Latest Community Posts
George Steinbrenner gave Dunedin High School singers their big break
It is definitely a fact: George Steinbrenner was a very generous man, and his generosity was not only frequent, but spontaneous. In 1984, I agreed to chaperone a group of Dunedin High School singers called the Falconaires to the Hyatt Hotel in downtown Tampa, where they were asked to sing at a meeting of […]
Masters Recital Rep Ideas
Working on still narrowing my topic, however, I will be doing a conducting recital in the spring on “Pushing the Envelope”. This will have pieces of music where the composer uses his choral pieces to react to an oppressive government or conditions. For example, spirituals used to further the underground railroad through certain inflections, Shostakovich thumbed […]
Russian pronunciation guide for “Bogoroditse Devo”?
We are planning to perform Rachmaninoff’s “Bogoroditse Devo” (“Rejoice, O Virgin”). Does anyone have a reliable Russian pronunciation guide? Thanks in advance! Michael Dell
“O Magnum…” pronunciation questions
As director of my own new group, I have a couple of Latin pronunciation questions concerning “O Magnum Mysterium”: 1) praesepio – I said “preh-seh-pee-aw” (with a “hard S” sound) – One of my basses (a lifelong Roman Catholic from a very liturgical parish) said that it should be a “z” sound (a voiced […]
Music downloads are not performances, court rules
A Second Circuit Court of Appeals handed down mixed results for Internet music providers today in a ruling in New York. The appeals panel rejected claims by the royalty group ASCAP that downloads were live performances and said that transfers alone didn’t amount to a public airing. Terms in the Copyright Act made it clear that a performance involved […]
Kodály “Wine, Sweet Wine” or “Méz, Méz, Méz”
Hello all, My treble choir ordered Kodaly’s “Mez…” but the lyrics are only in English. I was wondering if anyone had access to the original Hungarian. I’ve been looking all over the internet with no luck… Thank you! Joanna
Demo Concert Ideas
I am thinking of making my first Fall concert a demo concert. I only have 6th graders and only 4 – 5 songs to sing. I am thinking about showing what types of warm ups we do and some sight-reading in between the concert pieces. Have any of you done this? If so, how was it received by […]
Choir Facebook Page
I am thinking about starting a Facebook page for my choir students. I was wondering if anyone else does this and if so what kinds of things you do with it. I have some ideas but would like to hear from others. Thanks, Stephanie
LA Children’s Chorus Announces Nationwide Search for New Executive Director
David Scheidemantle, Chair of Los Angeles Children’s Chorus (LACC), widely regarded as one of the world’s foremost children’s choirs, announced the choir is conducting a nationwide search for a new executive director to replace outgoing director Rachel Fine, who, after four outstanding years of service, has accepted a position as executive director of Los Angeles […]
Pedagogy or Stubbornness?
Dear Listers, I have a young lady in my top treble choir, age 14, who I just moved from S1 to alto. I did this after much careful consideration, and only after having listened to her range and vocal technique. She has made it abundantly clear to me that she prefers to sing S1. […]