REGISTER NOW for the ACDA National Conference

Hi all,

Just a quick post to announce that I will be blogging for ChoralNet for the next four Saturdays. I will be sharing some of my ACDA national conference memories from the last conferences (LA, Miami, OK City, and Chicago) in hopes of encouraging newbies/fence-sitters to get on down to Dallas.

In addition to my own favorite memories, would any of you like to add a short one of your own? It could be something about a performance, an amazing interest session, meeting and networking with new people, something humorous- whatever you might like to share (and I will want to use your name). Of course we will keep it G or PG rated, por favor.

And in case it has crept up on you- the early registration (a savings of $50) ends after Feb. 15th. If YOU haven't registered get on it! Here is the link to the conference page. And if you haven't read what's going on March 13th-16th, you will be amazed by this conference which is jam-packed with so much great, varied stuff!

PC

Anúna founder Michael McGlynn's blog about ACDA 2011

One of the highlights for me at the 2011 ACDA National Conference was getting to meet Michael McGlynn, the founder and artistic director of the Irish choir Anúna. I talked about this in this blog entry.

Michael has a brilliant mind and a delightful personality and was especially interested in discussing the shifts in composer/publisher dynamics in the US choral field. I'm going to discuss this in detail soon. There was some very active discussion among many of the leading composers present at the conference in regard to their desire to stop being dependent on traditional publishers. Michael stressed a number of times that we U.S. composers need to keep this enthusiasm for growing independence going, and not let it falter.

Here is Michael's wonderfully written blog on his experience visiting ACDA. Read some of his other entries- there is some very interesting reading here.

Choral Interviews- pt. 2 with Tim Sharp

Tim Sharp (BM, MCM, DMA) is Executive Director of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), the national professional association for choral conductors, educators,scholars, students, and choral music industry representatives in the United States. He represents choral activity in the United States to the International Federation for Choral Music (IFCM).

PC: You travel the world these days guest conducting and also connecting with choral organizations all over the globe- how would you describe the status of the global choral music field today and what changes globally do you foresee in the next ten years or so?

TS: It is very encouraging to witness the amount of participation that is taking place around the world in choral music making. And, I include the United States in that observation. In the most recent cultural survey from the National Endowment for the Arts, choral participation is at a higher level in the United States than it was five years ago. I think it is “up” in many other ways—in travel, in excitement, in the “cool” factor, in media attention, and in quality of composition and performance. In terms of status, I think we are seeing a renaissance in choral composition, and we are seeing composers treating the choir as an idiom of expression that is uniquely “choral.” The choir is considered a serious instrument, and I hear that both in composition and performance worldwide.I think people will hear that in a dramatic way at our upcoming National Conference. I also see the choral organization as a new social entity, as we witness choirs forming around ideas such as hospice choirs, complaint choirs, prison choirs, bicycle choirs, flash choirs, along with our more conventional titles.

PC: Along the same lines, what impact do you foresee from the increased activities in the US by Interkultur and the World Choir Games being held in Cincinnati in 2012?

TS: I see this activity as a continuation of our priority of becoming a more international and world choral participant. ACDA is a founding member of the International Federation for Choral Music, and we remain very active in this world choral organization. Bringing the World Choir Games to Cincinnati is further evidence of our desire to expand our boundaries and understanding. It is such a thrill for me to see an American city embrace choral music in the same way many cities embrace sporting events as a civic focus. To have 400 choirs from around the world converge on an American city for performance and cultural exchange is truly history in the making, and ACDA is proud to be a part of this partnership.

PC: How do the big movers and shakers in the European and Asian choral world view our US choirs, choral sound, and teaching methods? Are there areas where they just perhaps don't even get what we are up to?

TS: When it comes to choral performance, I believe we speak something of a universal language with our colleagues in other countries. However, when it comes to choral pedagogy and choral music education, there are vast differences. The history of the growth of professional training in [American] choral pedagogy and conducting tracks right alongside the growth and development of the American Choral Directors Association. This is one of the reasons that so many of our colleagues in other countries come to our onferences and enroll in our colleges and universities—they want to learn from our work in the area of choral music education and conducting pedagogy.

This year, there are over twenty countries that will be represented in participant registration for our National Conference. We often praise the sight reading skills of individual singers in other countries, but other countries will single out the progressive work we do in the United States in the area of gestural conducting and rehearsal pedagogy.

Another interesting difference is in the base of operation for many of our choirs in the United States. The largest membership category for ACDA is in the area of directors connected to an educational institution. However, in many other countries, community choirs greatly outnumber choirs based in academies.

