The  273  mono  and 273 stereo  soundfiles in this directory
feature a medium sized SATB  (soprano/alto/tenor/bass)  cho
rus,  recorded  in  a live hall. (Most of the soundfiles end
with a reverb tail lasting about 3/4  of  a  second.)   Each
soundfile  exists in 2 versions: a mono version and a stereo
version, the latter identified by the character string ST at
the  beginning of the soundfile name. All of the mono sound
files are normalized to a peak amplitude of 32000.  Most  of
the stereo versions have not been normalized, but their peak
amplitudes generally are 20000 or greater.  The  panning  of
the   stereo  versions  generally  is  centered,  with  some
(although not very too much) left-right separation of  indi
vidual voices.

The choir directory includes both voiced (sung) and unvoiced
(spoken, shouted, whispered or whistled) soundfiles.  Gener
ally,  the unvoiced soundfiles lack a clearly defined pitch.
The names of these unvoiced soundfiles include the character
string  "unvchoir"  ( for "unvoiced choir"), while the names
of sung soundfiles  include  the  simpler  character  string
"choir."

These  soundfiles  are  grouped  and discussed below  in the
following broad categories:
     I. Groups of SUNG TONES, LONG DURATION
     II. Groups of SUNG TONES, SHORT DURATION
     III. MISCELLANEOUS SUNG (OR PITCHED)  SOUNDFILES  (spe
     cial effects; clusters, glissandi, whistling)
     IV.  UNVOICED  SOUNDS  (speaking,  shouting, screaming,
     laughing, grunting, etc.)
=================================================================
          II.. GGrroouuppss ooff SSUUNNGG TTOONNEESS,, LLOONNGG DDUURRAATTIIOONN::
=================================================================

_1_. _L_O_N_G _T_O_N_E _S_A_T_B _V_O_W_E_L _A_N_D _C_O_N_S_O_N_A_N_T _M_U_L_T_I_S_A_M_P_L_E_S_:

The majority of the long tone multisample  sets  include  15
mono  (and  15  corresponding stereo) soundfiles, pitched at
intervals a minor third apart between ef2 and a5:
       bass voices:     ef2   fs2   a2  c3
       tenor voices:    ef3   fs3   a3  c4
       alto voices:     ef4   fs4   a4  c5
       soprano voices:  ef5   fs5   a5
Exceptions (multisample sets with fewer  soundfiles,  begin
ning  on  a  pitch  higher than ef2 and/or ending on a lower
pitch than a5, and thus covering a smaller pitch range)  are
noted below.

Because the samples are pitched a minor third apart, one can
obtain a complete chromatic scale (usually  between  d2  and
bf5)  without  transposing  any soundfile up or down by more
than a minor second. As a result, significant formant shifts
(and resulting timbral distortion) can be avoided.

These  long  tones  have steady state durations of between 5
and 7 seconds, followed by a decay and reverberant  tail  of
about .75 second.

Multisample sets in this group include:

_1_._1 _L_o_n_g_, _v_o_i_c_e_d _(_s_u_n_g_) _v_o_w_e_l _p_h_o_n_e_m_e_s_:
   -->   _a_h   15  multisamples, ef2 to a5 (choir.ah.bass.ef2
through choir.ah.sop.a5
             and corresponding stereo versions)
   -->  _e_e  15 multisamples, ef2  to  a5  (choir.ee.bass.ef2
through choir.ee.sop.a5)
   -->   _e_h   15  multisamples, ef2 to a5 (choir.eh.bass.ef2
through choir.eh.sop.a5)
   -->  _i_h  15 multisamples, ef2  to  a5  (choir.ih.bass.ef2
through choir.ih.sop.a5)
   -->   _o_h   15  multisamples, ef2 to a5 (choir.oh.bass.ef2
through choir.oh.sop.a5)

