Even non-musicians who have hearing loss complain about hearing aids. It’s hard to distinguish voices when there’s background noise, sounds are tinny, etc. For musicians, it can be particuarly excruciating. The New York Times writes: After he lost much of his hearing last year at age 57, the composer Richard Einhorn despaired of ever really […]
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Monday Motivation: The Future
Choral Caffeine: Thanksgiving 2011
Choral Caffeine is here weekly to motivate, stimulate, and educate. But that’s NOT what is important this Wednesday. If I may opine. Take a couple days away from frenetic 21st-century digital madness. Look at the smile on the face of a family member, not a tiny glowing screen. Listen to the sound of […]
National Council of the Arts Webcast, Friday, October 28
National Council on the Arts Meeting Friday, October 28, 2011 at 9:00 a.m. EDT Meeting to be webcast live at arts.gov Washington, DC — The National Council on the Arts, the advisory body for the National Endowment for the Arts, convenes in public session on Friday, October 28, 2011 from 9:00 – 11:00 […]
Stick Time: Scariest Piece?
In trying to find a little something spooky for Halloween, I occurred that scariest piece of music I ever conducted (on a Halloween, oddly enough) was the Thomas Tallis “Spem in Alium,” a monolithic 40-voice “motet” scored for eight choirs of five voices each set in a score that stands two feet tall. Don’t misunderstand […]
Choral Caffeine: The Fork in the Tuning Road
The piece starts. The choir is singing in G major. All is well. Somewhere in the B section you feel your back stiffen as the key slides down to the key of G-‘not-quite-flat-but-it-sure-ain’t-G-anymore.’ Then comes the modulation to the dominant, which is supposed to be D. But because the choir is well below G […]