{'fraction_non_alphanumeric': 0.01867572156196944, 'fraction_numerical': 0.0050933786078098476, 'mean_word_length': 5.935294117647059, 'pattern_counts': {'":': 0, '<': 1, '<?xml version=': 0, '>': 0, 'https://': 0, 'lorem ipsum': 0, 'www.': 0, 'xml': 0}, 'pii_count': 0, 'substrings_counts': 0, 'word_list_counts': {'cursed_substrings.json': 0, 'profanity_word_list.json': 0, 'sexual_word_list.json': 0, 'zh_pornsignals.json': 0}}
Effects of Three Common Choral Configurations on Acoustic and Perceptual Measures of a Soprano Section’s Sound

The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of three choral configurations on a soprano section’s sound. The first configuration resembled a choir section without an assigned standing position, the second configuration grouped singers by timbre, and the third used acoustic-compatibility placement. Three conductors configured a university soprano section (N = 13) who were audio-recorded singing in each configuration and answered questions about their perceptions. Audio recordings were analyzed acoustically using long-term average spectra and perceptually through pitch analysis and listener perceptions. Results indicated that participants sang with significantly increased spectral energy in the acoustic-compatibility configuration (p < .001), and both singer and listener participants preferred intentional standing configurations over the random standing configuration. Findings from this study suggest that choral directors can use intentional configurations in conjunction with 2 ft intersinger spacing to improve singer comfort and overall sound.