Cantate v21 n2 Winter 2009 DRAFT - calcda.orgcalcda.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/cantate_vol21_no2_winter2009.pdf · 2 California ACDA • Winter 2009 Official Publication of the

Published by the California Chapter of the American Choral Directors Association Volume 21, Number 2 • Winter 2009

Inside… PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE ..............................3 IRIS LEVINE AND JOE MILLER HEADLINE 2009 ALL-STATE HONOR CHOIRS ..............5 MARK TEETERS NAMED A CALIFORNIA TEACHER OF THE YEAR .........7 TAPPING INTO THE MESSAGE BOARD.........7 ELECTIONS 2009 REGIONAL REPRESENTATIVES ...............16 PRESIDENT-ELECT .................................18

REGIONAL REPRESENTATIVES

CENTRAL COAST NEWS..............................9

REPERTOIRE & STANDARDS

TRY A CHOIR RETREAT THIS YEAR .........10 PAUL SALAMUNOVICH SHARES ................11 CMEA MIDDLE SCHOOL HONOR CHOIR DEBUTS ............................11 TIPS FOR MAKING YOUR CHOIR MUSICAL.............................12 VOCAL JAZZ NUTS AND BOLTS ................14 CALIFORNIA ACDA CONTACTS

..................................................................19

Whereas, the human spirit is elevated to a broader understanding of itself through study and performance in the aesthetic arts, and

Whereas, serious cutbacks in funding and support have steadily eroded state institutions and their programs throughout our country,

Be it resolved that all citizens of the United States actively voice their affirmative and collective support for necessary funding at the local, state, and national levels of education and government, to ensure the survival of arts programs.

ACDA members are encouraged to print the ACDA Advocacy Resolution in all programs.

ACDA Advocacy Resolution

Opening Night of the New York Music Festival of 1881— Handel’s “Dettigen Te Deum” Wood engraving. From American Art Journal 35 (14 May 1881): cover.

Performing Art Reading Room, Library of Congress. American Choral Music, 1870-1923, is a collaboration between the

American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) and the Library of Congress.

2 California ACDA • Winter 2009

Official Publication of the California Chapter

American Choral Directors Association

Editor Douglas Lynn [email protected] c/o 1450 South Melrose Drive, Oceanside CA 92056 760-758-4100 ext 140 Cantate is published three times each year.

Submission Deadlines Fall Issue — August 1 (published September 1) Winter Issue — December 1 (published January 1) Spring Issue — April 1 (published May 1)

Guidelines for Submissions The Editor welcomes the submission of articles, announcements, reports, music and book reviews, job vacancies, and any other item of interest to the California ACDA membership. Articles should reach the Editor no later than the established deadline and should include the following information:

1. Title 2. Author’s name and phone/email address 3. Name of school, church, or organization 4. Author biography (50 words) 5. A good full-face photo

The manuscript should be limited to a maximum of two typewritten pages. Electronic text is preferred and may be emailed to the Editor at the above address. California ACDA reserves the right to edit submissions.

Guidelines for Advertising Charges listed are for camera-ready copy only, submitted electronically by PDF, JPEG, GIF, or TIFF. Cantate is produced in black ink. A check made payable to “California ACDA” must be postmarked by the submission deadline. You will not be billed. Invoices can be prepared upon request. No copy will run without advance payment. If you would like an ad to run in more than one issue, please include full payment at the time of the initial ad. Advertising copy is subject to editorial approval. The Editor reserves the right to head and/or box any advertisement bearing confusing resemblance to editorial content. Advertisement dimensions listed below are examples; rates are charged by actual dimensions. For example, 1/3 page is listed at 2.5”x10” but can be any simple rectangle with total area equal to 25 square inches.

Advertising Rates Size ..................................................... Single Annual 1/6 page (2.5”x5”) .................................. $55 $110 1/4 page (3.75”x5”)................................. $75 $150 1/3 page (2.5”x10” or 3.33”x7.5”) .......... $95 $190 1/2 page (3.75”x10” or 5”x7.5”)........... $140 $280 2/3 page (5”x10” or 6.67”x7.5”)........... $190 $380 Full page (7.5”x10”) ............................. $275 $550

Upcoming Events 2009

CALIFORNIA ACDA BOARD MEETING.............................. JAN 17 ACDA NATIONAL CONVENTION..................................... MAR 4-7 Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Celebrating ACDA’s 50th Anniversary CALIFORNIA ACDA ALL-STATE HONOR CHOIR....... MAR 26-28 Pasadena Dr. Iris Levine, Women’s Choir Conductor Dr. Joe Miller, Mixed Choir Conductor CANTATE DEADLINE FOR SPRING/SUMMER ISSUE................APR 1 CALIFORNIA ACDA SUMMER CONFERENCE ............... JUL 26-29 Oakhurst (ECCO) Rodney Eichenberger, Headliner 2010

ACDA WESTERN DIVISION CONVENTION ..................... MAR 3-6 Tucson, Arizona CALIFORNIA ACDA SUMMER CONFERENCE ............... JUL 25-28 Oakhurst (ECCO) Rollo Dilworth, Headliner

Advertisers Index ACDA 2009 National Convention.................................................. 5 Arrowbear Music Camp ................................................................. 8 Bob Cole Conservatory of Music /

California State University, Long Beach...................... back cover California State University, Chico.................................................. 3 California State University, Fresno ................................................ 4 California State University, Fullerton........................................... 13 California State University, Los Angeles ....................................... 6 Incantato Tours ............................................................................. 15 World Projects ................................................................................ 9

Music is an outburst of the soul.

