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Unit 2 · Rounds and canons

Lead, then follow

Learn how a canon can start at any distance or pitch: lead while the guide follows a bar later an octave down, then follow it yourself. Free, step by step.

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Lead, then follow

A round is a canon that loops back to the start. A canon can begin at any distance or pitch: here, a bar behind and an octave away.

First you lead. The guide follows a bar later, an octave down

Then you follow. The guide leads, an octave up

Same line, both times. Do re do la, so ti la do...

What you sing

  1. The canon's line, at your own pace.
  2. You lead. After the guide's do, sing the line, then la so ti do while the follower finishes.
  3. Now you follow. The guide leads an octave up; come in a bar later.

Challenge: In the middle

The hardest seat in a round: two voices are already singing when you start, and one more comes in after you. Then you become the floor.

Voice 3 of 4. Come in four bars in

Then the floor. "Ding, dang, dong", over and over, like unit 1's pattern

Your own line. Listen to them all, never louder

What you sing

  1. First, ears only: count the voices.
  2. Come in third and sing it through, then keep "ding, dang, dong" going under the others.
Try one round

Singing safely

Sing at an easy volume, in the middle of your range. Stop if anything tightens, scratches or hurts, and rest your voice.

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Stackapella teaches you to sing harmony one part at a time, right in your browser.

Stackapella recording the alto part of Amazing Grace: each note is a bar with its name, and the one being sung says A little low, go up. Stackapella recording the alto part of Amazing Grace: each note is a bar with its name, and the one being sung says A little low, go up. Stackapella recording the alto part of Amazing Grace: each note is a bar with its name, and the one being sung says A little low, go up. Stackapella recording the alto part of Amazing Grace: each note is a bar with its name, and the one being sung says A little low, go up.
  • A guide sings your partHear your line over the others, slow it down, then take your turn.
  • Your notes light upEach note shows where you landed, and a hint when to go up or down.
  • Record every part yourselfStack your takes in time until you're the whole choir.
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