PC: I believe ACDA membership is on the rise, and I have heard that the upcoming national conference in Chicago has already had a large number of people registered to attend --  what is ACDA's current model for membership growth? Also, is there a plan for bringing in more young teachers as members and perhaps expanding the number of (university) student chapters?

TS: Our largest area of growth in ACDA is at the level of student membership and young professionals. Our student membership base was 150 larger than this time last year, and due to the good work of our various state chapters, student membership is on the increase. This is good news for the future of choral music making, and certainly it is good news for ACDA. We have incentive programs in place for the creation of new student chapters, and for states to recruit first-time student members of ACDA. These programs have been embraced enthusiastically by many of our state chapters, and we see the results in our expanded student membership base. Our strategy is to grow our base from young professionals entering the field, and to grow our student membership base for future teachers, conductors, and leaders.

After a few years of flat growth across the association (new members replacing members that had dropped off the membership rolls, but the number remaining the same), in January of this year, ACDA’s membership has returned to the level it enjoyed in mid-2000. It was during that period that ACDA had moved into its new headquarters in Oklahoma City, and a time when our National Conference had expanded significantly to a multi-track event. And while the Great Recession starting in 2008 was sobering for all of us, we are now seeing the positive results of our renewed since of mission and purpose, along with stimulus work to bring new professionals, students, and others we are mentoring into their professional organization.

PC: As a composer myself, I applaud your obvious interest in our living choral composers. How do you foresee ACDA initiating more interaction with composers in the near future? And how do you see ACDA and ACDA interest session organizers adapting to the rise of "self-publishing" composers, which may be something the traditional publishers and retailers may not be that interested in exploring?

TS: ACDA has taken some recent steps to move more aggressively into living out one of our primary purposes as stated in our Bylaws and Constitution, which is to “Foster and encourage choral composition of superior quality.” This past summer we co-sponsored the LeHigh Composer’s Symposium, led by Steven Sametz and Chen Yi, and I was encouraged and inspired by the robust participation in that incredible event. I have an ongoing conversation with some of our Brock composers, including Steven, on this topic, and I am hoping to make the activity that is already taking place with our commissioning initiative much more visible and available to choral composers as well as those interested in their compositions. I also want to be more aggressive in seeing works that ACDA has commissioned, receive additional and ongoing performances. All of these efforts will benefit by making the activity more visible, and searchable, within our organization and its various programs, conferences, and other activities.

Regarding the rise of “self-publishing”, the many performance activities of ACDA are the natural place for composers to have their compositions considered and performed. How a work is discovered and distributed has never been a parameter for ACDA performance consideration. The only issue for ACDA is the quality of a composition, and both the universal availability, and the accessibility, of the work to the broad base of our membership.

PC: You and I talked in Tucson last spring about Joan Szymko's highly successful Brock commission piece All Works of Love (which, by the way, I programmed immediately for my summer program at North Carolina Governor's School). Can you share your thoughts on why Joan's piece was so successful, and also how you perceive the Brock commission and what attitude tweaks would you like to make to it in regard to the goals of ACDA, the chosen composer, and director members of ACDA? What measure of general accessibility do you think the Brock commission piece should have?  Do you hope that most of the Brock commissions will enter into the general repertoire of our choirs around the country?

TS: This is a conversation I hope will have a broader base of participation as ACDA thinks about strategic planning. I feel that our activity in the commissioning of new choral works is one of the best-kept secrets of ACDA. Each year, ACDA, through our various member directors, as well as State, Division, and National activities, commission many new choral works. Over the history of ACDA, this number is easily in the hundreds of commissioned choral works. To date, however, no one has cataloged and tracked all of the commissions that have the words “Commissioned by ACDA” written at the top of the score. For many reasons, we need to identify and track this catalog.

I view our activity of fostering and promoting new music in terms of helping emerging composers. And, “emergence” takes place at different levels. At the student level, we have a Brock Student Composition award, and we see student composers entering this first level of emergence. Then there are composers that are receiving some publishing success, and finding their way on to programs, regionally and then nationally. And finally, there are composers that are clearly setting the pace and emerging as our laureate and established composers. I believe we are recognizing this level composer with our Brock Commission. I don’t think we would approach a composer of this stature unless we thought this composer’s work would have a good chance of entering into the significant canon of choral works available. I think you have identified Joan Szymko’s Brock Commission work correctly with this characterization of quality and accessibility.

PC: Describe your work with the Tulsa Oratorio Chorus as their artistic and musical director, and what kind of growth do you hope for with that group?

