A recent article in the Wall Street Journal calls Morten Lauridson the "best composer you've never heard of."
Choral musicians don't say that, do we?
It looks like a film will come out soon on this composer -- a deep look into the composer's thoughts, inspirations, and ideas.
From the article:
The film, directed by Michael Stillwater, is a heartening rarity, a thoroughly intelligent classical-music program that strikes an appropriate balance between words and music. Most of the talking is done by Mr. Lauridsen himself and all of it is to the point, but plenty of time is devoted to the music that is the true point of "Shining Night," and by film's end you'll know what it sounds like and whether you want to hear more of it—as I expect you will.
A great trailer here from YouTube gives you a feeling for the hymn:
A good friend from the Samford Music faulty pointed me to this article - Thanks, Ron!
Organizers of the Palestinian version of “American Idol” said Thursday the Gaza Strip’s Hamas rulers have banned residents from participating in the popular reality show.
The organizers said Hamas told them the program is “indecent,” in what appears to be a new attempt by the fundamentalist militant Muslim group to crack down on behavior it sees as contrary to its conservative interpretation of Islam.
Hamas permits male barbershop style singing groups that do not use musical instruments and sing of the glory of Islam and to fighting Israel. Young, prepubescent girls also perform in their own singing groups, but teenage girls and women are never seen singing in public. Many devout Muslims believe singing by women is provocative.
Could be fertile ground for SPEBSQSA, or whatever they call themselves these days.
As I mentioned the other day, I'm teaching Choral Literature this semester and I'm exploring new resources. The primary resource I am investigating is Dennis Shrock's new book, Choral Repertoire.
The class is primarily for undergraduate students. Like others have done, I'm trying to focus on the most important figures in each period.
I did a little investigation of Shrock's overview of the composers of the Renaissance and this is what I found.
Some observations:
Shrock listed many composers I had never heard of. That shouldn't be too surprising of course, but I was. I don't normally catalog my ignorance for others to see, but I bolded the composers that I hadn't heard of and kept a record of them.
If Dr. Shrock listed "favorites" of the composer at the end of the description, I counted the number of entries. According to the number of entries, the top four composers of the Renaissance are Orlando di Lasso (68 entries), Palestrina (39 entries),
As I mentioned the other day, I'm teaching Choral Literature this semester and I'm exploring new resources. The primary resource I am investigating is Dennis Shrock's new book, Choral Repertoire.
The class is primarily for undergraduate students. Like others have done, I'm trying to focus on the most important figures in each period.
I did a little investigation of Shrock's overview of the composers of the Renaissance and this is what I found.
Some observations:
Shrock listed many composers I had never heard of. That shouldn't be too surprising of course, but I was. I don't normally catalog my ignorance for others to see, but I bolded the composers that I hadn't heard of and kept a record of them.
If Dr. Shrock listed "favorites" of the composer at the end of the description, I counted the number of entries. According to the number of entries, the top four composers of the Renaissance are Orlando di Lasso (68 entries), Palestrina (39 entries), William Byrd (34 entries), and Josquin Desprez (32 entries).
Rounding out the Top Ten are: Victoria (27), Guerro (27), Tomkins (25), Weelkes (24), Tye (22), and Gesualdo (21).
I asked Dr. Shrock about my investigation and he said this:
The number of citations of composers does not indicate their popularity, although many frequently cited composers are well known. Frequency of citation generally indicates frequency of reference. Gesualdo, for example, is not one of the most significant composers of the Renaissance. Because of his mannerist style, he is merely mentioned a lot. Otherwise, I'd like to clarify that the listing of repertoire is not meant to reflect popular appeal, but instead, familiarity. I discuss this in the sixth paragraph of the preface.
Thanks to Dennis Shrock for this thorough piece of scholarship and for taking the time to respond to my inquiry.
" . . the Framers embedded within the country's constitution a clause stipulating that Congress provide for copyrights and patents -- which is to say, that they endorsed the notion of intellectual property. But here is the kicker. They did so for only a limited term. Their purpose was to encourage innovation, to reward inventors and authors, and ease their inventions and writings into the public domain with reasonable alacrity -- so that they could be of benefit to all.
