Choral Journal

CJ Replay: Focus on Children and Community Youth

June 13, 2016 by Amanda Bumgarner Leave a Comment

The March 2016 issue of Choral Journal was a Focus on Children and Community Youth, guest edited by Robyn Lana. This issue contains the following feature articles and is available to ACDA members to read and download here.

On Our Way: Programming a Martin Luther King Jr. Concert for Youth Choir by Anthony Trecek-King

There are many resources available to serve as starting points for planning a program for youth choir that centers on civil rights and social justice. This article describes some of those resources and provides and overview of the music contained within.

From Kindergarten to College: Understanding Young Voices and Keeping Them Healthy by Wendy LeBorgne

“As choral directors, voice pedagogues, and conductors, it [is] imperative to understand the key physiological developmental markers associated with the vocal instrument and its impact on vocal output at various stages of life. Providing accurate information to impressionable singers will help these singers maintain healthy vocal habits throughout their lifetime.”

Creativity and Artistry in the Children’s Choir Rehearsal by Karen Bruno

This article discusses the meaning of creativity and choral artistry as it pertains to work with children’s and youth choirs. Topics include identifying quality repertoire, engaging singers, characteristics of quality music, and our responsibility as teachers and conductors.

The Better C: Building Community through Collaboration by Roberta Jackson and Debra Burgess

“Building community within a choir can be challenging, especially when working with singers from diverse backgrounds, with different values, and from different schools. In this article we will explore the use of collaboration both as an overarching philosophy and a daily practice within an organization.”

Read this issue online or download the PDF here.

Notes for Success: How Do I Establish a Grading Strategy?

May 30, 2016 by Amanda Bumgarner 1 Comment

In May, August, and September 2015, the Choral Journal featured a three-part article series titled “Notes for Success: Advice for the First-Year Choral Teacher.” As part of the series, 11 choral conductors with teaching experience ranging from 4 to 34 years answered 10 questions related to setting expectations for your first year, classroom management, balancing a successful work and home life, finding repertoire, and more.

In this column, I would like to address question #6: How do I best establish a grading strategy?

As classes dismiss for the summer, there are no doubt some choral educators who have not had as much success as they would like in establishing a working grading system over the past school year. A portion of the suggestions listed in the August 2015 issue regarding this question follow. Please feel free to leave a comment below with a grading strategy that has worked for you (or perhaps one that hasn’t!) so that we can continue to learn from one another.

“Prior to the school starting, sit down with a calendar and make an assessment plan. First, create a rubric for daily or weekly rehearsal technique. Behaviors include tall choral posture while singing, refraining from talking during transitions, use of appropriate vowel shapes, positive attitude, and using solfege or number hand signs.”

“I keep a daily record of points. Each student begins with ten points. Participation, attitude, etc., can affect the number of points a student earns by the end of the day. At the end of the week, I report the total points in the gradebook. Eighth grade seeing percentages on their reports, while the sixth and seventh grades receive a grade for “Respect” and “Responsibility” in the form of an M (meets expectations), P (partially meets expectations), or N (needs improvement).”

“I think grading things like matching pitch and tone production are perfectly acceptable, even with my young singers (ten- and eleven-year-olds). They key is giving positive feedback that helps them improve…. In pitch-matching assignments, I ask the choir to listen to a student sing and not judge on the basis of how well he or she sang but on whether or not the student improved.”

Click here to read the full article that contains the rest of these answers in Part 2 of this series.

Click here to read Part 1. Click for Part 3. (Must be logged in to acda.org as a member)

Do You Sing in Translation?

May 23, 2016 by Amanda Bumgarner 1 Comment

The May 2016 issue of the Choral Journal features a cover article written by Daniel Mahraun titled “What Language Shall I Borrow? Singing in Translation” in which he presents ways to make performance in translation “satisfying, not merely satisfactory.” (Read the entire article here)

Mahraun first revisits four arguments against translations that were listed by Roger Doyle in his 1980 Choral Journal article “What? Sing It in English? What Will the Neighbors Think?” (Click here to read Doyle’s article)

The arguments are:

The nuance of the composer’s language is integral to the flow of the music.
Translations are provided in the printed programs.
The audience can’t understand the English either.
Good English versions are very scarce.

Readers are then urged to consider the advantages of translations, and the author uses case studies from Mendelssohn’s “Es wird ein Stern” from Christus, Bach’s Matthäus-Passion, and Hindemith’s “La biche” from Six chansons to solidify his points.

When considering translations in choral singing, which side do you fall on? Do you think there can be benefits to singing in translation? Have you had any negative experiences? Positive? Can you think of any other works besides those listed above that might lend themselves to a satisfying performance in translation?

Feel free to share your thoughts here on ChoralNet in the comment section or even send in a “Letter to the Editor” for publication in an upcoming issue of Choral Journal. I would love to hear from you! Better still, perhaps you should write an article or column in the Choral Journal. You can contact me at . Daniel Mahraun can be contacted at .

Choral Journal writing guidelines can be viewed by clicking here.

CJ Replay: Focus on Composition

May 16, 2016 by Amanda Bumgarner Leave a Comment

The August 2014 issue of Choral Journal was a Focus on Composition, guest edited by David Conte. This issue contains the following feature articles and is available to ACDA members to read and download here.

Toward a Choral Pedagogy for Composers by David Conte, Robert Kyr, and Steven Sametz

“Three composer/teachers who direct sustained programs connected to conservatories or universities where young composers have the opportunity to compose choral pieces were asked to share their experiences and points of view about the issues contained within the following sixteen questions. You will find here many practical suggestions and more philosophical and aesthetic musings on these important topics.”

