino S.
2014-01-01

Abstract

In this paper, I analyse the rehearsals of a choir and focus on sequences during which participants correct and practise the pronunciation of an item. In order to sing in a choir, singers orient both to musical relevancies (such as melody, pitch and rhythm) and to the linguistic features of the words they sing (such as articulation of consonants or vowels, cutting of the syllables, accent): these features are fundamental to singing and can be the object of correction. I hereby take into consideration "second language" singing and show that, during this activity, the correction of a word pronunciation can be initiated and realised either by the director or by the singers themselves. I analyse the structure of these sequences and show their implication for the organisation of the activity and for the participatory dynamics of the rehearsals. Based on the video-recordings of the rehearsals of the choir of a music school, my analyses take into account both the audible and visible resources participants orient to; they thus contribute to a conversation analytical and multimodal perspective on the interactional and institutional activity of music rehearsals. © 2014 © 2014 Taylor & Francis.
2014
Merlino, S. (2014). Singing in "another" language: How pronunciation matters in the organisation of choral rehearsals. SOCIAL SEMIOTICS, 24(4), 420-445 [10.1080/10350330.2014.929390].
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11590/376489
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