Latest Blog Posts
Don’t Ask Your Choirs to Sing Louder and The Art of Community
Spoiler- Don’t Ask Them To Sing Louder One of the most common questions I get from choir teachers is “How do I get my kids to sing louder?! I beg and I plead, but they just don’t make any noise.” The first mistake you made was the begging and pleading. The second mistake was asking […]
Choral Potpourri/Choral Ethics: Worn Out
“Oh, I am very weary, Though tears no longer flow; My eyes are tired of weeping, My heart is sick of woe.” Anne Bronte I am worn out. Tired; sick and tired and needing to rest. It’s been difficult for me to rest in this transition time, as things are looking up, and I am […]
One from the Folder: Repertoire Thoughts for Women’s/Treble Choir
What Comes Next? Repertoire considerations in the return to “normal” / Vidalita, arr. Diana V. Sáez /
SA, piano or guitar
The Conductor as Yogi: How Human of You
Even in a “normal year” (have we ever actually had one of those?), it’s natural to take time as the season ends to think about how the year has gone—what we did and didn’t do, what we might have done “if we had only known,” what worked and maybe didn’t, and though it usually falls […]
IJRCS — Assessment in the Choral Classroom: A Case Study of a Secondary Choral Program
The International Journal of Research in Choral Singing (IJRCS) is ACDA’s scholarly publication that welcomes studies that apply rigorous, systematically-grounded methodologies, either quantitative or qualitative, to investigate phenomena of potential interest to all who sing in, work with, or are otherwise interested in choral ensembles. Below is the abstract of this article written by Elizabeth (Libby) […]
Student Perspectives on Choir in a Pandemic with Highland High Choir and Steve Hickman
The Next Installment of the Student Perspectives Series In this episode, I “Zoomed” in to the choral classroom of Steve Hickman at Highland High School in Gilbert, AZ. I had the privilege of speaking with Steve and his students in the Advanced Vocal Ensemble about a variety of things related to “making choir happen” over […]
Choral Potpourri/Choral Ethics: Thanks Where Thanks Is Due
“It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.” Harry S Truman Despite the Pandemic, I still get several emails a week about Choral Ethics issues. Most want advice about past problems or seem to be ruminating about them. They’d like to know what they should do if […]
Silver Linings: Three Snapshots from the Past Year
By Carol Earnhardt Virtual Rehearsals, Concert, and After Party Last August, in 2020, the board members of my community choir, the Heart of Triad Choral Society (Kernersville, North Carolina), looked at me like I was crazy when I told them I wanted to have weekly rehearsals on Zoom and give a live “virtual” concert in […]
Alice Parker’s Keynote Address at the 2021 ACDA National Conference
Transcription of the address presented March 19, 2021 Greetings, dear Friends and Colleagues. It’s a pleasure and an honor for me to be with you today. The only thing I wish is that we could be here together and singing. That would be the best. But since that’s denied us for the moment, let me […]
IJRCS — Choral Directors’ Self Report of Accommodations Made for Boys’ Changing Voices: A Twenty Year Replication
The International Journal of Research in Choral Singing (IJRCS) is ACDA’s scholarly publication that welcomes studies that apply rigorous, systematically-grounded methodologies, either quantitative or qualitative, to investigate phenomena of potential interest to all who sing in, work with, or are otherwise interested in choral ensembles. Below is the abstract from this article written by Janice N. […]