Things I learned in Judge training school.

Photo taken at Semi-final round of Radio 3 Choir of the Year Contest.


The Assistant Musical Director of the White Rosettes wrote this outstanding article. She did a much finer job then I could do so I have copied her article into this blog. It explains why we are all so excited about their scores this year.

From Jo Braham –
This month I thought I’d share some golden information about A-Scoring. A place where we have now consistently found ourselves! And what a place it is to be! The steps within this area (81-100) are far harder to climb than the steps found within the B-Level and lower, but what a journey we can take in constantly striving to provide an artistic, emotional, ‘from the heart journey’ for our listeners, whether competition or not, our songs should aim to achieve these levels. So not wanting to take anything away of course from our fantastic achievement, you can see here where our journey begins to take even greater shape. Are you on board?
MUSIC Category
249
Average 83.0
Auld Lang Syne
248
Average 82.6
Let Yourself Go
The A level
a. A-level scores (81 to 100) are given to excellent performances that feature the hallmarks of the barbershop style and display the most consistent musicality. There are very few distractions.
b. A performance earning a mid-range A score (around 90 points) features an outstanding mastery of the musical elements, resulting in an excellent performance. The harmony is wonderfully consistent, ringing, and pleasing, reflecting excellent intonation and proper balance. The embellishments artistically support the song’s theme. The delivery is marked by superb musicality. The musical elements are executed with great accuracy. The song is sung from the heart and its theme is communicated throughout, resulting in the listener’s total involvement. There are almost no distractions. The music is extremely well suited to the performers.
c. The rare and significant artistic performance at the upper range of A displays consistently artistic embellishments in support of a continuous theme presented with the highest degree of musicality.
d. In a performance at the low end of the A range, occasional distractions can occur. The performers’
technique may be somewhat distracting and the display of musicality somewhat inconsistent.
e. Distinguishing differences between A and B levels often have to do with consistency and sensitivity of performance.
PRESENTATION Category
252
Average 84.0
Auld Lang Syne
251
Average 83.6
Let Yourself Go
page2
The A Level
a. A-level scores (81 to 100) reflect outstanding levels of entertainment resulting in totally appropriate and believable emotional effects. Emotions are presented believably and the audience has totally bought into the emotional impact of the performance. There are no significant traces of artificial or unnecessary
embellishments.
b. To achieve an A score, only the total effect must be judged as A. The vocal and visual components may or may not both be of A quality depending on their relative importance to the overall effect.
c. The upper range of A scores is assigned to very exceptional achievements. There are no discernible flaws and the applicable adjectives are all superlatives: superb, exquisite, breathless, captivating, hilarious, overwhelming, deeply moving, etc.
d. The mid-range A score is given for presentations that exhibit unyielding excellence. The listener is
normally unaware of the vocal and visual techniques employed; he or she is caught up in the artistic effect of the total presentation. The presence of “star quality” is unmistakable.
e. At the lower end of the A range, the feeling of excellence is definitely present, but some minor
interruptions are felt.
f. Traits that distinguish between A and B levels of Presentation relate to the presence of subtlety and artistry. The A score implies an extremely high level of consistency in the generation of emotional impact – there are almost no distractions. In summary, the A score denotes excellence as opposed to competence.
SINGING Category
251
Average 83.6
Auld Lang Syne
251
Average 83.6
Let Yourself Go
The A level
a. A-level scores (81 to 100) are given to performances of the most consistent artistic Barbershop singing.
There are very few distractions owing to lack of singing skill; rather, the focus is primarily on artistry.
b. A typical performance earning a mid-range A score (around 90 points) features few, if any, intonation errors, excellent vocal quality, consistent unity, consistent expansion of sound, and an overall perception of expression and artistry that transcends technique.
c. A performance at the upper range of A would likely be a rare and significant artistic experience for any
listener, possibly transcending measurable elements to define its success. Performances in this range need not be flawless, as flawless performances can actually draw attention to the technique. Rather, there is no
perception of technique, only the artistic result.
d. In a performance at the low end of the A range, an occasional technical distraction can occur. The performer may show great skill but the "technique is showing." The performer may be inconsistent, having phrases of higher A mixed with phrases of a lesser level.
e. The distinguishing difference between A and B levels is often the perception of artistry as the combination of great skills into one transparent whole.
The White Rosettes overall score:- 1502 - which equals a percentage of 83.4
Jo