What would have happened if choral musicians of the mid-15thcentury had told Guttenberg that they didn’t want anything to do with his new-fangled movable-type printing press?
Would we have the New World Symphony if Dvorak had been afraid to take a ship to the U.S. in 1892?
Imagine if no one thought that radio was a great idea for the musical arts when KDKA in Pittsburgh (the first commercial station in the U.S.) started broadcasting in the 1920s.
Printing, trans-Atlantic travel, and radio were new technologies at one time – maybe even radically so. Well, kids, that’s the way it is today. Digital technology is now commonplace – and we ignore it at our own peril. This week and next, Choral Caffeine will look at two articles that suggest ways to use digital technology to aid the choral conductor’s work.
Barbara Retzko’s article, “Using Social Media and Technology to Strengthen Your Choral Program,” suggests a project that utilizes technology as a platform through which students not only learn their music but begin to develop the self-confidence and poise needed to be successful singers and performers. They accomplished the project in an independent fashion using social media tools that they are probably already using every waking minute of the day.
The result of the project? In Barb’s own words, “There has been a remarkable change in the overall demeanor of the Concert Choir as a result of this assignment.” Read Barb’s article to learn more.
Next week: Facebook, e-mail and Twitter.
(To access the full article, simply click the highlighted title. For additional articles on a dazzling array of choral topics, visit ChorTeach.)
John Howell says
Reese Norris says