Tactus Fall 2021

TACTUS FALL 2021

THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE WESTERN REGION AMERICAN CHORAL DIRECTORS ASSOCIATION

TACTUS FALL2021

In this issue...

08 11 14

Finding Connection Again

- Nicola Bertoni Dedmon

Programming for a “Rebuilding” Year

- Christina Swanson-Hall

Introducing The University of Arizona Choral Studies Distinguished Speakers Series: A Free Resource for Curricular Change

- Dr. Elizabeth Schauer

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Interview with Dr. Edith Copley, ACDA National President-Elect - Lindsay Decoste

21

Composer’s Lens: Embracing the Virtual

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Lessons from the Pandemic

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Incorporating Student Creativity in the Choral Ensemble

- Saunder Choi

- Dr. Alyssa Cossey

- Micah Bland

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DEI Column: Culturally Responsive Allyship

- Dr. Jace Saplan and Alec Schumacker

03 EDITOR’S LETTER 06 PRESIDENT’S LETTER

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EDITOR’S LETTER

Dear Western ACDA Members,

I wish you all good vibes and inspiration as you approach the upcoming year. If there is something Tactus can provide to assist your program, do not hesitate to reach out. We are here to help. "Keep moving forward."

As the summer winds down, many of us are in preparation mode for another academic year. After the previous year of remote, hybrid, and in-person teaching - or some combination thereof ! - this return may feel a little more challenging than other years.

The concept of programming repertoire, what to do/ Angelica Dunsavage say on that first day, or what policies to implement for your singers' safety may seem daunting. Our Editor ensembles look different; many may be returning back after a year hiatus. If you're like me, you are navigating the uncertainty of a new job in a new city while trying to figure out what "choir" will look like.

If any of this seems real to you, this edition of Tactus has resources and reassurances for the year ahead. As you may tell by the table of contents, our publication is growing! Which means more voices, more topics, and more information to share. Our first two articles by Nicola Dedmon and Christina Hall address repertoire and research for rebuilding your programs. Alyssa Cossey's Lessons from the Pandemic share the things we've learned from this past year that can carry us forward into the future. In adition to Saunder Choi's Composer's Lens column, we are happy to announce the addition of a new column led by the WACDA Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion committee.

This inaugural column features Jace Saplan and Alec Schumacker discussing culturally responsive allyship and ways we can best practice this in our own choral Dr. Angelica Dunsavage is the Director of Choirs and communities. teaches undergraduate conducting at Tennessee State

University in Nashville, TN. She has previously resided in the Western Region, where she has served on the AzACDA state board as editor of Antiphon. She is in-demand as a presenter, clinician, and mezzo-soprano soloist. Her research interests include German secular music of the Renaissance and early Baroque eras, and the application of Alexander Technique to conducting and choral pedagogy.

On page 21 you'll notice a miniature section called Photos from the Region. This is a space for you, the membership, to contribute pictures from your program. This edition features the San Diego North Coast Singers, under the direction of Melissa Keylock. If you would like photos from your program to be featured in our upcoming editions, please email tactuseditor@acdawestern.org.

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WESTERN REGION LEADERSHIP “LIFT EVERY VOICE AND SING!” 2022 CONFERENCE COMMITTEE Cari Earnhart, CA – Organizing Chair Scot Hanna-Weir, CA – Organizing Vice-Chair Lori Marie Rios, CA – Special Assistant to President Joan Steinmann, UT – Conference Program Editor Angelina Fitzhugh, CA & Emily Mercado, UT – Interest Sessions Chair Kristina Nakagawa, CA – Site Liaison (Interest Sessions) Molly Peters, CA & Camille Killpack, UT – Performance Chair Carolyn Teraoka-Brady, CA – Site Liaison (Performances)

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Lou De La Rosa, CA – President Kim Ritzer, NV – Past President Michael Short, CA – President-Elect Joe Svendsen, NV – Treasurer Ted Gibson – Arizona President Christopher Peterson – California President Jace Saplan – Hawai`i President Michael Polutnik – Nevada President Cherilyn Worthen– Utah President

ADVISORY COMMITTEE Ernest Harrison, CA – Lifelong R&R Coordinator

Marc McGhee, CA & Willow Manspeaker, CA – Honor Choir Chair

Nicola Bertoni Dedmon, CA – Repertoire Specific R&R Coordinator

Nicole Lamartine, CA – Roundtables Coordinator

Christina Swanson-Hall, AZ – Youth R&R Coordinator

Tammi Alderman, CA – Reading Session Chair

Nicholle Andrews, CA – Collegiate R&R Coordinator

Dale Trumbore, CA & Genevieve Tep, CA – Composer Track Chair Heather Scobie, NV – Hospitality Chair

Peggy Spool, CA – Children’s & Comm. Youth R&R Chair

DIVERSITY, EQUITY & INCLUSION COMMITTEE Jace Saplan, HI – Coordinator

Michael Uchino, CA – Equipment Coordinator

Alyssa Cossey & Nicky Manlove, AZ

Ryan Duff, NV – All Conference Choirs Coordinator

Josh Palkki & Zanaida Robles, CA

Nicholle Andrews, CA – Conducting Master Class Coordinator

Megann Sala, HI

Scott Glysson, CA & Alec Schumacker, HI –College Fair Chair

Emily Mercado & Yuen Tseh, UT

Ryan Duff, NV

John DiPalo, NV – Registrar & Student Worker Coordinator

COMMUNICATIONS COMMITTEE

Jodi Reed, CA – Exhibits & Sponsorship Coordinator

Anna Caplan, CA – Webmaster

James Halvorson, NV – Conference App Liaison

Elizabeth Baker, HI – Social Media

Marc McGhee , CA – Submittable Coordinator

Angelica Dunsavage, AZ – Tactus Editor

Joan Steinmann, UT – Recording Secretary

Cover Image: Long Beach Visitors Bureau Tactus Logo images: Licensed by Adobe Stock

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PRESIDENT ’S LETTER

I want to express my appreciation to all of the state presidents, particularly those whose terms ended last July: Aimee Stewart of Arizona; Jeffrey Benson of California; Jim Halvorson of Nevada; and Andy Crane of Utah.

Hawai’i President Jace Saplan’s term continues for another year.

Every one of these leaders stepped up in numerous ways including: • Providing valuable advice and assistance in as I sought a roster of eager and creative new leaders, starting with last year’s Western Region COVID-19 Task Force • Serving on the Executive Committee which oversees the budget, authorizing the restart of Tactus, funding of the Jane Hardester Scholarship, and funding of a new ACDA Regional Consortium commission • Pivoting their state conferences and creating inspirational webinars and virtual conferences that were open to everyone in the Western Region and beyond.

I have enjoyed the time I spent with each of them. Some will continue to serve through the conference, while others will take a well-deserved break. Please join me in thanking Aimee, Jeffrey, Jim, Andy and Jace for their extraordinary service during these trying times. They were the right people for the job.

It has been a busy Spring and Summer, and thanks to creative brainstorming with the fantastic WACDA 2022 Conference Committee chairs to address various challenges presented by the pandemic, I’m pleased to report the upcoming conference in Long Beach is on track to be one of the best ever.

COVID Protocols at Conference I have been meeting with ACDA Regional and National leaders to determine the best path forward. That path will vary widely across the country. Each region will follow local COVID protocols, so what happens in Western Region will likely be different than what happens anywhere else.

While the specific details of the health and safety protocols will not be finalized until much closer to the conference, our conference will follow guidelines given by the County of Los Angeles Department of Public Health. The health and safety of all of our participants

and attendees is a primary concern, and we will always err on the side of safety for all in our decision making process.

Honor Choirs Honor Choir information will be available at acdawestern.org and is being sent to directors separately.

However, I want to call your attention two important changes made to one of the honor choirs: 1. To address an inadvertent omission of a place for changed voices in middle school, we have adjusted the Youth Treble Honor Choir to be simply the Youth Honor Choir. Dr. Molina will program repertoire appropriate for changed and unchanged voices. Many thanks to Angelina Fitzhugh for arguing for that change, and to Dr. Molina for agreeing to it.

2. To mitigate COVID concerns in light of current minimum age for vaccinations, we have raised the minimum to age 12 for the Youth Honor Choir and extended the upper range through Grade 9. We regret the absence of a choir for those under age 12 but feel strongly that vaccination will play a key role in the safety of all concerned.

Bottom line: Every director should feel confident in the safety of the honor choir rehearsals and performances and should encourage students to audition.

Conference Committee Kudos The selection committees have done their work and the invitations to present and perform have gone out. I want to express my thanks to the selection committees, and to these tremendous co-chairs of the Interest Session and Performance committees who have worked tirelessly since last November to help reimagine a conference emerging from a global pandemic: • Angelina Fitzhugh and Emily Mercado – Interest Session Co-Chairs • Camille Killpack and Molly Peters – Performance Session Co-Chairs As always, absolute anonymity was maintained throughout the selection process with the unfortunate disqualification of those choirs submitting application materials that precluded blind selection.

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Continued...

Importantly, new rubrics were instituted to structurally reflect our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

We believe that inclusion does not mean exclusion, and that through these rubrics, we will experience choirs and clinicians that will bring a wider expression of ideas than ever before.

Many thanks to the WACDA Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee (DEI), chaired by Jace Saplan, for their tremendous insights into the rubric revision. In particular, I want to recognize Joshua Palkki and Emily Mercado for their research-based suggestions and best practices.

Conference Plans Choirs and clinicians were still being finalized at press time, so we will announce the full slate via email and social media. Many thanks to every choir director and clinician who applied to share their gifts with us in Long Beach. It is deeply appreciated.

• Dale Trumbore and Genevieve Tep are working on a Composer Track incorporating interest sessions and events such as the Composer Fair • Scott Glysson and Alec Schumacker are coordinating the College Fair geared toward high school and community college students in the honor choirs • Tammi Alderman is coordinating the Reading Sessions with state R&R chairs. All but one of the sessions will be offered asynchronously online after the conference, and we anticipate publishers will offer additional reading sessions, providing a wealth of new literature.

After the isolation of the pandemic, we have built in extra time between sessions for talking with clinicians, checking out the exhibits, grabbing a cup of coffee, or most importantly, talking with colleagues and friends.

This conference will be our opportunity to reconnect. We need it. I hope you will plan to join us in Long Beach.

Additionally, the Conference Committee has been working diligently to create something for everyone in the choral profession.

• Nicole Lamartine is coordinating a revamped vision of roundtables with activities that may include gatherings over meals, early morning workouts, and much more • Ryan Duff is coordinating the All-Conference Sing which will break attendees into three choirs to briefly rehearse and perform two choral chestnuts for one another under the direction of one of three choral luminaries from our region: Charlene Archibeque, Edith Copley, and Jo-Michael Scheibe • Nicholle Andrews is coordinating Conducting Master Classes with these same conductors, available to those who apply:

o Dr. Archibeque will work undergraduate and graduate students,

o Dr. Copley will work with with new teachers (less than 5 years), and

o Dr. Scheibe will work with conference attendees wanting to improve their skills

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Lou De La Rosa is the current president of Western Region ACDA. He served as president of California ACDA and was instrumental in creating the California Choral Directors Association. Over the past 38 years, Lou has directed choirs in middle school, high school, community college and church. He is presently chair of the Department of Music & Dance in the Cilker School of Art & Design at West Valley College in Saratoga, CA. He is the happily married father of three daughters with two soon-to-be sons-in-law, and is a diehard San Francisco Giants fan.

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FINDING CONNECTION AGAIN Written by Nicola Bertoni Dedmon Western Region Repertoire Specific R&R Chair I am sitting down to write this in early July, a time during which I would typically be finishing up my repertoire selections for the following year and planning for the year’s events. As one of the Repertoire and Resources Coordinators, you might expect to hear from me regarding practical issues related to programming or something similar; however, it would feel odd to write about such topics when many of us are struggling to see a clear and realistic picture of what this year will look like. We’ve endured more than a year of sleepless nights grappling with seemingly unsolvable dilemmas such as recruiting, keeping up with ever-changing health guidelines, debating internal choir policies like mask or vaccine mandates, etc. These very real and anxietyproducing issues affecting our daily operations can be very distracting; however, I would like to pose a broader question to perhaps recalibrate our mindset when considering this impending return to the choral rehearsal room: how can we feel connected—not just socially, but also physically—as a community again?