Frederick Delius English composer, 19th century

California ACDA • Winter 2009 3

By the time you read this, the madness of the holiday season will be but a pleasant memory. But oh, the stress most of us go through whilst in the throes of December concertizing! Here is a brief update of California ACDA events:

We presented our first Regional Conferences in late November at three sites—San Francisco, Fresno, and Santa Monica, with participation totaling more than 250, featuring headliners Vance George, Mark Hayes, and Jo-Michael Scheibe. Each venue also had a pool of talented and capable directors who assisted and presented their own interest and reading sessions. There are too many people to list in this article, but I want to give a big thank you to everyone who shared their expertise and techniques with us.

In tandem with the conferences were the Regional Honor Choirs. Feedback from all three events was extremely positive in regards to the quality of both the conductors and the singers. Kudos to each of the regional planners who made

Looking Back...Moving Forward

KEN ABRAMS [email protected]

PRESIDENT www.acdacal.org

it all happen: Genevieve Sagi-Tep (Coastal), Liz Hodgdon (Central), and Tammi Alderman and Rodger Guerrero (Southern/SCVA). These people put in countless hours of planning, leg-work, and coordination to produce these events successfully.

Many of the students who sang in the Regional Honor Choirs will now be eligible to participate in the California All-State Honor Choir. This year’s event will be held in Pasadena on March 26-28, and you can learn more about it on page 5.

Finally, our state membership has seen a surge of more than 60 new members in the past months! With all that has been happening with the economy, it is a pleasant surprise to see so many colleagues finding value in their participation with ACDA. The California ACDA board will continue to encourage new members and to identify activities and events that our members value.

Thanks for all of your support for a successful 2008, and I look forward to working with each of you this coming year. ♦

FROM THE PRESIDENT



Iris Levine and Joe Miller Headline 2009 All-State Honor Choirs 2008 REGIONAL HONOR CHOIRS “Best honor choirs’ performance I’ve heard in

years.”

“Singers were extremely well-prepared.”

“Both conductors were excellent.”

“No doubt all choral programs from which the singers came benefited from their participation in this honor choir experience.”

These are just a few of the comments heard

regarding the 2008 Regional Honor Choir weekend rehearsals and performances in November. We are greatly indebted to Regional Honor Choir chairpersons Genevieve Sagi-Tep, Liz Hodgdon, Tammi Alderman, and Rodger Guerrero for the many hours spent in providing a most memorable singing experience for the hundreds of singers participating.

2009 ALL-STATE HONOR CHOIR The 2009 All-State Honor Choir singers will be

gathering in Pasadena on March 26-28. Their performance will be held in the Pasadena First Presbyterian Church on Saturday afternoon.

SHIRLEY NUTE [email protected]

ALL-STATE HONOR CHOIRS

www.acdacal.org/honorchoirs.htm

CALIFORNIA HONOR CHOIRS

A commissioned work written for the Mixed All-State Honor Choir by Frank Ticheli, professor of composition at the Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern California, will be premiered at the concert. There will be 113 schools from throughout the state of California represented.

Dr. Iris Levine will conduct the Women’s All-State Honor Choir. Nationally recognized for her excellence in choral conducting, Dr. Levine is department chair and professor of music at California State Polytechnic University in Pomona. She is founder and

artistic director of Vox Femina, Los Angeles’ premiere women’s chorus. Dr. Levine is the Artistic Director for the Master Chorus at Stephen S. Wise Temple, where her choral arrangements are often performed. She is the Western Division Chair of the ACDA Repertoire and Standards Committee for Women’s Choirs and is highly sought as guest clinician and adjudicator for choral festivals throughout the country.

Dr. Joe Miller will conduct the Mixed All-State Honor Choir. Dr. Miller is conductor of two of America’s most renowned choral ensembles: the 32-voice Westminster Choir and the 200-voice Westminster Symphonic Choir. As director of choral activities at Westminster Choir College of Rider University in Princeton, New Jersey, he oversees an extensive choral program that includes eight ensembles. Guest conductor for numerous all-state and honor choirs, this season Dr. Miller will conduct the Florida ACDA All-State Honor Choir and the ACDA Western Division High School Honor Choir. He also served as Headliner for the 2008 Ohio Choral Directors Summer Conference.

All information regarding the 2009 All-State Honor Choir schedules, rehearsal sites, and hotel reservation procedure will be posted at www.acdacal.org, the California ACDA webpage. ♦

Celebrating Our

50th Year!

2009 ACDA National Convention

OKLAHOMA CITY MARCH 4-7, 2009

www.acdaonline.org



Tapping into the Message Board Have you taken a look at the Message Board on

the California ACDA website? I must confess that I’m so busy with maintaining the website and with working my choral music program, that I don’t often look there. I see the home page several times a day, but the Message Board is a whole other thing. You have to click down one level to get there, and it just doesn’t occur to me that often.

The message board is a unique part of our website, because the content there is contributed directly by the members. Unless I check it from time to time, I have no idea what’s available there. So, this morning I took a look.

