Challenge Yields Change

"If it doesn't challenge you, it doesn't change you."
                                                       -Fred DeVito

It's important to introduce our students to music that will motivate them to grow as musicians and individuals. Finding pieces with just the right amount of challenge can be difficult, however, as there's often a fine line between too challenging and not challenging enough. The music below addresses this balancing act by incorporating musical aspects that will stretch your singers while also inspiring them to reach for heightened levels of musical artistry.


The Choir Invisible
Carson Cooman

Bold musical lines and expansive harmonies distinguish Carson Cooman's powerful and introspective setting of this well-known George Eliot text. So shall I join the choir invisible whose music is the gladness of the world.

SATB



Remember
Victor C. Johnson

Victor Johnson presents wonderful moments for expressive singing and artistic phrasing in Remember. Cascading sixteenth note motifs and a rich harmonic palette unite the musical fabric and amplify the image-laden text. Then in a rising melody, the songs of earth called out to me ... and music flowed from my heart again.

SATB 



Upon a Wheel of Cloud
J.D. Frizzell

A dazzling showpiece for mature ensembles, J.D. Frizzell's masterful choral writing frames a classic Emily Dickinson poem in this dramatic setting. Upon a Wheel of Cloud begins a cappella and develops into a captivating interplay of vocal lines and piano.

SATB



Three Choral Ayres
Joseph Willcox Jenkins

This set of engaging madrigals by Joseph Willcox Jenkins includes three short movements designed to be performed as a single work. Full of choral color and compositional texture, this collection is well suited for the accomplished ensemble.

SATB



In That Great Gittin' Up Mornin'
Mark Hayes

From Mark Hayes's popular Spirit Suite, this setting of the spiritual standard features uplifting harmony and inventive accompaniment that supports the text and tune. Highlight an exceptional female voice with the optional soprano solo!

SATB


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Mark is a graduate of Wright State University in Dayton, OH, having received a bachelor’s degree in music education and a master’s degree in choral conducting. 

 

Before coming to Lorenz, Mark was the director of choirs at both Howard W. Blake High School for the Performing Arts in Tampa, FL, and Monroe Jr./Sr. High School in Monroe, OH.  Mark is also currently the director of the KCC Concert Choir, an advanced treble choir within the Kettering Children’s Choir organization. The group has toured extensively, and recently sang in the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. and with the South Cape Children’s Choir and various performing ensembles on a tour throughout South Africa. In the Spring of 2015, Mark also had the privilege of preparing the choir for performances of the Britten War Requiem under the baton of Keith Lockhart, conductor of the Boston Pops. In addition, Mark has been the music director at his church since the age of 18, and regularly travels throughout the country giving workshops on conducting and worship leading. 
 

Mark is the blessed husband of Jennifer and proud father of Michael and Ellie.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

In honor of St. Patrick's Day, here is a performance of Linda Spevacek's"Irish Blessing."

"May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
the rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
may God hold you in the palm of His hand."

For more information on this piece, click here or on the cover image above

Put Down the Pencil!

 by Brody McDonald

So many times I tell my choirs to “begin with the end in mind,” as I learned from Steven Covey. When discussing a performance, I will sometimes ask, “What do you want the audience to say when you finish?” or “What do you want the audience to feel during your performance?” When it comes to singing in a competition, this line of thinking goes a bit farther.

Let’s take for example when my choirs perform at Ohio Music Education Association Large Group Contest each spring. OMEA ratings are:

-I: Superior
-II: Excellent
-III: Good
-IV: Fair
-V: Poor

We discuss what we need to do in order to prove beyond the shadow of a doubt that we deserve a Superior rating. Until recently, I told the students to tell the judges (with their singing) to put down a “I.”

Then something changed.  I judged an ICCA Quarterfinal (International Championship of Collegiate Acappella). As I judged, I was constantly thinking, constantly writing, constantly thinking of what number to circle in each category. How I wished for a group who sang so well I could just listen. Not write. Not circle. Just listen and enjoy.

I realized that I had never fully articulated to my choirs what was in my heart for so long. Since we are in ramp-up for OMEA contest now, I asked my top choir, “What do you want the judges to put down?” I heard a chorus of “I!” and “Superior!” and even some “zero!” (being above a I). Then I said, “I want them to put down their pencils.”