The aim of the entertainment industry is to maximize profits, and they have pushed again and again for the extension of copyright. That they have succeeded time and again in the last few decades is a sign of their power. But the truth is that, in repeatedly extending copyright, Congress is
" . . the Framers embedded within the country's constitution a clause stipulating that Congress provide for copyrights and patents -- which is to say, that they endorsed the notion of intellectual property. But here is the kicker. They did so for only a limited term. Their purpose was to encourage innovation, to reward inventors and authors, and ease their inventions and writings into the public domain with reasonable alacrity -- so that they could be of benefit to all.
The aim of the entertainment industry is to maximize profits, and they have pushed again and again for the extension of copyright. That they have succeeded time and again in the last few decades is a sign of their power. But the truth is that, in repeatedly extending copyright, Congress is denying to the rest of us what is rightly ours: works that, until recently, would have found their way into the public domain."
Paul A. Rahe holds The Charles O. Lee and Louise K. Lee Chair in the Western Heritage at Hillsdale College, where he is Professor of History.
The choir walked on stage. They were poised, appropriately coiffed, dressed immaculately – obviously significant attention had been paid to the choir’s appearance, they were even wearing matching shoes. The repertoire they were about to sing was historically valuable and educationally solid. I was eager to hear them sing. The conductor’s hands raised, a breath was taken, and then . . .
Well, at this point, let’s just say that if there had been as much effort invested in the choir’s tone as had been the tuxedos and dresses, things would have sounded better. A LOT better. Friends, we’re in the choir business; and the choir business is about SOUND.
In his article “A Choral Director’s First Task” (SWACDA Common Times, Vol.27, No.3), Charles Chapman discusses this in greater detail.
“Many of our choral conductors have too little information about how to produce sounds different from those so-called “natural” sounds
The choir walked on stage. They were poised, appropriately coiffed, dressed immaculately – obviously significant attention had been paid to the choir’s appearance, they were even wearing matching shoes. The repertoire they were about to sing was historically valuable and educationally solid. I was eager to hear them sing. The conductor’s hands raised, a breath was taken, and then . . .
Well, at this point, let’s just say that if there had been as much effort invested in the choir’s tone as had been the tuxedos and dresses, things would have sounded better. A LOT better. Friends, we’re in the choir business; and the choir business is about SOUND.
In his article “A Choral Director’s First Task” (SWACDA Common Times, Vol.27, No.3), Charles Chapman discusses this in greater detail.
“Many of our choral conductors have too little information about how to produce sounds different from those so-called “natural” sounds the students bring to class the first day of the year. The choral conductor is, in most cases, well served by altering resonator shapes, the changes of which are mostly visible, mostly directly adjustable, and may even be silently cued during performance, when [o] shapes begun by singers begin to turn into smiles. Teach your choir singers to sing vowels alike. Teach them first to sing a well-shaped [o]. Look at how many of them aren’t even rounding their lips!”
(To access the full article, simply click the highlighted title. For additional articles on a dazzling array of choral topics, visit ChorTeach.)
In the January "Outlook" from The Chronicle of Philanthropy, Perry/Preston/Wallace outlines five issues facing all of us that work with not-for-profit entities, related to our dependency on grants and other forms of philanthropy. The following are the issues, followed by my ponderings related to choral music education and choral performance:
1. This year, the question of how to broaden opportunities for all Americans is likely to occupy much of the philanthropic agenda. So, the implication? What is my organization doing to help the yawning gap between the rich and poor?
2. Philanthropy will face new demands to fill the gaps created by dwindling government aid--to give more to protect the safety net, keep museums and theaters open, and ensure kids go to decent schools. So, the implication? Where is my organization going to find the funding to fill the gaps created by reduced government support, or how are we going to learn to live without such funding?
In the January "Outlook" from The Chronicle of Philanthropy, Perry/Preston/Wallace outlines five issues facing all of us that work with not-for-profit entities, related to our dependency on grants and other forms of philanthropy. The following are the issues, followed by my ponderings related to choral music education and choral performance:
1. This year, the question of how to broaden opportunities for all Americans is likely to occupy much of the philanthropic agenda. So, the implication? What is my organization doing to help the yawning gap between the rich and poor?
2. Philanthropy will face new demands to fill the gaps created by dwindling government aid--to give more to protect the safety net, keep museums and theaters open, and ensure kids go to decent schools. So, the implication? Where is my organization going to find the funding to fill the gaps created by reduced government support, or how are we going to learn to live without such funding?