TS: I was very fortunate to be presented with the opportunity at the end of my first year in Oklahoma to conduct this very fine ensemble within proximity of OK City. I began conducting in Tulsa in the fall of 2009. So, each week, at the end of my workday on Monday, I drive to Tulsa for my weekly evening rehearsal with the Tulsa Oratorio Chorus, and due to the fact that they have an excellent and well-defined Board of Directors, my work is truly one of conducting and artistic direction for the organization. I have been able to grow the ensemble to their ideal size of 100 singers, performing four concerts in our season, usually with the Tulsa Symphony Orchestra. In addition to growing the ensemble and expanding the repertoire, I have been able to connect the organization to other arts organizations such as the Tulsa Opera, Tulsa Ballet, Tulsa Children’s Chorus, and Tulsa Boy Singers, in collaborative performances such as our recent Carmina Burana and RVW’s Hodie.

We are also working with the Tulsa Symphony Orchestra on an upcoming “Side by Side” concert featuring our two organizations along with some of the best high school singers and instrumentalists performing alongside us. Next year will be an “all Bach” year for us, as we perform three cantatas (BWV 79, 80, 140), the motet Singet dem Herrn (BWV 225), Magnificat, and Mass in B Minor.

PC: And now for a few less serious questions:

What major work have you not yet conducted that you are just itching to do?

TS: I would like to conduct Gerald Finzi’s Intimations of Immortality, as well as John Adams’ Harmonium. These have been on my “bucket list” for a while now, but so far, the occasion, forces, or time has not been right for these unique works.

PC: Any guilty musical pleasures you care to admit to?

TS: I enjoy playing the banjo and have been working on a “‘High’ Lonesome” mass for years, which I will finally see through to completion this spring. My desire was to create a musical service incorporating some of the folk hymns from the Southern Harmony and Sacred Harp tradition, with true bluegrass styling. My intent is to create something I am able to play myself, along with bluegrass ensemble, with any choir interested in programming the work.

PC: What young composers have you got your eye on?

TS: I have most recently worked with Albany, NY, composer Evan Mack. I was honored to be able to conduct the premiere of his recent choral work Of Fire and Form, at the Clay Center for the Arts in Charleston, WV. I was very impressed with Evan’s writing, and the WV Collegiate Honor Choir did a very fine job performing the premiere. In addition, Evan’s opera Angel of the Amazon in workshop stage at the Manhattan School of Music, and his ballet Pinocchio will be performed by the West Virginia Ballet in March.

PC: And also what young conductors have you also got your eye on?

TS: I would love to single out a few conductors, but rather than naming-names, I will mention how important the conducting masterclass experiences are that are being offered by ACDA’s various Student and Youth Activities leaders and our College and University leaders at the state, division and national level. I have had the opportunity to be a part of some of these events, most recently at Michigan’s State ACDA Conference, and the Southern Division ACDA Conference. Also, at ACDA’s “One Song” event last Fall in Atlanta, podium time was created to help mentor young conductors.

PC: With all your global travel experience, what is Dr Tim's advice for combating jet lag?

TS: The solution for me is to immediately be working, eating, and sleeping on the time zone I am in, no matter how radically different it is from where I left. I push through to staying active if I arrive during the day, and I eat and sleep on the local timetable. If I can sleep on the airplane, I do. And, there’s Lunesta.

THANKS TIM!

Choral Interviews- Dr. Tim Sharp, pt. one

As the ACDA National Conference held here in Chicago approaches, I thought I would interview Dr. Tim Sharp, executive director of ACDA. And if you haven't already registered for what should be an amazing four very full days (March 9-12) of exciting music and fellowship, please visit this ACDA link for more info on the conference and registration info as well:

http://acda.org/index.php?q=conferences/2011

Tim Sharp (BM, MCM, DMA) is Executive Director of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), the national professional association for choral conductors, educators,scholars, students, and choral music industry representatives in the United States. He represents choral activity in the United States to the International Federation for Choral Music (IFCM).

Sharp, himself an active choral conductor, researcher, and writer, has varied his career with executive positions in higher education, recording, and publishing. Prior to his leadershipof ACDA, Sharp was Dean of Fine Arts at Rhodes College, Memphis, TN, and earlier, Director of Choral Activities at Belmont University, Nashville, TN. Tim’s research and writing focuses pedagogically in conducting and score analysis, and various published essays demonstrate his eclectic interests in regional music history, acoustics, creativity, innovation, and aesthetics.