I don’t need to spend too much time listing all the different ways this pandemic has hurt the choral community—we are deeply and painfully aware. It has been a nightmare, filled with death, illness, isolation, deep economic hardships, psychological crises, and grief.

Early on, due to several tragic super-spreading events, choral singing was identified as a dangerous activity that is very efficient in spreading an airborne virus. For a lot of us, this changed our calculus. Almost overnight, we were stripped of not only our careers as we knew them, but also of our passion. “Zoom Choir” was too often demoralizing. Masked and distanced outdoor rehearsals, however grateful we were for them, felt too sterile and devoid of the connection we once enjoyed.

of returning to in-person rehearsals gave me acute cognitive dissonance because even though I yearned for it so deeply, I also feared what might happen if we tried it. When eventually my choirs did return to in-person rehearsals, there were so many safety protocols in place that this fear of human contact wasn’t exactly alleviated.

For months on end, we had essentially conditioned ourselves to avoid human contact, which inevitably led us to the point where it was easy to view other people as vectors of disease, rather than fellow community members. The intent behind this conditioning was indeed an altruistic and necessary one at the time—to avoid spreading a dangerous novel pathogen!—yet I do believe that now, in a post-vaccine United States, we should acknowledge that we may need to un-learn some of these habits – which in the extreme can seem unhealthy and borderline survivalist –as we attempt to return to a place of connectedness and empathy within our choirs.

This past winter, we were given the greatest gift from our scientific community that we could possibly be given—the existence and availability of not just one, but three highly effective, very safe vaccines in the U.S. that protect us against serious consequences of COVID-19.

We now live in a world where we have the power to prevent COVID deaths, and the risk of serious illness is remarkably lower than it was before vaccination.

"HOW CAN WE FEEL CONNECTED - NOT JUST SOCIALLY, BUT ALSO PHYSICALLY - AS A COMMUNITY AGAIN?"

Yet, for many of us, underneath our desire to return was also, paradoxically, a deep sense of fear and anxiety about physical connection with others. I can speak from personal experience: for much of 2020, I would feel physical sensations of a fight-or-flight stress response every time I came close to another person. The thought 8

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Even considering the latest variant (Delta), these vaccines still provide excellent individual protection against serious outcomes of COVID-19 to those who take themi —far better than we could have imagined months ago. Many experts have maintained that those who are vaccinated are well-protected against severe outcomes, even in crowded public environments where you might not know the vaccine status of everyone around you.ii Of course, nothing in life protects you 100% of the time, and there will be many headlines that give disproportionate attention to very rare but indeed scary breakthrough scenarios; however, it is clear that these vaccines have reduced COVID-19 risk for those fully vaccinated to levels that we previously tolerated. I personally am more nervous about getting in a car to drive to rehearsal than I am about getting COVID-19 in that rehearsal. We were never guaranteed these incredible vaccines, and I know that most of us are profoundly grateful for their existence. When the news broke in early November about the success of the mRNA vaccine trials, many of us were elated. This would change everything. This would bring us back to choral music as we knew and loved it, and it would bring us back soon.

in an online space. We have now spent over a year in a baseline state of prolonged trauma, which can trigger a kind of tribal defensiveness that makes it hard to view the other side of these debates as anything but an existential threat to either our safety or our freedom, depending on which side of the argument you fall.

I will not attempt to offer the perfect answer to these overwhelming dilemmas, and I believe that each choir should be empowered to make decisions that are best for their own unique community. I will, however, say this: if we want our choirs to emerge from this pandemic with a sense of strength, connection, and mutual respect, we must actively work to change the nature of these discussions. We must begin conversations from a place of mutually acknowledged humanity. Trust is at the crux of choral singing and ensembleship. We trust each other when we sit next to one another and share in singing—a vulnerable and deeply personal human activity. We trust each other when we make mistakes in rehearsal and humbly learn from those mistakes, in front of others. We trust each other to show up to rehearsals and performances, because we cannot begin to accomplish these activities alone. We trust each other when we share personal stories that help heighten the artistic interpretation of a piece of music. We trust each other to sing out so that each individual voice is strengthened by the next. Choir cannot function without trust, and as wild as it may seem to say this on the tail of a global pandemic, guardedness is often antithetical to trust.

Ultimately, the scenarios have unfolded in a much more complex manner. Yes, we are making important strides towards returning to classrooms and rehearsal halls, yet there does exist a certain undercurrent of simmering conflict. Many choral institutions are embroiled in heated debates about whether or not to mandate vaccines for participants. There are also those who disagree passionately on rehearsal masking policies, which is an even more complex discussion to have within a community of singers. The nature of these debates can be highly contentious, emotional, and political. Some of these debates have grown incredibly toxic and dehumanizing. Nuance is very challenging in a world where the majority of our discussions occur

Today, I received an email from my school district stating that face coverings will no longer be required for those vaccinated, and though they are asking unvaccinated people to continue masking, they will work off of an honor system rather than requiring documentation of vaccination status. Vaccines, at least for now, will not be mandatory. These policy decisions will make many people in my choir very happy, and it will also make many people very anxious and uncomfortable. I intend to follow these policies, and I already anticipate conflict as students decide whether to return to choir, whether to mask, or even whether to get vaccinated. My goal is to create an environment where we can truly listen to each other, and avoid a scenario wherein students collect in camps or tribes according to their beliefs on these very controversial issues.

i MediLexicon International. (n.d.). COVID-19 and the delta variant: Which vaccines are effective? Medical News Today. https://www. medicalnewstoday.com/articles/covid-19-which-vaccines-are-effective-against-the-delta-variant. ii Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021, May 28).

Choosing Safer Activities. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-lifecoping/participate-in-activities.html.

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I believe it is my job to ensure that the culture of my choir is welcoming, inclusive, and fosters mutual respect, no matter what life throws at us. I hope that our group discussions—which are important to have—will entertain many different perspectives.

For example, I deeply and desperately hope that all of my students will choose to be vaccinated, and I will continue to strongly encourage them to do this; however, I also acknowledge that there are many complex reasons that they may not have done so already. Believe it or not, there are many structural barriers that still exist with regard to vaccine access and equity, which is why low vaccine uptake is associated with high socio-economic vulnerability and minority status.i For this reason, I will try my best to approach the vaccine debate with my choir in a way that encourages thoughtful, empathetic engagement and avoids presumptions, such as falsely assigning virtue (or lack thereof) in an over-simplified manner. I do not want singers making moral judgments about a fellow choir member who may be facing a very personal and perhaps more complex decision than what is evident to those of us with more privilege. Of course, it is also completely acceptable and human to be fearful of virus spread and even fearful of someone who is unvaccinated, and there will be students that feel less comfortable participating in choir if they know that vaccines are not mandated. There are some practical ways to help mitigate these fears—rapid testing, proof of prior natural infection, symptom screening, attention to community prevalence, etc. There are also ways to assuage these fears with data, if that is something a particular person responds well to (though not everyone does). Also, sometimes it simply helps to explain to someone why you made the decision you made— perhaps understanding your thought process helps people feel more comfortable with your decision. I don’t know yet exactly how I would implement these tools, but I do know that I will maintain an open dialogue that begins from a place of compassion. I hope that I can instill a culture in my choir where our members assume the best intentions of one another, despite all of us having experienced a pandemic where we seem to have inadvertently taught ourselves to do the opposite. If we i Brown, C. C., Young, S. G., & Pro, G. C. (2021). COVID-19 vaccination rates vary by community vulnerability: A county-level analysis. Vaccine. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2021.06.038

do not assign charitable intentions to our fellow choir members, I do not see how we can possibly achieve as high a level of artistry together as we did before.

Rarely will there be a policy choice that makes everyone satisfied. Conductors need to make decisions based on good faith risk analysis that considers vaccine protection, community disease prevalence, risk tolerance of that group, and also considers the profound benefit of singing together again, especially for those who have struggled deeply with the sometimes dangerous mental health struggles that come from prolonged isolation. These decisions can feel impossibly conflicting, and no matter what, some members of your choir will be unhappy. My best advice is to make these decisions thoughtfully and transparently, in a way that best balances the needs of the group and reflects the philosophy of your choir, and then move forward with confidence. When disagreements come up, begin an open dialogue with your singers that begins from a place of shared humanity. Avoid telling someone that their fears are irrational, or conversely, that their beliefs are unscientific—science is messier than most of us realized.

If challenging conversations are held within this framework, I believe that they will be a bit easier and result in a choir that feels more trusting and connected.

This will lead to those wonderful, synergistic rehearsals and performances we once enjoyed so deeply.

This journey will feel uncomfortable at times, yet I do believe that we will soon return to a world where we can enjoy live choral music as we did before, free from fear. When we get there, it will be nice to know that our choral communities brought out the best of our benevolence in the worst of times.

Stay safe, stay kind, and I look forward to gathering with everyone at our upcoming regional conference.

Special thanks to Dr. Stefan Baral, MD, MPH, for his input and guidance in preparing this article.

Professor Nicola Bertoni Dedmon is currently on faculty at Fullerton College as a Choral/Vocal Professor, where she coordinates the Choral Area and conducts the Concert Choir and Chamber Singers.

She currently serves on the board of ACDA Western Division as the repertoire specific R&R Coordinator.

Professor Dedmon is a graduate of James Madison University (BM) and Westminster Choir College 10

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PROGRAMMING FOR A “REBUILDING” YEAR Written by Christina Swanson-Hall Western Region Youth Repertoire R&R Chair Like many choir programs out there, this is perhaps the largest building and recruitment year for choral directors we will collectively have. In my own research for accessible and purposeful works, these pieces were of particular interest to me. Much of this music is written for multiple voicings and accommodates choirs that are light on tenor-bass voices. Students may feel the need to reflect on the past school year, while also looking forward to brighter days ahead. The texts are of hope, resilience, a little bit of fun, and include some thematic elements for those of you who love planning themed concerts. Hopefully, you can find at least one or two pieces that will help get your programs back on their feet and singing again!

Donald Moore, Cantate Canon. Three-Part Mixed (also in Two-Part) and piano, opt. Flute.

BriLee Music BL508 Rebuilding often can refer to reintroducing fundamentals; sight reading, ear training, music theory, and independent part singing. Canons are a wonderful way for all students to master a song together while complimenting each other's voices through overlapping repetition. This Italian piece does just that and provides an opportunity for students to sing independently, confidently.

Allen Koepke, Speak to the Child of Love.

SSA and piano. SBMP 96.

If you are unfamiliar with Allen Koepke, I highly recommend taking a look at some of his published works at SBMP. One of my favorites is this particular piece. The text outlines words from a mother to her daughter, “nourish the spirit, spread joy, and the gift of love will give you power to stand tall”. Such moving text that anyone can find personal meaning. In addition, the lush harmonies and moving lines makes this a staple for any advanced treble ensemble to perform again and again.

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Victor C. Johnson, Tres Canciones de los Elementos. Three-Part Mixed (also available in TwoPart) and piano. Heritage 15/2520H. If you love themed concerts, this set of three contrasting short pieces encompases the natural elements; wind, rain, and fire. With some modal shifts, mixed meter, and pointed rhythmic motion my students were engaged from beginning to end as we performed this set in our fall concert. If you are not a fluent Spanish speaker, this is also a great opportunity for a student in your class to be a leader and teach the pronunciation to their fellow students (of course, ask ahead of time and only with permission). Do not choose a piece specifically because you have a student in your class who is Hispanic. A pronunciation guide is provided, but I always find that students respond more attentively and enthusiastically when another student becomes the director for a moment.

Ken Berg, Galop. SATB (also available in Unison, Two-Part, SAB or Three-Part Mixed) and piano.

Pavane Pub P1536.

Want to kill two birds with one stone by learning solfege and a song at the same time? This hilarious piece has students singing on solfege syllables from beginning to end with great variation in dynamic contrast. There is a middle section in the relative minor key where “do” is the tonic. For those of us living in the la-based minor world, you could have your students sight read that section with the changed solfege syllables. This may be a great teaching opportunity for students to sight read without the written solfege above/below the notes.