A judge who is caught up in an artistic performance doesn’t want to write or score. They just want to listen. They will gladly take the opportunity to step away from the job of judging to become a happy audience member. If your performance can make that happen, then you’ve won – regardless of your score. Don’t get me wrong – I’m not here to say “we’re all winners!” I don’t think that way. I do, however, think there can be more than one winner in music – which is what makes music different than a basketball game. Anyone who can turn the dots on the printed page into engaging music for the audience is a winner.

When your goal is a score or a winning rank, you aren’t striving towards artistry. If you try to get a specific number out of a judge and fail, then you’re just a failure. If your goal is to create art and you make it, there’s no score or ranking that can invalidate your performance. Creating art is the highest challenge, and if you succeed with your singing, the scores and ranks typically take care of themselves.

At the end of the day, music is an art form. When performed well, it becomes nearly impossible to score. That’s why competitions are both good and bad. They are good because they drive us to make our performances strong enough to become true art, and thus a subjective matter that lives outside of scoring. What a paradox! Yes, there will still be scoring in contests, and there will be ratings awarded. There might be plaques or trophies handed out. Still, the real winners will always be those who created true art on stage and every audience member not holding a pencil.

For more outstanding insights from Brody, be sure to visit his blog at www.brodymcdonald.com!

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Brody McDonald is the director of choirs at Kettering Fairmont High School and a faculty member of Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. His choirs have performed regularly at OMEA, ACDA Central Division and ACDA National conferences. In addition, they have performed with international artists such as Kenny Rogers, LeAnn Rimes, The Beach Boys, Kenny Loggins and Pentatonix. His award-winning a cappella group, Eleventh Hour, is the first high school group to be featured on NBC's The Sing-Off. They have also been featured on ABC's Extreme Makeover Home Edition and won a gold medal in the Pop Choral Champions Division at the World Choir Games. Eleventh Hour's studio recordings have been included numerous times on Best of High School A Cappella and have won CARA awards for Best High School Album and Best High School Song.

Brody is at the forefront of the educational a cappella movement, serving as a founder of the A Cappella Education Association and as a nominator/judge for the Contemporary A Cappella Recording Association (CARA). He has presented at numerous educational conferences on pop a cappella in the classroom, and regularly lectures on the topic for ACDA chapters throughout the Midwest. Brody is the author of A Cappella Pop: A Complete Guide to Contemporary A Cappella Singing and the co-owner of Camp A Cappella (www.campacappella.com), an immersive week-long summer camp dedicated to the study of contemporary a cappella.

Brody is a graduate of Bowling Green State University, where he received a bachelor's degree in music education and a master's degree in choral conducting. He is an experienced barbershopper who sang in an international champion college quartet, a top-20 open class quartet, and in a bronze-medal chorus. He has been named one of Choral Director magazine's Choral Directors of Note.

Festival Music for the Choral Classroom

Selections for Secondary Choirs

by Mark Jauss, Advertising Associate and Choral Director

What is it that makes the honor choir experience so special? Most would probably say that it's the sense of community, the high level of musicality demanded, and the pride that comes along with seeing how focused preparation yields positive, inspiring results. The selections below have all been performed in a variety of festival settings. If you're going to be conducting an honor choir, or if you're looking to recreate this transformative experience in your choral classroom, I highly recommended these tried-and-true selections.


Do, Lord, Remember Me
André J. Thomas

André Thomas presents the traditional spiritual in an energetic and dynamic fashion. Including accessible vocal parts that are supported by a rhythmically and harmonically fresh accompaniment, both choirs and audiences will both enjoy this rousing piece.

SATB


Here is a performance by the 2013 Florida All State Concert Choir...
 

In Paradisum
Gabriel Fauré/arr. Earlene Rentz

This lovely piece features a simplified accompaniment that retains Fauré's original harmonies. Care has been given to voice leading so that singers of all skill levels can sing the luscious chord changes and progressions that characterize this well-respected work.

SSA





Will There Really Be a Morning?
Victor C. Johnson

Victor Johnson combines a thought-provoking poem by Emily Dickinson with a tender original melody. Exquisite vocal lines, lush harmonies, and a sensitive accompaniment ensure that this heartfelt setting will make an impact.

SATB and TTBB





Gloria
André J. Thomas

Commissioned for the finale of the 2015 ACDA High School Honor Choir concert, this gospel-style selection features energetic vocals supported by a driving piano accompaniment. Singers and audiences alike will appreciate this spirited piece.

SATB



Here is a performance by the 2015 ACDA National Conference HS Mixed Honor Choir...

