Latest Blog Posts
ChoralTech: On Soloists and Microphones
The SM-58. Do you have this mic? Is it the only one you have? (Shure.com) We spend our hours crafting sound. We build and polish the blend of the ensemble to create a tone which fits the performance style we want, while balancing the strengths of our musicians, until we have the sound that […]
GUEST BLOG: “Can Inspiration be a Member Benefit?” by Sundra Flansburg
CAN INSPIRATION BE A MEMBER BENEFIT? by Sundra Flansburg When is the last time you were transported to another place by music? In Dallas at one of the conference performances? Last weekend in your place of worship? At one of your local concerts? Too long ago to remember? We have all had that […]
Saturday Respite: Singing Veggies
Yes, it satirizes conductors and pokes fun at the choral art, but it's still funny.
Choral Caffeine: More Pitches
One has come to despise B-flat. An explanation is in order. Adjacent to one’s office at ACDA is a room containing all of the electrical switching equipment for the entire complex. One of the devices generates a continual B-flat drone. One. Long. Unending. Hellish. B. Flat. Drone. It’s like living inside a bagpipe. […]
Choral Caffeine: Works and Plays Well with Others
“Works and plays well with others . . . .” Thus goes the traditional first item on a kindergarten report card (one suspects that should be on EVERY report card, frankly). It’s really nothing new. We humans figured out that collaboration was a valuable still when we were still living in caves. As […]
Scholarly Abstractions: Seven Last Words of Christ
Roste, Vaughn. The Seven Last Words of Christ: A Comparison of Three French Romantic Musical Settings by Gounod, Franck, and Dubois. Doctor of Musical Arts. Louisiana State University, 2013. The Seven Last Words of Christ—those sayings uttered by Jesus between his crucifixion and death as recorded in the Gospels—have long been of interest to […]
Scholarly Abstractions: The Professional Vocalist
Donald, Paul. The Professional Vocalist: How can the understanding of voice technique help in the preparation for the professional career in voice? University of Aberdeen, forthcoming. Professionalism has long been a highly debated topic in the Music Industry for centuries amongst academics in music, members of the public, vocalists, instrumentalists and vocal and instrumental […]
Scholarly Abstractions: Accidental Inflections and the Musical System in Josquin’s Period
Stern, David. The Use of Accidental Inflections and the Musical System in Josquin’s Period, ca. 1480-1520. Doctor of Philosophy dissertation. City University of New York. I explore the scope and nature of accidentals used in Josquin’s period and give good guidelines for musica ficta. I was motivated by modern scholarly theories which would use […]
GUEST BLOG: “Why Choral Music is Vital to Today’s Youth” by Reilly Dougherty
WHY CHORAL MUSIC IS VITAL TO TODAY’S YOUTH by Reilly Dougherty The world today is changing at a swift pace. Every day we are advancing as a whole technologically, but as we progress in these areas, it seems that we are regressing in others to a point where personal human understanding is no longer prevalent. […]