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Interview

Interview with the 2019 National Legacy Directors Chorus Conductors

November 11, 2019 by Amanda Bumgarner Leave a Comment

The December 2019 issue of Choral Journal is now available online! Below is an excerpt of the interview article with the conductors of ACDA’s 2019 legacy directors chorus. You can read it in its entirety online at acda.org/choraljournal. Click “Search Archives” and choose December 2019 from the dropdown menu.
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What do you think are the most striking changes (positive or negative) in choral music today?

Charlene Archibeque
Two changes that have made a huge difference in audience enjoyment: the incorporation of World Music in programming and the use of choreography and multimedia in concerts. The change that causes me the most discomfort: the tendency to only program the “latest fad composers.” This results in concerts lacking in variety, strength, and often emotional satisfaction. Not all that is new is great, and much that is new is derivative. I long for programs that are centered on great choral music of all historical periods, programs that are carefully thought out with a unifying thread but that are totally diversified in musical style, textual content, rhythmic variety, visual enhancement, and a true communion with the audience. I worry somewhat at the current trend of turning concerts into political and social events, music selected for its “agenda.”

Eph Ehly
Positive: The quality of the performances has continued to improve quite remarkably. Exploration of music from distant and diff erent cultures has increased dramatically. There is evidence of outstanding teaching in the preparation of young music educators. Communication of professional services, namely ACDA and State CDAs, has increased greatly and communication is enhanced.
Negative: There appears to be a preponderance of performances of non-traditional contemporary literature that is to be appreciated more for its theoretical compositional components than for a more humanitarian message. It’s good to explore any and all new compositional styles, but not at the expense of our great heritage of literature that has spoken to generations of peoples from the Renaissance to the present.

Rodney Eichenberger
When I first immersed myself in the world of choral music there were some outstanding choirs in the United States; now there they are all around us and at all levels. One of the most significant developments is that musicianship of conductors and singers has multiplied sevenfold.

Kenneth Fulton
The diversity of what we produce—so many more groups and music of all kinds that touch so many. Again, our collective interest in each other across cultures and peoples.

William Hatcher
The greater attention to and study of multicultural music is a very positive contribution to choral literature, but I am concerned that our traditional western literature might be slighted. I especially grieve the diminishing of music training in our public and private schools. We have, in a sense, lost generations of people who were once given the fundamentals of musicianship and a love of singing.

Jerry McCoy
The availability of the ever-expanding world of choral literature has deeply changed our art form. To experience literature from all sides of the globe deepens our human experience and expands our sense of shared humanity. My only caveat to this is that we also must maintain awareness of the core historical works that first launched our concepts of communal singing.

Donald Neuen
I’m sorry to see the gradual demise of quality traditional church music in many areas nationwide, and a lessening of the Palestrina-to-Britten legacy in the programming of many school, university, and community choirs. Also, somewhat lacking, seems to be the consistent effort of teaching beautifully mature “soloistic vocal tone quality”—as established so perfectly by Robert Shaw and Roger Wagner.

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Read the rest of this article (and more!) in the December 2019 issue of Choral Journal, available online at acda.org.

Filed Under: Choral Journal Tagged With: ACDA Membership Benefits, ACDA Publications, Choral Journal, Conducting, Interview

CJ Replay: Eric Whitacre on Composing and Conducting

September 23, 2019 by Amanda Bumgarner Leave a Comment

The September 2017 issue of Choral Journal featured an article by Tom Wine titled “Searching for an Icon: Eric Whitacre on Composing & Conducting.” Below is an excerpt from that interview, and you can read it in its entirety online at acda.org/choraljournal. Click “Search Archives” and choose September 2017 from the dropdown menu.
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How would you describe the creative process?
Every time I start a piece I feel like a complete novice. What I tend to do now is I go back and look at earlier works and deconstruct them. Certain things seem to work and that sets a foundation. I have also taken to writing out existing works by composers like Bach or Debussy and literally copying by hand in pencil. I want to write exactly what Bach wrote so I can get a sense of how he builds a piece. I look for structural, perhaps numerical, icons that are connected somehow to the theme of the piece.

Then I start to build the composition around it. For instance, with Ghost Train I used my girlfriend’s phone number, and that unrequited theme with the last number missing appears all over the piece itself. In When David Heard, the passage I set is from Second Samuel, Chapter 18, verse 33. In the beginning of the composition of the piece the measures are grouped in sets of either 18 or 33 (two groups of nine or three groups of six). I make those choices before I write any music.