Inscription of Hope
Z. Randall Stroope

Limited ranges, an a cappella section, and narration contribute to the effectiveness of this song of hope. Incorporating fragments of a Russian folk melody and a Jewish text, the message is universal: hope and firm belief will reign victorious over even the greatest of odds.

TTB/TBB, SATB, SSA, Three-part Mixed, and Two-part


Here is a performance by the 2010 Suffolk All County Choir...

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Mark is a graduate of Wright State University in Dayton, OH, having received a bachelor’s degree in music education and a master’s degree in choral conducting. 

 

Before coming to Lorenz, Mark was the director of choirs at both Howard W. Blake High School for the Performing Arts in Tampa, FL, and Monroe Jr./Sr. High School in Monroe, OH.  Mark is also currently the director of the KCC Concert Choir, an advanced treble choir within the Kettering Children’s Choir organization. The group has toured extensively, and recently sang in the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. and with the South Cape Children’s Choir and various performing ensembles on a tour throughout South Africa. In the Spring of 2015, Mark also had the privilege of preparing the choir for performances of the Britten War Requiem under the baton of Keith Lockhart, conductor of the Boston Pops. In addition, Mark has been the music director at his church since the age of 18, and regularly travels throughout the country giving workshops on conducting and worship leading. 
 

Mark is the blessed husband of Jennifer and proud father of Michael and Ellie.

Hit the Refresh Button on Your Choral Warm-ups

I don't know about you, but if there's one aspect of my rehearsals that I find I need to continuously refresh, it's the warm-ups. All too easily these wonderful opportunities for teaching and growth can become monotonous and stale. Sufficient time is set aside for score study and overall rehearsal planning and preparation, of which warm-ups should be a part, but they're are all too often an after thought (after all, I've been doing this for so long that I can just "shoot from the cuff" here, right?). As choral educators, we understand that the warm-ups are a vital component of our rehearsal, but yet the forethought we give them doesn't always reflect this awareness.

When I find myself wondering why a rehearsal wasn't as effective as I would have liked, I tend to take a look at the way it started. Were the singers engaged in the warm-ups? Did they understand the connection between the warm-ups and their music? Was there a connection between the warm-ups and their music? Were they challenged by the warm-ups, or did they just "go through the motions?" Did I just go through the motions myself?

When I start asking these questions, I know that it's time to start looking around for some new warm-ups; it's time, perhaps, to hit the "refresh" button. And, while there are a few publications that I consistently refer to (The Complete Choral Warm-up Book by Russell Robinson and Jay Althouse, for instance), I often find myself looking to YouTube for inspiration. While there is often much "wading" through that needs to be done, I have stumbled across and returned to a few wonderful videos over the years when I feel the well has run dry. These videos are outline below, and I hope that you'll receive renewed inspiration from them, as I have. Enjoy!



Here is the Indianapolis Children's Choir in action. Some great takeaways here if you're looking for exercises to energize your ensemble (I'm a big fan of kinesthetic engagement)...

If you're looking for a new ear training exercise, this one is fantastic. It presents a considerable challenge, but is also very rewarding once the singers master it.

...and another ear training exercise, this time demonstrated by Voices in Harmony.

If you're looking for a few new exercises to engage the breath, check this out...

Some wonderful examples here for activities that activate the body and mind (same awesome middle school boys choir!)...

Lastly, here is a look into a high school choral rehearsal. I've used, and had success with, almost all of the exercises demonstrated in this video. Some great stuff here.

Do you have any warm-ups that you'd like to share? Any warm-ups/resources that you find yourself returning to over and over again? Would love to hear from you, if so!

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Mark is a graduate of Wright State University in Dayton, OH, having received a bachelor’s degree in music education and a master’s degree in choral conducting. 

 

Before coming to Lorenz, Mark was the director of choirs at both Howard W. Blake High School for the Performing Arts in Tampa, FL, and Monroe Jr./Sr. High School in Monroe, OH.  Mark is also currently the director of the KCC Concert Choir, an advanced treble choir within the Kettering Children’s Choir organization. The group has toured extensively, and recently sang in the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. and with the South Cape Children’s Choir and various performing ensembles on a tour throughout South Africa. In the Spring of 2015, Mark also had the privilege of preparing the choir for performances of the Britten War Requiem under the baton of Keith Lockhart, conductor of the Boston Pops. In addition, Mark has been the music director at his church since the age of 18, and regularly travels throughout the country giving workshops on conducting and worship leading. 
 

Mark is the blessed husband of Jennifer and proud father of Michael and Ellie.