_1_._2 _L_o_n_g_, _v_o_i_c_e_d _(_s_u_n_g_) _c_o_n_s_o_n_a_n_t _p_h_o_n_e_m_e_s_:
   -->  _m_m  11 multisamples, fs2  to  a5  (choir.mm.bass.fs2
through choir.mm.alto.c5)
  -->   _r_r   14  multisamples, ef2 to fs5 (choir.rr.bass.ef2
through choir.rr.sop.fs5)
   -->  _v_v  14 multisamples, ef2 to  fs5  (choir.vv.bass.ef2
through choir.vv.sop.fs5)
   -->   _z_z   14 multisamples, ef2 to fs5 (choir.zz.bass.ef2
through choir.zz.sop.fs5)

---------------------------

_2_. _M_U_L_T_I_S_A_M_P_L_E_D _T_O_N_E_S  _I_N  _O_C_T_A_V_E_S  _O_N  _D_I_P_H_T_H_O_N_G_S  _(_P_H_O_N_E_M_E
_G_L_I_D_E_S_)

These  8  multisample  soundfiles  all  include  diphthongal
glides between three successive phonemes:
     --> In 4 soundfiles (and their stereo counterparts) the
     sung phoneme
            changes  smoothly  from  "hee"  to  "ah" to "oh"
     (_h_e_e_-_a_h_-_o_h).
     --> In the other 4 soundfiles (and their  stereo  coun
     terparts) the sung phoneme
            glides from "hoo" to "ah" to "ee" (_h_o_o_-_a_h_-_e_e).
The choir sings in double octaves, and the four multisampled
pitches for both groups are:
        fs2:fs3:fs4 (lowest)
        a2:a3:a4
        c3:c4:c5
        ef3:ef4:ef5 (highest)
Note that only the top octave (fs4, a4, c5 or ef5) is  iden
tified  in the soundfile names(e.g.  choir.oct.hoo-ah-ee.fs4
and  choir.oct.hee-ah-oh.c5).
---------------------------

_3_. _L_O_N_G _T_O_N_E _B_A_S_S _P_H_O_N_E_M_E _M_U_L_T_I_S_A_M_P_L_E_S

The names of the 24 soundfiles  in  this  collection   begin
with the character string "basschoir," and include only bass
voices.  There  are  four  groups  of  multisamples  on  the
phonemes
   --> _h_o_m_m
   --> _h_o_u
   --> _v_o_m_m
   --> _z_o_m_m

Each  of  these  4 phonemes, in turn, includes 4 multisample
soundfiles on the pitches ef2, fs2, a2,c3,ef3 and fs3.

Most of these soundfiles have pronounced, accented  attacks,
lasting  about 1/4 second, on the opening consonant  portion
of the phoneme.  These soundfiles average about 5 seconds in
duration. The steady state portion of these tones (minus the
reverb tail and the opening attack) is about 1  second  less
than the soundfile duration.

_4_. _T_w_o _F_E_M_A_L_E _C_H_O_I_R _M_U_L_T_I_S_A_M_P_L_E_S _o_n _n_e_u_t_r_a_l _s_y_l_l_a_b_l_e_s
     _f_e_m_c_h_o_i_r_._a_4  and _f_e_m_c_h_o_i_r_._c_5  : durations are about 4.2
     seconds
=================================================================
         IIII.. GGrroouuppss ooff SSUUNNGG TTOONNEESS,, SSHHOORRTT DDUURRAATTIIOONN::
=================================================================

