What Is This Thing Called Love?: SATB Choral Octavo

Monica Pabelonio's arrangement honors Porter's harmonic sophistication while creating genuine challenges for singers in the jazz idiom. The a cappella setting strips away accompaniment and demands that singers internalize the groove, voice independence, and precise intonation that define great vocal jazz. This is repertoire that sounds effortless only because the ensemble has done substantial work.

The piece breathes with the confidence and cool sophistication that Porter's lyrics and melody suggest. A cappella voicing creates an intimate, conversational quality that draws the listener close; the harmonic richness and jazz idiom give it warmth and subtle complexity without sentimentality. It feels like overhearing a conversation between singers who know exactly what they are doing.

This arrangement serves advanced high school and college choirs with jazz experience or serious interest in the genre. Singers should be comfortable with harmonic listening, independent vocal lines, and the rhythmic flexibility that jazz singing requires. Directors programming vocal jazz will find this piece both vocally gratifying and deeply rooted in the jazz vocal tradition.

• Lock the harmonic foundation by rehearsing each voice part's chromatic movement separately; Porter's voicings reward precision and clarity when each singer understands their specific pitch function in the chord.
• Shape the melody with attention to jazz articulation and phrasing rather than classical legit production; let the singers listen to Billie Holiday and Frank Sinatra versions to absorb the rhythmic independence and conversational quality the style demands.
• Use sectional rehearsal time to establish confidence in sustained passages and transitions; a cappella performance leaves nowhere to hide, so singers need security in both their parts and their ability to blend across the full chord.
• Mark dynamic and interpretive cues clearly on the score; without instrumental accompaniment to anchor energy, the singers themselves must generate shape, momentum, and emotional arc through breathing and intention.

This octavo fits naturally into a concert celebrating American songbook repertoire or a program focused on vocal jazz. It pairs well with other Porter standards or with arrangements of songs by Gershwin, Rodgers, or Berlin, building a thematic set. Consider programming it in a second half of a concert where the audience has settled in; the a cappella format and sophisticated harmony reward attentive listening.

• Jazz phrasing and rhythmic independence from metered accompaniment
• Harmonic listening and blending in complex Porter voicings
• Sustaining intonation and blend in a cappella SATB texture
• Interpreting jazz style through vocal production and articulation