DICTION PEDAGOGY: A SURVEY OF NEW ENGLAND HIGH SCHOOL CHORAL DIRECTORS

Abstract

Diction is unique to choral music due to the distinct attribute of combining text and music. Choral pedagogues, teacher preparation programs, resources, and professional development have historically offered a wide variety of advocations about what practices to employ when teaching diction, though many have gone untested. While choral education research is plentiful, none has been conducted about diction pedagogy practices. The purpose of this study was to describe the current practices New England high school choral teachers use when teaching diction, particularly what methods and materials are most commonly being used. After collecting survey data from directors (n = 121), results indicate a wide array of diction practices being utilized with rote teaching and vocal modeling being the most predominately reported method, and audio recordings being the most reported material. These findings may contribute to a clearer understanding of diction practices and may inspire future research to study most effective practices.