Galop is part of a larger three-part work, Solfege Suite.

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James Weldon Johnson & J. Rosamond Johnson, Lift Every Voice and Sing, arranged by Rollo Dilworth. Two-Part and piano.

Ly Tartell & Greg Jasperse, Stand up and make a Change. SATB and piano, opt. solo.

Hal Leonard 00291719.

With the faith and power to press on, “love is the answer” in this gospel ballad. There are definitely a few modal shifts, but nothing too daunting. The most important component to make the music jump from the page is the energy. If you have students who have been expectantly waiting to sing for the first time on a stage in over a year, this may be the piece to bring out as your closer. The message is inspirational and the harmonic writing is locked tight throughout, as you would expect from two jazz composers and performers.

Shawnee Press 35027777.

There are many arrangements of this national civil rights anthem, but I am particularly moved by the slower section in this arrangement and the text that highlights the “weary years… silent tears… Thou who has by Thy might led us into the light, keep us forever in the path, we pray” as the music crescendos into a key change. The words and its history alone are a powerful dynamic ready for discussion and musical creation, but coupled with Rollo Dilworth’s arrangement of the music makes this piece worth programming in the near future.

You can find the majority of these pieces at the ACDA Western Region Youtube Channel here:

Pamela Beery & Lon Beery, Mrs. Claus!. SSA

https://tinyurl.com/RebuildingPlaylist

(also available in Two-Part) and piano. Alfred 46323

I hope you enjoy your listening exploration for this rebuilding year!

A unique take on the story of Santa Claus, it’s Mrs. Claus’ turn to be in the spotlight. With plenty of solo opportunities and “choralography”, students in our treble ensemble loved the new twist. The verses are easy to learn (could be solos) and the chorus repeats itself three times. This was also a crowd favorite at our holiday concert.

Sherry Blevins, I Dream of a World. Two-Part and piano, opt. flute. Hinshaw 00346879.

Mostly unison, the setting of the text is beautifully simplistic in its form and any children’s or junior high choir would enjoy its motion. Blevins dedicates this song to the victims of Hurricanes Florence and Michael and the knowledge that we are not alone. As Blevins is also a member of the LGBTQIA+ community, it is also important to diversify our repertoire in every performance for the benefit of the students, the audience, and the composers themselves. This piece presents us with many ways to teach fundamental musicianship skills including vowel unification, phrasing of the breath, and dynamic contrasts.

Christina Hall is the choir director at Millennium High School in Goodyear, Arizona. She is the ACDA Western Youth Repertoire & Resources Coordinator and the Co-Founder of The Choral Window, a free and accessible resource for choral educators. Prior to her position, Christina received her Bachelor of Arts in Choral Music Education at Northern Arizona University.

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INTRODUCING THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA CHORAL STUDIES DISTINGUISHED SPEAKERS SERIES: A FREE RESOURCE FOR CURRICULAR CHANGE Written by Dr. Elizabeth Schauer In the summer of 2020 the University of Arizona College of Fine Arts Committee on Diversity and Inclusion solicited proposals for grants to affect “continual transformation of our curricula and cultivation of an inclusive classroom experience” in particular for projects that involved designing or redesigning courses in order to better reflect the aims of diversity. Throughout my career, I have been driven by a passion to connect and include diverse populations through music, but until this time, this passion was primarily manifest in concert programming and collaborations. This call provided the motivation to focus that passion on curricular change, in ways that would reflect the diversity of our student population, with a much broader and more inclusive range of music embedded into the study of literature and history as well. I was grateful to receive a grant to redesign our graduate choral literature course in order to incorporate historical and new works by composers from historically excluded populations, works that are not typically part of the choral curriculum.

As the new syllabi and course schedules took shape, it became evident that there were a number of challenges to realizing the redesign. Like many graduate choral literature courses, ours typically includes lectures by the professor as well as student presentations on the assigned topics. Students necessarily have a heavy reliance on primary sources as well as secondary sources in preparing their presentations, rather than on a single assigned text. Some of the challenges encountered as part of this redesign included lack of available resources: scores, biographical information, complete works lists and recordings. Allowing sufficient time for the students and me to overcome these challenges and to create effective, well researched lectures necessitated that the eight students be limited to three class presentations each in our first semester of the redesign. We are fortunate to have a diverse population of students, and a joyous outcome of the inclusion of new repertoire was the opportunity for these students to see works that represented their respective cultures, backgrounds and religions included on the syllabus - for some, the first time this had ever happened in their educational experiences.

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Students had the opportunity to indicate their topic preferences, and some students chose to present on music from their own background for at least one of their topics. This resulted in an incredible richness of learning, with students sharing information, perspectives and experiences that resonated in a profound way with their classmates and me, sometimes relating history that had been passed down in their families or learned in childhood that gave particularly poignant context to the studied works.

For the first cohort of speakers, I commissioned lectures on Latin American Baroque Choral Music (Ahmed Anzaldúa, Director and Founder of Border CrosSing), Nineteenth-Century Liturgical Jewish Music (Dr. Coreen Duffy, Director of Choral Activities at the University of Montana and Founder of the Second Avenue Jewish Chorale of South Florida), African American Oral Tradition (Dr. David Morrow, Director of the Morehouse College Glee Club and the Wendell P. Whalum Community Chorus, Artistic Director and Conductor of the Atlanta Singers, and co-Director of the Morehouse-Spelman Chorus), and Renaissance and Baroque Female Composers of the Italian Convents (Candace Smith, founder of Concerto delle Dame and Cappella Artemisia, and publisher, Artemisia Editions). These lectures as well as more information about the presenters are now available on the University of Arizona Choral Studies website https://choral.music.arizona.edu/distinguishedspeakers-series/.

As I reflected on this experience and also realized that I could never have the depth and breadth of knowledge to teach or even evaluate presentations on all of the newly included topics, I began to envision a different way forward. I applied for and was awarded a second grant to begin the University of Arizona Distinguished Speakers Series - a free online resource that would feature content-area specialists, each of whom would present a thirty- to fifty-minute lecture on historical or contemporary repertoire composed by underrepresented populations, or on relevant movements and traditions not typically included in the choral curriculum. When possible, content-area specialists would be from the same populations as the composer or topic on which they were presenting. The lectures would offer more authentic and profound learning experiences for my students than I (or, for some topics, they) could provide, as well as the personal connection to the repertoire we enjoyed when our University of Arizona students presented on the music of their own cultures.

"I imagined that the lectures could be... free and available to everyone...My hope was that they would not only help affect immediate and substantial change in our profession as educational resources, but also that they would generate scholarship on these composers and topics, so that more scores, research and resources would become available for future students."

As I considered the possibilities of this series, I imagined that the lectures would be housed on our Choral Studies website so that they could also be free and available to everyone, not just our students. The lectures could be used in class, for extra-curricular activities (like student ACDA meetings), for professional development or for personal edification. My hope was that they would not only help affect immediate and substantial change in our profession as educational resources, but also that they would generate scholarship on these composers and topics, so that more scores, research and resources would become available for future students.

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Additionally, as the graduate students and also alums presented in the fall semester of the course, it became apparent that some of their lectures also were appropriate for inclusion, and could help the series become immediately more robust in its range of offerings. I was able to secure another grant to begin a second tier of lectures offered by invited students and alums of the University of Arizona based on exceptional presentations in the choral literature course. An additional five lectures were commissioned, including on Undine Smith Moore’s Scenes from the Life of a Martyr and Courtney Bryan’s Yet Unheard (Shekela Wanyama), Craig Hella Johnson’s Considering Matthew Shepard (Nicky Manlove), The Life and Music of Marianna von Martines (James Higgs), Adolphus Hailstork’s Done Made My Vow (Dr. Jason Dungee) and Korean City Choirs (Dr. Eunji Lee). These lectures and more information about the presenters may be found at the link above as well.

I am so grateful to my students for embarking on this incredibly rewarding journey with me, and for doing the important and challenging work to affect real and substantive change in our profession. It will be exciting to see how they take this knowledge of the repertoire and the research process with them into their own teaching and conducting careers. I am deeply grateful to our presenters for their passion, scholarship, knowledge and belief in the value of the music they shared, and for their willingness to conquer technological hurdles in order to do so. I am grateful to Aaron and Cy for their skillful efforts to capably finish the process of bringing the series to the public arena.

Finally, I invite you to watch these wonderfully researched and artfully crafted presentations, to use them in whatever ways can benefit you and your students, and to check back regularly as we continue to add new content to the series.

These video lectures required a considerable amount of editing and production work, not only on the part of each presenter, but also on the part of Aaron Rice, a DMA choral conducting student at the University of Arizona, who initially volunteered and then was hired to take on this vital and important task. Aaron’s technical efforts have been invaluable in crafting and polishing these online multimedia presentations. Cynthia (Cy) Barlow, Information Technology Manager for the University of Arizona College of Fine Arts, also has been a crucial part of this effort, accessibly and creatively archiving the lectures and other information on the Choral Studies website.

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Elizabeth Schauer serves as Director of Choral Activities at the University of Arizona, where she is recognized for her innovative and inclusive curricular approach. An award-winning educator, Dr. Schauer conducts Symphonic Choir and Arizona Choir, and teaches graduate and undergraduate conducting and choral literature courses with a student-centered focus to an international population of learners. She is in demand as a conductor, guest lecturer and presenter throughout the United States, including for performances at Carnegie Hall and with numerous all-state choirs. Choirs under her direction have performed on the conferences of ACDA, College Music Society (CMS), American Guild of Organists, Colorado Music Educators Association and Arizona Music Educators Association.

She has presented sessions at national, regional and state conferences of ACDA, Presbyterian Association of Musicians and CMS, and state conferences of NAfME.

At the CSU Fullerton School of Music,

We Believe …

…that people learn and perform best in a safe and positive environment. …in student-centered teaching and learning. …that developing musicianship is key to your future success. …that Everything we do, we do Together. …that the quality of your musical training really matters. …in the power of music to change lives for the better. …that professionalism is a teachable skill. …that great conductors and singers must also be great teachers. …that how you do anything affects how you do everything. …in Reaching Higher to help you achieve your goals. …that Everything relates to Everything. …that together we are stronger. …that you will teach the way that you were taught. …that where you have been is much less important than where you are going.

WHAT we do is important.

WHY we do it, is for YOU!

music.fullerton.edu

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INTERVIEW WITH DR. EDITH COPLEY: ACDA NATIONAL PRESIDENT-ELECT Written by Lindsay Decoste Can you give me three words to describe how you feel about retiring from NAU?

program. It’s such a strong part of the NAU School of Music. I mean, I passed up Director of Choral Studies jobs at other schools to come here to be an assistant, because I thought it was a better situation. In hindsight I know I made the right choice. (I didn’t know you were an assistant!) Oh yes, I was the assistant director under Mike Scheibe for three years. In April of my third year he announced he was going to University of Miami, so they had me be the interim director for a year while they did the national search, and to my amazement, I just can’t believe that I got the job. (laughing) No really!

I wasn’t tenured, I’d only been there four years, it was my first college job. I’m still kind of shocked by it, but very thankful.

Well the first word that comes to mind is excited. I’m excited for a new chapter. I guess another word would be...well there’s a part of me that’s sad to leave. It’s sad.

But if there’s one thing that this past year has taught us is that we have to adapt to change. So I suppose adapting would be another. I’m really excited about it, but I’m sad because I’ll miss the students. But I’ll tell you what I won’t miss, the committee work, the meetings, the paperwork, all that. But I’ll certainly miss the students and my colleagues.

What has been your favorite part of teaching and living in Flagstaff?

Are there any particular performance moments from your tenure that stand out in your mind?

I think the NAU campus is the most beautiful in our state, despite a lot of changes on campus recently. I mean, the place is very different from when I first came here. It’s grown but still so beautiful, just like Flagstaff.

When I came here for my interview so long ago, it was late May or June maybe, and I just remember I was struck by how beautiful Flagstaff was. Having lived in Europe and traveled so much when I lived over there, you know we used to go to Budapest for dinner and Prague for the weekend, or get on a train and go to Venice for shopping on a Friday night, I mean I went to a lot of places. But I remember when I got to Flagstaff thinking ‘Wow, this is one of the prettiest places I’ve been!’ So I feel very fortunate that I was at such a beautiful campus.