Once I have the structure or emotional architecture of the piece, I start to develop my palette much like a painter develops a color palette. It is either a chord or a musical gesture with a couple of notes, and somehow I know that these are the colors that will work together and paint the picture. Like a painter, you never stray from those colors. You might mix them a little bit and scatter the motives, but you keep those colors at the forefront. It’s kind of a way of putting myself in a box. For me, music is profoundly personal. It is an extension of my personality and ultimately my philosophy—I suppose my ethos and how I see the world.

The older I get, the only way to continue to be authentic and have music resonate for me and for performers and listeners is to become more and more vulnerable. I really have to get in there and dig in the dirt. Each piece now seems to be more and more personal in that I have cracked open wider who I am. Who I am can be, “I don’t know what I am doing,” and that goes into the piece as well. The things happening in my life—a joy or a tragedy, an important event such as when my son was born—all of these things find their way onto the page.

What are your thoughts on the future of choral music?
Ten years ago I am not even sure Facebook really existed. It is interesting, in terms of social media and what is possible. I have found in the past couple of years a more measured relationship with social media. I am not sure if others can relate to this, but I have the heart of a very empathetic person. I love people and adore being around them and being authentic with them.

Social media is not just me posting something. It was never a monologue for me. It was always a dialogue, so if somebody posts something that is halfway meaningful, you can feel across media that they are bearing their soul. I can’t just “like” that; I am in it with that person because a connection has been made. Between Twitter and Facebook and Instagram and Snapchat, there are a lot of connections. I started, on a personal level, to realize I was not doing a very graceful job of carrying those connections.

I could not be in this quiet place long enough in order to compose and be able to feel connected to all of these people in this intimate and specific way. Over the past few years I have given myself this little bit of distance. Mostly that means spending less time on social media. That being said, I still check in several times a day. . . . .

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Read the rest of this article (and more!) in the September 2017 issue of Choral Journal, available online at acda.org.

Filed Under: Choral Journal Tagged With: ACDA Membership Benefits, ACDA Publications, Choral Journal, CJ Replay, composer, composition, Interview

CJ Replay: Interviews through the Years

August 12, 2019 by Amanda Bumgarner Leave a Comment

The newest issue of Choral Journal is available online. On page 45 you will find one of the articles in the ACDA 60th Anniversary Series: Interviews through the Years: A Selection of Excerpts from Choral Journal Interview Articles.

ACDA members can log in with their username and password to view and download the newest edition. You can also read 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!
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Following is an excerpt from that interview article, which you can read in the September 2019 issue of Choral Journal.

“Margaret Hillis and the Chicago Symphony Chorus: Perspective and Interview,” by Janel Jo Dennen (November 1982)

Do you think being a woman in what has been primarily a male-dominated career has an effect on the way you are viewed in the eyes of fellow professionals and the public?

These days not so much. Earlier I was looked on as a sort of monster with two heads. Now, there’s several women conductors, and good ones. Plus, I’ve done it. I’ve shown that it can be done, so it’s a different bag now from what it was when I started my career. If they (the public) are real music lovers, I don’t think it matters that I’m female. If they go to watch a conductor, maybe then it makes a difference, but if they go to listen to music, I don’t think so. As far as other conductors, all they care about is that the chorus is good. Every guest conductor who comes here wants that chorus. Not because it’s a woman conductor, but because that chorus is good. And the only thing that anyone can stand on, man or woman, is the quality of the work.

“Reflections on a Career: A Conversation with Howard Swan,” ed. Gordon Paine (March 1987)

What changes or developments have you seen in choral music in general in the last twenty years?

You are now speaking of concerns that will have some consideration in my address for the national convention of ACDA. There have been some changes in the choral world that I would characterize as negative. You were saying a few minutes ago that your music major enrollment here has dropped in numbers. This is true with nearly all campuses, and it is a reflection of the secondary schools cutting down and in some places abandoning their music programs. Another negative factor is the fact that in many places we perform nothing but popular music. Too many conductors have used this trend as a kind of a “cop out,” and because they don’t know better or don’t care, they choose poor music. There is much repertoire in the “popular” field that reveals an excellent artistry and imaginative musicianship on the part of the composer or arranger. Too much of this material is not used.

