The April 2015 issue of Choral Journal was a special focus on the brain. The three feature articles were titled “Exploring the Science of Ensemble: Gestures, Emotion, and Collaboration in Choral Music Making” by Gary B. Seighman, “Monkey See, Monkey Do: The Choral Conductor and the Mirror Neuron System” by Riikka Pietiläinen-Caffrey, and “Effective Conducting […]
Choral Journal
Is it Time to Rethink the “Conventional” Model of Youth Choir?
The June/July 2016 issue of Choral Journal was a focus issue with articles and columns pertaining to sacred music. One article titled “Soul Searching: Is it Time to Rethink the ‘Conventional’ Model of Youth Choir?” by Eric L. Mathis. The author posits in the introduction that in the twenty-first century, a “conventional” model of youth […]
Choral Singers “In the Zone”: Toward Flow Through Score Study and Analysis
In the December 2016 issue of Choral Journal, author Christopher Walters wrote an article titled “Choral Singers ‘In the Zone’: Toward Flow Through Score Study and Analysis.” Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi first coined the term “flow” in 1975, describing a type of “optimal experience” where “a distinct period of ostensibly effortless action seems to stretch or […]
Creating Choirs that Welcome Transgender Singers
The November 2016 issue of Choral Journal included an article written by Jane Ramseyer Miller titled “Creating Choirs that Welcome Transgender Singers.” This was adapted and revised from the California ACDA newsletter. There has been much conversation about the topic of gender as it relates to choral music classrooms, and some of this was discussed […]
CJ Replay: The Life and Works of Four Female Canadian Composers
In October 2015, the Choral Journal featured an article on the life and works of four female Canadian composers: Kathleen Allen, Sarah Quartel, Stephanie Martin, and Ramona Luengen. The choral culture of Canada is vibrant and diverse, and readers will appreciate the opportunity to read about the life and works of these established and “up […]
Kirke Mechem: Songs of My Old Age
The current issue of Choral Journal features an article on composer Kirke Mechem, who turned 91 earlier this year. Mechem has been called the “dean of American choral composers” and is still an active composer, adding to his impressive catalogue of over 250 works. This article provides readers with a compositional history for eight choral […]