Sunrise

This piece of nothing but Vocalese came into my head and wouldn't leave. "Sunrise" is difficult, but well worth the effort. So many inspirations for the polyrhythms: the a cappella albums from Zap Mama released in the 90s, Indonesian gamelan music, Trinidadian steelpan arrangements, video game soundtracks composed by David Bergaud, and the list goes on. Here are some helpful hints for any choir who enthusiastically chooses this piece: First off, stagger breathing is a MUST. You will NOT be able to sing every note in your part, regardless of which part you sing. Breathe when you need to and trust that the rest of the section will cover for you. In addition, keeping tempo is WAY more important than diction or even vowel shapes. TRUST everyone else in your section, listen, and watch your director like a hawk watches its prey during this sunrise, okay? :) Lastly, know that if you perform this and do a great job, everyone in the audience will think you just crushed the most difficult choral piece ever. They will applaud. They will give you a loud, long standing ovation. Picture this every time the rehearsal process gets difficult. You CAN do this!!!