“An Interview with Sally Herman and Michael Nuss: Elements of Successful Junior High School Choirs,” by Dennis Shrock (April 1990)

What are the greatest challenges facing the junior high school choral director today?

Herman: The most major challenge deals with repertoire: music of quality that meets the special requirements of the junior high-aged voice. A choral director must search for music—in university libraries where you can find wonderfully appropriate repertoire in the collected works of major composers and in conferences, workshops, and reading sessions where many experienced junior high school directors will share what they have found has worked for them. Junior high school choral directors should also be prepared to arrange music-to adapt repertoire to suit the various range requirements of the students they have in their choirs.

Nuss: I agree. Choral directors have to be willing to look through a lot of music. It’s our job. Many directors think that choral music will just “come to them,” or that taking the time to search for music just isn’t worth the effort. Choice of repertoire is, perhaps, the most important decision choral directors make. A “match” must then be found between the ensemble and the repertoire. This match is critically important at the junior high level and is rarely, if ever, achieved by simply choosing materials from industry “samplers” or attending reading sessions.
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Read the rest of this article (and more!) in the September 2019 issue of Choral Journal, available online at acda.org.

Filed Under: Choral Journal Tagged With: ACDA Publications, Choral Journal, Interview

Sight-Reading Insights from Professional Choral Singing: How They Learned and Implications for the Choral Classroom

July 15, 2019 by Amanda Bumgarner Leave a Comment

The August 2019 issue of Choral Journal is now available online! This issue was a focus on sacred music and features an article written by Rachel Carlson titled “Sight-Reading Insights from Professional Choral Singing: How They Learned and Implications for the Choral Classroom.” Below is an excerpt of the article, and you can read it in its entirety in the August 2019 issue! Go to acda.org/choraljournal and click “Search Archives.” Choose August 2019 from the dropdown menu.
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For many vocal performance majors, professional choral work is an important component of the work load during and after college. Sight-reading is a vital skill, because a strong sight-reader will be able to learn music quickly and adjust to the needs of the conductor in a limited time frame. (1) Despite the importance of being able to sight-read proficiently, many ensemble singers graduate without developing this skill to a level high enough to succeed in the professional choral world. (2) Few studies in the field of sight-reading research have investigated the training and insights of professional choral singers. (3) It is hoped that by exploring sight-reading methods, conductors and teachers can learn what might work best for pre-professional choral ensemble singers and can then prioritize those approaches in their teaching.

Question One: Musical Training and Background

What elements in your musical training prepared you for what you have to do as a professional choral singer?

Training

Participants most frequently received their musical training through instrumental study growing up, aural skills class (usually in college but occasionally in high school or in a children’s choir), and through on-the-job training. Other, less common, answers included high school choir, college choir, participating in a children’s chorus, growing up singing in church or with their family, through a sense of personal accountability or fear (most frequently in a college choir setting), through a lifelong learning process, improving through teaching, through frequent practice and being immersed in it every day, and by challenging themselves or feeling a need to get better in order to succeed at their job. Instrumental training was mentioned frequently in all seven of the focus groups and prepared singers in many ways.

Jay – I started musical training on instruments from a slightly less young age—about age 7 on the piano, about age 13 on the flute—and I would say that training on both those instruments in addition to consistent choral singing in school and church is what built my musicianship skills.

Lynn – All those years of playing scales and playing chord progressions in all different keys kind of helped me translate things and think structurally.

In addition to instrumental training, participants frequently mentioned college aural skills classes as a place where they learned how to use solfège and how to sing and identify different intervals. Several people also mentioned that it was in aural skills class where they learned to “put names on things” that they had learned previously in high school choir or in their instrumental study. Some participants (mostly instrumentalists) found solfège syllables to be more of a hindrance than a help or an “extra step” because they could already sight-read well. Others found solfège syllables to be extremely helpful and still use them in their work today.

Sight-Reading Proficiency

Many of the participants mentioned their first church job as their first professional choral singing experience. Several of the singers felt unprepared for the high level of sight-reading that was expected of them at these jobs and felt that they needed to develop better sight-reading skills quickly in order to succeed. Many participants felt that it was during this on-the-job training that their sight-reading skills became proficient.

Kristen – I almost feel like the best training I got for what I do now was Theory I, learning the intervals sophomore year of college… like, getting drilled on the intervals and then, through a church job in grad school, seeing them so often.