There are so many! Probably singing at the Western ACDA conference a few years ago when we combined with CSU Long Beach to pay tribute to Germán Aguilar. Also when Shrine of the Ages Choir went to Carnegie Hall for the first time, I think about nine years ago. I also got to conduct the big festival choir with an orchestra. A special moment here at NAU performing with the Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra would be conducting the Bach B Minor Mass with Shrine, and definitely the Britten War Requiem with Men’s Chorale, Women’s Chorale, Shrine and the FSO. (Wow, when was that?) I think it was somewhere between 2004 and 2006? Somewhere in there. It was a great piece that I never thought I’d get to do.

What about outside of Flagstaff, just teaching at NAU?

Continued...

I was so lucky to be teaching at a campus with such a strong choral culture. Not just in my time here, it goes back 80 years, there’s just always been a great choral 18

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What about tour performances?

Oh I loved when we did the Verdi Requiem in Germany with four other choirs. That was wonderful. The Bulgaria and Turkey tour was also so fun. That was a great tour. The exchange with the University in Istanbul was wonderful.

And I think the other tour that was just really great was South Africa. We got to sing with Tuks Camerata and all these great professional choirs, and it was just really fun.

Such a great tour, I’ll never forget it.

You’ve been elected to be the future president of National ACDA! How are you preparing for that?

I start as president elect in July, and the process is 8 years long. You’re President-Elect for 2 years, Vice President for 2 years, President for 2 years and Past-President for 2 years.

I serve on an executive committee, so I’ve already been to several meetings and I’m serving on the search committee for the executive director, so I’m kind of in the throes of it already. The real work for me will happen in year three, 2025, when I’m in charge of the next national convention.

I feel like I have a tremendous advantage though, because for the last four years I’ve served as the interest session chair, so I know a lot already about how it’s scheduled and how it all works, whether it be virtual or in person or both! So I’m very lucky. I think if I hadn’t done that I would be much more overwhelmed.

So what are you looking forward to the most about taking over this job?

I’m really just so honored that I was even asked to run.

They’ve asked me a few times, but it just wasn’t the right time with all the day to day work of NAU. So this time when they asked and I knew I was retiring, I thought well maybe it could be time. I always tell students, don’t be afraid to serve, don’t wait, get involved where you can, do it now and learn from people. And that’s one of the main reasons I decided to run, because I really feel that ACDA has helped me in my career, and this is kind of a give back.

I’ve served at the state and regional levels, why not continue serving when I’m retired, as long as I’m able?

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What do you think will be the biggest challenge of this job?

We’re in such a weird place right now because of Covid, especially financially. We were so thrilled that so many people registered for the conference, but certainly it’s not the same without the honor choirs and other things that usually help financially support those events, so we’re just kind of going day to day. We’re also between executive directors, and Hilary Apfelstadt has been an incredible interim director. She’s just a god in my opinion. Fabulous musician, conductor and colleague, they couldn’t have picked a better interim director in the whole country, in my opinion. Whoever comes on is going to have a big job, trying to get the organization fiscally back on track and kind of unite the country and build membership. I think our goals will be to build membership and development, but also promote the conferences and such as well. I’m eager to see where ACDA goes and where we can take it from here.

You said ACDA has helped you in your career. Is there a particular moment at a conference or meeting that stands out in your mind as an important moment or turning point for you?

Well, when I was in undergrad I didn’t really know about ACDA. In my third year of teaching, someone asked me if I was going to the National Conference. And I said ‘What’s that? Where is it?’ I was teaching in Iowa, and it was in Dallas. And I said, okay, sure. Maybe I should check it out.

So I read it in the journal, I ripped out the registration page and sent in the check, you know, no internet, and I figured out my whole trip with airfare and hotel. And I went to my first ACDA conference in Dallas in 1977. And here was Frank Pooler from Cal State Long Beach introducing all this Scandinavian music, all this music we knew nothing about. And I remember Elaine Brown was there with her Singing City Choir from Philadelphia. The keynote address was given by Samuel Barber. (What?!) Yeah! The second day we had another keynote by Howard Swan. And I went to interest sessions and heard all these fantastic choirs, and after that conference was over, I just couldn’t believe I didn’t know anything about this.

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So then I went back to Iowa, and I said, do we have an Iowa ACDA?! And they said yeah! And we do a summer convention every summer! So that summer I’m in Mason City, Iowa, and going to their ‘Summer Camp’, and they’d bring out these choirs for a week in residence. Albert McNeil would bring his choir, Jester Hairston was there, Chanticleer was there, you know all these fantastic choirs would come and be in residence and we’d have lunch and go for walks around the lake. I was hooked. I always attended that summer conference, even after I left to go to grad school in Pittsburgh, and even when I got the job in Vienna. I would always win the ‘who came from the farthest distance away’ award. Once I came to NAU, I got involved in the ACDA chapter here, and I did the newsletter for the Western Region, and just jumped right in. I was state president, then Western Region president.

PHOTOS FROM THE REGION In this issue: San Diego North Coast Singers. Shared with permission. Submit your own photos for inclusion by emailing tactuseditor@acdawestern.org.

But that national convention in Dallas in 1977 was that life changing moment for me.

Anything you want to say to our region?

Well I think it would be that this has been a tough year for everybody. We’ve lost students in our programs, we’ve tried so hard to keep those connections that we share with our students, but I think that things are going to turn around and come back. And I hope that more and more choral music educators in our state discover the value of being in an organization that truly cares about choral music and getting people at all levels singing again and experiencing that incredible feeling that one gets from singing in a room with other singers. It’s really been hard, but I think it’s going to turn around.

Dr. Edith Copley, a choral legend of Western Region, just retired as the Director of Choral Activities at Northern Arizona University after a 31 year tenure. She is the National ACDA President-Elect. Lindsay Decoste is the director of choirs at Red Mountain High School in Mesa and serves on the AzACDA board as the Vocal Jazz R&R Chair. This interview was held over Zoom in April and was originally printed in the Spring 2021 issue of AzACDA Antiphon. It has been edited for clarity.

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COMPOSER’S LENS: EMBRACING THE VIRTUAL Written by Saunder Choi After the pandemic year of 2020, I guess it’s safe to say that most choral professionals know what “virtual choir” is and the processes involved in its creation. Sure, it’s an arduous process that, at times, felt like a compromise to performing live together and in-person. From fully produced music videos, to the more humble “brady bunch” style, most of us in the choral profession have a virtual choir story from 2020/2021.

However, the virtual choir medium need not always be a compromise. We can actually create new, exciting iterations of what choral music can be. The three projects I’m sharing fully utilized and embraced the virtual space, creating new ways of presenting the choral art that takes advantage of technology.

Fridge Magnet by C3LA: Contemporary Choral Collective of Los Angeles (Internet Concert) Inspired by magnet poetry, Fridge Magnet is a collective choral composition where composers are invited to write single word miniatures, typically 10-20 seconds in length, using the vocal/choral medium.

These pre-produced audio/visual miniatures are then performed “live” by an electroacoustic performer, where on-the-fly audio processing is sometimes applied.

Audience members were invited to make their own poems using words from the word bank, thereby influencing the overall form of the pieces by dictating the order in which these miniatures are presented.

Soundwalk: An Auditory Safari by the L.A. Choral Lab (Socially Distanced Sound Installation) Using a Geolocation app that specializes in guided audio tours -- Echoes-- audience members were invited to enhance their exploration of Griffith Park as an 21

immersive choral experience, played back through headphones, evolves and changes as one moves around the space.

The program premiered two new works commissioned by the L.A. Choral Lab. The Old Zoo at Griffith Park served as the backdrop for Jaco Wong’s In Situ, while Divya Maus’ Rain Cycle maps an auditory experience of the Merry Go Round area. Divya also toured Rain Cycle at Cheeseman Park in Denver last June.

Interspace by PIE (People Inside Electronics) and C3LA: Contemporary Choral Collective of Los Angeles (Internet Concert) This concert started out as an idea back in 2019, when Amy Gordon and myself served as program committee co-chairpersons at C3LA. Although there have been choir + electronics pieces in the past, it is a medium that choral professionals rarely engage with.

We wanted to use this opportunity to widen the body of electroacoustic choral repertoire. We thought this would be a perfect opportunity to collaborate with the LA based electroacoustic music collective People Inside Electronics. Although this medium can be performed live, usually with a laptop ensemble, it certainly adapts well to the virtual, socially distanced space.

The collaboration between these two new music collectives produced seven new works for the medium, featuring composers Marcus Carline, Vera Lugo, Jen Wang, Isaac Schankler, Cristina Lord, Molly Pease, and yours truly.

C3LA singers sang “live” through a low-latency software called Jamulus, and “live processing” was done through Max MSP and such by laptop performers from PIE. Some works included pre-recorded elements that were layered, looped, distorted, manipulated, and mingled with the live vocals.

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Molly Pease and Cristina Lord’s The Metamorphosis featured a flow-chart like website, with animation, that included different audience prompts. Whoever plays the web app is free to choose from several options provided, which then dictates the choir’s response.

New Opportunities We don’t have to be limited to Brady Bunch style videos in the virtual choir realm. There are new formats to explore and countless opportunities to expand our artform when we open ourselves up to technology and embrace virtual spaces.

I hope that these three projects will inspire and encourage choral organizations to explore virtual evolutions of the choral artform, even when we are allowed to sing together once more, and put on concerts in person like we did before the pandemic. I’ve provided the various YouTube archival links for these projects if you would like to check them out.

Links: Interspace- https://youtu.be/V1uSuEKQFso Fridge Magnet #1 - https://youtu.be/aLxnJj0nmGM Fridge Magnet #2 - https://youtu.be/rrh7V_W7lU4 Soundwalk - https://youtu.be/fKTRVZc5Vhc

Saunder Choi is a Los Angeles-based Filipino composer and choral artist. He wears several hats as the Director of Music at the Unitarian Universalist Community Church of Santa Monica, a composer-teaching artist for the Los Angeles Master Chorale, a lecturer at Cal Poly Pomona, and a composer, arranger, and orchestrator. He regularly sings with the L.A. Choral Lab, Tonality, and Pacific Chorale. His works are accessible through saunderchoi.com

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LESSONS FROM THE PANDEMIC

Compiled and edited by Dr. Alyssa Cossey AzACDA Collegiate R&R Coordinator

The last academic year was certainly one for the books.

Conductors and teachers from every corner of the Western Region were forced to rethink and reimagine the choral arts during a global pandemic – and our collective response was innovative, timely, and important.

We created new and collaborative virtual performances, became professional video and sound editors practically overnight, brought choral leaders into our classrooms (virtually), found new platforms and programs to support our singers' learning, and we kept choral singing alive.

Now, as we look ahead to the 2021-2022 academic school year, I had to ask myself (and many of my choral colleagues) what worked last year and what can we continue to do/use as we try to reemerge in a postCovid-19 world? What follows are lessons, activities, and resources that I hope will inspire each of you as you prepare to return to the classroom this fall.

Also, on a personal note, one of the things I found most inspiring over the last 16+ months has been our willingness to share ideas and resources with one another.

From the moment the pandemic began to take hold and the world shut down, I was inundated (and honestly sometimes overwhelmed) by the outpouring of ideas and sharing of lesson plans and resources. More than that, I was inspired and grateful to be a part of a profession that worked so hard to take care of our students, our programs, our families, and each other. As we look forward to getting back to the work we love, I hope that spirit of generosity continues. In that same vein, I want to thank everyone who contributed to this article – or shared ideas and resources with a colleague this past year.

I have no doubt we are all better teachers because of it.

Things I Know Now That I Didn’t Know Before the Pandemic Lou De La Rosa | West Valley College/WACDA President (CA) | president@acdawestern.org Topic(s): Rehearsal Innovations, Technology Description: I will never again encourage a sick student to sit in the back of my class and take notes. This coming semester, my choir class will be held in Hyflex mode, which means that students may choose daily whether to participate in class face-to-face or synchronously online based on health concerns. Going forward, I will keep a web camera going during my classes for those students who are under the weather. In addition, I will encourage synchronously online students to pair with a person of their choice in their section, to interact during rehearsal via their phones. This idea came from Dr. Scott Glysson at Cal Poly SLO, who indicated that it helped build community and more connection than a single web camera alone.