PC: You are certainly a very high profile figure in the choral world today, not just in the US as executive director of ACDA but also in all your worldwide travels- but I'd like to start by asking you about some of your experiences before ACDA--

Can you tell us about your fellowship at Clare Hall, Cambridge University? What did you gain from that experience that you probably could not have gained in the US?

TS: The greatest part of living in Cambridge was experiencing first-hand the importance placed on choral music in that particular location and environment. And, I am choosing my words carefully when I say “important.” There was hardly a day at Clare that I didn’t have a discussion with someone from another discipline of study about something choral, and it would be a serious conversation. Some days it was which choral Evensong we would choose to attend on that day from the many available at the collegiate chapels; some days it was about an upcoming concert by one of the many stellar Cambridge choirs, or one of the world’s great professional choirs appearing in Cambridge; or, it could have been about a BBC choral program, or a new recording that was in preparation or being released. Choral music is very important in Cambridge, and I relished being in the middle of it, and in being at a place where our work obviously matters so much. On a very personal level, my daughter attended Kings College School, the prep school created for the boy choristers at Kings. She was able to sing with the boy choristers from Kings on a couple of concerts, and those experiences were precious and unforgettable

Cambridge also gave me access to one of the world’s great libraries, and proximity to the small town of Bedford where much of my Moravian research centered. My research there led to the discovery of the location and activity of Moravian composer, educator, and music collector Johannes Herbst during his years in the England Moravian community. I completed a critical edition of Herbst’s monumental collection Hymns to Be Sung at the Pianoforte. Steglein Publishing will publish this research in the coming year in their forthcoming Moravian series.

PC: You've written on such diverse subjects as "The German Songbook in the Nineteenth Century", and popular histories including "Memphis Music Before the Blues" and "Nashville Music Before Country". I'd love to know more about your Memphis and Nashville books and research- can you tell us about them?


TS: I consider Tennessee my spiritual and musical home, and have always delighted and marveled at the miracle that is the music that came from Tennessee. The birth of blues, country, bluegrass, gospel, rockabilly, and rock, are universally traced to Tennessee roots. However, any thinking individual has to ask “why Tennessee?” Many historians have enjoyed starting with the blues and country and rock to explain these roots, but my question has always been, “What was in place before the blues and country, that made the conditions right for those forms to take place?” This is what I explored in the two books you mention about Memphis and Nashville. And in both instances, the question led to fascinating discoveries that made Tennessee the home for these uniquely American popular forms of musical expression. I am also working on the third part in this series, "East Tennessee Music Before Bluegrass", but this one will take me a while to complete now that I am further away from source material.

PC: As Executive Director of ACDA you no longer hold a teaching position like you did at Belmont University and at Rhodes College. What do you miss the most in regard to university level teaching and daily choral leadership? And what do you miss the least?!

TS: The aspect of university teaching I miss the most is the construction, or reconstruction, of a course and a course syllabus. I loved inventing new courses of musical study, and I loved creating the experiences and readings that would take others down that path of learning. Of course, I loved being with the students, too, and I miss them very much, but my work with ACDA takes me regularly to students of all ages. In terms of what I don’t miss, while I completely understand and appreciate the conservative nature of higher education, I don’t miss the extremely slow pace in which higher education incorporates change and innovation.

PC: You've done such amazing work at ACDA in such a short amount of time. How do you keep the big picture in mind when you must have 100 detail items to cross off the list as you go?

TS: There are two ways I keep this tension in check: the first is that ACDA has a very strong national staff, and they are able to run much of what we depend on with skill, intelligence, and efficiency. While it is true that challenges arise regularly that need leadership and new strategies, a very capable staff handles many of the daily details. The second way I keep this tension in check is to intentionally make time every day to work on forward-looking initiatives and strategic imperatives I believe are necessary for a future ACDA. I believe part of my job is to do intentional thinking, and as I have always told my students, real thinking is difficult. For that reason, I make time to do critical thinking every day on forward-looking issues. I think that if you interviewed the national staff, they would tell you I am constantly balancing management with leadership along with “what if…” scenarios.

PC: What are the top ACDA initiatives for now and the near future? What tasks currently on the table will take the most effort to achieve?

TS: The most important immediate initiative for ACDA is our work on a comprehensive strategic planning process. The scope of the last ACDA strategic plan expired in 2010, and throughout last year, our Executive Committee has been in the “quiet phase” of a new strategic planning discussion. We will start taking this planning process public beginning with our upcoming Chicago National Conference. The second initiative is the priority of a new position at ACDA for education and communication. The former position of ACDA archivist has been redesigned to not only embrace the overseeing of the ACDA archives, but to also make available to our entire membership through digital distribution and viewing the vast educational and instructional holdings of ACDA.

