A counterpoint to yesterday’s post by Philip supporting John Mackey’s argument (posted on Whitacre’s blog) that self-publishing is a better deal for composers. The counter-argument is, that if a publisher can sell 1,000 copies and you get 10%, you’re better off than if you keep 100% of 12 copies sold through your website. The […]
Conducting lesson
They’re working on conducting Wagner’s Ring, but I think the lesson would apply equally to choral music: h/t Podium Speak
Stressed?
See if you can do nothing for two minutes. If you can’t, maybe your problems aren’t caused by your environment.
It’s all in the breath
Liz Garnett talks about changing your vocabulary regarding dynamics so that your singers don’t get that unsupported, airy sound when singing soft. I have been developing a vocabulary of expression to substitute for words like ‘loud’ and ‘soft’ for some time, depending on the repertoire I’ve been working with: intimate, conspiratorial, introspective versus joyful, triumphant, […]
Distraction of the Day: Choral Polka
h/t ChoralNet user marija peljhan
Another a cappella opera
The Wall Street Journal reviews an a cappella opera premiered by Opera Memphis and Playhouse on the Square, which has a sort of pit-orchestra consisting of singers, for which they use the Bobby McFerrin-invented word “voicestra”: [Michael] Ching’s remarkably inventive opera is a celebration of what voices can do and still, with the exception of […]