3. Friction between younger employees and baby-boomer charity executives will grow as jobs are fewer and older workers find themselves working longer. So, the implication? There will be increasing friction between 20-somethings and their desires and aspirations, and those of the baby boomers looking toward retirement.
4. The share of nonprofit's money that it spends on administration is under assault. No perfect evaluation measure has come along to replace the "overhead ratio". So, the implication? Administrators must be very well-equipped to answer the question "What impact are you having?"
5. Experimentation in collaborations between for-profit business models working with non-profits on social concerns is growing. So, the implication? Will hybrids give nonprofit groups a bold, new way to pursue their missions--or will the new entities siphon off financial support that had previously gone to traditional charities?
I'm teaching Choral Literature in Spring 2011. As a part of my preparation, I'm investing in a couple of new resources:
1. The digital version (i.e. Kindle) of Dennis Shrock's Choral Repertoire (I already own the hardback). (Hey Dennis, can't I get a discount by purchasing both?)
2. I've decided to subscribe to the "premium" version of Spotify, a new subscription service for music. I mentioned Spotify in this blog about a month ago, but I have yet to really explore the new tool.
There is much to like about Spotify. The best feature is access to an incredible universe of all types of music. One of the other ingenious features is the ability to make and share playlists. Rolling Stone has created a playlist of the 500 greatest hits of all time.
I've been searching for choral music playlists and I've found several.
I'm teaching Choral Literature in Spring 2011. As a part of my preparation, I'm investing in a couple of new resources:
1. The digital version (i.e. Kindle) of Dennis Shrock's Choral Repertoire (I already own the hardback). (Hey Dennis, can't I get a discount by purchasing both?)
2. I've decided to subscribe to the "premium" version of Spotify, a new subscription service for music. I mentioned Spotify in this blog about a month ago, but I have yet to really explore the new tool.
There is much to like about Spotify. The best feature is access to an incredible universe of all types of music. One of the other ingenious features is the ability to make and share playlists. Rolling Stone has created a playlist of the 500 greatest hits of all time.
I've been searching for choral music playlists and I've found several.
This Spotify is an incredible tool for us to use. How many of you have created lists for yourself, or for your classes about choral music? It is time to share - or learn - about the great opportunities with Spotify.
Skype is changing the way people are learning music - this article from the New York Times discusses the relatively new technology and it's impact on private music lessons:
Skype and other videochat programs have transformed the simple phone call, but the technology is venturing into a new frontier: it is upending and democratizing the world of music lessons. Students who used to limit the pool of potential teachers to those within a 20-mile radius from their homes now take lessons from teachers — some with world-class credentials — on other coasts or continents. The list of benefits is long: Players of niche instruments now have more access to teachers. Parents can simply send their child down the hall for lessons rather than driving them. And teachers now have a new way to build their business . . . .
There is no data on the number of video music lessons, and many people certainly will prefer face-to-face lessons. But many music teachers said in
Skype is changing the way people are learning music - this article from the New York Times discusses the relatively new technology and it's impact on private music lessons:
Skype and other videochat programs have transformed the simple phone call, but the technology is venturing into a new frontier: it is upending and democratizing the world of music lessons. Students who used to limit the pool of potential teachers to those within a 20-mile radius from their homes now take lessons from teachers — some with world-class credentials — on other coasts or continents. The list of benefits is long: Players of niche instruments now have more access to teachers. Parents can simply send their child down the hall for lessons rather than driving them. And teachers now have a new way to build their business . . . .
There is no data on the number of video music lessons, and many people certainly will prefer face-to-face lessons. But many music teachers said in interviews that they were conducting more lessons over broadband connections.
Will skyped-in choral critiques be far away?
I'm fairly certain that this has happened already, but I don't know details. Who can share?
Apple released an easy to use tool called iBooks Author which allows anyone (publishers and users) to create interactive iBooks with text, video, images and more. As Apple mentioned during their media event, the availability of such a robust tool to make electronic books has been lacking. iBook Author can export projects in a number of different formats, including iBook format, PDF and text.
And here is a video that provides the dream behind the technology:
The Simon Fraser University choir in Vancouver BC riffs from HBO's Game of Thrones. I haven't seen the TV show, but I'm reading the book, which features the same catchphrase, Winter Is Coming.
