CHOIRvoices – No. 1

Melanie Schlerf: Choir Conductor, Singer & Professional Choral Singer

(25/04/2023)

Our new interview series is dedicated to the diversity in the choir world. In this first interview, we speak with the talented choir conductor, singer, and professional choral singerMelanie Schlerf. Learn first-hand what qualities and experiences are essential for a successful career as a choir conductor, and discover intriguing answers on topics such as programme selection, digitalisation, choir rehearsals, and the challenges of recent years for choral singing and her choirs.

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Melanie Schlerf |

Childhood & Education

Dear Melanie, how did music influence your childhood, and how did you come up with the idea of becoming a choir conductor?

Music was always there from the beginning! From the children's songs my mother sang with me, to early musical education and the first recorder, to singing in the children's choir and watching my father play the organ and conduct. I grew up in a completely musical world, for which I am very grateful today.

I became a choir conductor more by chance. My father retired and asked if I would like to take over his choir. I enjoyed it so much that over time, one choir turned into five.

You are a professional choral singer yourself, including in the Bayreuth Festival Choir – are there any particular experiences that have been especially helpful to you in your work as a choir conductor?

Watching great conductors like Christian Thielemann or our choir director Eberhard Friedrich at work inspires me greatly in my own work. The way they rehearse musically challenging passages and interpret and conduct music is a source of new ideas and possibilities for my own work.

Which aspects of your own training do you consider most important for choir conducting?

Actually, my additional major in “Elementary Music Education” probably influenced me the most. At the forefront was the subject Rhythmics. There, we moved to music and tried to make the individual motifs, dynamics, and musical elements of a symphony visible through our bodies. This experience of music with my whole body fundamentally influenced my conducting and my understanding of music.

Would you recommend studying choir conducting to someone who has not gained much experience in choir singing, conducting, and pedagogy?

From my own experience with choir conductors of professional choirs I’ve been involved in, I have sometimes wished that the choir leadership had a better understanding of the instrument that is the voice. Simply because they would have known that the desired demands on the singers could have been achieved better and more easily in another way.

However, I cannot and do not want to generalise this, because I have also had the pleasure of working with truly sensitive and empathetic choir conductors who did not have this background.

Are there any specific textbooks on choral conducting, warm-ups, or vocal training that you use or that a choir director must have?

I often seek inspiration from various books. Thanks to my vocal pedagogy training, I can discern which exercises and impulses seem worthwhile.

Recently, I came across a wonderful concept that I highly recommend, especially for young, aspiring choir directors. It’s called "Stimmbilder" by Tjark Baumann. This resource visually presents several vocal training approaches, allowing even a layperson to vividly imagine, for instance, how a sound emerges from the third eye. The reverse side of the illustrations provides explanations and exercises for the choir director, making it easier to guide and practice the vocal effect.

Current Issues

The COVID-19 pandemic caused a significant standstill in choral music, with many choirs losing members and especially younger recruits. What impact have the past few years had on you and your choirs?

This is, of course, a major and painful issue for many choirs. I am grateful that my choirs and I have navigated the crisis fairly well. We had very few cancelled rehearsals, and despite Zoom rehearsals, we made audible progress because the singers diligently participated.

From a vocal pedagogical perspective, it was beneficial that the singers had to sit and sing alone for a while. This situation, albeit forced, absolutely enhanced their individual vocal contribution and self-confidence in their abilities. They are now realising how they benefit from the efforts they put in over the past years.

Has the situation normalised since then?

Since we were fortunate to gain more singers than we lost during the pandemic, we can now fully engage in concert planning again. We were also able to return to our regular rehearsal spaces, thanks in part to our choral associations, who provided us with a high-quality air purifier.

However, for me as a singer and choir director, it has not yet normalised that a COVID infection still feels like a sword of Damocles hanging over every encounter in small rooms with many people.

In two weeks, one of my choirs has a huge musical performance at the EWS Arena in Göppingen. Hundreds of tickets have been sold, a band has been hired, and a lot of technology has been rented. There is no possibility of a substitute for this choir. Such situations, where someone suddenly falls ill, have increased tremendously since COVID. And in the worst case, someone unknowingly infects several singers at the last rehearsal, etc. It will likely take me a long time to consider such crisis situations as normal.

In Germany, there are central contact points and resources for choirs and choir directors, such as the German Choir Association and many regional choir associations. How well are you connected/informed in this regard, and do you utilise the various offers and support?

So far, I have only contacted the Swabian Choir Association once during the pandemic to clarify an interpretation of the Baden-Württemberg COVID regulations. Otherwise, I conduct regional seminars for singers and choir directors on topics such as voice, healthy or pedagogically valuable warm-ups, etc.

Choir Rehearsal

How important is warm-up/vocal training to you?

Very important! I take this very seriously, and no choir gets around it.

The voice as an instrument arises from the interaction of several body regions and a multitude of motor processes. To achieve a beautiful and healthy voice, these processes need to be coordinated, and the muscles partially relaxed and/or strengthened. This is the first part of the warm-up. The singers can arrive from their daily routine and become aware of their bodies.

This is followed by vocal exercises, where I specifically try to enhance the vocal qualities of my singers. Depending on the length of a rehearsal, I spend 15 to 20 minutes on body warm-ups and vocal exercises to promote individual voices but also to improve the choral sound.

How do you approach learning a new piece?

It depends on the piece. If, for example, it has a complex rhythmic or harmonic structure, I create an exercise based on that, which I then introduce to the singers during the warm-up. In my experience, it helps immensely if the singers are not overwhelmed by too many notes and instead learn the music more intuitively.

Is piano accompaniment necessary?

