Men

As Printed on a Score

Printed as a staff label or above a choral staff (Men, Men’s voices) where only the lower voices sing; it holds until Women, All or Tutti.

How Composers Use It

Men’s voices alone give a darker, heavier sound, useful for weight, for solemn text, or for contrast with the upper voices. Specify tenors and basses if the lines divide, and avoid keeping the tenors at the top of their range for long. Mark the return of the full chorus clearly, and give the women a reference pitch if they have been silent for some time.

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