Guest Blog by Sean Burton- North Central ACDA in Minneapolis

My very talented friend Dr. Sean Burton reports in on the NC ACDA conference that was held in Minneapolis. It sure sounds like a lot of great things happened up there!

Sean is a busy guy- besides being the absolute authority on the beautiful music of Pierre Villette, he is Director of Choral Activities at Briar Cliff University in Sioux City, Iowa where he is also the founding artistic director of the Siouxland Choral Artists. He also directs the Children's Chorus Bel Canto of the Nebraska Choral Arts Society based in Omaha.

Here are Sean's impressions of the NC ACDA conference:


North Central ACDA: "Without a Doubt -- Outstanding" by Sean Burton

In a nutshell, the performance content of ACDA's North Central Division Convention in Minneapolis rivaled the programs of every National Convention I have attended in the last ten years. For this blogger, concerts had the strongest impact during the four-day celebration of the choral arts. There were simply too many triumphs to list in the context of a guest blog, though a few highlights follow:

The Girls' Choir of the Old Town Music House (Tallinn, Estonia): led by the uniquely talented Maarja Soone, fantastic renditions of intriguing music from the Estonian choral tradition complete with a complement of low altos to die for.

The Waukee High School A Cappella Choir (Waukee, IA): under the skilled direction of Ryan Beeken, from Janequin and Rossini to Dickau and Wilberg, a stunning program celebrating age-appropriate mature vocalism.

The Manitou Singers of St. Olaf College (Northfield, MN): directed by the incomparable Sigrid Johnson, incredible intonation and superb selections includingAbbie Betinis' riveting "Chant for Great Compassion" and a revelatory performance of Katie Moran Bart's classic "Blessing."

The Appleton North High School Varsity Men's Choir (Appleton, WI): a seamless performance masterfully coordinated by Craig Aamot, these men sang with genuine passion, conviction, and mission.

The Iowa State Singers (Ames, IA): anyone who has heard this group under the baton of Dr. James Rodde has experienced choral excellence of the highest echelon, yet again Rodde rocked.

University of Minnesota Singers (Minneapolis, MN): Kathy Romey's expert rendition of Stravinsky's "Symphony of Psalms" (accompanied by members of the university's symphony orchestra) was as refreshing as it was exhilarating, the choir was perfectly prepared and thank you so much for programming and beautifully executing this masterpiece.

Bemidji High School A Cappella Choir (Bemidji, MN): With repertoire running the gamut from Clausen and Gjeilo to Debussy's "Trois Chansons", Christopher Fettig's program models the very best of possibilities for public school music-making.

Luther College Norsemen (Decorah, IA): Immediately following the conclusion of their program, this massive group of first-year men brought the audience to its feet without pause. During their performance Tim Peter almost brought the house down, literally, when the guys broke into a virtual hoe down on the stage of Orchestra Hall!

The St. Olaf Choir (Northfield, MN): The benchmarks for outstanding choral performance continue to be set and exceeded by Dr. Anton Armstrong and The St. Olaf Choir. The engaging program -- from Schumann's exquisite "Talismane" and Abbie Betinis' compelling "Bar xizam" (Upward I rise) to Moses Hogan's brilliant "Ride On, King Jesus" --combined with Armstrong's commitment to the ultimate heights of vocal artistry united for an event of exquisite choral mastery and pure beauty.

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