Technological advancements remain a top priority for ACDA as I help move us to a digital and 21st century ACDA. This priority specifically includes our immediate website upgrade to Drupal 6.0, the ongoing integration of ChoralNet and its vast networking and informational assets into the ACDA website, the upgrading of the database and accounting system used for all State, Division, and National record keeping, and added layers of security protection as more and more of our financial, voting, and communication transfers to digital transactions. I am excited about leading us toward conference innovation and entrepreneurial thinking toward invigorating future workshops, seminars, master classes, and conferences. And finally, as ACDA looks to the future, research and publication into our field of work remains a priority for our Association. All of these initiatives have many built-in challenges, and require overlapping efforts. Fortunately, we have an association that is ready and willing to embrace these priorities.

PC: Can you describe how the Executive Director works with the elected president of ACDA? I believe you have already worked with Jerry McCoy, Mike Scheibe, and soon with Karen Fulmer. How do you personally need to adapt to the personalities and strengths of each president as they take office and make their goals for their term as ACDA president known to you?

I consider the opportunity to work with these individuals one of the greatest perks of my job. Each one of these exceptional leaders brings strength to our organization, along with personal skills and artistry that I personally want to learn from. We work to be a team, and I have a great deal of respect for the position that our presidents hold during their term of office. I believe they have the responsibility of being the president for the complete ACDA membership, and I see them as “ACDA citizen No. 1” when it comes to making certain our association serves the membership. I see it more of a “balance of ideas” than any sort of “balance of power”, and I get excited when I think that these outstanding individuals are committing so much of their expertise for the good of American choral music. I celebrate the goals and visions they bring to us, and it is invigorating to me to incorporate their ideas and passions into what I see as our needs and direction.

PC: I believe ACDA membership is on the rise, and I believe I have heard that the upcoming national conference in Chicago has already had a large number of people registered to attend -- what is ACDA's current model for membership growth? Also, is there a plan for bringing in more young teachers as members and perhaps expanding the number of (university) student chapters?

TS: Our largest area of growth in ACDA is at the level of student membership and young professionals. Our student membership base was 150 larger than this time last year, and due to the good work of our various state chapters, student membership is on the increase. This is good news for the future of choral music making, and certainly it is good news for ACDA. We have incentive programs in place for the creation of new student chapters, and for states to recruit first-time student members of ACDA. These programs have been embraced enthusiastically by many of our state chapters, and we see the results in our expanded student membership base. Our strategy is to grow our base from young professionals entering the field, and to grow our student membership base for future teachers, conductors, and leaders.

After a few years of flat growth across the association (new members replacing members that had dropped off the membership rolls, but the number remaining the same), in January of this year, ACDA’s membership has returned to the level it enjoyed in mid-2000. It was during that period that ACDA had moved into its new headquarters in Oklahoma City, and a time when our National Conference had expanded significantly to a multi-track event. And while the Great Recession starting in 2008 was sobering for all of us, we are now seeing the positive results of our renewed since of mission and purpose, along with stimulus work to bring new professionals, students, and others we are mentoring into their professional organization.

Coming up: Part two-- Tim discusses the global choral scene, how European and Asian choirs and directors view US choirs, and also his thoughts on the ACDA Brock commission and other composer issues- don't miss it!

Jan 2011 composer newsletter- and many thanks to you!

Happy New Year to all!

Here is what is going on in my little corner of the music world:

2010 was an amazing year for me. I attended three regional ACDA conferences (Cincinnati, Tucson, and Memphis) and met all sorts of new folks and reconnected with people I already knew. I had pieces either performed or on interest/reading sessions in six out of the seven conferences- what a delight. I also blogged heavily from each conference I attended, and I know many of you enjoyed reading the play by play (not sure how I did all that- did I sleep at all?).

The year finished up for me in grand manner- a trip to Grinnell College (with my hilarious seven year old sidekick Aidan in tow, "Roadtrip!") for a major performance, some guest conducting in Pittsburgh, and a trip to Flagstaff, AZ to hear the Northern Arizona University choirs sing a commission premiere (SATB/organ/brass/perc/handbells) on their Holiday Dinner Festival. Thanks to Edie Copley, Ryan Holder and the students of NAU for being such wonderful artists and hosts. And thanks to the big red rocks of Sedona, AZ for being so gorgeous!