The more the singers can sing without the support of an instrument, the stronger their musical and vocal development becomes, in my opinion. Therefore: as little as possible and as much as necessary.

Which genres are your choirs involved in?

I currently lead a church choir and several choirs that focus on pop, rock, and musical theatre.

How do you choose your programmes? Are there particular arrangers and publishers that you favour?

This varies greatly depending on the choir. The older singers prefer German-language and sometimes simpler compositions. In these cases, I often turn to the Arrangement Verlag. However, I believe there is a lack of literature in this segment. In particular, appealing German-language music that doesn’t belong to the Schlager genre is, in my view, in short supply.

For a variety of English-language pop and rock arrangements, I usually turn to publishers from the USA. The musical diversity, including varying levels of difficulty, is simply overwhelming there.

You lead both mixed choirs and a women's choir and a men's choir – do you find any differences in choral direction? Do you conduct sectional rehearsals?

Yes, there are sometimes significant differences. Each choir, due to factors like age structure, location (urban or rural), gender composition (women’s, men’s, mixed choir), and the personalities and skills of the singers, is a unique entity. Women’s choirs require a different approach than men’s choirs in musical work. Where I can reach women more through emotion, men benefit more from structured impulses during rehearsal. Mixed choirs are particularly exciting because both approaches can be utilised.

I enjoy conducting sectional rehearsals, but unfortunately, often due to time constraints, I do so too rarely. That is definitely on my choir to-do list for this year.

Do you have experience with a children’s choir?

I have led two children’s choirs. It’s a particularly fulfilling and intensive work. However, children’s choir rehearsals require extensive preparation, which, unfortunately, is often not financially compensated. In choirs, I often observe how the children’s choir and the financing of the children’s choir director are treated as secondary or the suggestion is made that the daughter of singer XY, who has no choir directing qualification, could lead the children’s choir. Yet, this is precisely where the most support, both musical and financial, should be provided.

How do the internet and technology impact the world of music? Do you use digital scores?

I started my career as a choir director at a time when there were only a few scores available online, and they could only be ordered in paper form. This was very time-consuming and sometimes disappointing when the ordered arrangement did not meet expectations. I don’t miss those days at all. Thanks to digitalisation, I now have a much wider selection of scores. I can now preview the entire piece, page by page, and often listen to it as well. With just two clicks, I can purchase and download the scores. This allows me to buy much more targeted music for the abilities of my singers and to design concert programmes thematically appropriate.

What about your choirs? How many use a tablet for singing?

It varies greatly. It depends on the age of the singers and the music logistics that the choirs have. Some choirs have a well-maintained music folder that has been used for years. It contains all the scores that the singers know and can perform. Digitising these or acquiring new digital scores would be pointless. My choir of middle-aged singers has received new scores only digitally since the COVID pandemic. Some of them print them out, while others use a tablet. The ratio is about 70% paper to 30% digital. In my youngest choir, aged between 20 and 35, around 90% are now using digital methods.

Personal

What are your absolute favourite choral pieces?

There are truly many wonderful pieces throughout the centuries of choral music. Works for choir that particularly move me include Gregorio Allegri’s 'Miserere Mei', Josef Rheinberger’s 'Abendlied', and more recently, Morten Lauridsen’s 'O magnum mysterium' and Eriks Esenvalds' 'O salutaris hostia'.

Do you also arrange pieces yourself?

Yes, occasionally. When planning a musical, it often happens that the song that would tie the whole story together isn’t available in a choral version. That’s when I have to roll up my sleeves and create something... If it’s something bigger, like notation for the band, I sometimes hire an arranger.

You are familiar with and capable of all positions: which role do you prefer – that of the choir director, the choir singer, or the soloist?

That’s quite clear. I enjoy doing all of them. Each role has its challenging but also rewarding moments. As a choir director, I enjoy the artistic freedom to perform and shape pieces that I like with the choirs. Additionally, the magic of making music together, the complete unity while singing with the singers, and their joy after a successful concert have a special charm.

As a choral singer, I especially enjoy the collective singing and merging into a unified sound. Of course, the camaraderie with other singers and the exchange of the latest developments in the music scene is also a nice aspect of this role. This is something that’s often lacking in the position of a choir director, where I’m more of the boss and literally set the tone.

Solo performances are, of course, also something special, especially when you can design the concept for the concert yourself. I find that particularly fulfilling.

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Do you find it easy to balance work and personal life, and how do you organise your various jobs?

We musicians often have an anticyclical life. When most of society finishes work or enjoys a holiday, we go to work. For me, this means that I rarely see some of my friends because they work when I’m free and vice versa. That’s why I’ve kept one evening free during the week to meet with my “office friends.” This day is absolutely sacred to me. Otherwise, you end up being only occupied with work and lose your social circle.

What music do you prefer to listen to in your free time?

Rarely classical music. I prefer listening to vocal jazz with the great artists like Frank Sinatra, Nina Simone, Diana Krall, Bing Crosby, etc. Currently, I also find folk music very interesting and, of course, 80s pop music. It always puts me in a good mood.

Do you consider any non-musical activities important for musicians?

Since we musicians are practically like athletes, I believe it’s important to train your body. I don’t mean extreme sports like running marathons. I’m more concerned with regularly relieving tension, building good muscular constitution, and continually having teachers from outside look at your instrument playing or singing to further develop yourself and prevent any bad habits.

Do you have dreams as a singer or choir director? Is there something you still want to achieve?

Of course, I have a few visions. But I’m simply looking forward to what the future holds because I’m currently content with my life. And if something new comes along, I’ll gladly embrace it.

Thank you very much!