Making Chinese choral music accessible in the United States : a standardized IPA guide for Chinese-language works

Abstract

Chinese choirs and conductors are gaining an increasing presence at American choral conferences. Yet as much as Chinese choral conductors advocate for performing Chinese pieces, it is nearly impossible to find easy ways to prepare and perform Chinese choral works in the United States. Through interviews with conductors and composers of Chinese choral music, I researched the process of acquiring these pieces remotely, the trends in Chinese choral music, and the potential market for these works. This study examines why the accessibility of Chinese choral music in America is hindered by issues of discoverability, copyright and publication, and language. Although simple solutions do not exist for the first two issues, I have addressed language by advocating for the use of Pinyin in all Chinese choral publications in the US and by establishing and creating a Mandarin Chinese diction guide for choral conductors. This diction guide includes a chart that equates every sound of Pinyin with an IPA symbol and describes how to teach each sound to non-Chinese speakers.