The Blue Bird Written by Charles Villiers Stanford
2012 South Jersey High School Choir

I imagine that this is the end of the concert, as there are many students, all dressed in different colors, representing different sections of the concert.

Listening to this, I found that the chordal intonation was great. All of the pitches were in tune with the chord and they stayed in key (F#) throughout the entire performance. There was one chord that could have been more clear, in 2:28, but it was a great chord and could have been very moving if the inner voicing's were clearer. The soloists also do a great job in having their melodies soar above the choirs homophonic movement. The diction, to me, is not clear. I don't think I could pick up the majority of words, and that could be because of the size of the choir. The vowels are sort of matching, but its the consonants that create my confusion in the text of the song. I do love the overall tone and character that this choir presents. To me, its clear that this choir likes this piece, as the sound emanates the sentiments, subtleties and character of the piece.

An interesting musical idea that this choir did is the staccato phrase that I think says "pick up the ??". I listened to another version (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJcad_kowuI) and that part, "bellow the hill" as the text says, its slower and more marcato. The diction is clearer with this version and the tone more appropriate, not surprising since its performed by the Cambridge Singers. I think the high school's interpretation is also enjoyable and moving, creating a different ambience of sound.