Southern Exposure, Missouri Southern State Univ.
 Choral Caffeine: Listening at a Conference
Date: February 8, 2012
 Attending an ACDA Conference is a little like trying to drink from a fire-hose. There’s a whole lot coming at you in a big ol' hurry. The trick is to quench your thirst without getting soaked.
"One of the greatest benefits in attending conferences is hearing new literature. Yet, listeners must hear in a specific way if they are to learn the most from what they are hearing. Choral methods professors have proposed many useful lists of criteria for selecting literature for choirs, and those same criteria are equally valuable when listening at a conference. Since, over the course of the two or three days, one will hear many pieces of music, listening must be systematic. In ‘Choral Music: Methods and Materials’ Barbara Brinson identifies certain factors
Attending an ACDA Conference is a little like trying to drink from a fire-hose. There’s a whole lot coming at you in a big ol' hurry. The trick is to quench your thirst without getting soaked.
"One of the greatest benefits in attending conferences is hearing new literature. Yet, listeners must hear in a specific way if they are to learn the most from what they are hearing. Choral methods professors have proposed many useful lists of criteria for selecting literature for choirs, and those same criteria are equally valuable when listening at a conference. Since, over the course of the two or three days, one will hear many pieces of music, listening must be systematic. In ‘Choral Music: Methods and Materials’ Barbara Brinson identifies certain factors to consider in literature selection that are also significant for more effective convention listening:
<> range and tessitura of each voice part
<> quality text
<> accompaniment
<> size and maturity of choir
<> texture
Awareness and effective application of these factors will greatly enhance “evaluative listening” at conferences."
 How's your low range?
Date: February 6, 2012
A record company has begun a worldwide search for the singer who can sing a note so low that it is thought never to have been sung before.
Written by Military Wives composer Paul Mealor, the choral work De Profundis includes a low E, which lies more than two octaves below middle C.
C'mon, you know you can do it! A few shots of vodka, and no problem.
Free seating chart software
Date: February 4, 2012
For people like me who are too stingy to buy software (and particularly suspicious of sites which require a monthly fee for eternity), we're always on the lookout for freebies. One of the needs of choral directors is to make seating charts, and periodically there's a request on the forums for computer-based solutions to address this.
I use a Word clone to make charts, but a UK-based group, the Monday Mondays, decided to make their own, JavaScript-based one. It's free for anybody to use.
It's a little clunky, but hey, it's free.
Pros:
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Reasonably intuitive to use: click on a name, then click where you want it to go (can't drag). Entering the names in the first place is kind of a pain, but that's true for any system. Fast.
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Flexible section names (in case you have baritenors or other "transsectionals")
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Switch two singers' seats easily (something hard to do in Word)
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Move groups of singers at once (for example to add a singer in the middle)
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Browser-based; print directly from browser (a mixed blessing)
For people like me who are too stingy to buy software (and particularly suspicious of sites which require a monthly fee for eternity), we're always on the lookout for freebies. One of the needs of choral directors is to make seating charts, and periodically there's a request on the forums for computer-based solutions to address this.
I use a Word clone to make charts, but a UK-based group, the Monday Mondays, decided to make their own, JavaScript-based one. It's free for anybody to use.
It's a little clunky, but hey, it's free.
Pros:
-
Reasonably intuitive to use: click on a name, then click where you want it to go (can't drag). Entering the names in the first place is kind of a pain, but that's true for any system. Fast.
-
Flexible section names (in case you have baritenors or other "transsectionals")
-
Switch two singers' seats easily (something hard to do in Word)
-
Move groups of singers at once (for example to add a singer in the middle)
-
Browser-based; print directly from browser (a mixed blessing)
-
Did I mention it's free?
Cons:
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Can't save to file; you have to do a complicated workaround to save charts from one session to the next
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Row width is limited to 15 seats (really?)
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Name length limited to 10 characters
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Fixed cell width (although you can change it manually)
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Can't edit singer or section names within cell; have to create a new cell and discard the old one if you change somebody's section designation
Overall: might be helpful for some users, has a lot of potential for improvement. I'll stick with my Word clone (Apple's Pages) for now. I'll write to suggest to them that they might save the user's work in a cookie rather than the multi-step process they're using.
Sent from where?
Date: February 3, 2012
 Bob Eaton, president of ACDA's Eastern Division, gives us this juxtaposition of choral music and technology:
I received an email and in place of the typical "sent from my iPhone, or Android or whatever" statement it said:
"Sent from choir rehearsal."
A student?
A choir member?
No... The choir director!
Super Bowl a cappella
Date: February 2, 2012
This ad, scheduled for this Sunday's Super Bowl, features a cappella singing:
P.S. Happy Candlemas!
Choral Caffeine: Getting to the Conference
Date: February 1, 2012
 Given that the first of ACDA’s seven Divisional Conferences kicks off next week in Madison, Wisconsin, it seems a good time to share a few helpful hints for those journeying to one of these grand events. (You ARE planning to attend your ACDA Divisional Conference, aren’t you? You can still register.)