Secondly, Zoom has taught me that department meetings (as well as ACDA board meetings) do not require everyone being in the same room at the same time. Since my faculty have different schedules and live as far as 100 miles away, I have had much greater participation and interaction through teleconferencing. For ACDA, I love the fact that we can meet for free within a two-hour timeframe, sharing documents and seeing one-another’s faces, rather than spending membership money on transportation, lodging, and meals plus at least 24 to 48 hours of everyone’s time.

Between the WACDA COVID Task Force, board meetings, conference committee meetings, and breakouts with individual chairs, we have been able to meet more this past year than any previous board…all for free. Aside from those actually stuck in the meetings, who can argue with that?

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Preparing for In-person Choirs

also the best for sound production. The rehearsals were shortened to 45 minutes, which allowed time for the air purifiers to turn over the air between groups. All rehearsals were filmed, and, if a student felt unwell, they were required to stay home and participate virtually.

Also, the larger choirs were split into two groups that alternated days when they rehearsed in-person or virtually. The number of concerts was greatly reduced, and they were all performed in an empty hall and then live-streamed to virtual audiences. Throughout this difficult year, students expressed gratitude for being able to sing together. Even though they were physicallydistanced, they felt a togetherness as they were able to make music during a difficult time.

Andrew Crane | Brigham Young University (UT) | andrew_crane@byu.edu Topic(s): Rehearsal Planning & Safety Measures Description: Given the restrictions surrounding inperson activities during the COVID-19 pandemic, it was challenging to figure out a way to still sing together. But knowing how important music is to those participating and those listening, we were determined to make it happen! After researching the physical distance requirements for singing, along with the dimensions of our rehearsal spaces, we determined the numbers we could allow together in one room and adjusted the sizes of our choirs accordingly. Air purifiers were placed in the rehearsal hall in order to filter the air in the room regularly. Auditions were done using an interviewstyle online platform, which allowed students to record themselves doing various vocal exercises and then upload the recordings for review; “callbacks” were done via Zoom calls with the directors. Once the choir members were selected, there was a four-week waiting period while students were self-quarantined after arriving on campus.

During this time, the directors held virtual meetings with various guest speakers and discussions about the upcoming repertoire. After being given the green light for in-person rehearsals, we were ready!

Links/Resources: https://www.middleclassartist.com/ post/at-byu-320-students-in-six-choirs-kept-singingthrough-the-pandemic-how-did-they-do-it Reimagining the Concert Experience Stacey Kikkawa | Fullerton Union H. S./CCDA High School R&R Chair (CA) | Skikkawa@fjuhsd.org Topic(s): Performance Ideas & Innovations Description: Due to an auditorium refurbishment and COVID-19 protocols, using an outdoor venue became our reality this past spring. Our school is not blessed to have an outdoor stage or bowl. Our campus is also over 125 years old, and outdoor electrical outlets were hard to come by (electricity was needed for our microphones and electronic piano). After some scouting on campus, we decided to use a beautiful, semi-grand staircase to one of our buildings as our choral risers, and, luckily, the building also provided some natural amplification.

In order to clear the air according to outdoor singing protocols at the time, we spaced out the choirs so that the performance order became one choir (on the staircase) followed by two solo performances which were performed in a garden setting located below the staircase. Our audience was asked to bring their own chairs, or they could sit on the grass, benches, or cafeteria tables in our social quad, and we were only allowed three audience members per student.

Links/Resources: https://docs.google.com/ document/d/1QHhJbirrbPWQ6CFxbjuy_3QwjNvXlPptchFvVoLlHg/edit?fbclid=IwAR0O5_-wEz5htjqRCOCdeuc1AMwEWFTc2QEdA0vU-SN9qgyOEHFbtLDoA#heading=h.vug11zs14ljx Strategies for Singing Through the Pandemic Andrew Crane | Brigham Young University (UT) | andrew_crane@byu.edu Topic(s): Rehearsal Planning & Safety Measures, Performance Ideas & Innovations Description: All singers completed a daily health check, along with a temperature check upon arrival at the rehearsal and maintained 6’ distancing at all times.

Singers were required to wear the Resonance Singer’s Masks, which were determined to be the safest and

Continued...

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One thing of note: we absolutely amplified our sound with microphones and sometimes more. This was not a mandatory event for our students, so, for our choir with the smallest participation, we made the decision to use our engineered virtual choir track of our students’ voices and had our sound technicians mix-in our live sound along with the track. (If it’s good enough for Britney Spears and other pop-concert artists, it was going to be good enough for us this time around.) We did the same thing for our combined choral piece.

• Student audience area: The students had their own audience area to watch where they had to sit 3 feet away from each other. Because our concert was so close to graduation, we were able to use the chairs that were already set-up for graduation and other outdoor senior events.

Having an outdoor concert and adhering to protocols beyond our control was stressful but manageable. The most important thing was to organize a live concert that celebrated our young singers and lived up to the expectations of what a standard concert should look and sound like. I am incredibly grateful to have had students who fully appreciated the experience, regardless of what was considered "standard." To that end, it was more than pivoting and reinventing a concert - it was a special and unique expression of love for the choral art and all who benefit from it.

Some other things that we did: • Electronic programs: We put a link to the program on our website and asked the audience to access it during the performance. Because we were not inside, the use of cellphones was not a concern.

• We allowed audience members to FaceTime someone from home (as long as the person on the other line was on mute). We also video archived the entire concert and put it on YouTube for others to watch at home.

Links/Resources: Link to Concert: https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=5JNEg8cMiHc Electronic Program: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1i UYApqYisX3s8rPZQ6EfbP7qzTu0HQa0/view

• QR codes: Our Booster Club felt strongly that this should be a free event, but we wanted attendees to have the option and ability to donate. We printed out QR codes linked to our PayPal account on handheld fans and sent out a few students through the audience to hold up the fans. We gave the audience a minute to pull out their phones or their wallets in order to access the link and donate on the spot.

Online Part Checks Using Soundtrap Ryan Holder | Northern Arizona University (AZ) | ryan. holder@nau.edu Topic(s): Technology, Assessment Description: During COVID-19, I required all of my students to submit online part checks using the website Soundtrap (www.soundtrap.com), which is very similar to Audacity or Garageband. I would start by uploading an instrumental background track and then give my students a deadline to submit their part track. They would be sent a link to the project and then could sing and upload their parts from anywhere in the world! There is a fee associated with the service, and there is a small learning curve with the product, but I will never spend time doing part checks in class again!

• Singers Masks: Our school (and district) decided to purchase Singers Masks for every student in our choral program.

• District protocols: Every participant and attendee had to take a symptoms survey and temperature check at the door. We followed the District Guidelines for Athletic Events and didn’t reinvent the wheel.

• Consideration of time: We usually have a performance time of 7pm, but, since we were outside, we had to account for the sun setting and our quad not being lit well at night. We moved up the time of the concert to 6pm, and it worked out well! We limited the music and transitions to 55 minutes, with 20 minutes for senior and community member recognition.

Links/Resources: www.soundtrap.com https://drive.google.com/open?id=1_ e1yLWYUQOK9EnM7ZGnWv8DC-YIJgRol 25

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Music Production Project

Links/Resources: Jamulus website: https://jamulus.io/

Anabel Martinez Pauline | Los Amigos High School (CA) | apauline2@ggusd.us

Video replay of an informational webinar (large file!): https://www.dropbox.com/s/p2u7y5g1547ba71/ jamulus.mp4?dl=0

Topic(s): Voice Building, Sight-Reading & Aural Skills, Assessment, Performance Ideas & Innovations, Nonperformance Focused Activities & Lessons, Technology

Jamulus choral community Facebook group: https:// www.facebook.com/groups/jamuluschoralcommunity/

Description: This lesson connects students' prior knowledge of solfege and music theory to chord building.

By the end of the lesson, given the notes of the E major scale, students will spell out the chords in the chorus of Lay Me Down by Sam Smith using musical notation. This is Lesson 1 of a Music Production Unit in which students build the skills needed to record and produce their own rendition of this chorus on the platform BandLab.

Holding Online “Tactus Salons” Susan Swerdlow | Tactus San Francisco (CA) | susanswerdlow@gmail.com Topic(s): Performance Ideas & Innovations Description: We shared recordings we made - some produced on Jamulus by the large group, some by soloists, and some by subsets of the choir (recorded on Jamulus, recorded live in an outdoor space, or produced as virtual choir videos) in three "Tactus Salons," one every few months. These were in webinar format for the audience, who could see the members of the choir live on Zoom.

Each short recording was introduced live by a member of the group. We invited only our Patreon subscribers and donors to the first Salon and opened the second and third events to everyone; these last two each attracted more audience members than we had ever had at live concerts.

We charged $5 per household through Eventbrite and welcomed additional donations. To recreate the experience of our customary post-concert receptions for singers and audience, we used an application called GATHER, a virtual meeting space with separate rooms that allow multiple conversations to go on at once, like at a live reception. As the pandemic abates, we plan to continue with both of these activities: (1) rehearsing on Jamulus when we want to loop in folks from far away; and (2) presenting Tactus Salons in addition to live concerts because they are good fundraising events that allow our family and friends from across the world to tune in and interact in a unique and personal way.

Links/Resources: Music Production Platform: https:// www.bandlab.com Lesson: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1E9XzOor1z 5QaTmh19kApO0aYDZvb-frgF4my1cnzw_g Activity: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1LQxDtc5u gYImbsVbM9NjJ1xOVeSWyhL55rGtE9DxeU0 End of Unit Student Product: https://www.bandlab. com/debbiii/new-project-b9298430?revId=b094e6568682-eb11-9889-0050f28a50ba Rehearsing & Recording on Jamulus Susan Swerdlow | Tactus San Francisco (CA) | susanswerdlow@gmail.com Topic(s): Rehearsal Planning, Performance Ideas & Innovations Description: We rehearsed with up to 14 singers (about 3/4 of our membership) on the online application Jamulus, which allows a choir to sing together in real time with very little delay. In addition to being able to sing together from our homes around the Bay Area, this allowed the group's founder to direct us from his current home in England! When we were ready, we recorded the results (also on Jamulus), tweaking the recordings afterwards for balance, adding a bit of reverb, etc., and then dubbing them into video of a Zoom meeting so the audience could see the choir members performing.

Links/Resources: Programs: http://www.tactus-sf.org/p/ concert-history.html Playlists: https://www.youtube.com/channel/ UCHR3ifhM32Y_uaUjcaGQ1gA/playlists Gather website: https://gather.town/ 26

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A Genealogical EP: Tracing Your Whakapapa

While this lesson focuses on pre-service teachers gaining teaching experience in a virtual teaching environment, the technical aspect could also be used for JH/HS singers if they are developing a collaboration with peers, teaching each other theory, or any number of creative uses. (You can access the entire lesson plan by clicking on the link below.)

Jace Saplan | University of Hawaiʻi & Kamehameha Schools (HI) | jsaplan@hawaii.edu Topic(s): Community Building, Mental Health & Individual Well-Being, Performance Ideas & Innovations, DEI

Links/Resources: https://drive.google.com/file/d/ 1vPEyB0HeSEejpF5N4Mu0MmIA3frHqL-z/ view?usp=sharing

Description: Through the Polynesian value of Whakapapa or knowing and honoring one’s lineage, this project leads students to build their own personal EP, explore the concept of Whakapapa through the concept of music curation, and interview their own families around their relationships with music. Nearing closure of the learning arch, students will have collected qualitative data from semi-structured interviews with household members and/or family members around the role of music within each household member's life that leads to the creation of a playlist (with options for student voice and choice). This project gets students listening to: music they like (self-care), music that they have not heard of, and music that expands their soundscape through conversation and community building within their households.

Meditation-Affirmations for Singers Caitlin Giusta | Ramona Middle School (CA) | c.giusta@bonita.k12.ca.us Topic(s): Mental Health & Individual Well-Being Description: Every other week, I lead an in-class meditation. I start by introducing different breathing techniques, and then we meditate for 10 minutes as a class. My favorite meditation is an affirmation meditation. These affirmations focus on singing and selfworth. I read an affirming statement and encourage them to say it back to themselves. After another breath, I read the next affirmation. I read through the list twice, and, at the end of class, the students complete a survey that allows me to check in with them individually and asks for their favorite and least favorite affirmation.