The first thing I noticed is that there is some activity there, but not a lot. Members are posting messages at the rate of two or three per month. The next thing I noticed was that quite a few of the messages there have relevance and time-value. Currently, one member is looking for roommates for his National Honor Choir student (male).

Another member is offering free choir robes for anyone in need. There is also an announcement for a Children’s Choir Festival in April 2009.

The Message Board has great potential that we’ve yet to tap into. It can be a valuable resource for choral directors who need a bit of mentoring. Questions about literature, performance practice, and choir management are just a few of the potential topics for discussion. It can be a clearing house for sharing literature, and we can post links to needed resources. Can you imagine how helpful it would be for anyone whose message begins with “I’m trying to find...”?

I’d like to encourage us all to avail ourselves of the Message Board. Not only will it be a help to everyone who uses it, but it can also build our sense of community. Those who are already posting there have something they want to communicate to us, but if we don’t check the board from time to time, they go unheard. ♦

MARK ALBERSTEIN [email protected]

WEBMASTER www.acdacal.org

FROM THE WEBMASTER

Mark Teeters Named a California Teacher of the Year SACRAMENTO — November 13, 2008

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell today named five remarkable educators as California Teachers of the Year for 2009. These extraordinary educators were selected from an exceptional field of highly qualified and equally dedicated educators.

One of them is California ACDA member Mark Teeters, who teaches choral music at Vintage High School in the Napa Valley Unified School District (Napa County).

“Mark Teeters has opened up the world to his students through music and through travel,” O’Connell said. “He has shown them the amazing power of music that can be seen in both academic and social development and should always be a part of the educational experience. It is a medium of communication and expression all children should acquire.”

The awardees underwent a three-phase selection process that included a review of their submitted essays, site visits to their classrooms, and an interview. State Superintendant of Public

Instruction Jack O’Connell made the final decision.

“There is overwhelming evidence that music improves academic performance and provides a creative outlet for teenagers,” says Mr. Teeters. “Music has always had the power to make languages, culture, and history come alive in ways unrivaled by any textbook. Our kids have sung in at least twenty different languages from Hungarian to Hebrew. Classroom discussion on the texts of songs has opened students’ hearts and minds to the beauty of poetry…music operates in not just the factual realm, but also in an emotional one. In a time when many teenagers are disaffected at home, alienated or separated from adults and sometimes even from their peers, music connects them in real ways.” ♦

— WITH MATERIAL FROM THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION



Central Coast News Despite the circumstances facing our nation and the

amount of negative news we receive daily, music continues to be a valued “constant” in the lives of many of our young people. There has never been a more important time for our society to experience the beauty and power of the choral art. Choral directors on the central coast rarely see each other except for those occasional state conferences. Nonetheless, we are all working diligently to ensure that we provide many musical opportunities for our students.

The Central Coast Men’s Choir Clinic was held on October 3 at Templeton High School. Dan Earl, our guest clinician from Santa Rosa, again shared his passion, talent, and infectious energy with young men from our region. The day was spent refining three pieces and strengthening individual vocal technique. San Luis Obispo High School, Paso Robles High School, Templeton High School, Flamson Middle School, and Templeton Middle School were represented. It is wonderful to experience the camaraderie and enthusiasm created when so many young men join forces to make music.

Our 5th Annual Central Coast Men’s Clinic will be held Friday, October 2, 2009, at Templeton High School. Gary Lamprecht will be our guest clinician. Please save the date!

Chanticleer will be sponsoring a high school festival/clinic on Tuesday, February 17, 2009, at Templeton High School. This is the first time that Chanticleer has outreached to the high schools in our local area. We hope it becomes an annual event. Information and registration forms are being sent to all area high schools. If you would like to participate in this festival, please contact me at [email protected].

I am also organizing a Women’s Festival to be run much like the Men’s Clinic. Many of my female singers have watched the enthusiasm and growth experienced by the guys in previous years and felt neglected. This year I promised them we would organize a similar event “just for the girls”! I am very excited that Iris Levine from CSU Pomona has agreed to be our guest clinician at the 1st Annual Central Coast Women’s Choir Clinic to be held on Friday, February 27, 2009, at Templeton High School. We will be selecting three pieces for all participants to become somewhat familiar with prior to the clinic. During the day, we will be working on those pieces so that each school could go back to their school and perform one (or more) of those pieces at a concert or festival in the spring. As is the case with the fall Men’s Clinic, there are no performances, ratings, or pressure of any sort. The purpose is to learn as much as we can about our voices and to experience the joys of choral music that are so difficult to express in words! Contact me for more information. Flyers and registration forms were sent in the beginning of December. ♦

JO ANNE STODDARD

[email protected]

CENTRAL COAST www.acdacal.org/

centralcoast.htm

REGIONAL REPRESENTATIVES



Repertoire & Standards The fourteen national Repertoire &

Standards (R&S) Committees provide support, vision, and resources for every major area of choral work in ACDA.

