Contemporary A Cappella - Leia Browning Show Choir - Michael Shimp
World Music & Cultures - Eduardo Garcia-Novelli
Tenor/Bass Choirs - Reginal Wright
Soprano/Alto Choirs - Tanner Oglesby
FromthePresident’sPen
Why do you like what you like? What is your favorite color? What is your favorite pizza? Your favorite ice cream?Book?Song?Singer?Ithinksomanythingscangointoour“whys.”Wemayhaveafavoritefoodthatour grandmother used to make for us. Our favorite book may be something that a parent read to us in the evenings before bed “Favorite” can mean so much more than just something we sort of like or like better than other things Emotions,feelings,andmemoriescanallplayapartinwhatweconsiderourfavoritethings
IwasborninthefirstyearofGenerationX,yetbeingtheyoungestinmyfamily,borntoolderparentswhowere veryconservative,IoftenfeelasthoughIwasbornagenerationearlier.Musicwasabigpartofmylifegrowing up and a big part of our family life. Of course, we sang at church, and my mother would often sing “special music,”butIalsoremembercominghomefromschooltohearmymothersinginghymnsaroundthehousewhile she cleaned or cooked the family dinner...what we called supper. There were older sisters practicing piano, cello, andviolin.AsIgrewolder,Iwaspracticingpianoandtrumpetandpracticingmyconducting(Iwasdrummajor oftheband).
Ienjoyedthetimeswhenwehadtheopportunitytoputrecordsonthestereo Youmayrememberthebigrecord consolesofthe1960s Theywerelargepiecesof“earlyAmerican-styled”furniturewithalidthatliftedtoreveal storage space for albums, an AM/FM receiver, and a turntable with a record changer that would hold several albumsatatime.
WewouldlistentoJimNabors,TheCarpenters,GeorgeBeverlyShea,TheHitsofWWII,andTheAndrewsSisters (doyouseewhatImeanbyadifferentgeneration?),orIcouldlistenonthesuitcase-styledplayerwithmyoldest sister to Andy Williams, The Carpenters, The Lennon Sisters, The Lettermen, etc. Every once in a while, I might be invited to listen with my second oldest sister, who, besides The Carpenters, would be listening to Barbra Streisand,Chicago,andThreeDogNight Ihadasomewhateclecticexposuretomusicinmyupbringing
IplayedmanydifferentstylesandcomposersasIstudiedpianofromage7throughpartofcollegeandorganfor ayearincollege.Isanginchoirsallmylifeandstudiedvoiceinhighschool,anditwasmyprimaryinstrument asIworkedtowardsmyBME. Incollege,Istudiedpre-Baroque,Baroque,Classical,andRomantic/Modernmusic history classes, listened to symphonies, and watched operas. I conducted public school choirs for 30 years, have accompaniedmanyexcellentchoirs,andhavebeenexposedtoalmosteverytypeofmusiccreated.ButIalways comebacktoTheCarpenters.ThevoiceofKaren.ThearrangementsofRichard.
I recently posted some of my favorite male and female singers on Facebook. It was, I believe, a reasonably wide representation, but there is truly no one I would rather hear sing a song than Karen Carpenter People have said theirmusicwas“vanilla,”butwhatawonderfulflavoritis!Thewarmthandsmoothnessofhervoicecarryover,I believe,tosomeofmyfavoriteinstruments Awell-playedjazzpiano,afull,richcello,asultrytenorsaxophone,a warm English horn, and a French horn Her voice and her brother’s arrangements are a big part of my love of their music. Still, often, as I listen to their music, I am reminded of listening to records in the living room of my parent'shomeinthatconsole,onthesuitcase-styledplayerthatmysisterhad,oreventhesmellofthecardboard jacketthatcarefullyheldeach12"vinyldisk.Youknow,memorieslightthecornersofmymind...
In each of the few issues of The Southwestern Connection that we have had so far, there has been a “Time Capsule” section. I have used a SWACDA article from the Choral Journal archives. For this issue, I have used an article first printed in 1973. It was written by Frank Pooler, who was choral conductor at California State University - Long Beach and was the choral conductor of Karen and Richard Carpenter He also traveled with themastheirmusicdirectorforatime Indeed,mytwoworldshavecollided Ihopeyouenjoy
Not all Broadway/Pop arrangements are created equal, and this one certainly rises to the top We thoroughlyenjoyedperformingthiswithourChamberChoir.Itgetscomplexinafewspots,butit’sreally greatwriting.Andithasawonderfulopportunityforagiftedsoloistortwo.Thecombopartsreallycapture thefeelingoftheoriginalBroadwayarrangement.
It’s difficult for me to narrow down my favorite pieces fromEndeavorMusicPublishing, the new companystartedbycomposerRyanMain.Iwantedtoincludeitinmylistofrepastherearemany offerings for every voice type and ensemble capabilities Im grateful for the MANY new composers Endeavorisbringingontothescene!
“CommissionedinhonorofthoselostduringCOVID,HeatherSorenson'sRequiemwaswrittentobring hopeandhealingtoallwhohaveexperiencedloss.Thisworkwasdesignednotonlytolivewellinthe concert hall, but also to transition into the church sanctuary You can expect to hear the composer ' s trademark cinematic moments, soaring choral melodies, and impressionistic chord structures in this Requiem.Moreimportantly,youwillfindthevulnerablehumanitythathasbecomesynonymouswithher writings.ThisworkisacombinationoftraditionalLatinandEnglish,withreferencestoScriptureand hymntexts.Itisaccompaniedbyfullorchestraorchamberorchestra,includessopranoandtenorsoloists, andisapproximately35minutesinlength”
Here’satraditionalItalianfolksongthatcanbeperformedaccompaniedoracappella.TheTBarrangement that came out several years ago was written for the arranger ’ s middle school tenor/bass choir I like the minorkeytochangethingsupinmyconcertselections,andit’salsooptionalacappella.
EveryoneneedstoknowthisJoniMitchellclassic The3-partmixedmakesiteasyforyouryoungervoicesto learn and hold the harmony. This arrangement also raises environmental concerns, making for a great conversationaboutglobalissues.
Ok, I know I’m including one of my own, but I really think it’s worth a look. This Irish folk song uses minimalbuteasy-to-learnandrepetitiveGaelic.Thetitletranslatestomean“seaweed,”butit’sanythingbut thatasthetexttellsthestoryofayoungcourtship.The6/8metermakesthisafunoneforyourstudentsto learn.Ipreviewedthiswithmy7/8choirlastyear,andtheylovedit!
Thiscomposertooklyricsfromanoriginalfolksong,addedsomeofhisown,andthencreatedhisown melody Thecombinationworkssowell!Thisisadelightfulsea-shantystylethatisagreatstorytelling song
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