(An excerpt from the Choral Journal article, “Vocal Aging And Its Medical Implications: What Choral Conductors Should Know Part Two: Medical Intervention,” by R.T. Sataloff) Certain aspects of the aging process are relatively easy to control medically. For example, as female singers reach menopause, estrogen deprivation causes substantial changes in the mucous membranes […]
CJ Replay: Bach’s Audition
(An excerpt from the Choral Journal article, “Bach and Graupner: The Audition Cantatas,” by John Curtis) At the time of Kuhnau's death in 1722, Bach was Capellmeister in Cathen in the service of Prince Leopold. Bach got along well with the Prince and was satisfied with his position until Leopold married Friederica Henrietta […]
CJ Replay: Barber “Reincarnations”
(An excerpt from the Choral Journal article, "The Lyric Voice in Samuel Barber’s Reincarnations," by David H. Castleberry) Reincarnations, Barber's op. 16, was composed during his sole teaching appointment, 1939-42, at the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia, from which he had graduated five years earlier with majors in voice, piano, and composition. These early […]
GUEST BLOG: “Warm the Flame,” by Lucy Hudson Stembridge
WARM THE FLAME by Lucy Hudson Stembridge “‘Do-so’ is more important than ‘say-so’”. “We Are the World” Coincidence? The first quote, which most of us recognize as connecting the knowledge of solfege to the possibility of changing the world, is by Pete Seeger, “a tireless campaigner for his own vision […]
Choral Caffeine: STRESSED? WHO’S STRESSED!?
“You will know (the good from the bad) when you are calm, at peace. Passive.” ~ Yoda Are you at peace? Or are you tearing through your days in a caffeine-fueled frenzy of tense rehearsals, clipped conversations, and ever-increasing piles on your desk? Many choral conductors are by nature tightly focused individuals driven […]