R&S Chairpersons, appointed at the national, division, and state levels, serve members who share similar interests by providing resources that promote excellence in the performance of choral music: • Leadership • Information • Networking • Excellence among colleagues • Professional growth • Choral music in the lives of people

These are the people you should call if you have questions about your particular area of music. See inside back cover or www.acdacal.org for contact information. ♦

Try a Choir Retreat This Winter Each year I take my Chamber Choir on a

retreat in September. We spend two-and-a-half days at a great camp in the woods singing, climbing over walls, crossing rope bridges, playing games, and singing. I choose to focus this time on goal-setting and team-building for a group that will spend an exorbitant amount of hours together during the month of December. You have to learn to love one another to see past your differences during caroling season.

This January, I am changing my tactics. I am taking the same group to a church basement. We are going to make our own meals, and focus on music—really focus. The plan is to teach them all those things about their pieces that I usually just mention during rehearsal. I’d like them to truly understand the when, why, and who of the music, the texts, and the composers.

If you’ve never taken your students on a retreat, I highly suggest doing so. If this winter is not possible, start looking into next fall. The musical benefits are priceless, and the relationships built between you and your students will make your time together more valuable. I’ve listed some basic retreat ideas below. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions about what I do or would like more resources for new ideas.

PURPOSES • Team Building • Goal Setting • Rehearsal

WHEN TO GO • Before School Starts—Great for getting to

know one another & some basic team-building • Early in the Year/September or October—

Great for setting goals for the year, developing trust and in-depth team building

• Mid-Year/Winter—Great for becoming re-acquainted with each others’ strengths, renews energy of group members

• End of Year/May or June—Great for assessing the year and fun/relaxation; this should only be done in conjunction with an earlier retreat

TEAM-BUILDING IDEAS (These are different than ice-breakers.) • www.wilderdom.com/games • www.teampedia.net • www.group-games.com • Challenge Course (if available at the location)

GOAL SETTING IDEAS • Group goals (from group, from individuals) • Individual goals per person • Section goals (from sections or individuals) • Your goals for the group or individuals • Choose carefully what is shared aloud

REHEARSAL IDEAS • Great time for sectionals • Bring in a voice teacher to give sections/groups

mini master-classes • Rehearse in as many different spaces as

possible (outside, inside, stairwells, sitting, standing, in the dark, in circles, in partners)

• You may need to bring electric keyboards with you, depending on your facility. I always have one for each section.

REMEMBER TO HAVE • Pencils (bring extra, they’ll forget) • Paper (for goal setting or activities) • Pitch Pipe(s) • Blindfolds, rope, yarn, and other game materials • Water, cough drops • An open mind and a great attitude ♦

TAMMI ALDERMAN talderman@

falconchoir.org

SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL CHOIRS

www.acdacal.org/high.htm


Paul Salamunovich Shares It will be the end of an era. After sixty years directing the

music at St. Charles Borromeo in N o r t h H o l l y w o o d , P a u l Salamunovich will step down when the church starts its renovation probably late this coming spring. Part of the incredibly rich 20th-century scene that included Howard Swan, Charles Hirt, Roger Wagner, and Robert Shaw, Salamunovich was an eyewitness to and participant in what he considers the “Golden Age of Choral Music” that started in 1937-1938.

He recently spoke of the earlier state of choral music. “You know, I love to listen to those early recordings. But they aren’t that good.” Choirs a century ago simply did not perform at the level of orchestras. He explained how delighted Bruno Walter and Eugene Ormandy were when the choirs he prepared for them could match the quality of the instrumental ensembles.

As a young man he developed nodules, which pushed him out of singing and into conducting. His success, he believed, was his ability to get a group to sing like he could sing when he was younger. Now we have “perfected choral music!” he exclaimed. “And we are constantly improving”!

When pressed for his suggestions for today’s directors, he said, “I’m very concerned that

today’s choir directors have only one thought process.” He went on to explain that many of our universities have only one style or concept of choral music-making and that their graduates pursue that notion as if it were “the rule of law.” One of the “great failings,” he lamented, is neglecting to create a tonal quality that is appropriate for the literature being performed. What was his recommendation? “Spend more time listening to all

kinds of groups all over the country.” Of course, he pointed out, the convention performances are useful, but the rehearsals are even more valuable. “Observe as many different styles of conducting as possible. Get into discussions with your colleagues.”

He spoke of this fall’s Thanksgiving observance at St. Charles Borromeo with the excitement of a beginning choral director. He listed the musical selections and their organization into a religious service that builds to a climax leaving the congregation cheering. Those cheers resonate throughout our choral community in thanks for a legacy left by Paul Salamunovich and the other masters, many who honed their art in our state. ♦


ANNA HAMRE [email protected]

COLLEGE & UNIVERSITY

CHOIRS www.acdacal.org/

college.htm

Plans for the first annual CMEA Middle School Honor Choir are coming along very well. The committee accepted eighty-two fine young singers in grades six through nine from a large number of taped auditions.

This exciting event will take place during the CMEA In-Service Conference on March 12-14, 2009 in Ontario. The conductor will be Dr. Anna Hamre, Director of Choral Activities at CSU Fresno. She holds the BA degree in vocal and instrumental music education from Augustana College, Sioux Falls, SD, the MM degree in choral

music from the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley, and a DMA in choral literature and performance from the University of Colorado in Boulder. She has selected a varied program including Steven Hatfield’s “Jabula Jesu,” the “Credo” from Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass, Julie Knowles’ arrangement of “Danny Boy,” and Rollo Dilworth’s “Shine On Me,” among others.

