The Best of 2013 on ChoralNet

End-of the Year countdowns and “Best Of” retrospectives are everywhere this time of year.  We’ll wade into those waters with a little glance back at some of the most popular ChoralNet blogs of the year 2013.

 

Regular blog contributors were huge favorites among readers.  Richard Sparks seemed to grab the attention of many choral folks with his widely-read fourteen-part series, “Intonation” which ran from April 18 through June 8.  Combining choral musicianship with a laser-like societal perspective, Philip Copeland made the “Best Of” list with his article “Who Knew? Singing and Oxytocin.”  In a profession that hungers for new music, it is no surprise that Jack Senzig’s weekly feature “Composition Spotlight” was quite popular, with his review of the work, “Abraham’s Test" topping that list.  ChoralNet’s technology blogger, Jeff Tillinghast, seemed to hit one out of the park with readers who are facing a sea of glowing screens in their rehearsals with his article “Tablets in the Choir Room.” Finally, Josuha Bronfman made the “Best Of” list when he addressed a regular concern of the choral musician in his timely column, “Auditions (Sidebar).”

 

ChoralNet also featured a number of guest bloggers throughout the year.  Their columns covered a huge variety of topics and were wildly popular among readers. In “If Not Us, Then Who?” Elizabeth Waterbury bravely challenged the status quo of conference programming. Repertoire was also on the mind of Julie Parsons, who shared a well-received blog, “Great Pieces Deserve a Second Performance.”  Mike O’Neill reminded us of the joyous nature of the choral art with his popular and uplifting blog, “8 Points to Fun.  Some great ways to meet the challenges facing the church musician were discussed in, “Music: The ‘Wow’ Factor in Worship” by Thomas R. Vozzella. J.D. Frizzell reminded all conductors that what appears new and edgy is actually pedagogically sound with his article, "Why Contemporary A Cappella Matters."  The oft-misunderstood, but incredibly effective genre of Barbershop was demystified in a much-read blog, “No More Straw Hats,” by Joe Cerutti.  And a young member of the profession also gained the attention of the readers when Reilly Dougherty opined, “Why Choral Music is Vital to Today’s Youth.”

 

Make 2014 the year YOU make the "Best Of" list by writing a blog for ChoralNet.  Contact Scott Dorsey at .

 

Happy New Year!