Directors may wish to send out a broad appeal to composers to create music that would better fit their needs, such as more SAB pieces (the need for more SAB literature was mentioned in a forum some time ago). Some directors might like to design a kind of e-composer-in-residence program, where a general call could go out to composers, offering the chance to compose something special for a choir in return not for money, but for a guaranteed recorded performance--with the recording provided to the composer for marketing purposes--if the final product meets the director's standards. Interested composers could respond, and one or more could be chosen to participate--no matter where they live. Why should composers (especially new ones) only be able to try to work closely with local choirs, and why should choirs only be able to try to work closely with local composers? In addition, directors may wish to provide information to composers on issues such as things to avoid or focus on when composing for "changing" voices or "older" voices, what kind of budgets they have for new music, ways in which they prefer self-published composers inform them of new music availability, etc.

 

All of these issues and many more would be much better placed (and much more widely accessed, I think) in a Forum developed specifically for such back-and-forth communications between choir directors and composers; the current way of trying to converse with each other, by attempting to find a "good-fit" Forum for one's posts, is awkward and scattered, as well as hit-or-miss in terms of user awareness of such posts, although the existing Forums work just fine for other needs. A specific Forum for this specific purpose, to encourage choir directors and composers to talk with each other, would be very valuable, I think. It would, however, be important to communicate that this would NOT be a place for self-promotion, and all such posts would be disallowed.

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Do you agree that such a new Forum would be helpful and useful?  Please add your thoughts.  Thanks--and here's to better communications and understanding between choir directors and composers everywhere.