Please go to the CMEA honor choirs website at www.calmusiced.com/honorgrps.htm for more information. Feel free also to contact me with your ideas or questions about the honor choir. ♦

CMEA Middle School Honor Choir Debuts

NEWS FROM THE CMEA CHORAL REPRESENTATIVE

CHRISTOPHER W. PETERSON

[email protected]

CMEA CHORAL REPRESENTATIVE


TONE “You do not sing as you talk any more than you run like you walk.”

• Posture provides the opportunity for resonance • It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that ring! • Resonance is volume • Keep the soft palate raised with the brightening

of the eyes • Sing with a mature quality • The inspiration is in the inhalation: “inspirare” • Breath support, breath management • Spin the tone • Facial expressions can improve tone and

intonation • Color your vowel sounds to fit the text, style,

and genre • Keep eyebrows and bottoms up

RHYTHM “Movement creates musicality; musicality lies in our physical movements. The rhythm of the piece should be internalized.”

• Rhythmic integrity • Attacks and releases • Consonants in front of the beat, vowel on the

beat • Breathe – Sing • Cross-listen • Buoyancy

INTONATION “Unification of vowel sounds is the single-most important factor that influences intonation.”

• The sharper the dissonance, the freer the consonance

• The beauty is in the dissonance (without conflict, there is no resolution)

• Suspensions • Balance • Cross-listen • We should use our ears more, mouths less!

DICTION “Elegance through syllabic stress”

• Buy in to ALL consonants • Sing the language and not the notes • Dynamic contrast and linguistic expressiveness • Articulation – space between notes www.acdacal.org

INTERPRETATION “Squeeze the fruit. Let its juice drip out.”

• Let no note go un-nurtured • Never sing the same thing the same way twice • Each note should desire to go the next one • Lines should pull like scarves from a

magician’s coat pocket • Dynamics – contrasts explore ranges of

dynamics • Style • Relationship of phrase and text • Energize phrases • Intensity and volume of a phrase grows or

diminishes during rests • Give every note its FULL life (birth, school,

marriage, grandparent, death) • Melody must always be present; back off and

allow the melody to be highlighted • Physical movement can be a catalyst for

musical movement • Don’t sing the notes, sing the line • Lighten the vowel to fit the tempo and re-

pronounce with clarity • Make the release of one phrase the springboard

into the next

COMMUNICATION “Enjoy the music. Sing the meaning of the text. Provide an experience, rather than perform music.”

• Inform your face! • Music begins in the human experience of the

poet • Sing with a performer’s mentality: become a

character, sell that character • Don’t break my prayer • Think of a way you can relate to the song then

apply it to the music • Paint a picture with your body, face, and voice • Know word-for-word translations • Color • Use of silence • Create beauty • Tell the stor • Become the music

(Continued on page 13)

JEFF SEAWARD [email protected]

TWO-YEAR COLLEGE CHOIRS

www.acdacal.org/twoyear.htm


Tips for Making Your Choir Musical Stolen gems from around the choral world


Tips…

MOTIVATION “Ask for more!”

• Positive reinforcement • Build relationships • Listen to your singers’ point of view • Model what you want • Refuse to accept poor performance • Consistent discipline builds pride and

esprit de corps among students • The team effort results in a product that

is much greater than the sum of its parts • Get out of their way

CHOOSE THE RIGHT LITERATURE “You must love it!”

• Music must fit the abilities and personalities of your choir

• Choose literature of integrity • Be flexible and creative • Show off your strong points • Take risks

ATTENTION IS IN THE DETAIL “No detail is too small.”

• Outfits, uniforms • People hear what they see • Riser etiquette and placement • Create depth and utilize more of the

stage during a performance • Acoustic considerations • Showering and deodorant help!

OWNERSHIP “You are responsible for every single note.”

• Know, not only your own part, but others as well

• Listen more and do not rely on the conductor so much

• Keep your focus! • Go over my music alone! • “I will clear my mind of all external

thoughts and dive into the music” • Become one with the piece • Put all your energy into what you are

singing ♦

(Continued from page 12)


Seasons greetings to my fellow ACDA members. I am your new Vocal Jazz R&S Chair, but I feel more like the prodigal son of the California ACDA board, having missed both my favorite summer music event, the California ACDA Summer Conference at ECCO (I was in France with my Cuesta College Chamber Singers), and the California ACDA Regional Conference. I was presenting at the Music Association for California Community Colleges (MACCC) Conference in San Diego while the Regional Conferences were held. I miss you all, and can’t wait to see more of you at upcoming conventions and at ECCO!

A short introduction for those of you who don’t know me: I grew up in Minnesota, and studied piano at the University of Minnesota. After living in New York City for three years, I studied vocal jazz with Phil Mattson, and then choral conducting with Dr. Edith Copley at Northern Arizona University, where I received my master’s degree. I’ve been at Cuesta College in San Luis Obispo for the past seven years, where I teach two choirs, two vocal jazz groups, and music theory. I also sing with Vocalogy, a vocal group based in Long Beach. We have performed at several ACDA events—most recently the 2008 ACDA Eastern Division Conference in Hartford, Connecticut.

Since we missed each other at the recent Regional Conference, I thought I’d include here the transcript of my recent MACCC presentation. It was a Nuts and Bolts kind of workshop. There might be a piece in here that is helpful to you or might stir you to thinking. Feel free to drop me a line and let me know what you think.

