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ETVA Policy Manual J. B. Lyle Senior High Choral Festival

Table of Contents

General Information ............................................................................................................................................ 1

Music Selection Guidelines ................................................................................................................................. 2

Fees ...................................................................................................................................................................... 2

Music for Adjudicators ........................................................................................................................................ 2

Performance ......................................................................................................................................................... 3

Performance Adjudication Policies ..................................................................................................................... 3

Sight-reading ....................................................................................................................................................... 3

Final Ratings ........................................................................................................................................................ 4

Awards ................................................................................................................................................................. 4

Appendices

Appendix B: J. B. Lyle Festival Adjudication Sheet ....................................................................................... 6

Appendix C: J. B. Lyle Festival Sight Reading Adjudication Sheet ............................................................... 7

I. General Information A. The ETVA J.B. Lyle Senior High Choral Festival is an annual adjudicated event. B. The Festival Chairman shall be the ETVA College Representative. C. Four adjudicators, three for performance and one for sight-reading, are chosen by the Festival Chairman who makes the initial contact followed by a confirmation from the Executive Secretary. D. The exact dates and sites are to be secured by the Executive Secretary with the approval of the President or Executive Board. 1. Site availability is the primary factor in determining the areas (Lower, Middle, Upper) where the festival will begin and end. Rotation of days/site from year to year will be considered when site availability will allow. E. Directors will be given a choice as to which day of J.B. Lyle they prefer to attend. It is NOT required that you attend in your own region. F. Schools with more than one choir participating in the Festival must be on site a minimum of the following time frames: 2 choirs – 3 hours, 3 choirs – 4 hours, 4 choirs – 5 hours,

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6 choirs – 7 hours, 7 choirs – 8 hours. G. Recordings of comments by the judges and one of the on-stage performances will be ` provided by ETVA at no cost to the participants. H. The application for participation in Festival must be received in accordance with the published deadline date. I. The Executive Secretary will set the Festival schedule. II. Music Selection Guidelines A. Quality choral music should be selected as festival repertoire. Pop, Showchoir and Broadway selections are generally not considered appropriate for Festival use. The following lists are available for your consideration and guidance: ETVA list, the Florida Vocal Association list, the Georgia Vocal Association list and the Texas Vocal Association list. Links to these and other resources are available on the ETVA website. B. Each chorus must sing three selections. C. Two of the following style periods must be represented: Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic, Post-Romantic or Contemporary, Early American. D. When a piece or part of a piece is stated to be unaccompanied, it should be performed a cappella. III. Fees A. Fees are $3.50 per student per performance for schools with less than 200 registered singers. For schools with 200 or more registered singers, fees are $2.50 per student per performance. B. Fees will be invoiced by ETVA after a school’s Festival Application is received. 1. No payments should be sent with Festival Application. IV. Music for Adjudicators A. Each director must submit three copies for each of the three selections to be performed. This music should be collated in performance order for each judge and turned in to the site chair during festival check-in. 1. Each measure of the music must be numbered. B. Duplication of music under current copyright will not be allowed except within the fair usage provisions of the US Copyright Act.

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V. Performance A. The fifteen-minute performance segment of the festival follows a fifteen-minute warm-up. B. Before beginning their performance the director of a choir member should announce the name of the choir, the name of the director, and the titles, along with the composer’s name, of the music they will be performing. C. Each choir will perform the three selections consecutively – pausing briefly between each selection for the benefit of the adjudicators unless otherwise indicated. VI. Performance Adjudication Policies A. Adjudicators will make constructive and clear recorded comments and indicate strengths or weaknesses of a choir’s performance on the Festival Adjudication sheet. See Appendix B for a copy of the JB Lyle Choral Adjudication Form. B. Ratings are to be based on the standards of choral excellence and are designated by Roman numerals (I, II, III, etc.) with I representing a Superior rating, II an Excellent rating, III a Good rating, and IV a Fair rating. C. Adjudicators will not confer on ratings. D. Adjudicators should not consider any extenuating circumstances in giving ratings. VII. Sight-reading A. Following the performance on stage, each chorus is required to sight-read. This will take place in a different location and with a specified sight-reading adjudicator. B. The areas to be graded are pitch and rhythm accuracy. See Appendix C for a copy of the Sight-reading adjudication form. C. Sight-reading exercises are labeled according to voicing and the level of difficulty. If more than one chorus is entered from a school, the director will decide which exercise is to be performed, so as not to duplicate exercises between groups. D. The sight-reading judge will read the procedures to be used and/or deliver such other instructions as she/he feels will assist the choir in doing the best possible job of sight-reading. The choral director will choose the examples the choir will read. A choir that is comprised of MORE than 50% first year students in that school’s choral program may choose a Beginning sight-reading exercise. E. All choirs must adhere to the Festival sight-reading rules. 1. All exercises are sung a cappella.

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2. The rhythmic exercise will be performed before study of the vocal exercise begins. 3. Each director and chorus will have one minute to silently study the rhythmic exercise and two minutes to silently study the vocal exercise. 4. It is not permissible for the director to actualize in any way, any rhythm, harmonies or voice leadings. 5. Rhythmic exercises may be clapped, counted, sung, or recited on a neutral syllable such as “tah” or in any combination of the four. 6. Vocal exercises may be sung with the words, on a neutral syllable, numbers or syllables, at the discretion of the director. 7. The director may establish the key feeling in any manner she/he sees fit without reference to the sight reading music. After the key feeling has been established and pitches are given, each section is allowed to sing its starting tone. 8. The director shall not give any audible assistance to the chorus during the singing; shall not sing with the chorus at any time; and shall not give any visual assistance other than a standard conducting pattern. VII. Final Ratings A. Choruses may sing for rating or for comment only. B. The final rating is determined by adding the numeric value of the Roman numerals from the four adjudicators (three performance scores and one sight-reading score). Example: Total of 4 - 6 equals a final I Total of 7 - 9 equals a final II Total of 10 - 12 equals a final III Total of 13 - 15 equals a final IV. 1. The use of plus (+) or minus (-) in conjunction with the Roman numeral rating will not affect the tabulation of the final rating. C. The sight-reading rating may raise or lower the final rating if it is as much as two ratings higher or lower than the final rating indicated by the numeric value of the four Roman numeral scores. Example: Final Rating indicated by numeric values – I (superior), sight-reading rating – III, equals a final rating of II (Excellent). VIII. Awards A. Each school, on achieving a superior rating, will be awarded a plaque with a bar indicating the year and group receiving the rating.

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1. Each additional superior rating over the years will receive a bar to affix to the plaque indicating the year and group receiving the rating. B. Certificates of participation will be awarded to each choir participating in the Festival.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Appendix B J. B. Lyle Festival Adjudication Sheet

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Appendix C J. B. Lyle Festival Sight Reading Adjudication Sheet