There were performances all over the US of my music- pieces big-- the previously alluded to "El Limonar Florido" at Grinnell College was one (also "Play with your Food" got wide performances) and small-- performances galore by youth choirs of my wacky "Peace on earth...and lots of little crickets", which remains Walton's best-selling octavo for the third straight year. My music is also winding up in Asian markets thanks to my trip to South Korea in the fall of 2009 and through some networking in China, Australia and New Zealand, with some assists by Tim Sharp, Nancy Menk, and Mary Hopper.

Coming up in the first half of 2011-- I have four new pieces out in time for the national ACDA conference in Chicago. For young SA choirs "Night Song", with a beautiful text about birdcall by Jean Burden (Roger Dean cat. # 15/2591R) and a gentle SA arrangement of the spiritual "My Lord, what a morning" (Roger Dean cat. # 15/2849R). For HS through adult women's choirs, the long awaited treble version of "Mashed Potato Love Poem" (Walton, not sure of cat. number but it will be out very soon), and my setting of the goings on in the Garden of Eden as deconstructed with razor sharp wit by American poet Diane Lockward-- "Eve's Confession" (SSA/piano, Roger Dean cat. # 15/2838R). Let me know if you would like a free persual copy of any of these; I can easily get the Roger Dean titles to you as they are very good about getting music out there to directors. I'll make sure that next year there are some mixed titles published.

I will be traveling to Hong Kong in late February for a week long festival conducting youth choirs and coaching conductors in my music (including a commission premiere) and other new-ish music. In May I will be composer-in-residence with the Cincinnati Children's Choir, where two new commissioned pieces will be premiered. These are pretty special, as director Robyn Lana and I decided that I would set poetry by local children, and the two poems I set are really delightful. The summer will be filled with composing and another six week session directing the choir at the North Carolina Governor's School in Raleigh which is one heck of a fun, yet demanding job.


I am still always looking for advanced choirs who have interest in singing my advanced music- please let me know if you'd like to peruse longer pieces, multi-movement pieces, more difficult pieces. Many of these are my best writing, yet are hard to make known to the choral world through traditional publishers since most of them just want the easy, short stuff (arghh). In fact, I have just finished a challenging double choir setting of Billings' "When Jesus Wept"- let me know if you'd like a perusal pdf file! Another piece, "The leaves are falling", could be very effective as a 9/11 memorial piece if you are looking for repertoire for the tenth anniversary of that sad event. This piece is about three minutes long and is for SATB/piano- it alludes artistically, in a sense, to 9/11 - the text, by Rilke but in English, is much older. And by the way, I am now accepting commissions for next season. I'd love to hear from you if you have an interest in something new and special for your choir. Also, for any of you doing my music soon, I am available (for free) to meet and work with your choir via Skype, which has been a great communication tool lately for me.

Finally, I'd like to thank a bunch of people by name- folks who, in calendar year 2010, conducted/commissioned my music, did me a favor or two, mentored or encouraged me in some way, etc. I will probably forget someone (sorry in advance). Without all of you the little black marks on paper that I scribble mean nothing- thank you so much for collaborating with me-- you all touch my heart:

Kirk Aamot, David Baldwin, Angie Batey, Bryan Black, Dennis Blubaugh, Meredith Bowen, Brian Bohrer, Joani Brandon, Charles Bruffy, Sean Burton, Margaret Butterfield, Shannon Carey, Karyl Carlson, Julie Clemens, Andrew Collins, Drew Collins, Philip Copeland. Edie Copley, Valerie Crescenz, Gwen Dettweiler, Marian Dolan, April Duvic, Tim Fitzpatrick, Scott Foss, Deedy Francis, Jane Ring Frank, Lisa Fredenburgh, Lynne Gackle, Janet Galvan, Dee Gauthier, Sarah Graham, James Green, Matt Greer, Leslie Guelker-Cone, Susan Hahn, Ryan Holder, Mary Hopper, Dan Huff, Daniel Hughes, Cindy Hunter, Emily and James John, Sigrid Johnson, Heather Kinkennon, Tom Koharchik, Erica Kragness, Robyn Lana, Paul LaPrade, Sherri Lasko, Iris Levine, Brad Logan, Gunilla Luboff, Michael McElreath, Nancy Menk, Jonathan Miller, Eric Nelson, Emily Orr, Sharon Paul, Earl Rivers, Jon Rommereim, Catherine Sailer, Michael Sanflippo, Mike Scheibe, Brett Scott, Elena Sharkova, Tim Sharp, Deborah Simpkin King, Justin Sisul, Sandra Snow, Phil Spencer, Ethan Sperry, Debra Spurgeon, Ronald Staheli, Erin Stinson, Joan Szymko, Barbara Tagg, Becky Tyree, Reg Unterseher, Hak-won Yoon, Michael Zemek.