SOME NUTS AND BOLTS 1. Auditions

I do a regular choral audition—range, tone, control, pitch, register blend, tonal memory. Then I assign a 48-hour take-home excerpt, usually a very difficult soli, e.g. “Stella By Starlight,” arr. Phil Mattson. Each singer sings this a cappella, solo, on a microphone, in public. No jazz improv, no solo tune. You’ll get a good understanding of their rhythmic sensitivity when they do their choral and take-home auditions. If I don’t end up with students who are interested in improvisation, then I program less repertoire that requires improvisation.

Vocal Jazz Nuts and Bolts 2. Personnel—Voicing and balance issues • Double the inside voices. It’s difficult to blend

high sopranos, and there should be one lead. Hard to double low basses on a mic. I like inner harmony.

• Mics can fix all the balance issues. Only one tenor or bass?—turn up his mic. Six amazing altos? Turn down their mics. Voila!

3. Microphones Microphones for balance, color, and percussion

• Important to rehearse on mic. Mics are necessary for the coloring of jazz and vocal presence (warmth/breath).

• Some chords can only be balanced with mics. • Enhanced percussive effect of consonants and

vocal percussion. An Apology for Microphones

Microphones present a wonderful opportunity for you and your students to learn acoustic principals. Find someone to help you EQ the mics so that the sound is accurate and natural. Singers can learn about sound frequency, pitch fundamentals, and partials. Second, your singers will get a much more accurate sense of the sound that they are creating. Microphones amplify the good and the bad. The mic will hold your singers to a higher standard, while offering them wonderful (read: loud) rewards!

4. How to teach improv skills (scat) and ear-training

• Repeat rhythmic phrases on one note and change only when the underlying chord dictates so.

• Learn how to hear and sing the roots of the chord in the progression

• Exercise: Scat on whole/half/quarter/eighth. • Hold chords, have students build them up from

the root (play the root on piano if the chord is a rootless voicing). Have students trade parts so they can all learn what it “feels like” to sing a 7th, 13th, 3rd, #5, etc.

• On challenging fragments: Have students play the parts on piano while singing their part. READ: Vocal Improvisation, by Michele Weir. Advance Music.

(Continued on page 15)


JOHN KNUTSON [email protected]

JAZZ CHOIRS www.acdacal.org/

jazz.htm


www.acdacal.org The California ACDA Website

Resources ●

Event Dates ●

Registration Forms

5. Rhythm section • The biggest challenge for the vocal director. Jazz/funk/R&B/

pop/Latin drums and bass are not easy concepts to master. Takes lots of time and focused listening. Sing along with the drummer and bassist—vocal percussion, vocal bass (fun!)

• Listen to recordings while you follow a rhythm section part. • Important to understand how the band reads their charts. This

way you can edit their charts, and suggest ways for them to realize the notation. There are a limited number of fills and set-ups. Learn a few per semester—don’t let it overwhelm you. Learn along with your rhythm section students. They probably already know a lot from their jazz band experience. READ: Rhythm Section Workshop: For All Directors. By Shelly Berg, Lou Fischer, Fred Hamilton, and Steve Houghton. Alfred Publishing.

6. Sound systems Save money with $79 Shure SM-58s. Spend money to get a system with lots of EQ capability. Parametric EQs (at least 2, 3 or 4 ideally) on each channel, plus a graphic EQ for monitor speakers and another for the main speakers. Spend a lot on the speakers. Active speakers are all the rage now. Favorite speaker: JBL PRX512M

Typical sound system:

• 16-channel board (Mackie, Yamaha, Allen & Heath) • 2 “active” main speakers (Mackie or JBL) • 5 “active” monitors (Mackie, JBL, EAW) • 16-channel snake (Conquest Sound) • 2 Graphic equalizers (one for mains, one for monitors) • Reverb unit • Compressor (eliminates sudden peaks of sound) • CD player ♦

(Continued from page 14)

Nuts and Bolts


MICHAEL SHORT Michael Short has been

the Director of Choral Activities at Orange High School since the spring of 1982. He holds a bachelor degree and a masters degree in Choral Conducting.

In February of 2002 he received the “Bravo Award” from the Los Angeles Music Center for excellence in music education as an arts specialist. In 2003/04 he was named “Teacher of the Year” for Orange Unified School District and Runner up for Orange County Department of Education teacher of the year.

From 1990-1993 he served as the ACDA High School Honor Choirs Chair, and he has served on the board of the SCVA. He was the “Convention Properties” chair for the 2008 ACDA Western Division Convention in Anaheim.

He is the director and founder of the Orange Community Master Chorale and Director of Music at the First United Methodist Church of Orange. He is also the district department chairman of Secondary Vocal Music for Orange Unified School District. Since April 2004, he has served as the Choral Director for Santiago Canyon College. ♦

RODGER GUERRERO Rodger Guerrero has

conducted choirs at all levels for over twenty-two years. In his eighth year at Harvard-Westlake School in North Hollywood, he conducts the Bel Canto, Chamber Singers, Jazz Singers, and Wolverine Chorus.

He holds a BA and MM in Choral Conducting. He has conducted high school choirs, children’s choirs, and collegiate vocal ensembles, and he has worked with all styles of church choirs.

