Items by Lana Mountford

Search:

Everything

Announcements

Results: 61

Title	Author	Date
Comment: Re: re Bernstein's Chichester Psalms	Lana Mountford	April 18, 2012
Linda is absolutely correct. I had some coaching sessions with Abe Kaplan about 5 yrs ago when the group I assistant conduct performed Chichester, and, having heard of his close association with Bernstein, I asked him the same question: why the stipulation that a boy or countertenor sing the Psa...
Comment: Re: Choral/Vocal work featuring piano	Lana Mountford	April 9, 2012
Anything by Caldwell & Ivory would certainly fit your criteria, especially "Ain't No Grave" and "John the Revelator." Both are published by Earthsongs, and have very interesting and very challenging piano parts. You don't mention whether your vocal ensemble is SATB or something else, ...
Comment: Re: Humorus Madrigal	Lana Mountford	March 21, 2012
"O Proud Left Foot," by Steve Murray, Cypress Press. SATB a cappella Imagine "The Hokey Pokey" written in the style of Shakespeare, then set to music. VERY funny. Here's a recording to give you an idea of how it sounds: http://www.box.com/shared/99etjgam30 (Cantaré Vocal Ensem...
Comment: Re: Farewell to Music Director	Lana Mountford	March 5, 2012
One of my favorites for a retiring church leader: May You Know God's Grace, Lloyd Larson, Shawnee Press. I've used it for a retiring organist (shortly after his 60th anniversary as the organist at the UMC I was serving in at the time), and for a retiring pastor. Lovely, accessible, appropria...
Community Forum Post: Are we visible?	Lana Mountford	February 9, 2012
This may be a very dumb question, but how many conductors a) know about the "Compsers of Choral Music" community, and b) read here regularly? I still get confused as to whether to post my questions or announcements in the Choralnet Forums OR in one of the Community Forums. And I didn't ev...
PDF Document: This is the Day That the Lord Has Made	Lana Mountford	February 7, 2012