Links/Resources:https://drive.google.com/drive/ folders/1PV761nPmqaQq1uaqU9Tu2G8NLQ94Ttp?usp=sharing Partner Teach & Sing Back: Asynchronous Videoin-Video Recorded Teaching Sequence

Links/Resources: Introduction to meditation for singers: https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=ZIe5J2X4e2Y.

Corie Brown | San José State University (CA) | corie. brown@sjsu.edu

List of affirmation for singers: https://www. iheartmyvoice.com/blog/affirmations

Topic(s): Assessment, Technology Description: This lesson (and accompanying instructions) allows Student #1 to sing/conduct/teach, and then their peer, Student #2 to respond, providing feedback on the effectiveness of instruction, gesture, or pedagogical tool employed by Student #1. I used this lesson for our third/fourth year choral music education undergraduate students in Choral Methods, and my colleague also used a similar format in his Conducting II course to imitate a live teaching sequence. Once students learned how to navigate the technical aspect, the process was very successful.

Song Representation (Visual Art Project) Caitlin Giusta | Ramona Middle School (CA) | c.giusta@bonita.k12.ca.us Topic(s): Performance Ideas & Innovations Description: After learning our choir songs, I asked students to make a visual representation of the music.

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Post-Pandemic Play: Incorporating Improvisation and Composition In Your Rehearsal

They could depict any scene from the song or show what the song means to them, and they could use any medium – drawing, painting, creating a collage, etc. – or any materials. I would then select a few that I included in our virtual choir concert. This coming year, I plan to project selected art projects during our live performance.

Nicky Manlove | THEM Youth Ensemble, St. Mark's Presbyterian (AZ) | nicky.manlove@gmail.com Topic(s): Community Building, Sight-Reading & Aural Skills

Women Are Conductors, Too!

Description: Incorporating improvisation/composition into the warm-up/skill-building part of your rehearsal is an excellent way to support young singers in being brave and building trust with one another, to create investment and leadership in your ensemble, and to scaffold important musical principles in a fun and engaging way.

During virtual rehearsals, THEM Youth Ensemble used the following process over a series of weekly rehearsals to scaffold improvisation and composition skills:

Kim Nason | Capistrano Unified School District (CA) | kimnason@mac.com Topic(s): Non-performance Focused Activities & Lessons, DEI Description: When you think of an orchestral conductor, what comes to mind? Did you picture a man in a tuxedo with a baton in his hand? That’s understandable because, even today, most professional orchestras are still led by male conductors. However, things are starting to change.

There are more and more women in the conducting field (instrumental and choral) who are making a name for themselves and showing young women that they also can pursue a career in conducting. In this lesson, students learn about the role of the conductor and watch several female conductors in action. Students begin by watching a Class Notes video (link below) and then practice the conducting patterns that were presented. We then talk about what to watch for when a conductor is leading an orchestra or choir. We read about several female conductors, including Jessica Bejarano and Alondra de la Parra, and we watched them conduct. Students then shared observations and commented on the differences in their conducting styles. When I teach this lesson again, I will include choral conductors.

• The director wrote a very simple vocalise (link below) and taught it on a neutral syllable. Once the vocalise was learned, introduce a sample set of lyrics (the sillier the better!). Then, invite the singers to write their own lyrics, and seek volunteers to teach their version of the vocalise to the rest of the ensemble. Everyone sings together. Consider adding parameters here. For example, the lyrics must tell a story with a beginning/middle/end, or the lyrics must align with the character of the music, or introduce a rhyme scheme.

Once this is comfortable, have singers write their own vocalise and lyrics, again adding parameters to support their success. For example, you might instruct the singers to write four one-bar phrases, where motion can only be stepwise and rhythms can only include quarter and eighth notes. Or consider including a challenging interval from your repertoire (i.e. your vocalise must include an ascending/descending fourth) to build familiarity before they encounter it in the rehearsal.

Links/Resources: Class Notes Intro Video: https://www. yourclassical.org/story/2014/09/19/class-notes-whatdoes-a-conductor-do Introduction to Jessica Bejarano: https://www.youtube. com/watch?v=Qa9mcjgOR1w

In an in-person rehearsal, this process could be much more collaborative than it was over Zoom. For example, singers could write an exercise in pairs or small groups or could even write a longer excerpt. THEM Youth Ensemble used this process to build up to writing fulllength pieces collaboratively.

Example of Alondra de la Parra conducting: https:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JXmpU35n14

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Links/Resources: https://drive.google.com/open?id=17 mD9fIArwtG9wwm0RTHV9M837zpKtoHz

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Be The Judge!

This activity presents so many opportunities for students to demonstrate and apply the skills they are learning in your ensemble. Whether virtual or in-person, it is one of those “just-add-water” lessons that provides depth, rigor, and fun. We truly had a blast with this, and I hope you and your students will too!

Elizabeth Baker | ʻIlima Intermediate School (HI) | elizabeth.baker@k12.hi.us Topic(s): Community Building, Programming, Assessment, Non-performance Focused Activities & Lessons

Links/Resources: Link to Slides (Force Copy): https://docs.google.com/presentation/ d/15iP3Yr1leUWNl1zwYdA5bHE2zJPANZEEips7hn24Ik/copy

Description: Need something new for your Fun Friday activity? Want a sub plan that builds critical listening skills? Looking for more performances to expose your singers to? I was looking for an activity that answered "Yes!" to all of these questions last year amidst a time when my middle schoolers were really (and I mean really) over attempting to do anything vocal using Google Meet.

Enter: "Sing That Thing!"

Link to all five seasons of “Sing That Thing!”: https:// singthatthing.wgbh.org/episodes/ Weekly Check-in & Wellness Form

WGBH's "Sing That Thing!" is a group singing competition featuring choirs and a cappella ensembles from across New England, representing a variety of styles, cultures, and ages and judged by Dr. Anthony Trecek-King, Annette Philip, and Jaren Bowen. All five seasons are accessible using the link below.

Katie Hixon | Mountain Pointe High School (AZ) | khixon@tuhsd.k12.az.us Topic(s): Community Building, Mental Health & Individual Well-Being Description: I discovered this resource online (link below) and found that my students responded very positively to it. I had my students complete it as a weekly assignment, and I was able to change the questions in the Google Form to continually assess and learn about my students’ wellness throughout the year. The website shows you how to set up your corresponding spreadsheet and how to highlight answers that may be concerning. For example, anytime a student would have a low score on the 1-5 rated questions, the box would automatically highlight red. This was very helpful, as I knew which students were struggling either at school or at home. I will continue using this next year, both for my information and to keep students thinking about their own health.

As a companion to this show, I created scorecards where students are tasked with being the judge themselves. We would watch a performance, pause before the judges' critiques, have the students enter their thoughts on the template, and then copy and paste their remarks into the chat for the rest of the class to see. If there were discrepancies in critique, this created an opportunity for discussion (Does Ariana Grande's "Dangerous Woman" work as an a capella arrangement? Did the choral-ography enhance or distract from the overall performance?). At the end of each episode, students chose which group they would crown the winner and were tasked with defending their choice to the rest of the class. This was always the most active part of our discussions, as middle schoolers love to debate. As an added bonus, students develop buy-in with the groups that they select and get really hyped up when the ensembles they chose end up in the finale or possibly even winning. (Truthfully, there was a mini-riot in our Google Meet when our class’ fan-favorite for Season 5 did not end up taking the trophy.) The best part is that you can create copies of the scorecards for each episode and have them ready to go whenever you need.

Links/Resources: https://www.survivingthemiddle.org/ post/student-daily-check-in-using-google-slides

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Project My Song

York Times has numerous lists of, "Questions to Inspire Writing, Discussion, Debate and Reflection," (link below) and these questions can provide students with a platform to share their opinions, listen to one another, engage in civil discourse, and think about topics they may not know a lot about (or may know a lot about!). While the discussions are not musical, helping our students develop deep interpersonal questions, work on their ability to have civil discourse, and talk freely amongst themselves will strengthen our ensembles in a way that positively affects the music. The director or teacher can share the question, help facilitate the discussion, and the activity can be used before or after the rehearsal, at retreats, or any other time that you want to focus on community building.

Colleen Chester | Michigan State University, Hillsdale Arts Chorale (MI) | colleen.p.chester@gmail.com Topic(s): Community Building, Mental Health & Individual Well-Being, Non-performance Focused Activities & Lessons Description: "Project My Song" is an activity designed for students to build more interpersonal connections and relationships within the ensemble. Though it is a musicfocused activity, the goal is to give students a platform to share something personal about themselves with their classmates. Students choose a song (school appropriate) that is deeply meaningful to them and briefly share aloud where/why/how this particular song has impacted their life. A YouTube link or slideshow with the lyrics is then projected for the class so that the students can read along with the audio. Not only does this activity engage the students' public speaking skills, but it also allows students to learn about one another and find connections through their shared likes, musical tastes, and personal experiences that they may not have otherwise known.

This activity can be used during rehearsal when you sense the ensemble might be vocally fatigued and in need of a short break, when rehearsal is at a good concluding point but there are five or six minutes left in the class, or even to get the day started (and, of course, it can be used in non-ensemble courses as well!).

Links/Resources:https://www.nytimes. com/2020/07/28/learning/177-questions-to-inspirewriting-discussion-debate-and-reflection.html Home Groups, Family Talk, and Shout Out Boards: Oh My! Christopher Loftin | Auburn University (AL) | csl0039@ auburn.edu Topic(s): Community Building, Mental Health & Individual Well-Being Description: Home Groups, Family Talk, and Shout Out Boards are three simple, easy, and practical ways to build community within your ensemble. The attached slide deck provides simple instructions to implement these activities into your ensemble.

Links/Resources: https://drive.google.com/ open?id=146ZADaCH5xA-EznpOrSeuexyDPFQ8Ama Non-Musical Discussion Questions for Community Building

Links/Resources:https://docs.google. com/presentation/d/1KtSVZSuUnkqR82dWVjwlHEwV4b6XslYaQ5S3Jm5Emc/ edit?usp=sharing

Colleen Chester | Michigan State University, Hillsdale Arts Chorale (MI) | colleen.p.chester@gmail.com Topic(s): Community Building, Non-performance Focused Activities & Lessons, DEI Description: Sometimes we have ensembles or classes that have a lot of quiet students, are dominated by only a few voices, include diverse student populations, or we feel like there just isn’t enough time for any non-musical activities because our rehearsal time is so limited. In any or all of these scenarios, we may want our students to get to know one another in a more meaningful way. The New

Continued...

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Rethinking Student Observation Experiences Alyssa Cossey | University of Arizona (AZ) | ajcossey@ arizona.edu Topic(s): Accessibility, Technology Description: One thing that we have all learned over the last 16+ months is that there are other ways to do almost anything, and “because that’s how we’ve always done it,” may no longer be a good enough justification for not actively seeking out ways to make our ensembles/classes more accessible. As a teacher of pre-service music educators, this first came into play when I had to find a replacement for student observations in March 2020. While secondary classrooms were closed, our students were still required to complete their observation hours by the state. Over the last year, I have found that the changes not only made observations more accessible for students (especially those who do not have access to a car or whose class/work schedule make it nearly impossible to visit secondary classrooms during the regular school day) but also make them more meaningful.

Moving forward, our music education students will have the option to watch previously recorded rehearsals (link to video resources below) in addition to observing live classes remotely and in-person. We will also continue doing some observations as a class (live and remote) utilizing a 360-degree camera, which will allow us to have a shared observation experience without requiring additional financial resources or time outside of class.

Links/Resources: Inspire Choir (various recordings/ levels): https://www.youtube.com/channel/ UCTSQ8rnSSJOd3c73CVxDLsQ/videos High School Concert Choir: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=tzsueBQqILc

Dr. Alyssa Cossey (she/her/hers) is an Assistant Professor of Choral Music and Music Education at the University of Arizona and an inaugural member of the professional women’s choir mirabai.

