Thomas Eitler-de Lint

Scofield: I think one of the special qualities of the choral singer which sets them apart from the soloist is you not only got to sing in tune with a very nice tone, but you’ve got to listen to everybody who’s around you, isn’t that right?

Eitler-de Lint: Yeah, the completely different thing in solo and singing in a chorus is, you never sing alone in a chorus. You always are part of the group, and you have to be a small part of the group, the others are more important than you, you always have to say. So, you always have to sing together with everybody and not alone. And that’s what I mean with staying with the ears. During your singing, you have to open your ears, to listen to the others, to speak to the others, not only in information, but also in the sound of the vowels. So, the right positions of the vowels, the right sound of the vowels, that has to be equal with everybody, and then the right information comes, and then the wonderful chorus sounds developed. And then, of course, not only the sound of the vowels, but also the right positions of the consonants, and the right timing, when to put the consonant. That’s all very tricky, and you only can manage to do it right if you listen to the others, and if you all do it together. And that’s my main work with the choruses, to teach them to do that, and then to let them develop the best results.  I can’t do anything when they start to sing upstage, so my hands are bound. So, I can’t do anything, but they have to, in the process, in the rehearsal process, they have to learn to do it by themselves, and that’s my task.