PDF Document: Savior Like a Shepherd Lead Us	Lana Mountford	February 7, 2012

PDF Document: Phil the Fluther's Ball	Lana Mountford	February 6, 2012

PDF Document: Mipney Mah?	Lana Mountford	February 6, 2012

PDF Document: Blow Blow Thou Winter Wind	Lana Mountford	February 6, 2012

PDF Document: Riders on the Earth	Lana Mountford	February 6, 2012

Comment: Re: Rutter's " I Will Sing with the Spirit" - transposed lower for older singers?	Lana Mountford	December 13, 2011
Hi, Catherine -- The best sacred music publisher I've found so far that is actually focusing on seniors is Lillenas Music -- here: http://www.lillenas.com/nphweb/html/lmol/innerpage.jsp?c=LMOL&cs=CHOIR&sc=SENCH&ss=NA&nid=lcol Our holiday concerts feature mostly ca...
Comment: Re: Rutter's " I Will Sing with the Spirit" - transposed lower for older singers?	Lana Mountford	December 12, 2011
Catherine -- What the two Johns said! I do this often with my seniors choir. We're not at a level where we can do SATB, so I purchase mostly 2-part music (or write/arrange it myself!). Most published two-part music is written for children's choirs, so tessitura is often too hi...
Comment: Re: donor categories	Lana Mountford	October 27, 2011
I've sung with two groups that use musical dynamic terminology for donor categories: Pianissimo: $10-49 Piano: $50-99 Mezzo-piano: $100-249 Mezzo-forte: $250-499 Forte: $500-999 Fortissimo: $1000 or more Another group I'm familiar with uses tempo terminology in a ...
Comment: Re: Female Basses in Vivaldi and Oh-The- Possibilities!(?)	Lana Mountford	October 15, 2011
Hi, John -- Sheesh -- I just realized I neglected to include the complete bibliography with the paper I uploaded to box.net (it was in a separate file on my computer). I've just uploaded an updated version of the paper (same link as before) that now includes the complete bibliography. ...
Comment: Re: Female Basses in Vivaldi and Oh-The- Possibilities!(?)	Lana Mountford	October 14, 2011
Interesting video-- very nice, indeed. Coincidentally, I did a research paper for a graduate music history class a few years ago on the question of tenors and basses in the Venetian Ospedali. Both the Mendicanti and the Pieta institutions had female tenors and basses on the rolls at vario...
Community Forum Post: YouTube agreement with Harry Fox and NMPA	Lana Mountford	August 18, 2011
From the announcement at http://youtube-global.blogspot.com/2011/08/creating-new-opportunities-for.html : "We already have deals in place with a number of music publishers in the U.S. and around the world, and today’s deal offers more choice for rights holders in how they manage use of...
Community Forum Post: Notation App for iPad?	Lana Mountford	August 3, 2011
Can anyone recommend a good notation app for the iPad? I'm an experienced Finale user (8 yrs), and I'm looking for something that will allow me to lay down ideas while I'm traveling that I can then transfer (probably via midi) into Finale for further development when I get home. It needs to hand...
Comment: Re: Forming chorus in living assistance community	Lana Mountford	July 6, 2011
Hi, Connie -- I currently direct a seniors choir in Seattle: GoldenTones Vocal Ensemble, at Foundation House, a retirement community with assisted living accommodations. We started in 2008 with 12 singers, and we just finished our 3rd season with 31 members. Average age: 87; my youn...
Comment: Re: Posting audio files online	Lana Mountford	June 27, 2011
Are you talking about recording part-predominant files (S, A, T and B) and/or accompaniment files to be used by the students to learn their individual parts? Or are you talking about recording rehearsals and posting those files? Either way, the easiest format for sound file sharing is .mp...
Community Forum Post: "Commissioning a composer" - what can go wrong?	Lana Mountford	June 20, 2011
This little animated dialogue came to me in an email from a composers' organization to which I belong. It shows what can go wrong when commissioning a "modern" piece from a new composer (in this case, it's a piece for solo guitar). It also illustrates one of the reasons I decided AGAINST going...
Community Forum Post: Choral Composer/Arranger Workshops?	Lana Mountford	March 5, 2011
Hi -- Does anyone know of any workshops for choral composers and/or arrangers? I'm familiar with a number of conducting workshops, and of course the big ACDA and Chorus America conferences, but I'm looking for something specifically targeted to composers and arrangers of choral music. �...
Comment: Re: Singing School? or Community Choir?	Lana Mountford	February 18, 2011
Thanks, Ron -- that's sort of my take on this, too. Under the "community choir" model, the director insisted on having "final say" over virtually every operational detail. The financials were rather "sticky," too, as only the director had signature authority on the group's checking account. ...