She currently serves on the Arizona ACDA Board as the Collegiate R&R Coordinator and on the Western Region ACDA Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee. Her research interests include performance practice issues in twentiethcentury music, culturally responsive pedagogy, and intersectional feminism in the arts.

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Professional Development Funding for ACDA Conferences Regardless of your financial situation, there are opportunities for all federally/state funded choral directors to attend conferences through an alreadyexisting funding source that few may know how to access.

Through allocation of Title II funding, monies are set aside for professional development. Every state has slightly different variations of what is provided and how much can be allocated. Funding may be provided for registration, transportation, lodging, food, and other incidental expenses. Resources for each of the Western Region states can be found at the WACDA website.

Information will be added as Title II funding laws change year-to-year. Also, if any ACDA members would like to share their personal experiences that could assist others in obtaining funding themselves, feel free to email youthcoord@acdawestern.org. All information shared will be anonymous on the Western Region ACDA website.

To get started, please visit acdawestern.org .

Here’s to a successful transition back to singing!

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INCORPORATING STUDENT CREATIVITY IN THE CHORAL ENSEMBLE Written by Micah Bland In 2014 the National Association for Music Education updated the national standards for music education.

These standards emphasize three artistic processes: creating, performing, and responding. While the national standards encourage the incorporation of creativity, the music education community continues to focus on musical performance. According to Graham (1998) “In many schools, performance occupies as much as 95 percent of the time devoted to music.” Considering the current pedagogical approaches utilized by choral educators, it is difficult to deny the performance based instruction that dominates choral music instruction.

One may think that music provides the necessary outlet for student creativity, but in many situations, students continue to be faced with teacher-centered instruction, with the contest festival as the driving force behind music literacy and performance (Wiggins, 1999). It is therefore the purpose of this article to provide ideas for implementing creative activities in the choral ensemble through performance, improvisation, and composition.

In addition, many of the activities included require a minimal amount of rehearsal time, making them effective introductory activities to the creative process that can easily be incorporated into the teacher’s current rehearsal plan.

Creativity and its Role in the Ensemble When considering creative ideas, individuals often recall creative products that are world changing, such as the automobile or cell phone. These types of world changing ideas are referred to as “Big C” creative products. However, most creative ideas are not realized on such a grand scale, and instead encompass personal creative discoveries referred to as “little c” (Sawyer, 2012).

Sawyer defines this personal creativity as, “a new mental combination that is expressed in the world” (p. 7). In order for a product to be considered creative it should be new to the individual, resulting from a combination of existing thoughts and concepts, and ultimately communicated with others. In the choral ensemble these 32

creative thoughts can be expressed through different mediums such as improvisation, composition, and performance.

The inclusion of creativity in the choral ensemble plays an important role in the musical development of students. Creativity provides a fulfilling musical experience for singers, and promotes comprehensive musicianship (Kerchner and Strand, 2016). Musical creativity allows for student self-expression (Graham, 1998), as well as promotes student confidence and musical independence (Potterton, 2015). In sharing their creative products with others, students experience a sense of pride and accomplishment when their work is accepted by their peers (Menard, 2013). In collaborating with others through improvisation, students develop listening and audiation skills as they must attentively listen to the musical creations of others. Finally, creative musical activities help to reinforce recently learned musical concepts through actively incorporating these concepts in creative products (Hickey, 2012).

Performance Within the traditional approach to choral rehearsal and performance, student creativity is typically not valued.

Instead, it is the teacher who constantly imposes their musical interpretation on the students (Graham, 1998).

While the teacher’s interpretation and expertise are important for the success of the ensemble, the teacher should also attempt to elicit creativity in performance from their students. The following are suggestions for incorporating student creativity in rehearsal and performance.

Fictional narrative- In this activity students interpret and expand on the poetry of the work developing their own fictional narrative. For example, if the ensemble was performing I’m Bound Away, arranged by Donald Moore, students would create a story describing why the sailor was leaving their “lassie.” Perhaps they were going to war, or leaving to discover a new land.

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Improvisation

This activity allows the student to create their own expressive interpretation of the poetry. An alternative to writing a fictional narrative, involves the student drawing a series of pictures, or taking photographs depicting a narrative for the musical selection.

Choreography- Frequently, students in the ensemble are highly skilled in dance, and can be called upon to create original choreography for musical selections performed by the choir. Although this may not incorporate all students in the creative process, it involves select students skilled in the art form.

In order to optimize the creative experience, it is suggested that the teacher combine the previously discussed creative activities and showcase them in performance.

For example, if performing three selections in a concert, divide the ensemble into three groups with each group completing a different activity for each song (written narrative, visual narrative, and choreography). In performance students who created a fictional narrative read their stories before the song’s performance, students who created visual artwork have their images projected during the performance, and students who create choreography teach the movements to the class for use in performance.

Music video- Students can engage in various modes of creative performance through designing, producing, and filming their own music video. In groups, invite students to select a song to perform. Students should designate a leader for various tasks such as costumes, props, director, vocals coach, and choreography. Although possibly time consuming, this activity works well towards the end of the semester following the final concert. The extent of this activity can vary from one entire class day with minimal production investment, to extensive choreography, props, staging, and computer editing.

The Musical- Although it may be the most time intensive and challenging task, students are capable of creating original musicals. If time permits, invite students to compose their own music. To simplify this activity, have students incorporate familiar songs into their original script (Sievers-Hunt, 2016). Similar to the music video, additional creative avenues might include choreography, set, costumes, props, and staging.

Although improvisation may not be frequently utilized in choral performance repertoire, the incorporation of improvisational techniques in the choral rehearsal provide a number of benefits for the musical development of singers including auditory awareness, self-expression, and musical independence. The following are a few suggestions for the implementation of improvisation in the choral rehearsal.

Voicing- The vocal warm-up is likely the most practical opportunity to incorporate improvisational techniques, allowing students to be creative and engaged at the very start of rehearsal. Invite students to sing a triad or chord selected by the teacher. Have students gradually re-voice the chord by singing alternate pitches within the chord (Heil, 2019). Students may also expand the chord’s structure by singing pitches higher or lower than the initial chord provided by the teacher.

Mix-up- Utilizing any set of pitches, (three or five note scale suggested) ask students to randomly sing these notes in any order (Potterton, 2015). This exercise can be done in tempo or in free rhythm. For the developing singer, this exercise is useful in encouraging vocal independence.

The Musical Scale- Divide students into eight equal groups with each representing a different note in the diatonic major or minor scale. Invite students to act as the conductor. As they point at the different groups, each group sings their designated note in the scale. To increase the difficulty, consider having students point with both hands, or invite two students to lead simultaneously. As students develop in this activity, when two students are leading simultaneously, encourage them to work together developing an awareness of what the other is doing. In addition to an improvisatory activity, the musical scale is also an excellent introduction to composition. For example, invite students to notate their desired pitches prior to leading the exercise.

Reforming- Incorporating a section of the ensemble’s repertoire, Freer (2010) suggests beginning the phrase as written, but at the conductor’s signal, alter different aspects of the phrase including, but not limited to, rhythm, pitch, articulation, and dynamics.

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Circle Singing- Paparo (2016) suggests circle singing as an improvisatory activity that incorporates all voices singing a musical pattern, harmonic progression, or ostinato, with solo voices taking turns improvising a tune. Once the activity has been introduced to the students, it can easily be incorporated as a warm-up or brief creativity exercise.

In addition, this activity can be extended by asking the students to notate their ostinato patterns either before or following the activity as a compositional or ear training activity (Paparo, 2016).

Student created sight-reading- According to Hickey (2012), composition as a pedagogical technique should be incorporated anytime the student learns a new musical idea. This technique can easily be implemented through student created sight-reading exercises. Each time new musical notation is introduced, students can complete a composition activity as homework or in class. This activity can also be extended utilizing a sequential pedagogical approach. Initially, the rhythmic values and bar lines can be ignored incorporating only quarter notes, or another designated rhythmic value. Additional instructional stages may include asking students to correctly notate their previously composed exercise in a 4/4 time signature by adding bar lines, eighth notes, and beams as necessary.

In the final instructional stage invite students to create original lyrics to their composition for use as a vocal warm-up activity.

Composition Composition in the classroom has been found to be valued by most music educators. However, despite this recognized value, research suggests that teachers devote minimal, if any, time to its incorporation in the classroom (Norris, 2010; Strand, 2006). According to Deemer (2016) there are two factors that significantly prevent teachers from incorporating composition in their classroom.

Deemer posits, “most of today’s music teachers have had little to no preparation in composition pedagogy during their collegiate studies and—more important—that they have had little to no experience composing their own music” (p. 42). In addition to these two concerns, music educators may feel they lack adequate instructional time to include compositional activities amidst preparation for performance and contest.

Dependent upon the experience level of the student, differing assignment parameters can be incorporated.

For beginning students, the teacher may provide them with staff paper indicating the key, starting, and ending note. As students develop in their knowledge of musical concepts the teacher can gradually decrease the parameters until ultimately the students are free to compose the exercise with limited or no limitations. While parameters may be necessary at times to isolate recently learned musical ideas and promote student success, research has demonstrated that on first creative activities, students are more successful with fewer restrictions (Hickey, 2012).

Despite these concerns, just as students must learn to read and write in English class, they should also learn to read and write in music. Composition is not an activity reserved for only the musical elite, instead it is for everyone, regardless of ability. Those who have ever been around little children can attest that they often compose musical songs without being prompted (Hickey, 2012).

Harmonic progression- An alternative variation to the sightreading activity is a student created harmonic progression.

Webb (2013) utilizes a method where students harmonize a melody through the support of a teacher provided chord chart (Figure 1). The melody line can either be While at first composition may seem like a difficult task, composed by the students, or provided by the teacher. it is important to remember that student compositions Figure 1 demonstrates an adaptation of Webb’s chord do not need to be extensive in length, or incorporate chart utilizing solfege syllables. Students can either notate traditional notation. Student compositions can easily be expressed orally or through graphic notation in addition to their harmonic progressions on staff paper, or through the vertical stacking of solfege syllables as seen in Figure 1. standard musical notation. The following are suggestions of composition activities that can be incorporated into the Students can create their harmonic progression for three or four voices. Prior to the start of the activity, students choral rehearsal. should have a fundamental knowledge of chord selection, inversions, and appropriate doublings.

Continued...

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Holiday song arrangement- Hamilton (2013) describes a musical arrangement exercise for instrumental ensembles that can easily be adapted for choral ensembles. In this group activity, students arrange familiar holiday songs for a cappella voices. The teacher provides groups with a preapproved list of songs and notated melody. Students do not need to notate their arrangements, and can complete the entire activity by ear. Upon completion of the arrangement, have students perform for the rest of the class. Select the best group arrangements for performance in concert, during intermission in the lobby, or for office administrators during the school day. For suggestions and specific steps on how to approach the arranging process in your classroom, and methods to develop collaborative group dynamics during this process, see chapters by Price and Rodriguez (2016) and Kerchner (2016) in Musicianship: Composing in Choir.

or conform to traditional concepts of melody, rhythm or harmony. Instead, students should be allowed to explore and express their ideas, which can then be refined through continued musical development.

In order for student creativity to flourish, the teacher should promote an encouraging classroom environment.

All creative activities are highly personal to the creator as it is their personal musical expressions. Many students may have a fear of being wrong, or having their work rejected by their peers. It is the teacher’s responsibility to encourage the continued creative development of all students (Lasker, 1973). In addition, when applicable, students should share their creative products with the group, which provides a sense of pride and accomplishment for the student (Menard, 2013).

Creative products often require time to develop. Be careful not to rush students in their musical creativity.

In the creative process, allowing for time is referred to as incubation (Sawyer, 2012), or time away (Webster, 2002), where ideas can consciously and subconsciously be developed. In addition, Webster encourages revision in the creative process. Through teacher guidance and personal reflection students should be provided opportunities to revise their work.

When implementing composition and arrangement activities, it is important for the teacher to be aware of copyright laws. Both text and music may be covered under copyright, which prevents the performance of any arranged, or in the case of copyrighted text, original compositions. For a more detailed discussion on these laws, and additional suggestions for the incorporation of compositional techniques in the choral classroom reference Musicianship: Composing in Choir, edited by Jody Kerchner and Katherine Strand (2016).