To help with some of the financial concerns, ACDA has provided a detailed discussion for seeking funding from your school or church. There is also a sample letter available to help you reach out to your superiors.
<> Arrive well-rested. We don't get much sleep at ACDA Conferences.
<> Don’t be shy about reading those name tags. You could be sharing the elevator with Eric Whitacre or Tim Sharp.
<> Arrive early for concerts. They're usually packed.
Given that the first of ACDA’s seven Divisional Conferences kicks off next week in Madison, Wisconsin, it seems a good time to share a few helpful hints for those journeying to one of these grand events. (You ARE planning to attend your ACDA Divisional Conference, aren’t you? You can still register.)
To help with some of the financial concerns, ACDA has provided a detailed discussion for seeking funding from your school or church. There is also a sample letter available to help you reach out to your superiors.
<> Arrive well-rested. We don't get much sleep at ACDA Conferences.
<> Don’t be shy about reading those name tags. You could be sharing the elevator with Eric Whitacre or Tim Sharp.
<> Arrive early for concerts. They're usually packed.
<> Attend EVERYTHING! An ACDA conference is not the time to nap or shop.
<> PLEASE visit with exhibitors. They are our industry partners in the choral arts (and save some room in your luggage for all the stuff you will buy in the exhibit area).
ACDA Conferences are exhilarating, overwhelming, and exhausting . . . they are absolutely the crown jewels of ACDA activities.
(Next week in Choral Caffeine, we’ll discuss ways to focus our listening to get the most out of those fabulous conference concerts.)
The Arts Teach
Date: January 30, 2012
 In Elliot Eisner’s book The Arts and the Creation of Mind (2002, Yale University Press), Eisner states, “The arts' position in the school curriculum symbolizes to the young what adults believe is important.” In Chapter 4, What the Arts Teach and How It Shows, Eisner outlines Ten Lessons the arts Teach:
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The arts teach children to make good judgments about qualitative relationships. Unlike curriculum in which correct answers and rules prevail, in the arts, it is judgment rather than rules that prevail.
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The arts teach children that problems can have more than one solution and that questions can have more than one answer.
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The arts celebrate multiple perspectives. One of their large lessons is that there are many ways to see and interpret the world.
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The arts teach children that in complex forms of problem solving purposes are seldom fixed, but change with circumstance and opportunity. Learning in the arts requires the ability and a willingness to surrender to
In Elliot Eisner’s book The Arts and the Creation of Mind (2002, Yale University Press), Eisner states, “The arts' position in the school curriculum symbolizes to the young what adults believe is important.” In Chapter 4, What the Arts Teach and How It Shows, Eisner outlines Ten Lessons the arts Teach:
-
The arts teach children to make good judgments about qualitative relationships. Unlike curriculum in which correct answers and rules prevail, in the arts, it is judgment rather than rules that prevail.
-
The arts teach children that problems can have more than one solution and that questions can have more than one answer.
-
The arts celebrate multiple perspectives. One of their large lessons is that there are many ways to see and interpret the world.
-
The arts teach children that in complex forms of problem solving purposes are seldom fixed, but change with circumstance and opportunity. Learning in the arts requires the ability and a willingness to surrender to the unanticipated possibilities of the work as it unfolds.
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The arts make vivid the fact that neither words in their literal form nor numbers exhaust what we can know. The limits of our language do not define the limits of our cognition.
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The arts teach students that small differences can have large effects. The arts traffic in subtleties.
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The arts teach students to think through and within a material.
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All art forms employ some means through which images become real.
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The arts help children learn to say what cannot be said. When children are invited to disclose what a work of art helps them feel, they must reach into their poetic capacities to find the words that will do the job.
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The arts enable us to have experience we can have from no other source and through such experience to discover the range and variety of what we are capable of feeling.
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The arts' position in the school curriculum symbolizes to the young what adults believe is important.
The National Art Education Association (NAEA) gives reprint permission for the above 10 lessons, with proper acknowledgment.
ACDA 4 U: North Central Conference Opens TODAY
Date: February 7, 2012
 ACDA members from Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, the Dakotas and other frosty states in the north central U.S. are gathering today in Madison, Wisconsin for the ACDA North Central Division Conference. Running today through the 11 th, this is the first of seven divisional conferences being offered by ACDA in 2012.
“Jump in your car and join us!” enthused ACDA North Central Division President, Aimee Beckman Collier.
Members can still join in the fun! ACDA staff members Katie Lewis and Craig Gregory are in Madison at this very moment and are eager to help you register for the North Central Division Conference.
