Guidelines for Participating in Chorus (Small):

Chorus gives youth participants an opportunity to join their voices in a chorus of praise to God. These guidelines must be followed for the performance of a large chorus.

• A small chorus will consist of 2-12 members.
• To be eligible for participation, each chorus must be officially enrolled with LTCSW and have submitted a team form by the registration deadline. There will be no last minute entries allowed at the convention.
• Each chorus will have eight minutes to set up, sing, and clear the stage. Full credit will be awarded for completion within the time limit. A one point penalty will be assessed for each thirty seconds (or fraction thereof) above the limit.
• PLEASE ensure that the event coordinator has asked the audience NOT to clap in between songs.
• ALL participants will be expected to arrive at the beginning of the event and remain until the last chorus has performed.

Each participating group’s choral director will:

• Select and prepare the group with appropriate a cappella music. The choral presentation must incorporate the current LTCSW theme.
• Submit one judge per chorus entered for possible judging, time-keeping, or facilitating. Show your judges the criteria beforehand. A judge must be provided in order for the congregation’s chorus(es) to perform. If this is not possible, please let the event coordinator know as soon as possible, or recruit help from another congregation.
• Register chorus by grade and size.
• Only allow participants to move up to a higher grade category chorus but not perform in a lower grade chorus by moving down.
• Continue communication with Event Director as changes occur and the convention approaches.
• Submit a completed Team Form to Event Director at the Convention Event time and location.

 

Judging Criteria:

Each chorus will be evaluated by three judges and a timekeeper.

• Performances will be judged using a scoring system of 100 points. Each judge will use the following criteria for determining the number of points to award each presentation.
  1. (5 Points) Time Limit: Setting up, singing, and clearing the stage must take a maximum of 8 minutes.
  2. (15 Points) Appearance and Presence: Dress does not need to be formal or uniform, but the participants will be expected to adhere to the LTCSW dress code. This area includes the use of appropriate facial expressions and body movements, as well as the group’s visible ease at performing in front of an audience. The group’s stage presence should reflect the style and content of the program.
  3. (15 Points) Non-singing Time: This area will rate how well the group presents itself and interacts when entering, between songs, and exiting. Verbal comments such as Scripture readings will be scored under non-singing time, even if there is humming or singing in the background.
  4. (15 Points) Blend of Voices: The group should demonstrate the ability to sing together through listening to achieve a good blend of voices. Harmony is not required and points will not be deducted for not trying to sing parts. However, improper or non-blending harmony may result in fewer points for this category.
  5. (15 Points) Diction: The words should be clearly understandable by the audience.
  6. (15 Points) Dynamic Contrast: The musical selections should be presented in such a way that loud/soft volume contrasts are evident and appropriate for the piece.
  7. (20 Points) Delivery of Overall Spiritual Message in relationship to the current LTCSW theme.
• Appropriately, penalties may be assessed:
  1. An automatic 10 point deduction will be assessed if the choral presentation is not related to the current LTCSW theme.
  2. (-1 Point) Every 30 seconds over the time limit.
• An award rating will be assigned based on the point average among the three judges.
• As a general rule, awards will be assigned accordingly: GOLD, 95-100 points; SILVER, 85-94 points; BRONZE, 70-84 points; and NO AWARD, 0-69 points.
• The Event Director reserves the discretion to assign the final award.