_5_. _S_H_O_R_T _T_O_N_E _P_H_O_N_E_M_E_S_,_D_O_U_B_L_E _O_C_T_A_V_E _M_U_L_T_I_S_A_M_P_L_E_S

The 32 soundfiles in this group , whose names begin with the
character  string  choir.oct,  are  short tones (averaging a
little more than a second in  duration  plus  a  3/4  second
reverb decay) on the phonemes
  --> _f_a
  --> _h_a
  --> _h_o_o
  --> _t_n"
Each  tone  is sung in 2 octave "unisons" on one of the fol
lowing pitch classes:
     ef2 : ef3 : ef4  (the lowest pitched tone  within  each
     group)
     fs2 : fs3 : fs4
     a2 : a3 : a4
     c3  :  c4  :  c5  (the highest pitched tone within each
     group)
Two versions, labeled "1" and "2," are  available  for  each
tone.  Thus  _c_h_o_i_r_._o_c_t_._f_a_1_._e_f  and  _c_h_o_i_r_._o_c_t_._f_a_2_._e_f provide
alternate versions of the phoneme "fa" sung  in  octaves  on
the   pitch   class   e-flat,   while  _c_h_o_i_r_._o_c_t_._h_a_1_._f_s  and
_c_h_o_i_r_._o_c_t_._h_a_2_._f_s provide 2 variants of the phoneme "ha" sung
in octaves on the pitch class f-sharp.
=================================================================

      IIIIII.. MMIISSCCEELLLLAANNEEOOUUSS SSUUNNGG ((OORR PPIITTCCHHEEDD)) SSOOUUNNDDFFIILLEESS
=================================================================

_6_. _G_l_i_s_s_a_n_d_i_:
 -->  _c_h_o_i_r_._g_l_i_s_s_u_p_._d_4_-_d_5  :  sung in octaves (only the top,
soprano octave is indicated in the soundfile  name);  a  one
octave upward glissando
 -->  _c_h_o_i_r_._g_l_i_s_s_d_n_._d_5_-_d_4  : similar, but a one octave down
ward glissando
_7_. _C_l_u_s_t_e_r_s_:
 --> _c_h_o_i_r_._c_l_u_s_._l_o : SATB cluster in low pitch range;
 --> _c_h_o_i_r_._c_l_u_s_._m_i_d  : SATB cluster in mid-high pitch range
 --> _c_h_o_i_r_._c_l_u_s_._h_i_._1 and choir.clus.hi.2 : SATB  cluster  in
high pitch range
 --> _c_h_o_i_r_._c_l_u_s_._f_e_m : cluster, female choir
 --> _c_h_o_i_r_._c_l_u_s_._f_e_m_._r_a_n_d : cluster, female choir with random
pitch movement
 --> _c_h_o_i_r_._c_l_u_s_._m_a_l_e : cluster, male choir
 -->  _c_h_o_i_r_._c_l_u_s_._g_l_i_s_s_._d_o_w_n and _c_h_o_i_r_._c_l_u_s_._g_l_i_s_s_._u_p :  clus
ters with downward or upward glissandi
 -->  _c_h_o_i_r_._g_l_i_s_s_._e_n_d_l_e_s_s_._1  and _c_h_o_i_r_._g_l_i_s_s_._e_n_d_l_e_s_s_._2 : the
individual voices glissando
    up and down continuously  in  clusters,  ending  with  a
crescendo ; #2 is higher pitched
 -->  _c_h_o_i_r_._c_4_-_c_l_u_s  _a_n_d  _c_h_o_i_r_._f_s_4_-_c_l_u_s  : glissando from a
unison to a cluster
 -->  _c_h_o_i_r_._c_l_u_s_-_c_4 _a_n_d  _c_h_o_i_r_._c_l_u_s_-_f_s_4 : glissando  from  a
cluster to a unison

_8_. _R_a_p_i_d _t_r_e_m_o_l_o _f_l_u_t_t_e_r_i_n_g _t_o_n_e_s
 -->  _c_h_o_i_r_._f_l_u_t_t_e_r_._c_l_u_s  (cluster) and _c_h_o_i_r_._f_l_u_t_t_e_r_._o_c_t_._a_4
(octave a3/a4)
_9_. _W_h_i_s_t_l_i_n_g _:
 --> _c_h_o_i_r_._w_h_i_s_t_._c_6 : unison on c6
 --> _c_h_o_i_r_._w_h_i_s_t_._c_l_u_s_._h_i : high pitched cluster
 --> _c_h_o_i_r_._w_h_i_s_t_._g_l_i_s_s_d_o_w_n : descending cluster
=================================================================
                  IIVV.. UUNNVVOOIICCEEDD SSOOUUNNDDFFIILLEESS
((ssppookkeenn,, sshhoouutteedd oorr wwhhiissppeerreedd,, ggeenneerraallllyy wwiitthhoouutt aa cclleeaarr ppiittcchh))
==================================================================================================================================

The names of all unvoiced choir soundfiles  begin  with  the
character string "unvchoir" or "STunvchoir".