Hope to see you here in Chicago for the ACDA national conference,

Paul

Happy New Year!

Here is what is new with me these days. This e-newsletter is sent twice a year, now posted as part of my blog, and I hope you enjoy receiving it.

E-mail me if you would like free perusal scores of anything you read about here. I can provide either paper copies of published and manuscript scores, or pdf files through the internet of manuscript pieces.

A big, big thank you to all of you who have already performed my music in the
2009-2010 concert season. It’s great to hear back from you about performances, singer and audience reaction, etc.

Coming up soon for me:

Lynne Gackle has programmed my fun tune Peace on Earth...and lots of little crickets (Walton cat. # HL08501658) for the grade 7-9 honors choir she will lead at the 2010 Central Division ACDA convention in Cincinnati. This should be fun, and I will attend. Peace on Earth... is Walton Music's #1 seller for the last two years.





Sigrid Johnson has programmed A City Called Heaven (Roger Dean catalog number 15/2593R) for her grade 10-12 women's honors choir at the Southern Division ACDA convention in Memphis. Nice news from two really great conductors who have given so much of themselves and influenced countless young musicians during their careers. Thanks Lynne and Sigrid!

Also at ACDA: Incheon City Chorale, the professional choir from South Korea that blew people away last year at ACDA in OK City, will be one of the featured guest choirs at the Western Division ACDA in Tucson and during their interest session they will be showcasing the chorally virtuosic Missa Brevis Incheon they commissioned from me. I was able to attend the successful premiere in Seoul in October, what a delight to work with one of the very best choirs on the planet! I am also hoping to be at this convention.
(pictured, Paul with ICC director Hak-won Yoon)

Two premieres of commissions coming up this Spring, one at Briar Cliff University directed by Dr. Sean Burton and another at Jacobs High School in the Chicago area, directed by Andrew Collins. Please feel free to contact me now about any interest you may have for a commissioned piece for the 2010/11 concert season. I love working with directors and choirs on new pieces, it is so rewarding for us all!

Early 2010 new octavo releases from Roger Dean:
Most of these have score and/or soundclip samples on my website at www.paulcarey.net and all should be on display at the upcoming ACDA conventions.

Ding Dong Merrily on High (SATB/ piano or harp) uptempo fun in some mixed meters. Cat. # 15/2705R

Winter Solstice (SSA/harp or piano) Two movements, with beautiful nature/winter solstice imagery by New Mexico poets. Cat # 15/2715R in Janet Galvan’s series



The Star (Twinkle, twinkle little star), for SA/piano. This is the witty poetic parody of the famous poem as filtered through the vocabulary of an astronomer. The piano part is taken from Mozart's Twinkle variations- a fun, fun piece for young choirs. Cat #15/2719R in Janet Galvan’s series.

And as always, thanks to you all for supporting not-dead composers such as yours truly.

Best wishes,

Paul

2009 ACDA Convention: Down in the (Green) Valley with Claudio Monteverdi (Mr. Green Mountain)

(line drawing of Monteverdi, apparently with his neck painfully stuck inside a giant Krispy Kreme- come on now, this can't be historically accurate)




2009 ACDA national convention: Performances by high school choirs can sometimes be a yawn at ACDA conventions, but they can also be real eye-openers too. So we were afforded a pleasant surprise by the Green Valley High School Madrigal/Chamber Singers from Nevada, directed by Kimberly Barclay Drusedum. Their program included some Eric Whitacre and Dan Gawthrop, but their real strong point was an amazing dexterity, clarity, and complete understanding of all aspects of madrigal singing in pieces by Wilbye, Sweelink, and Monteverdi. Monteverdi's Si ch'io vorrei morire was especially breathtaking- not a short piece and quite difficult- yet they sang it as if they had lived past lives in the Italian musical renaissance. Contrapuntal lines were all there to be heard, no muddiness- just exceptional singing. I especially appreciated that the many descending sequences this piece contains never went flat- quite an achievement for a group of such young singers. Bravo, Ms. Drusedum.

Their final piece was a vocal version (along the lines of Ward Swingle's Flight of the Bumblebee) of The Barber of Seville, with manic application of hilarious vocal pomades, funky (cow)licks, close shaves with hairy cadences, and other barbarous musical shtick- all great fun as arranged by Daryl Runswick ("Daryl, I officially hate you- I wish I had written this arrangement").




