Latest Blog Posts

By Amanda Sprague Hanzlik 2020 marks the year where the definition and practice of arts advocacy began to transition and evolve for me – in my heart, mind, and real life. Until recently, the majority of my experiences with advocacy for the arts, and specifically choral music, have been personal, local, and limited to my […]

We are wrapping up this year—and what a year.  It is typical now to look back and to look forward, considering the past and planning for the future.  In our current world, the past is revealing on so many levels and the future is still (always) a question mark.   When I began this blog in late June, […]

ChorTeach is ACDA’s quarterly online publication, designed for those who work with singers of all levels. A full annotated ChorTeach index is available online at acda.org/publications/chorteach. Over 160 articles are organized into seventeen categories. For submission information, to view the index, or to read the latest issue, visit acda.org/chorteach. Following is an excerpt from an article in the current Winter […]

“Music can name the unnameable and communicate the unknowable.” Leonard Bernstein Choral Potpourri/Choral Ethics is re-running some of our December Blogs from years past. This is one that brings hope of what will happen when we can be together to make music again. MLGA We all know music’s ability to heal and sooth. We know […]

By D. Geoffrey Bell The process of musical composition has changed dramatically over the last fifty years. With the advent of personal analog and digital technologies, composers have adopted an evolving set of technological tools that have transformed the way music is written. This, in turn, has had a significant impact on performances by many […]

The Boar’s Head in hand bear I,Bedeck’d with bays and rosemary;And I pray you, my masters, be merry,Quot estis in convivio. Caput apri deferoReddens laudes Domino. The Boar’s Head, as I understand,Is the bravest dish in all this land,When thus bedeck’d with a gay garland,Let us servire cantico. Caput apri deferoReddens laudes Domino. Our steward hath provided […]

The January issue of Choral Journal is online and features an interview article with Bob Chilcott and Tim Sharp. You can read it in its entirety online at acda.org/choraljournal. Following is a portion of the interview. ___________________ As a composer, conductor, and singer, Bob Chilcott has enjoyed a lifelong association with choral music, first as a chorister and […]

Is your choir DEVASTATED that they aren’t caroling this year?   It’s so heartbreaking for both our singers and our community. I have an idea that may bring spirit to your choir members and also to your community. Check out our brand new blog post: Your Choir Can’t Carol This Year…..Here’s a New Idea  If you […]

When you do music from a culture that is not your own, it is like you are holding someone else’s dreams and past in your hands. Janet Galván In this touching and vulnerable conversation, Dr. Galván and I discuss the very important issue of programming and preparing to perform music from an ever growing number […]

As I mentioned last week, for the rest of the month of December Choral Potpourri/Choral Ethics will be running some of our “oldie but goodie” blogs from past Decembers. This is one of my favorites! MLGA I love “Messiah”. Truth be told, it is probably one of my favorite large choral work.  There’s a little […]