_1_0_.  _C_O_N_S_O_N_A_N_T_S  There are two groups of unvoiced soundfiles
in which consonants are declaimed:
10.1 short soundfiles, on the consonants
     --> _g
     --> _k
     --> _t and
     --> _t_s
The names of these 8 mono and corresponding 8 stereo  sound
files include the character string _._c_o_n_s There are two vari
ants (separate recordings) for each of the four  consonants,
labeled  _1  and  _2  within  the  soundfile  names (e.g. _u_n_v_
_c_h_o_i_r_._c_o_n_s_._g_._1 and  _u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._c_o_n_s_._g_._2).

10.2 long  soundfiles  (c.  4  -  5  seconds)  on  consonant
phonemes
      --> _f_f
      --> _h_h
      --> _s_h
      --> _s_s
 The  names  of these 4 mono and 4 stereo soundfiles include
the character string _._c_o_n_s_._l_o_n_g

_1_1_. _S_P_O_K_E_N _O_R _S_H_O_U_T_E_D _P_H_O_N_E_M_E_S

There are 27 mono (and 27 corresponding stereo) short sound
files in this category, nine each on the phonemes
      --> _h_a_h
      --> _h_o_o
      --> _w_a_h
Each  of  these  phonese  is declaimed in 2 variants by full
choir (e.g.  _u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._h_a_h_._a_l_l_._1 and _u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._h_a_h_._a_l_l_._2),  by
female    voices    (e.g.    _u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._w_a_h_._f_e_m_._1   and   _u_n_v_
_c_h_o_i_r_._w_a_h_._f_e_m_._2)   and   by   male   voices   (e.g.     _u_n_v_
_c_h_o_i_r_._h_o_o_._m_a_l_e_._1 and _u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._h_o_o_._m_a_l_e_._2).

_1_2_. _R_I_P_S

There  are  7  mono (and 7 stereo) short "rips" --  unvoiced
upward or downward glissandi. The four mono and four  stereo
soundfiles  whose  names include the character string "flut
ter" (e.g.  _u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._r_i_p_._f_l_u_t_t_e_r_._d_n_1)  are  3-5  seconds  in
duration  and combine tremolo fluttering with glissandi. The
three _u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._r_i_p_._h_i_._d_n soundfiles are high pitched,  rapid
"falls."

_1_3_. _M_I_S_C_E_L_L_A_N_E_O_U_S _U_N_V_O_I_C_E_D _S_O_U_N_D_F_I_L_E_S

These include

 --> laughing (_u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._l_a_u_g_h_s_._l_o_n_g_, _u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._l_a_u_g_h_s_._s_h_o_r_t_, _u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._l_a_u_g_h_s_._f_e_m_)
 _-_-_> _c_h_a_t_t_e_r_i_n_g _(_u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._c_h_a_t_t_e_r_._l_o and _u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._c_h_a_t_t_e_r_._h_i)
 --> screaming (_u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._s_c_r_e_a_m_._a_l_l and _u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._s_c_r_e_a_m_._f_e_m)
 --> very high pitched whispering: _u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._w_h_i_s_p_._h_i
 --> coughs  (_u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._c_o_u_g_h_1  and _u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._c_o_u_g_h_2)
 --> grunting : 4 grunts, each in two versions (_u_n_v_c_h_o_i_r_._g_r_u_n_t_._1_-_1_, _1_-_2_,
     _2_-_1_, _2_-_2_, _3_-_1_, _3_-_2_, _4_-_1_, _4_-_2)


       ----------------------------------------------

All  of the soundfiles within this directory were taken from
a commercial cd called "Classical Choir" produced  by  Peter
Siedlaczek.  They are licensed for use by ECMC users on ECMC
and home systems but are copyrighted and cannot be copied to
other systems or distributed.


            Last updated Dec. 14, 2001 by A. S.
