Choir Skypes with renowned composer

LEWISVILLE, TX — When Lewisville High School’s (LHS) director of choral activities, Steve DeCrow, asked one of America’s most popular and influential composers, Dr. Z. Randall Stroope, to visit with his students via Skype, he never dreamed the answer would be yes.

“I don’t know him at all so it was a shot in the dark,” DeCrow said. “I couldn’t believe it, but those who know him said they were not at all surprised.”

Thanks to DeCrow’s “shot in the dark” request, members of the LHS varsity treble and varsity mixed choirs visited with Stroope, who is also Oklahoma State University’s (OSU) director of choral and vocal studies, on March 16. The discussion ranged from what he looks for when deciding if a student should be selected for the OSU choir program to his inspiration for composing a piece, how he goes about writing music and more.