Most choirs have heard a practice track nobody used. It was the full choir at equal volume, so the altos couldn't find their line; or it arrived the night before rehearsal; or it followed an old version of the arrangement.
Part-learning tracks work when each singer can hear their own line clearly, in context, and when you can update them quickly. This guide is a workflow for making those tracks from the score you already have.
What makes a part-learning track useful
- One track per section. Soprano, alto, tenor, and bass each get their own file.
- Their part loud, the rest softer. Singers need to hear their line first, and the other parts and accompaniment underneath so they learn how it fits.
- The right words and order. The verse they are learning, with the repeats sung the way you will perform them.
- Current. When the arrangement changes, the track changes with it.
The workflow
1. Start from a clean score
Export your score from your notation app as MusicXML (.xml or .mxl). Check that lyrics are
attached to notes and that each verse is its own lyric line. The
MusicXML readiness checklist covers what to check, and
MusicXML to singing audio: what works, what breaks explains the
usual problems.
2. Generate each voice part
Upload the score to SightSinger and ask for each part: "sing the soprano part", then alto, tenor, and bass. If two parts share a staff, as in a typical SA/TB choir score, SightSinger splits them into separate parts first.
Each part joins the multi-track player alongside the score's instruments, so the piano accompaniment is already there.
3. Make a "my part loud" mix for each section
In the multi-track player, turn up one section's part and lower the other voices, keeping the accompaniment audible. Download the mix. Repeat for each section, and you have four practice tracks from one set of renders.
Name the files so singers can't pick the wrong one, for example
Alto - my part loud - verse 1.
4. Offer a solfege version for pitch learning
Singers who read with solfege often learn pitches faster singing do-re-mi before the words. Ask SightSinger to add solfege to a part, in movable-do (with la-based or do-based minor) or fixed-do, and generate that part again. Share it as a first-week track, then switch to the lyrics.
5. Match the performance order
Choose With repeats to generate the part in performance order, through repeats, first and second endings, D.C., D.S., and Coda. Choose Written order for a shorter track that sings each measure once, which suits drilling a hard passage.
6. Update only what changed
When you change a part, regenerate just that part. The new take replaces the old one in the player, so the other sections stay as they are, and you download fresh mixes.
How singers get the most from their track
- Listen once through with the score before singing along.
- Sing along at a quiet volume, then louder as the line settles.
- Move to the full-choir mix, with every part equal, a week before the performance.
What it costs in credits
Each vocal part uses 1 credit per 30 seconds of audio every time you render it. The instrumental accompaniment uses 1 credit per 2 minutes, once per uploaded score, however many instrument tracks it has. Downloading mixes from the player is free. See pricing for plans.
Summary
Make one track per section, with that section loud and everything else underneath. Start from a clean MusicXML score, generate each part, mix one track per section in the multi-track player, offer solfege first, and regenerate only the parts that change.