(Kimberly Barclay Drusedum)

2009 ACDA performance- Lawrence University Concert Choir

(Rick Bjella)





Saturday at ACDA's 2009 national convention was already amazing- performances to die for from the Incheon City Chorale from Korea and the Cantoria Alberto Grau. These two international choirs used so many elements to deliver their musical messages- including staging, lighting, costumes, etc. The only American choir to come close to the approach of these amazing performances was also on Saturday- Rick Bjella's choir from Lawrence Conservatory.

Their program began with an extremely haunting score (by Aussy composer Steven Leek) called Knowee, the Aboriginal name for the sun. In the folk tale, Knowee was once a woman who lived in a time of darkness. One day she left her cave with her bark torch in search of food for her young sun but became lost, and eventually fell off the side of the earth, at which point she and her torch became the sun, traversing the skies in constant desperate search for her way back to the son she left behind in the cave. In the staging of the piece, a few female singers with lanterns roamed the totally darkened concert hall issuing piercing laments and calls; the choir joins in eventually as the piece progresses. This piece was eery, heartbreaking and magical. The rest of the program also included some great off the beaten track pieces from Spain, Portugal, Bulgaria, etc. Tying the program together was the element of folk percussion, played brilliantly by Lawrence percussion professor Dane Richeson. Their final piece was a Venezuelan folk tune with some very fun choralography by Yvonne Farrow.

I have known Rick Bjella for awhile now; he has conducted my music yet I haven't been able to attend those concerts. So this, oddly enough, was my first chance to see him conduct. He's all there in the moment with his choir- nothing left for reserve and no prisoners taken. I'm sure he and the choir were exhausted (in a good way) physically and emotionally from all the preparation this program demanded.

Rick' s programming for this concert reminded me of some of the very creative themed programming and staging that Brad Homes has done with his Milliken University Choir- notably at the ACDA convention in Miami in 2007, but elsewhere as well. Here are two minds who think alike in their desire to create sophisticated programming themes, interesting stage presentation, and unusual music that challenges themselves, their own singers, and the entire audience.

(Note: Rick Bjella will lead the conductor's choir at the Illinois ACDA Summer Retreat this July, hosted by Illinois State University)

2009 ACDA performance- Incheon City Chorale

(Paul Carey & Hakwon Yoon - ACDA 2009)


Greetings! Yes, this is my first blog-woohoo. I'm going to travel back a few weeks to talk about some of the choirs that performed at the American Choral Director's Association (ACDA) 50th anniversary convention in Oklahoma City.

It takes some pretty cool stuff to make me gush, but I am going to do just that about the Incheon City Chorale, directed by the amazing Hakwon Yoon. Their program consisted of three modernized pieces of Korean folk music plus the Whitacre When David Heard. The Korean music, all incredibly electric pieces by a young composer named Hyowon Woo, just floored the entire audience. The pieces were presented using various degrees of lighting/stage effects, drumming, antiphonal spacing, stage movement, etc. This music was so powerful and creative on so many levels that the Whitacre was actually an unneeded interruption (no offense intended to EW). I'm sure their intent was to showcase their choir singing some American music, but really, most of the people I talked to just wished we could have heard their own core repertoire for the full performance (and for a few hours more perhaps).

This is a choir of 50 dedicated professional singers between the ages of 28-45, but they sounded like about 150 singers when singing full voice- wow. I've heard the Chicago Symphony Chorus at 150 voices or so (Schoenberg's Moses and Aron, conducted by Boulez) so I know whereof I speak.They could roar through a ff passage (the only choir all week who had the mass of sound and incredible overtone production to make the concert space "ring") and switch to a pp texture at any moment, and possessed the ability to paint far more than the single tone color many of our American choirs present. The conductor's chops were blowing everyone away- the minimal use of gesture to create any sound desired- a great lesson to all conductors not to overconduct! Mr. Yoon at times looked as if he were at some sort of invisible magic floating console which he barely had to touch to create the sound he desired. Obviously, the choir has amazing discipline and a shared goal of excellence. Their love of the music and texts and of performing to an appreciative audience was especially loved by all. As they left the stage to our thunderous applause they all waved to us and grinned from ear to ear- they had as much fun performing as we did listening to them. I will have to say that this is the best choir I have ever heard (and I've hear some good ones for sure).

I was lucky enough run into Mr. Yoon and the choir at the airport on my way back to Chicago. I introduced myself and gushed over the performance, kind of feeling like a little kid talking to his major league baseball hero! Mr. Yoon and the choir were very gracious, asked about what I do, and we took turns shooting photos. No diva attitudes here- just wonderful, gracious, smiling talented real people. It was great fun to meet them.