ACDA 4 U: Western Division Includes Movement Session
Date: February 6, 2012
 Among the fabulous interest sessions scheduled for the Western Division Conference is "Movement: The Key to Making your Choir Sound Good." This session – presented by Charlene Archibeque – will cite recent research into how movement helps people learn and retain ideas, concepts, and sounds. The clinician will be demonstrate movement of the singers’ bodies in vocalizes, as they rehearse a piece, and as they perform music, and move the singers into different positions both on and off the risers. Subtle movements—such as turning the head slightly—finger movements, hand and arm movements, modified tai-chi, and other current uses of the body in the act of learning and performing will be explored. Differences in timbre will be demonstrated as singers positions are changed.
ACDA 4 U: Southern Conference Features "Voices of Light"
Date: February 5, 2012
 Voices Of Light – by Richard Einhorn – is a stunning evening of music theatre. The event has been performed at the Brooklyn Academy of Music Next Wave Festival; at Avery Fisher Hall in Lincoln Center; at the Kennedy Center, and Wolf Trap with the National Symphony; and in dozens of major concert halls across the country. It has been featured on CBS Sunday Morning; on NPR's PerformanceToday and All Things Considered; and in numerous national publications, including the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal. Voices Of Light merges the legendary silent film masterpiece The Passion of Joan of Arc with a live performance of a beautiful new work by composer Richard Einhorn. The film is considered by critics to be one of the 10 greatest films ever made. Thought to have been destroyed in warehouse fires, aperfect copy was discovered recently and lovingly restored. With its raw emotional power, its naturalistic acting, and an utterly contemporary visual style, The Passion of Joan of Arc
Voices Of Light – by Richard Einhorn – is a stunning evening of music theatre. The event has been performed at the Brooklyn Academy of Music Next Wave Festival; at Avery Fisher Hall in Lincoln Center; at the Kennedy Center, and Wolf Trap with the National Symphony; and in dozens of major concert halls across the country. It has been featured on CBS Sunday Morning; on NPR's PerformanceToday and All Things Considered; and in numerous national publications, including the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal. Voices Of Light merges the legendary silent film masterpiece The Passion of Joan of Arc with a live performance of a beautiful new work by composer Richard Einhorn. The film is considered by critics to be one of the 10 greatest films ever made. Thought to have been destroyed in warehouse fires, aperfect copy was discovered recently and lovingly restored. With its raw emotional power, its naturalistic acting, and an utterly contemporary visual style, The Passion of Joan of Arc looks like it was made only yesterday. It is a haunting, extraordinary film.
ACDA 4 U: MS/JHS Features Middle School Voices
Date: February 4, 2012
 One of the features of the Middle School/Junior High School Conference for Choral Music will be the opportunity to hear something seldom heard on ACDA conferences: MS/JHS choirs. Includede on this events are ensembles from A. Mario Loiederman MS, Beckendorf JHS, Rice MS, Blalack MS, Parkhill JHS, Briarhill MS, W.E. Greiner Academy, Arbor Creek MS, Hernando MS, and Yound JHS.
ACDA 4 U: Southwestern Conference includes "Angel of the East"
Date: February 3, 2012
 The ACDA Southwestern Division Conference will include a performance of "Angel of the East." The work sets part of John Donne’s poem Good Friday, 1613. Riding Westward, explaining the spiritual context: the poet rides out on business on a Good Friday, neglecting his meditations on Christ’s death. He journeys away from Jerusalem and the crucifi xion, which lies due east, moving in the opposite direction to which his mind automatically turns. Donne argues against his guilt that by travelling westwards he will eventually reach the east. Thus, the earth is a sphere where east and west become one. The work is scored for solo soprano, SSA voices, bass instruments, plucked instruments, organ, virginals, harmonium, two percussionists, violins.
ACDA 4 U: Eastern Conference is Just Two Weeks Away
Date: February 1, 2012
“The Eastern Conference is all about "Community" beginning the day with Yoga, Tai Chi, or a free breakfast with your colleagues,” said Eastern Division President Bob Eaton, “Then sharing of talents and expertise in concert and presentations, learn about "Building Community through Song" for Special Needs, Homeless, Hospice and other outreach programs and end the day with an outstanding concert.”
ACDA 4 U: North Central Conference Features Paulus Oratorio
Date: January 30, 2012
 To Be Certain of the Dawn was commissioned by the Basilica of Saint Mary in Minneapolis as a gift to Temple Israel Synagogue in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi death camps. It is the result of interfaith dialogue and stands as a testimony to the power of understanding and of music’s unique ability to encourage hope, to promote peace. The rehearsal and performance of this transformative piece are being approached in an exceptionally process-driven way, with the intention of modeling the Beyond the Notes philosophy on which this conference is based. The oratorio will be performed on February 10 by choirs from Nebraska Wesleyan University, Minnesota State University, Wartburg College, and members of the Madison Boys and Girls Choirs, the Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestra, and soloists from throughout the North Central Division.
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Montreal native and Old Louisville resident Andrew Wheaton, 26, was chosen by the Thoroughbred’s board of directors Jan. 19 after an extensive search, said Eric Hunstiger, the group’s president.