He has performed in six different ACDA conventions and conducted at two ACDA Western Division Conventions and at the 2005 ACDA National Convention.

He is the SCVA vice president in charge of the Southern California High School Honor Choirs. He has previously served as the SCVA vice president for the Vocal Solo Competition, the CMEA Central Section Board Secretary, and the California ACDA Choral Representative for the state CMEA Board. He has also become a regular adjudicator for SCVA Choral Festivals.

He has served as the Director of Pastoral Music at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in Hollywood for nine years. ♦

FOR SOUTHERN REPRESENTATIVE A two-year term. California ACDA’s

annual elections are upon us! The 2009 elections include our new President-Elect as well as regional representatives from the Southern, Central, and Bay Area regions. Candidate bios and photos follow. A separate mailing with ballots, bios, and photos will be sent to California ACDA members in the spring. Please acquaint yourself with our candidates. Each would make a fine addition to our state board. Your vote counts! Let us hear from you in 2009! ♦

JULIE DANA [email protected]

VICE PRESIDENT www.acdacal.org

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HEATHER BISHOP Heather Bishop is the

choir director and department chair of performing arts at Clovis North High School and she is also the California ACDA Central Region Representative.

She served as the Choral Representative for Fresno/Madera County Music Educators, and has served as California ACDA’s R&S Chair for Women’s Choirs.

She holds a bachelor of music in piano performance and received her Single Subject Clear Credential. She has taught elementary music and children’s choirs.

She was the recipient of the Eunice Skinner Award in Fresno/Madera County 2001 and 2006, for Choral Music Education. She was named Teacher of the Year at Clovis West High School in 2003 and received a special District “Innovator Award” for work she has done to enhance the choral program and increase enrollment.

Her choirs have received top honors nationally. The Clovis West Women’s Chorale, under her direction, performed at the ACDA Western Division Convention in Las Vegas. She has accompanied for numerous honor choirs including several California all-states. ♦

TONY MOWRER Tony Mowrer is an

Assistant Professor of Music at CSU Fresno, specializing in choral music education. This is his second year at CSU Fresno, following 27 years of teaching at the high school and college levels.

He holds a baccalaureate degree in music, a master’s in music history, and a doctorate in music education.

Immediately prior to his appointment at CSU Fresno, He was the choir director at Yosemite High School, in Oakhurst, CA. During the five years he was there, the choir program grew 30 percent and his choirs routinely received high ratings in regional festivals. Several of his students were selected to participate in division and national ACDA Honor Choirs.

He is a member of the ACDA, MENC, and FMCMEA, and is the higher education representative for the CMEA Central Section. He is active as a clinician and adjudicator and has done significant research in advocacy for the arts. In addition to his duties at CSU Fresno, he serves as the choir director at the College Community Mennonite Brethren Church in Clovis. ♦

LOU DE LA ROSA Lou De La Rosa is the

Director of Choral Activities at West Valley College in Saratoga. He has taught music in San Jose for 24 years, 13 of which were at Abraham Lincoln High School, where he served as chairman of both the music and performing arts departments. He was named Teacher of the Year at Pioneer High School in 1991, again at Lincoln High School in 2002, and received an Outstanding Teacher Award from the Lincoln Foundation in 2002.

He has received a BA in Voice and an MA in Choral Conducting.

He served on the CMEA Bay Section Board for eight years. He has hosted numerous CMEA choral and solo/ensemble festivals. Lou is presently an adjudicator for CMEA Bay Section and Heritage Festivals.

He is a life member of ACDA and has been active since 1982. He served as site host for the 1999 Coastal Region Honor Choirs, and was organizer and site host for the 2000 Coastal Region Honor Choirs. Lou presented “Teaching Sight Reading” at the 2008 California ACDA Summer Conference.

He would be honored to serve the Bay Area on the California ACDA board. ♦

BRUCE C. LENGACHER

Bruce C. Lengacher has received a Bachelor of Music Education and a Master of Arts in Education.

He in his tenth year as the Director of Choral Activities at Acalanes High School. He has been the general/classroom music and the choral representative for the Bay Section of the CMEA and is a member of ACDA and MENC.

He has worked with Ragazzi Boys Chorus, the Peninsula Girls Chorus, and Piedmont Choirs. His choirs have performed in England, France, Switzerland, Canada and Mexico as well as many National Invitational Festivals. They have received superior ratings at CMEA choral festivals and national and international festival appearances.

He has studied with Robert Shaw, Rodney Eichenberger, and Byron McGilvray.

He is a composer/arranger, a clinician, and a founding member of The Choral Project. ♦

FOR CENTRAL REPRESENTATIVE A two-year term.

FOR BAY AREA REPRESENTATIVE A two-year term.

More Election Materials ►


JONATHAN TALBERG Jonathan Talberg serves as Director of Choral, Vocal, and Opera Studies at the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music at CSU Long Beach, where he is music

director of the University and Chamber Choirs, and he oversees the very respected and large undergraduate voice program.

