A week from now, Christian churches of all stripes will be filled to capacity with parishioners attending services in celebration of Christmas. It is not hyperbolic to state that more people will hear live choral music and raise their own voices in song early next week than at any other single time of the year, […]
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Deep Peace, Healing Light — new choral publication for treble choir
I’m announcing the publication of my Deep Peace, Healing Light for three part treble choir (children’s or adult), on the familiar Gaelic blessing text: “Deep peace of the running wave to you…” The work is about three minutes long, ending with a randomized “blessing”, allowing the option of individual singers moving out around or into […]
Stick Time: Choir and Koto
When thinking of the instruments that usually accompany a choral work, one might immediately list piano, organ, a wind instrument or two, or perhaps strings. How about the Koto? Wait . . . Koto!? That’s not an instrument that comes to mind. Though it’s a beautiful and haunting instrument, there aren’t a lot of Koto […]
Creating a Positive Culture in your Choir – IV
One of the things that makes a huge difference in how much your choir accomplishes is what I’ll call the “density” of rehearsal. By that, I mean that the ratio of hard, focused work on those things that need it (versus the time that isn’t so productive). There are lot of things that go […]
Stick Time: Vocal Jazz with a Community Choir
In today’s Choral Caffeine column, we briefly discuss an article by Stephanie Austin Leston that discusses some basic concepts to be considered when introducing a community choir to vocal jazz. To help the point along, consider this selection from the 2010 ACDA Central Division Conference. In addition to this chart, the ensemble also performed a […]
Creating a Positive Culture in your Choir – III
Last time I discussed Doug Lemov's 100% idea: "There's on acceptable percentage of students following a direction: 100 percent. Less, and your authority is subject to interpretation, situation, and motivation." So, what are his principles for getting to 100%? He says there are three principles to ensure "consistent follow-through and compliance in the […]