Robert Shaw – Man of Many Voices
The American Choral Directors Association is the recipient of over 125 scores Robert Shaw used in preparation for rehearsal scores and materials for those that sang under his direction. According to ACDA’s Executive Director Tim Sharp, “These treasures are in different levels of marking and were used for different purposes to help Mr. Shaw convey to his singers exactly what he wanted them to do with every note. These scores offer significant insight into Robert Shaw’s analytical and score-marking process.”
These scores belonged to Harry Keuper, Shaw’s copyist, who after Keuper’s death willed this material to Dr. Pat Flannagan, Director of Choral Activities at King College, Bristol, TN, where Keuper resided in retirement. Flannagan and Sharp had both had conversations with Keuper who sang at different times for both Flannagan and Sharp, regarding the significance of these scores. According to Flannagan, “It was Harry’s wish that these scores be used by a broad audience for an understanding of Mr. Shaw’s process.”
Keuper, who sang and toured with Shaw for over 20 years, was Mr. Shaw’s copyist and assisted in preparing rehearsal scores and materials. According to Keuper, Mr. Shaw would dictate what he wanted and Harry would then mass produce the score and distribute copies to the singers.
In this collection are some of the greatest choral masterworks recorded by Robert Shaw including the Brahms Requiem, Verdi Requiem, and Rachmaninoff’s All Night Vigil/Vespers. Scores are now available for perusal in the archives of ACDA with “Finding Aids” currently in preparation.
American Choral Directors Association
545 Couch Drive
Oklahoma City OK 73102-2207
(405) 232-8161
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.