Voice Division Information
PERFORMANCE CLASSES
Auditions All applied lessons at Duke are offered by permission of the instructors after competitive auditions at the beginning of the semester. You must audition for voice lessons or classes only on the first two days of classes each semester. Immediately after these auditions the voice class roster and the faculty teaching assignments are finalized and a schedule is created so that students can receive the required number of lessons or classes for the year.
Sign up/fill out form See the auditions webpage for the voice audition schedule. Come to Biddle Music Building on East Campus to sign up for an audition at the bulletin board beside Room 075 Biddle. This office is located on the bottom floor of the music building, as are the music practice rooms. Voice Audition Information Forms will be posted on the bulletin board along with the sign up sheet; please take one and fill it out completely before coming in to your audition.
Audition day The location of the voice auditions will also be posted; auditions are usually held in 058 Biddle (Bone Hall) on the same floor. At the audition most students sing a classical song or a music theater song, but a folk song or hymn would also be appropriate. An accompanist is provided, so bring a score for the accompanist.
Results/enrollment Audition results will be posted on the bulletin board by 075 Biddle by the end of the week. Your instructor will contact you with your lesson time. Once you have been assigned to a class or an instructor's private studio, you may request a permission number for the course and register during add/drop. There is an additional fee for Music 79B (Voice Class) of $100 per semester. and an additional fee for MUSIC 95 (Voice Lessons) of $400 per semester, reflected on your semester bill from the Bursar's Office. Fees are non-refundable after drop/add ends, as specified by the university. Voice lesson fees are waived for music majors and minors if voice is your primary area.
MUS 79B Voice Class (permission by audition) Voice classes are limited to five students and offer group and individual instruction in the class setting with an accompanist provided. Sections may be grouped as Beginner’s Voice Class, Music Theater Beginner’s Voice Class, A Cappella Beginner’s Voice Class, or, for a second semester’s enrollment, Advanced Beginner’s Voice Class. As mentioned above, Voice Class incurs an additional fee.
MUS 95 Voice Lessons (permission by audition) Weekly voice lessons receive a half credit. An accompanist is provided for this iPod course. The university charges an extra fee for this course, which is waived for music majors and minors with voice as the primary area.
MUS 111 Opera Workshop—(permission of instructor, opera@duke.edu ) In fall and spring semesters the Duke Opera Workshop presents stages chamber operas, opera scenes, or revues, giving students an opportunity to work in small groups to learn stage techniques and interpretation of assigned excerpts. The semester ends with a performance of the works studied.
MUS 57S English & Italian Diction This beginning diction class should be taken as early in your Duke career as possible, especially if you are a voice music major or minor. English and Italian Diction is the first semester in a series designed to teach you the rules of pronunciation for the most commonly sung languages. You will learn the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) and transcribe and sing songs in both languages.
MUS 58 S German & French Diction This is a second-semester diction class, designed to build on the foundation created by your knowledge of English and Italian pronunciation and IPA transcription.
MUS 179 Advanced Study in Music Performance (Voice Recital) Open to juniors and seniors and sophomores with exceptional ability, this course carries a full credit for weekly voice lessons in preparation for a recital. A half recital is required for one semester's study; a full recital is required for two semesters' study (plus an extended jury at the end of the first semester). Fees are waived for music majors and minors.
MUS 187 Interpretation & Performance (permission of instructor) Topics vary; this course offers both classroom work and student projects involving performance and interpretation.
Fall 2007: Opera and Broadway: Love, Power, Redemption (Elizabeth Linnartz)
Spring 2007: Vocal Repertoire (Sandra Cotton)
RESOURCES
Duke Music Department Website http://music.duke.edu/ Locate a complete listing of all courses, faculty, policies, performances, graduate students, and other events.
Voice Division List Serve voicenotes@duke.edu Anyone may subscribe to this list to receive information on performing opportunities, faculty concerts, visiting artists, master classes, free tickets, opera broadcasts, local performances, and so forth. You will also receive important announcements for voice students regarding Combined Studio Classes and juries. To subscribe, use your preferred Duke email address or a non-Duke address at:
https://lists.duke.edu/sympa/subscribe/voicenotes
You may submit information to this list serve via the voice faculty.
Music Library You must explore the extent of the vast resources available here; including language dictionaries, Grove Music Online database, volumes of word-by-word translations of songs and arias, complete editions of composers’ works, scores (operas, musicals, folk songs, art songs, popular songs, song collections in many languages, etc.), books on singing, drama, pronunciation, opera, composers, and vocal pedagogy, and the copier in the corner. As always, the librarians are your best resource, and they enjoy showing you how to find all sorts of answers and resources.
