In March 2020, Dr. Derrick Fox was leading students toward a performance of “Seven Last Words of the Unarmed” by Joel Thompson. This performance was a culmination of choral experiences over multiple years, where Dr. Fox and students had worked to build an awareness of the human experience. They sang octavos covering different topics, such […]
Stories of Healing and Reimagining with Maria A. Ellis
Maria A. Ellis, founder of Girl Conductor LLC and host of Bach & Beyoncé, was tasked in January 2020 by The St. Louis Children’s Choirs to start a new inner city choir. In the very segregated St. Louis, Ms. Ellis explained, The St. Louis Children’s Choirs are located on one side of town. Black people […]
Stories of Healing and Reimagining with Olivia Vestal
In March 2020, spring break was extended. Olivia Vestal, now a first-year choral teacher in Durham, NC, was supposed to go to Regional NATS. Instead of performing live, she recorded a video, and remembers that was the last thing she did without a mask. After they finished, she wiped down the piano and recording equipment, […]
Stories of Healing and Reimagining with Dr. Anne Lyman
Dr. Anne Lyman wears many choir director hats: community choir, church, and community college choir. She is the past president of Washington ACDA, loves sharing the joys of early choral music, and is clearly a service-oriented conductor. During the first 10 days or so of March, things went from “normal” to unsettled to cancelled. At […]
Stories of Healing and Reimagining with Dr. Ahmed Anzaldúa
This was a remarkably invigorating, inspiring, and humbling conversation with Dr. Ahmed Anzaldúa, Founder and Artistic Director of Border CrosSing, and Director of Music Ministries at Unity Church in St. Paul, a congregation with a robust music program including four adult choirs, children’s choir, and an annual musical. In the initial months of COVID, […]
Stories of Healing and Reimagining: A Pause
It’s that time of year. We are all starting (or are a few weeks into) a new school year, a new church season, community choir rehearsals, or new composition projects. Yet this isn’t where I thought we would be when I started this blog series in June. I fully expected to be looking at COVID […]