A Cappella Arranging

Deke Sharon, Dylan Bell

• Publisher: Hal Leonard
• Year: 2023
• eBook ISBN: 9781538185308
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Media & Performing Arts
• Subtopic: Music

The world loves to sing. From barbershop groups to madrigal choirs to vocal rock bands, there are tens of thousands of vocal groups in America. The success of mainstream television programs such as Glee and The Sing-Off not only demonstrates the rising popularity of vocal music; it reflects how current trends inspire others to join in. In addition, through various online and on-the-ground vocal music societies, the "a cappella market" is well defined and well connected. Like singing itself, a cappella is a global phenomenon.

At the heart of every vocal group is the music it performs. This often means writing its own arrangements of popular or traditional songs. This book is the long-awaited definitive work on the subject, wide ranging both in its scope and in its target audience – which spans beginners, music students, and community groups to professional and semi-professional performers, vocal/instrumental songwriters, composers, and producers – providing genre-specific insight on a cappella writing.

The tone of the book is instructive and informative, yet conversational: it is intended to stand alongside any academic publication while remaining interesting and fun. A Cappella Arranging is a good textbook – and a "good read" – for every vocal arranger, whether amateur or professional; every vocal music classroom, and any professional recording studio.

Table of contents

• Foreword
• Introduction
• Section I Quick Start
• Section II Principles of Arranging
• Section III The Ten Steps Expanded
• Section IV Advanced Topics in Arranging
• Appendix A: “We Three Kings” and “Go Tell It to the Mountain”
• Appendix B: Notable Arrangers: An Incomplete List
• Appendix C: Recommended Texts
• Appendix D: Online Resources
• Glossary of Terms
• Afterword