Chor

As Printed on a Score

German for chorus or choir, written as a heading over the bracketed choral staves (Chor, with Sopran, Alt, Tenor, Bass beneath) or in directions such as Männerchor, Frauenchor and gemischter Chor. Footnotes use it to tell the chorus from the soloists.

How Composers Use It

Writing for Chor means writing for groups: lines must be singable without leaning on the accompaniment, ranges moderate, and text set so many voices can pronounce it together. Name the forces — gemischter Chor (SATB), Männerchor (TTBB), Frauenchor (SSAA) — and mark divisions clearly. Dense orchestral textures bury choral words, so thin the accompaniment where the text matters.

Example

Beethoven, Symphony No. 9, finale, tenor solo part, m. 426: a footnote allows six bars to be omitted by the soloist but not by the chorus — “nicht vom Chor, wohl aber von dem Solosänger” — printed beside an sf.

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