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Abstract

The purpose of the study was to describe and interpret a particular culture of boys with changing voices at the American Boy choir School by means of an ethnography. Themes that emerged were (1) the boys' own perceptions of the voice change process, (2) healthy strategies for singing through the change, and (3) psychological issues. Informants were 27 students, 2 music directors, and 10 staff members. Data-collection techniques included interviews, observation, participant observation, and the examination of material culture. Analysis involved preparation of field notes and interview transcripts, document analysis, and study of the field notes and interviews. Evidence from the data, while supporting documented patterns of the male voice-change process, pointed to the uniqueness of each boy s experience. Boys were musically skilled, vocally knowledgeable, and benefitted from group vocal instruction in addition to choral rehearsals. Boys were taught how to use all available notes in their ranges safely. Instilling confidence and the “light approach” were two strategies used to assist boys negotiating the voice change.

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“It's a Metamorphosis”: Guiding the Voice Change at the American Boychoir School

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