Do You Doodle as You Dawdle?: SATB Choral Octavo

Cowell brings irreverent humor and rhythmic vitality to choral writing without sacrificing musicality. The title itself signals playfulness, and the piece delivers exactly what a director needs when programming variety: something contemporary that engages singers without requiring them to abandon traditional vocal technique or harmonic grounding.

The music captures the casual, drifting quality the title suggests while maintaining rhythmic and harmonic sophistication underneath. There's a lightness of touch here, almost conversational, that makes it feel intimate despite the four-part texture.

SATB choirs at intermediate to advanced levels who want to program twentieth-century American music with character and humor. It works particularly well for groups comfortable with contemporary idioms but looking for something approachable rather than austere.

• Treat the text as character work. The title suggests whimsy, so encourage singers to find the personality in their lines rather than delivering everything at the same emotional temperature.
• Balance clarity with lightness in the texture. Cowell's voice writing often layers lines that need independence; mark which voice carries the primary melodic idea in each phrase.
• Check intonation carefully in any unison or octave doublings. The harmonic language may feel modern, so precision here anchors the ensemble's sound.

Pair this with other American choral works from the early-to-mid twentieth century to build a program exploring how composers of that era engaged with vernacular language and folk sensibilities. Its brevity and personality make it ideal as a contrasting piece between heavier works or as an opener that immediately establishes an ensemble's range.

• Rhythmic independence in multiple voices
• Contemporary harmonic language and intonation
• Text expression and character work in secular choral writing
• Balance and blend in complex texture