The Prioritization of Pitch, Rhythm, and Expression in Vocal Sight-Reading
The holistic skill of music reading involves mastery of a variety of sub-tasks. Music
notation consists of graphic indicators for pitch, rhythm, and expression, along with
devices signifying form (e.g. repeat signs). Accurate and musical performances from the
written score necessitate execution of all of these facets simultaneously.
Music-reading skill is often measured through sight-reading, the ability to perform
from written notation without previous rehearsal. In the realm of vocal sight-reading,
Henry identified composite pitch skills representing the universe of tonal pitch pattern
options (2001), and composite rhythm skills that account for multi-beat and subdivided
beat patterns (2009). A subsequent study (Henry, 2011) investigated the interaction
between pitch and rhythm skills of varying degrees of difficulty. Results indicated that
rhythmic success was a significant predictor of pitch success. Those who executed rhythm
accurately were significantly more likely to also perform the pitch correctly. In every
iteration of pitch and rhythm difficulty combinations, singers clearly prioritized pitch over
rhythm. None of these studies included the measurement of the execution of any
expressive markings.
For decades, the predominant vehicle for assessing instrumental sight-reading
ability has been the Watkins-Farnum Performance Scale (1962). Uniquely, the WatkinsFarnum Performance Scale (WFPS) is the only tool widely used for sight-reading that
assesses the execution of expressive markings. Just as with pitch or rhythm on the WFPS,
failure to perform an expressive marking constitutes an error in performance. No such tool
for assessing performance of expressive markings exists for vocalists. Therefore no
information on the ability of vocalists to include expression during sight-reading is
available.
The purpose of this study was to determine the accuracy of vocalists sight-reading
melodies containing expressive markings; to establish the prioritization of pitch, rhythm,
and expression for vocal sight-reading; and to determine any relationship between
keyboard/instrumental study and the accurate performance of expressive markings.
High school vocalists attending a summer choir camp (N=547) participated in a
sight-reading screening as a part of their camp experience. During the camp registration
process, singers completed a survey requesting information about their previous vocal and
instrumental experience. After completing the survey, singers entered one of four
randomly-assigned rooms to complete an individual sight-reading screening. Each room
used one of two parallel forms of the test. Additionally, while giving instructions to the
singers, test administrators in two rooms specifically prompted singers to attend to the
expressive markings, while the other two did not.
Results will include descriptive information on the sample, parallel-forms reliability,
a reporting of the relative success of pitch, rhythm, and expressive components of the sightreading process including a linear regression model to determine the predictive ability of
each component, and tests of significance to determine any relationship with keyboard or
instrumental study. Subsequent discussion will include the efficacy of evaluating
expression during sight-reading, any needed adjustments to the assessment process, and
recommendations for instruction in music reading for vocalists.
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