Writing for the Amateur Chorus: A Chance and a Challenge by Randall Thompson

This article was originally published in American Choral Review, not published by Chorus America. “In the following lecture, first penned in 1959 and later revised in 1980, Thompson’s advice to young composers, his strong feelings about the choral arts and its practice, and his ruminations on beauty and appropriateness combine to form a strong statement from this preeminent American choral composer.”

Conrad Susa: Composer, Teacher, Friend compiled by David Conte

“Conrad Susa, who died on November 21, 2013, is well known to American choral conductors for his Carols and Lullabies and other Christmas music. His death can now put into perspective his large choral catalogue, much of while deserves to be better know. What follows below are five eulogies given by musical friends at [Susa’s] memorial concert—Vance George, Vince Peterson, Elinor Armer, and David Conte. To these five is added a sixth from Philip Brunelle.”

Read this issue online or download the PDF here.

June/July 2016 Choral Journal Preview: Focus on Music in Worship

May 9, 2016 by Amanda Bumgarner Leave a Comment

The latest issue of Choral Journal is available online! ACDA members can log in with their username and password to view and download the newest edition. You can also read view our electronic version. Below is a preview of the articles you will find in this issue. If you are not already a member of ACDA, join today to start receiving your monthly Choral Journal!

The Church Choral Director: Leader of the Sacred, the Good, the Beautiful
by Charlotte Kroeker

“Despite a tendency to be overlooked in the cultural landscape, church choirs profoundly influence musical and social culture, possibly more than almost any other organized activities in society. There is evidence to support the value of church choir and reason for choir directors to invest time in its development and well-being.”

Soul Searching: Is it Time to Rethink the “Conventional” Model of Youth Choir?
by Eric L. Mathis

“The primary goal of this article is to ask a pastoral question of youth choir directors. The question is this: As pastoral musicians committed to the spiritual and musical development of teenagers, how do we best cultivate a generative faith that is rooted in a relationship with God, nurtured by the faith community, and important enough to extend beyond adolescence?”

Pursuing Authenticity in Choral Music for the Synagogue by Lester Seigel

“So what is authentic? As difficult a question as that is, there are a few traits that can be identified as having near-universal identification with Jewish authenticity, at least with the Eastern European diaspora. This article will focus specifically on choral music of a practical nature.”

Choral Music in the Gospel Traditions by Anthony Leach

An overview of the Gospel Music Workshop of American, Inc., organized in March 1967 by the late Rev. James Cleveland and colleagues in gospel music.

A Singing Welcome: A Sacred Community Response by Jonathan Rodgers

“This article will highlight a community that has undergone significant changes as a result of an increasing immigrant population, and a church in that community who desires to make an impact at this pivotal time by cultivating a sense of unity and trust through choral music.”

Favorite Sacred Music Anthems by Eileen Guenther

Choral directors from a large cross-section of denominations and congregation sizes recommend anthems based on important dates in the church calendar.

Cute No Longer, Thanks Be To God: Building and Maintaining a Choir of Children
by Richard Webster

“At the heart of liturgy, even as they themselves are being shaped, these choristers are helping transform a Christian community. Though music is our tool—learning to sing and amassing a knowledge of music theory the envy of any college freshman music major—we are about service.”

Reinvigoration: Experiences from a Sabbatical Journey
by Meg Granum with Emily Floyd

A discussed with Emily Floyd about her sabbatical in August-October 2015 where she traveled throughout the United States to “observe great teaching and gather ideas for how to improve her own church music program.”

Choral Conversations: A Conversation with Paul Aitken by Terre Johnson

Paul Aitken, director of music and worship arts at Boise First United Methodist Church, discusses what aspects of his work at a large, multi-campus church could work in both large and smaller churches.

Choral Journal Preview – “What Language Shall I Borrow?”

April 1, 2016 by Amanda Bumgarner Leave a Comment

Below is a preview of a Choral Journal article from May 2016:

“What Language Shall I Borrow?” Singing in Translation
by Daniel A. Mahraun
The full article is available for download at: http://acda.org/ccj.asp

We have all likely done it at one time or another: we have conducted or sung works in translation. Our reasons probably varied. Perhaps we saw no point in teaching the original language to that particular choir. Perhaps we made the choice for the sake of a particular audience. Perhaps our decision was based solely on expediency. Regardless, any conscious or unconscious reason we had likely flew in the face of what many of us have heard or been taught: that the performance of vocal music in translation is a form of blasphemy.

The late Roger Doyle made a case for singing in translation in his 1980 Choral Journal article, “What? Sing It in English? What Will the Neighbors Think?” In it, he bases his thoughts on the principal question of how to involve, to the fullest extent, the musicians and the listeners in a performance. Doyle lists what he saw as the four usual arguments against singing in translation then proceeds to reason them away. Those arguments are:

1) The nuance of the composer’s language is integral to the flow of the music.

2) Translations are provided in the printed programs.

3) The audience can’t understand the English either.

4) Good English versions are very scarce.1

Though not advocating the use of English at all times and for all repertoire, Doyle does consider aversion to English performances as “snobbish.”2

The present article will expand on Doyle’s reasoning, present criteria for evaluating English singing versions, and off er performance suggestions based on the demands of a translation. The case studies following include the familiar and oft-performed in translation (Mendelssohn’s “Es wird ein Stern,” from Christus), the less performed but oft-translated (J. S. Bach’s Matthäus-Passion), and a translation some simply avoid (Hindemith’s “La biche,” from Six chansons). This article will present ways to make performance in translation—as with all that we do—satisfying, not merely satisfactory.

Click here to finish reading this article from the May Issue of The Choral Journal

Daniel A. Mahraun
Choir Director
Lutheran Church of the Holy Trinity
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii