Latest Blog Posts
Choral Potpourri/Choral Ethics: I Don’t Know How She Does It
“If you want something done, ask a busy person to do it. The more things you do, the more you can do.” Lucille Ball I really like helping people with my Choral Ethics project; it brings another layer to what I perceive as my work. In many ways I’ve been preparing to be the Choral […]
Some Verdi Surprises
This week on Going Beyond Words and ACDA Radio/ChoralNet, host Stan Schmidt invites you to spend an hour with a master composer who wrote many well-known operas. But there was a time in his composing life that he concentrated on sacred choral music. His name is Giuseppe Verdi. This visit includes the incomplete Messa Solenne, […]
Reflections from a First-Year Educator, by Christina Nelson
At the time of writing this, I have not yet completed my first full year of teaching. However, I have already learned a lot in the first semester. I arrived at my school mid-year and was both nervous and excited. My day consisted of five classes; 7th and 8th grade beginning tenor/bass choir; two 7th […]
Sight-Reading Insights from Professional Choral Singing: How They Learned and Implications for the Choral Classroom
The August 2019 issue of Choral Journal is now available online! This issue was a focus on sacred music and features an article written by Rachel Carlson titled “Sight-Reading Insights from Professional Choral Singing: How They Learned and Implications for the Choral Classroom.” Below is an excerpt of the article, and you can read it in its entirety […]
Special Summer Edition! Allen Hightower, Alyssa Cossey, Robert T. Gibson Panel
A special JOINT production of the Kantorei Summer Choral Institute and the Choralosophy podcast that took place on June 19th, 2019. Each of the guests were in Kansas City working with the 120 regional young singers that participate in a one of a kind week of intense rehearsals, collaboration with adult professional educators and performers, […]
Choral Potpourri/Choral Ethics: Slipping Through the Cracks
“Life is denied by lack of attention, whether it be to cleaning windows or trying to write a masterpiece.” Nadia Boulanger How detail oriented are you? There are plenty of details, having nothing to do with the actual music which must be handled by SOMEONE for any music organization to run smoothly. And if you […]
Total Choral Recall: J. S. Bach Magnificat & Vivaldi Gloria
This week on Going Beyond Words and ACDA Radio/ChoralNet, host Stan Schmidt brings back a broadcast he did in June 2013. This broadcast is part of a series called Total Choral Recall, which allows the listener to hear complete works of masters of music history. On this show you will hear two classics: the Bach […]
The Care and Preservation of the Voice
ChorTeach is ACDA’s quarterly publication for choral conductors and teachers at all levels. It is published online, and each issue contains four practical articles. If you are not already a member of ACDA, you can join and receive access to ChorTeach online. Below is an excerpt from an article written by Tony Thornton appearing in the Spring 2019 issue._____________________________________ As conductors […]
One from the Folder: Repertoire Thoughts for Women’s/Treble Choirs
#52: Friday, July 5, 2019
Commissioning Consortiums
Commissioning a new piece of music is a wonderful way to participate in the life cycle of our choral art. This endeavor directly supports composers, and it furthers the expansion of our current field of repertoire. One way to commission new works is to be a part of a commissioning consortium.
Choral Potpourri/Choral Ethics: Audition Time is Here
“We don’t want nobody that nobody sent.” Timothy O’Sullivan, Chicago Ward Committeeman, 1948 It’s that time of year; we are finishing the academic year or our concert cycles and by rights, we should be able to relax. You and I know that isn’t the case at all. If we are in an academic setting, we […]