Forum message: Singing School? or Community Choir?	Lana Mountford	February 15, 2011
Greetings, folks -- I need some advice. One of the choirs I participate in was originally founded as a "singing school" for adults The founding director charged tuition and singers received 10 weeks of lessons in a choral setting, the culmination of which was a concert for family and fr...
Comment: Re: Choral with Percussion	Lana Mountford	January 18, 2011
Have you looked at Leonard Bernstein's "Missa Brevis"? It's SATB with percussion, fairly advanced (tricky rhythms). Needs a good tenor (possibly counter-tenor) soloist, but certainly doable by a good collegiate small choir. http://www.sheetmusicplus.com/title/Missa-Brevis/4094001# Lana ...
Community Forum Post: Care and Feeding of the "Mature" Choir ...	Lana Mountford	October 29, 2010
Greetings! I'd love to get some ideas from the group here on some exercises that I can use with my "seniors" choir, and as well as any repertoire suggestions for Christmas or spring music (our spring concert theme is "the birds and the bees"). I currently direct a a wonderful...
Comment: Re: Upbeat choral music for Community Choir	Lana Mountford	October 24, 2010
Take a look at "We Rise Again," Leon Dubinsky/Lydia Adams, Alfred Publishing. SATB, piano. You can get to a snippet of a recording from here: http://www.jwpepper.com/5568118.item There's also a stunning recording/video of the TTBB version on Youtube with Chor Leoni, Diane Loomer's men's cho...
Comment: Re: music correlation	Lana Mountford	August 3, 2010
I spent 32 years in a successful and very rewarding software development career, starting in 1970 as a programmer trainee, and ending in 2003 as the principal database designer for a leading international online retailer (named after a river in South America). I started playing piano whe...
Comment: Re: Looking for Good Repetoir for A Small Women's Church Ensemble.....	Lana Mountford	June 4, 2010
Brady, take a look at Ruth Elaine Schram's "How Can I Keep From Singing" (Brilee Music Pub.), for SSA. I've used this twice for a small women's "pick up" choir. It's not terribly difficult, with nice vocal lines that "make sense," and it really is lovely. Even your less experienced singers s...
Comment: Re: Music for a Theme - Messages	Lana Mountford	May 26, 2010
Brad Printz's "Two Love Songs" for SSAA, a cappella, publ. Shawnee, might work for you. http://www.jwpepper.com/3294261.item has a sample of the score plus an .mp3 of the entire work. It includes two letters: Thomas Hood's "To My Wife," followed seamlessly by "A Lady's Thought," an anonymous ...
Comment: Re: SATB music on "mother" theme	Lana Mountford	May 19, 2010
Take a look at "We Rise Again," by Leon Dubinsky, arr. by Lydia Adams for SATB, published by Alfred. I've used this for a "mother" theme before, and it always seems to work well. Not too difficult, beautiful melody, wonderful lyrics (secular), with a nice modern feel. Here's the jwpepper lin...
Concert: Cantaré Vocal Ensemble -- Seattle, WA	Lana Mountford	March 29, 2010
Cantaré Vocal Ensemble presents: Hey, Ho, the Wind and the Rain! WHEN: Saturday, April 24, 2010, 8:00pm Sunday, April 25, 2010, 2:00pm WHERE: The Chapel at Lakeside School 14050 1st Ave. NE Seattle, WA Experience the lyrical genius of William Shakespeare in this light-hearted conce...
Comment: Re: Never Alone	Lana Mountford	March 24, 2010
You probably already have the original sheet music release of this in the "Fame Vocal Selections" songbook, right? It has the accompaniment, and I know it has the melody -- and may have the other vocal parts (it's been awhile since I looked at my copy -- it's still in a box somewhere). It's ...
Comment: Re: What is your favorite????	Lana Mountford	February 9, 2010
Gustav Holst: The Cloud Messenger I've sung it, would give my left arm to conduct it, and listen to it often. Lana Mountford Bellingham, WA
Comment: Re: HS Choral Budget issues	Lana Mountford	February 7, 2010
Have you looked into DonorsChoose.org? This is a non-profit that allows teachers to register "projects," and allows "citizen philanthropists" (ordinary folks like me) to peruse the registered projects and fund the one(s) they choose. As a project is registed, a member of the DonorsChoose staff...
Comment: Re: "Voice as Instrument" SSA/SSAA	Lana Mountford	January 27, 2010
Since you're doing "voice as instrument" music, you might want to take a look at the "Song of Survival" series of orchestral and piano works arranged by Margaret Dryburgh and Norah Chambers for women's voices (published by Theodore Presser). These were created for use by the women incarcerated i...
Concert: Cantaré Vocal Ensemble -- Seattle, WA	Lana Mountford	November 16, 2009
Cantaré Vocal Ensemble presents: An Evening in December Director: Mark Adrian Saturday, December 5, 8:00pm Sunday, December 6, 2:00pm St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral, 1045 10th Ave., Seattle, WA Tickets: $20 general, $18 seniors (advance purchase) $22 at the door Under 18 admitted free wit...
