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I'm writing an SATB choral piece and I want the voices to end on unison D's. I'm going for a low, rich, sonorous, powerful, truiumphant sound. I'm planning soprano and alto on D4 (just above middle C). Bass will be an octave lower on D3 (middle of bass clef staff). What do I do with tenors?

If I put them on D4, they will really project and have a powerful tone quality, but with it being in their upper range it will seem high to the ears. But if I put them with the basses, they won't likely contribute much. The sound would be more balanced though, with men in one octave and the women higher.

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    To a large extent this depends on the quality of the choir. Amateur choirs are full of baritones trying to pretend to be tenors (because of a shortage of true tenors). Professional choirs aren't.
    – Alexander Woo
    Commented Jul 24, 2022 at 23:25
  • It might depend on the preceding notes. Are they already singing higher notes? If so, a D4 might feel quite natural. But if they're already down in the bass clef, it might be more natural for them to drop to a D3 than to suddenly jump up in pitch.
    – Dawood ibn Kareem
    Commented Jul 25, 2022 at 7:47

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Some tenors can blend well with women's voices at D4. Others can't. Some tenors can sing D3 with ease. Others can't.

Write the tenors divisi, or pick one octave and include the other as optional. Consider adding a note describing the desired effect. Let the conductor decide based on the individuals in the group.

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