Others received training from being held personally accountable in their college choirs.

Mark – I think that it’s not just singing in a choir, because I’ve sung in lots of choirs that did not advance my musicianship, but that individual accountability, you know, quartet roulette, that kind of thing, and just having to be personally accountable for my own musical preparation. And not having somebody play my part for me ever.

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Read the rest of this article (and more!) in the August 2019 issue of Choral Journal, available online at acda.org.

Filed Under: Choral Journal Tagged With: ACDA Membership Benefits, ACDA Publications, Choral Journal, Interview, sight-reading

October 2018 Choral Journal Preview

September 10, 2018 by Amanda Bumgarner Leave a Comment

The latest issue of Choral Journal is available online! This is the October 2018 issue and is a Focus on Social Justice and Choral Communities, guest edited by Kristina Boerger.

ACDA members can log in with their username and password to view and download the newest edition. You can also read 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! Associate members can join for only $45 a year.

Following are the articles you can find in this exciting and unique issue.

The Dallas Street Choir: The Impact of Communal Singing on Those Experiencing Homelessness
by Anne Nordberg, Courtney Cronley, Erin Murphy, Craig Keaton, and Jonathan Palant

I Am Because We Are: Building Choral Communities
by Caterine Roma

If You Don’t Know, Don’t Assume: Cross-Cultural Engagement in Choral Music for Social Justice
by Mollie Spector Stone, Lonnie Norwood, and Stephanie Gregorie

Lavender Light Black and People of All Colors Lesbian and Gay Gospel Choir: A Conversation with Maria-Elena Grant
by Kristina G. Boerger

The Voice of Community: A Choral Model for Social Justice Engagement
by Michael Bussewitz-Quarm

Harmony Project by David Brown

The Syracuse Community Choir: Where Every Voice Matters
by Marcia James with Karen Mihalyi and Andrea Leimanis

The Stop Shopping Choir: A Conversation with Reverend Billy Talen and Savitri D by Kristina G. Boerger

Sing Anything: Robert Cohen and Herschel Garfein’s Alzheimer’s Stories and the Quickening Power of Music
by Kody Wallace

Filed Under: Choral Journal Tagged With: ACDA Membership Benefits, ACDA Publications, Choral Journal, Choral Journal Preview, Interview, Social Justice

Mastering the music ed job hunt, with Kyle Karum

May 27, 2016 by Ryan Guth Leave a Comment

Kyle Karum is an expert music ed interviewee and shares his tips on creating a compelling cover letter, resume, and portfolio that your potential employers will love!

JOIN CHOIR NATION ON FACEBOOK

Episode 053

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LISTEN TO THE EPISODE HERE!

itunes3

KYLE KARUM’S BIO

Kyle Karum is a music educator originally from Muskegon, MI where he graduated from Mona Shores High School in 2006. He then attended Western Michigan University for his studies in music education. While at WMU, Kyle studied conducting under Dr. James Bass, Dr. Ronald Oliver, and Dr. Kimberly Dunn Adams as well as music education with Dr. Dee Gauthier. He graduated in 2012 with his Bachelor’s of Music: Music Education (Choral/General Emphasis).

Kyle recently held the position of Director of Choral Music and General Music Teacher at Prairie Heights Community School Corporation in LaGrange, IN where he taught two general music classes and five choir classes. In addition, he also taught Music Theory/Composition and Music History/Appreciation as well as acted as the Assistant Director/Conductor of the Theater Department.

Kyle is currently the Director of Choral Music at Seymour High School in Seymour,IN where he teaches over 200 students in five choir classes. Under his direction, the four choral ensembles at SHS attended the ISSMA District Choral Festival on 2016. There each ensemble was awarded a Gold rating in not only performance, but also sight-reading. As a part of his appointment, Kyle is also responsible for directing the spring musical each year.

Kyle continues to sing with the Bloomington Chamber Singers in Bloomington, IN.

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RELEVANT LINKS MENTIONED IN THE INTERVIEW

Sheet music: Dominis Vobiscum – by Sydney Guillaume

Episode 29 with Dominick DiOrio

Episode 47 with Helmuth Rilling

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Filed Under: Others Tagged With: ACDA, American Choral Directors Association, choir, Choral, Cover letter, Find Your Forte, Interview, Job, Kyle Karum, Music Ed, Portfolio, Private School, Public School, Resume, Ryan Guth

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