While teachers recognize the need for creative opportunities in the choral classroom, a focus on performance continues to dominate American music education. This performance focus is understandable as it provides an observable product for administrators and community members. However, the inclusion of creative activities should also be implemented in the choral classroom as they promote musical literacy and comprehensive musicianship.

Conclusions and Considerations for Implementation When implementing creative activities in the choral rehearsal it is important for a teacher to allow a student’s ideas to develop, and avoid imposing their own ideas of musical creativity (Wiggins, 1999). Student created products may not be perfect, utilize standard notation, 35

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References

Sawyer, K. (2012) Explaining creativity (2nd Edition). New York: Oxford University Press.

Deemer, R. (2016). Reimagining the role of composition in music teacher education. Music Educators Journal, 102(3), 41–45.

Sievers-Hunt, T. (2016). Composition project 9: Impromptu musicals.

In J. L. Kerchner and K. Strand (Eds.), Musicianship: Composing in Choir (pp. 291–302). Chicago, IL: GIA.

Freer, P. (2010). Choral improvisation: tensions and resolutions. The Choral Journal, 51(5), 18–31.

Strand, K. (2006). Survey of Indiana music teachers on using composition in the classroom. Journal of Research in Music Education, 54(2), 154–167. https://doi.org/10.1177/002242940605400206

Graham, D. (1998). Teaching for creativity in music performance.

Music Educators Journal, 84(5), 24–28.

Hamilton, M. (2013). Recomposing holiday tunes. In C. Randles & D. Stringham (Eds.), Musicianship: Composing in band and orchestra (pp.

205-213). Chicago, IL: GIA Publications, Inc.

Webb, R. (2013). Constructing a warm-up chorale in the string orchestra. In C. Randles & D. Stringham (Eds.), Musicianship: Composing in band and orchestra (pp. 215–221). Chicago, IL: GIA Publications, Inc.

Heil, L. (2019). Meaningful improvisation in the choral rehearsal, presented at 2019 ACDA National Conference, Kansas City, Missouri.

Webster, P. (2002) Creative thinking in music: Advancing a model.

In T. Sullivan & L. Willingham (Eds.), Creativity and music education (pp.

16-33). Edmonton, CA: Canadian Music Educator’s Association.

Hickey, M. (2012). The issues. Music outside the lines (pp. 15-39). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Wiggins, J. (1999). Teacher control and creativity. Music Educators Journal. 85(5), 30–35.

Kerchner, J. L. and K. Strand (Eds.). (2016). Musicianship: composing in choir. Chicago, IL: GIA.

Micah Bland is a DMA candidate at the University of Southern California where he is currently completing his dissertation on choral music in film. Prior to attending USC, Bland served as a high school and middle school choral director in Texas.

Kerchner, J. (2016). Contemporary a cappella ensembles: Social and musical interactions during song arranging. In J. L. Kerchner and K. Strand (Eds.), Musicianship: Composing in Choir (pp. 167–186). Chicago, IL: GIA. Lasker, H. (1973). Why can’t they compose? Music Educators Journal, 59(8), 41–45.

Menard, E (2013). Creative thinking in music: Developing a model for meaningful learning in middle school general music. Music Educators Journal, 100(2), 61–67. doi:10.1177/0027432113500674 Norris, C. E. (2010, December 21). Introducing creativity in the ensemble setting. Music Educators Journal, 97(2), 57–62. doi: 10.1177/0027432110387934 Paparo, S. (2016). Circle singing: Composing improvisation and improvising composition. In J. L. Kerchner and K. Strand (Eds.), Musicianship: Composing in Choir (pp. 131–149). Chicago, IL: GIA. Potterton, M. (2015). Classical improvisation—A powerful and effective addition to choral warm-ups. The Choral Journal, 56(5), 55–59.

Price, S and C. Rodriguez. (2016). Arranging in the choral ensemble: Process and evaluation. In J. L. Kerchner and K. Strand (Eds.), Musicianship: Composing in Choir (pp. 187–206). Chicago, IL: GIA.

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DEI COLUMN: CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE ALLYSHIP Written by Dr. Jace Kaholokula Saplan and Alec Schumacker On behalf of our Western Region's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) committee, we welcome you to our first DEI column! In this column, we hope to hold space for members of our region to share their experiences in becoming more equitable and inclusive practitioners of the choral arts. We share vulnerably. We share boldly. We share in the hopes of serving our community as we heal harm, unearth affirming practices, and move towards a choral future made for everyone.

we are better allies for them— what gives them joy, what has harmed them, what makes them feel safe, and what keeps them coming back to your program? Listening requires us to hold space with our singers and to invest in building a community. How well do you know your students? What practices can you create or integrate within your program that could open the door to a more rooted approach to knowing and listening to your singers?

Our first column discusses a vital topic crucial to our classrooms and rehearsal spaces, culturally responsive allyship. Defined by the Anti-Oppression Network as a "consistent, and arduous practice of unlearning and re-evaluating, in which a person in a position of privilege and power seeks to operate in solidarity with a marginalized group," allyship calls upon us to confront our identities as markers of power and oppression that can either amplify or diminish the realm of possibilities within the choral ensemble. As we confront the unbreakable ties between the intricate web of identities within our ensembles, we must also see that the identities within our singers are also connected to our repertoire choices, performance practices, pedagogy, and administrivia. How, then, can we use our roles as choral conductors and educators to affirm our singers and their identities in ways that speak to their unique perspectives?

How can we actualize allyship in the choral arts?

Welcome Discomfort, Learn From Mistakes When we listen to our communities and begin to know them on a deeper level, we welcome stories, experiences, and a newfound awareness that can invite discomfort rooted within the privilege of our roles as conductors, educators, and possible, our own unique identities. Consequently, it is essential to acknowledge our discomfort for the sake of our singers and our practice. We cannot afford to ignore discomfort. For when discomfort is ignored, biases go unchecked, and problematic practices arise…often …unknowingly. When we encounter discomfort, it is crucial to acknolwedge it and ask ourselves, "Why do I feel this way? What steps can I take to move forward from this?” as an opportunity to grow in allyship.

In the words of DEI committee member and artistic director of the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles, EJ Harrison, "You will make mistakes. You must learn from them." There is no streamlined learning curve for this work. There will be times when our work in knowing, listening, and welcoming may unintentionally offend and harm. We must listen to the impact of the wrongdoing, apologize for the harm caused, dialogue about next steps, and learn from the community for the sake of a more inclusive choral future.

Here are some actionable steps to get us started.

Know Your Community, Listen To Your Community To know a community is to serve your community. This "knowing" that I am referring to goes past the surface of skillsets and voice classifications. I refer to a singerʻs lineage of experiences, the traditions that they hold dear, and their kinship to the land and the institution. I am referring to your knowledge of what actions affirm their identities and what actions silence them. This knowing that I refer to calls upon us to listen to our singers so that 37

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Speak Up

raised in Hawai‘i, and her family has resided on O‘ahu for almost 100 years. One of the many things I admire about my wife’s extended family is their persistent use of the word ‘stewardship’ to describe their relation to each other, their community, and their professions. Stewardship recognizes that what given to you is always a transient gift, and it’s your responsibility to take care of it, nurture it, and pass it along.

To honor our singers and colleagues who share, welcome, and learn with us, we must speak up for them. As our choral community works to be a catalyst for a DEI future, it is integral that we all hold each other accountable in this journey. Speak up for a colleague, for students, and your community when members in our profession act in ways that dishonor allyship. Silence only allows oppression to continue.

It is colonial history and historical wrongs that afford me the opportunity to live and work in Hawai‘i. It is therefore my kuleana (responsibility) to make my presence here, which is a gift and not a right, be a positive one for this community and its people. A potential opposite of colonial-based intergenerational trauma is intergenerational privilege, of which I am certainly a recipient. It is therefore my kuleana to make sure I give more to this place and people than it and they have given me – to be a steward. I have failed at these responsibilities repeatedly, sometimes spectacularly, sometimes in small ways. It is my kuleana to keep trying to do better and learn from and rectify these mistakes in order to justify my presence in this place.

A perfect example of modeling culturally responsive allyship is our colleague Dr. Alec Schumacker, past president of ACDA Hawai'i and Director of Choral Activities at Hawai'i Pacific University. In this column, Alec shares his positionality as a marker of allyship for how to serve and lead our choral community here in Hawai'i with vulnerability and with actionable steps that we can all learn from. Mahalo Nui, e Alec.

- Jace Kaholokula Saplan Chair of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee

In the classroom, this list of responsibilities manifests in several ways. I have a responsibility to my students that goes beyond the transmission of knowledge, aesthetic appreciation, or performance. It’s my kuleana to support and uplift composers and arrangers from Hawai‘i, to program music that accurately and authentically reflects the place in which I reside, to invite cultural practitioners and clinicians to work with our choirs, to provide financial and time-based support to causes that support and uplift students from Hawai‘i, and to help our students from outside Hawai‘i to appropriately appreciate, learn from, and contribute to this culture in which they and I are guests.

Performing music is an act of service. We are in service of the person/people who created the music – trying to authentically fulfill their aural vision. We are in service of our potential audience – trying to provide them a gratifying emotional experience. We are in service of culture and narrative – trying to honor the place, history, and story of the music. We are in service of each other, our fellow musicians – trying to honor their hard work and input by contributing our best efforts and vulnerable selves.

As music educators, we are also in service of our communities – trying to help and uplift our singer populations, to afford them an avenue and means for artistic expression, and to facilitate musical experiences that have a positive impact on their lives. As a music educator from the colonizing culture in a colonized place, this service to community requires additional thought and care – self-quieting, thinking, listening, reading, learning, and repeating.

Organizationally and community-wise, this responsibility takes the form of being an advocate and worker for causes and events that provide opportunities for local students and music educators, knowing when it’s appropriate and not appropriate for me to contribute to dialogue and ideation, and ensuring that money generated from past published choral arrangements of music from outside my culture go to causes that benefit the people of that culture and not to me.

I live in the land of the Kanaka Maoli (Native Hawaiians).

I work in the Honolulu ahupua‘a (land division). I am not from Hawai‘i and never will be. My wife was born and 38

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I’ve made this mistake in the past – arranging music from outside my culture without a full understanding of it and blessing to do so. I have tried to learn from and rectify this mistake by donating all of my past and future income from those arrangements to causes that uplift the people and culture from which the music emanates, and gaining permission from prominent cultural practitioners for any future projects.

From an ACDA perspective, it means advocating for composers, conductors, and educators from Hawai‘i on a national scale and bringing light to issues faced by musicians and educators in Hawai‘i. Sometimes it's as complex as inviting different perspectives from local student singers on what the phrase “ha‘ina ‘ia mai” (a phrase present in most Hawaiian songs) means to them in an exchange clinic so that our visiting friends can begin to grasp the cultural weight of that phrase. Sometimes it’s as simple as compassionately reminding ACDA friends that we can’t have a 7am convention meeting in California because that’s 4am in Hawai‘i.

It strikes me how much trying to act on these responsibilities is like being a conductor. When conductors are at their best, they’re invisible and silent – a conduit or amplifier that allows musicians to fully share their mana‘o (thoughts), mo‘olelo (stories), and beauty.

The musicians, their relation to the music, and their expression are the core of the process in the best musicmaking. So it is with my role as an educator from outside Hawai‘i – I should in the end be a mostly invisible and ultimately silent helper of those around me.

- Alec Schumacker, Past-President, ACDA-Hawai’i

Dr. Jace Saplan is the Director of Choral Activities at the University of Hawaiʻi, Assistant Professor of Music, and Artistic Director of Nā Wai Chamber Choir. Their research focuses on decoloniality and indigeneity within choral musicking, approaches of cultural sustaining intersectionality in choral pedagogy, and the positionality of wellness for BIPOC and LGTBQIA+ singers within choral communities.

Alec Schumacker is Director of Choral Activities and Assistant Professor at Hawai‘i Pacific University where he conducts the International Vocal Ensemble and the International Chorale. He presently serves as the Past President of the Hawai‘i Chapter of the American Choral Directors AssociationAn awardwinning composer and arranger, Alec’s choral music is published by Alliance Music Publications, earthsongs, and World Projects.

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