Undergraduate Choral Conducting Blog

Wood River went well last week for everyone. Decidedly, the piece doesn't provide the same level challenges as much of the other repertoire we've encountered thus far. However, I was surprised at how much both Wood River and Les estoiles forced me to focus on. It's so easy to fall into a loopy, unclear 4 pattern in pieces such as these. Yet, a rhythmic integrity and an idea of a flowing line moving forward must be maintained in both pieces. This is especially true for "les estoies" in its switching between triple and duple feel. Whatever meter, I always like indicating where the phrase is going in my score to prevent myself from getting bored and bogged down in the midst of a phrase. Both pieces also offer a dynamic possibilities. I'm trying to shrink my "piano" pattern to the minimum amount of space possible. Conductors that I've worked with hardly seem to move at all, making their "fortes" and other important moments all the more spectacular and effective. I was hoping to see the video to see the size of the gestures I'm using. I feel as though I'm using a tiny amount of space and movement, but in fact, the gestures are an average size, not that much different from the rest of the phrase or piece. Does anyone else feel like all those details leave them as soon as they get behind the podium?
I loved Hanna's idea for m. 13 and 18 in Wood River of going into a 3+3+2 pattern. It guided the music making perfectly. I'm curious if people find that these things come to them as they are listening to music? practicing to the music in their head? I just have a hard time "thinking outside the box." If the music says "4/4" I stay in four. I'm sure this all comes with experience, rehearsals, etc., but I'm just curious about how one makes such conducting decisions.