Comment: Re: See it: Well-tempered vs. Pure	Lana Mountford	November 2, 2009
http://www.justonic.com/ It's a company name. The video is one of their demos. The software they sell is intended to be used with electronic keyboards or guitars. From the website: "The "insurmountable" tuning problem called the "Pythagorean comma" has been solved! The Justonic Tu...
Comment: Re: Multicultural Music HS female choir	Lana Mountford	October 27, 2009
Earthsongs has a large number of SSA/SSAA works from a variety of countries/sources: -- Anything with Donald Patriquin's name associated with it is absolutely first-rate. You need a good accompanist, but the result is well worth the effort! "Six Songs of Early Canada" and "World Music S...
Comment: Re: Beethoven Choral Fantasy	Lana Mountford	October 17, 2009
Would this help? http://imslp.info/files/imglnks/usimg/9/95/IMSLP33363-PMLP01806-Beethoven-Op080PSptrs.pdf I recall that G. Schirmer had such a beast some years ago -- I had it when I worked on the piece (in another life, I was a pianist), and used it again when I sang it in 1994. I'm posi...
Comment: Re: Mussorgsky Night on Bare Mountain WITH chorus?	Lana Mountford	October 8, 2009
The choral version that you heard may have been from Mussorgsky's opera "The Fair at Sorochyntsi," in Act III in a scene known as "the dream of the peasant Gritsko." You can find an excerpt of a recording of it here: Mussorgsky Heaven and Hell. It also appeared in choral form in an earlier ...
Comment: Re: Non public domain performance online	Lana Mountford	October 4, 2009
It would certainly be useful if there were a clear easy-to-understand policy about this; better, even, if the publishers could agree to a single policy as copyright holders. I have discovered so much new repertoire for my own groups via Youtube videos, resulting in the purchase of well over a t...
Comment: Re: concert theme ideas	Lana Mountford	July 18, 2009
Several of my favorites: -- flora and fauna (songs about flowers and critters) -- this concert included R. Murray Schafer's "Medieval Bestiary" -- tons of fun for singers and audience, but maybe a tad "racy" for a midwestern parochial high school -- "Follow the Sun" - songs from as many time zones a...
Comment: Re: An Eternal Question	Lana Mountford	July 16, 2009
I'd still encourage you to invite potential members to attend a rehearsal with your group -- actually stand (or sit) with your singers, and let them decide from that if they'd like to audition. We've done that several times, and picked up several new members that way. They can see first hand 1) how ...
Comment: Re: An Eternal Question	Lana Mountford	July 15, 2009
Hi, Marie ... I'm the ass't conductor of a chamber choir in a large city where there are at least 4 other similar choirs, so we do have some "competition" for singers and audience. Every group seems to try to carve out a specific "niche" based on repertoire, group's general location, etc., and we've...
Comment: Re: SSAA rep WITHOUT text	Lana Mountford	June 11, 2009
Have you looked at any of the "Song of Survival" material? These sets includes wordless arrangements of orchestral concert music. The arrangements were created by Margaret Dryburgh during WWII for the women confined in the Japanese camps in Sumatra. They are really well done, and may provide s...
Comment: Re: Concert Attire Questions	Lana Mountford	June 9, 2009
Are you familiar with the organization Donorschoose.org? Teachers submit "projects" that need funding, and ordinary folks like me check 'em out and donate money. The donorschoose staff "vets" each project and helps source the needed items. Dollar amounts can be anywhere from $100 or so up ...
Comment: Re: Arranger info for Dale Warland Singers' "Harvest Home"?	Lana Mountford	June 9, 2009
This is from the track listing on the Amazon.com page for this CD. I'm not sure how much help it will be, but it's a start: Beautiful river Composed by Robert Lowry Conducted by Dale Warland, Ruth Palmer Simple Gifts Composed by Joseph Brackett ...
Comment: Re: Lincoln, Darwin and Tennyson	Lana Mountford	June 8, 2009
Jeff -- my chamber choir in Seattle did a concert in March of this year with the theme "1809," including music based on the three writers you mentioned above. The last half of the concert, in fact, was made up of this music. We also included Edgar Allan Poe, who was also born in 1809. On Darw...
Comment: Re: Themed Concerts	Lana Mountford	June 3, 2009
John, I probably use a combination of the two approaches, sort of a "sandwich" strategy. Let's look at a Christmas concert, for example. Maybe there's a particular piece I really want my group to perform, say, the Buxtehude Magnificat. An obvious theme, then, might be something like "Those Ma...

Join Today!