Music Media Center MMC holds DVDs, CDs, VCRs, LPs and recordings in various formats of nearly anything you would like to listen to or view. Located in the lower floor of Biddle Music Building, the MMC also contains listening stations for any format you choose. Some resources have a 3-hour check-out period with expensive fines for late return.
Lily Library Lilly has Digital Video Recorders available for checkout; record your own recitals and performances. Lilly also has an extensive collection of VCR and DVD operas, concerts and music theater performances.
Practice rooms Many practice rooms are available in downstairs Biddle; please place your Duke ID in the window. Other practice room locations on West Campus as well as Central and East are available at http://osa.studentaffairs.duke.edu/resources/pianos.html .
Duke Voice Care Center Located in Duke South Hospital on West Campus, the Duke Voice Care Center combines the expertise of a team of health care professionals to determine the cause of your voice problem and develop an integrated plan to improve your voice. If you are experiencing laryngitis, hoarseness, or other voice-related problems and want to see a doctor, call 919-681-4984 for an appointment, ask for Leda Scearce, and be sure to tell her you are a singer.
PERFORMING OPPORTUNITIES
Studio Voice Class At the discretion of the teacher, MUS 95 and MUS 179 students may be asked to attend performance classes where students sing for each other and the teacher works with students for the benefit of the class.
Combined Studio Voice Class On several Tuesdays of the semester these classes will be held from 5 to 6 p.m. in Bone Hall (058 Biddle). MUS 95 and MUS 179 students are required to perform two songs in Combined Studio Class each semester.
Solo Recitals Solo recitals are possible at Duke in the sophomore year or later. Students often combine with another singer to do duo or half recitals in sophomore or junior year. See MUS 179 under course listings for more information.
Spotlight Concert Students registered for MUS 95 Voice Lessons may sing a solo in the Parents Weekend Music Department “In the Spotlight” Concert, with the permission of your instructor.
Messiah Sing-along Sponsored by the Duke Chapel Choir, the annual Messiah Sing-Along occurs in mid-November, with auditions for soloists for the various solo movements typically scheduled in October, open to any student singers. For more information, contact Dr. Rodney Wynkoop, Rodney@duke.edu.
Duke Symphony Orchestra Concerto Contest The annual concerto contest auditions provide an opportunity for students to audition for and be selected to perform a concerted work with the Duke Symphony Orchestra. Audition dates are announced in the fall at least two months before the auditions. The winners’ performances occur in the spring semester. Contact the Orchestra Music Director or your instructor for further details.
Choral Music See the Music Department Website for information on the Duke Chorale and Collegium Musicum. See the Duke Chapel Music website http://www.chapel.duke.edu/music/ for information on the Duke Chapel Choir and Duke Vespers Ensemble as well as community sing-along events.
ORDERING MUSIC SCORES
- Brodt Music Company, Charlotte, NC: 1-800-438-4129 (Order by credit card and they usually ship the same day; they will gladly discuss what you are looking for)
- Burrage Music Company, Raleigh, NC: 919-872-0211 You can drive the 40 minutes and browse.
- For hard-to-find vocal music, try www.classicalvocalrep.com, 1-800-298-7474. The owner returns calls very quickly and has a vast knowledge of available literature.
- Other great websites for ordering music and accessing the table of contents of various collections are www.halleonard.com and www.tismusic.com, although you may not be able to get music delivered quickly through these sites.
MUSIC DEPARTMENT PERSONNEL
Reception/admin. secretary: Cecelia Goldman (contacting profs, signing out keys, general Qs)
Room Reservations/admin. secretary: Catherine Banner (room reservations)
Publicity: Elizabeth Thompson (recital programs)
Concert Manager: Percell Kelley (recital scheduling)
Director of Undergraduate Studies: Prof. Susan Dunn (information on music major/minor; academic advising for music courses)
AREA PERFORMING OPPORTUNITIES:
You can sign up for the Choral Notes newsletter at the TriangleSings! website, the online resource for vocal ensemble music in Central North Carolina. Sent out the last week of each month, CN also includes other local choral-related items of interest. info@trianglesings.org
Local opera companies who audition students for the chorus: Opera Company of North Carolina (Raleigh; some rehearsals in Durham) www.operanc.com, Capital Opera Raleigh www.capitaloperaraleigh.org, and Long Leaf Opera (summer festival in Chapel Hill) www.longleafopera.org. You can audition to perform in a Gilbert and Sullivan operetta with Durham’s own Savoyards, www.durhamsavoyards.org.