They have other posters based on Skyrim, Lord of the Rings, Dr. Horrible, and more.
Among the features of ACDA's Eastern Division Conference will be a performance of the Messa da Requiem by Giuseppe Verdi on Thursday, February 16. The performance will feature the Boston University Symphonic Chorus and Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Ann Howard Jones. Soloists for the evening will be soprano Michelle Johnson, mezzo-soprano Jana Baty, tenor Richard Clement, and bass Anton Belov. Admission to the concert is included in Conference Registration.
The ACDA North Central Division Conference is just two weeks away. This grand event takes place February 8-11 in Madison, Wisconsin. This is one of seven divisional conferences being offered by ACDA in 2012.
According to North Central Division President Aimee Bekman-Collier, “If you're eager for both inspiration and practical ways to help your singers read better, sound better, sing with greater artistry, connect their musical ‘doing’ with their musical thinking and feeling, value the role music plays in their lives and in the lives of our communities and culture, and go deeper in their skill, knowledge, and affective experiences, Beyond the Notes is for you.”
Today, let's observe three things about this colleague's work in this short clip. First, note the gesture used for the inhalation of air – it brings the visual focus to the area where the singer needs to place energy for the breath. Then, a crescendo is shown using a pulling/stretching movement that is also done low, to reinforce support. Finally, the conductor reinforces the vowel shape, ostensibly to prevent singers from creating a crescendo by shifting vowels. Take a moment in your rehearsal today to see how your gestures affect the sound the choir makes.
Conductors have been complaining about a lack of male voices in their choirs for centuries. I've done it. You've done it. Bach did it. So, let's cook with what we have, shall we? Here's a look at some repertoire that will be exciting to the men singing, as well as to the listener. Analyze this as you listen; this is solid AND accessible.
NEW HAVEN CT -- Yale University Library has acquired a substantial collection of interviews on the prominent choral conductor and composer, Sir David Willcocks. Perhaps best known as the director of music at King’s College, Cambridge University, Willcocks also held the directorship of London’s Royal College of Music, and published the popular anthologies “Carols for Choirs."
The David Willcocks Oral History collection includes several interviews with Willcocks, as well as those with family and colleagues such as vocalist Dame Janet Baker, conductors Neville Marriner and Simon Carrington, and composer John Rutter.
CHARLESTON, SC -- The story goes that Anton Armstrong first heard the renowned St. Olaf College Choir when his mom decided that performance would be a better use of his time than attending a Moody Blues concert for which he had tickets.
The story is true, Armstrong said, one of those many examples where Mom knows best. Some 40 years later, Armstrong leads the 75-voice a cappella ensemble of Minnesota's St. Olaf College.
Armstrong said when he was 13 or 14, he didn't appreciate his mother's decision much. A veteran of the American Boychoir, he was passionate about choral singing, yet he had plenty of other interests.
ROCKHAMPTON, AUSTRALIA -- IT WAS the last thing Shirley Green expected when she went to her letterbox one afternoon last year. And the Yeppoon woman is still coming to grips with the information she received.
A very modest Shirley was overwhelmed to discover that she was to receive an Order of Australia medal, but it was not something that she let go to her head.
Shirley is receiving her award for her service to music through Yeppoon Choral Society, a community organisation she has been involved in since 1964.
COLUMBUS, OH -- For the UAHS students about to perform in this year’s musical, as well as the group of alumni coordinating them behind the scenes, the old axiom still applies: The show must go on.
With next month’s production of “How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying,” a number of production roles have been filled by former students, working to share their experiences with this year’s class.
“It’s a pretty cool thing that, from the technical side, these guys have learned and decided to make that their vocations, but they all started in our productions,” said Eric Kauffman, UAHS vocal music director. “When they were students here they all did dual duty. If they weren’t in a scene, they were doing something backstage, or in here on weekends working to get the musicals ready.”
PERTH, AUSTRALIA -- For the past few years he has organised the popular New Year's Eve Vienna Pops at the Perth Concert Hall, John Christmass has declared the next one would be his last.
But approaching 88, the Mt Nasura choral master and educator is still going strong, driven by his love for music and the pleasure of sharing his knowledge with others.
"You can't sing and be miserable," he said. "No matter how bad you are feeling when you come to choir, you go away happy."
Mr Christmass' many decades of making and teaching music have been recognised with a Medal of the Order of Australia.