Ensembles under his baton have toured the United States and the world. He has conducted at the Music Educator’s National Conference regional honor choir on two occasions, at the 2008 ACDA Western Division Convention, at numerous all-state choir concerts, and throughout Europe and Asia. In constant demand as a guest conductor, he has worked with all levels of singers—from elementary to professional—throughout the United States and Europe. He has prepared choirs for the Cincinnati Symphony, the Long Beach Symphony Orchestra, the Los Angeles Master Chorale, the Pacific Symphony, and the Pasadena Pops.

He is also the music director of First Congregational Church of Los Angeles, where he also serves as director of the Los Angeles Bach Festival. He is music director of the 60-voice Camerata Singers of Long Beach.

Prior to his appointment at CSULB in 2000, he served as conducting assistant to the Cincinnati Symphony and the Cincinnati Pops and as principal choral conductor at Arrowbear Music Camp. Before graduate school, he was a high school choral director in Orange County and at the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts. A five-year member of the California ACDA board, he holds the position of Youth and Student Activities Chair. He is an editor at Pavane Music Publishing, where a choral series is published under his name.

He earned his BM in Choral Conducting from Chapman University and his MM and DMA in Choral Conducting from the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music. He completed a post-doctoral fellowship with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Pops, and the May Festival Chorus. ♦

MARY BREDEN Mary Breden is Director of Choral Activities and Chair of the Department of Music at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. She has also

taught in both the choral and music education programs at San Jose State University, the University of Texas at Austin, and Holy Family High School in Glendale, California.

At Loyola Marymount she supervises the choral conducting concentration, teaching such courses as choral conducting and choral methods. Under her leadership, the LMU Concert Choir, Women’s Chorus, and Consort Singers have appeared in performances throughout California, as well as New York City, Boston, Portland, Seattle, Tucson, and Phoenix. Under her leadership, the ensembles have also appeared on two ACDA Western Division conventions. They performed with Michael Crawford in his PBS special and as a part of his national tour during the summer of 1998.

Active as a choral clinician, adjudicator, and guest conductor, she is a past president of the ACDA Western Division. Other ACDA services have included Division R&S Chair for Women’s Choirs (representing the Western and Southwestern Divisions), editor of the California state newsletter, and member of several Western Division convention steering committees. She has volunteered on the Education and Community Outreach Committee for the Los Angeles Master Chorale and has been a member of CMEA, SCVA, MENC, the National Collegiate Choral Organization, the International Federation of Choral Music, and Chorus America.

Mary Breden received her MM and DMA degrees in Choral Music from Arizona State University, where she studied conducting with Douglas McEwen. She also studied with Paul Salamunovich while in undergraduate studies at Mount St. Mary’s College in Los Angeles, and was, for several years, his accompanist with the choruses at Loyola Marymount University. She stays active in choral singing as a member of the St. Charles Borromeo Church Choir in North Hollywood. ♦

FOR PRESIDENT-ELECT A six-year term: two as President-Elect, two as President, and two as Vice-President.

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President Ken Abrams 41 Picardy Court Walnut Creek CA 94597 925-939-7562 home 925-552-3041 office [email protected] [email protected]

President-Elect Travis Rogers 112 Moss Lane Napa CA 94558 707-256-3488 home 707-253-3705 office [email protected] [email protected]

Vice President Julie Dana 610 East Pine Avenue Fresno CA 93728 559-233-3887 559-442-4600 x8465 [email protected]

Executive Secretary California ACDA Office Jan Lanterman 2348 Clay Street Napa CA 94559 707-255-4662 home 707-255-8012 ACDA office [email protected]

REGIONAL REPRESENTATIVES Bay Area OPEN Please contact Ken Abrams for your needs. (see left)

Central Heather Bishop 10283 North Sterling Lane Fresno CA 93720 559-434-6136 home 559-327-5449 office [email protected]

Central Coast Jo Anne Stoddard 2295 Alice Place Paso Robles CA 93446 805-237-8042 home 805-434-5845 office [email protected] [email protected]

Far South Nancy Gray 12713 Briarwood Place Poway CA 92064-2644 858-748-7345 home 858-748-0245 x5155 office [email protected] [email protected]

Northern Gavin Spencer 4687 Nantucket Drive Redding CA 96001 530-242-9022 home 530-241-4161 office [email protected]

Southern John Tebay 543 Loyola Drive Placentia CA 92870 714-996-9991 home 714-992-7303 office [email protected]

Middle School & Junior High School Choirs Linda Lovaas 707 South Emerald Avenue Modesto CA 95351 209-522-6115 [email protected]

Music in Worship Doug Albertson 2380 Murdock Drive Santa Rosa CA 95404 707-544-3002 home 707-545-3863 office [email protected]

Show Choirs Tony Atienza 1748 Bristol Court Bonita CA 91902 619-788-7167 [email protected]

Senior High School Choirs Tammi Alderman 2630 Huntington Drive Unit F Duarte CA 91010 970-988-5193 home 818-249-5871 x3105 office [email protected]

Two-Year College Choirs Jeff Seaward 20800 Avenue 352 Woodlake CA 93286 559-564-6149 home 559-730-3871 [email protected]

Women’s Choirs Karen Garrett 4130 Strandberg Street Corona CA 92881 951-272-3432 home 951-739-5600 x2109 office [email protected] [email protected]

Youth & Student Activities Dr. Jonathan Talberg CSULB - Music 1250 Bellflower Blvd Long Beach CA 90840 562-985-5112 [email protected]

Boys’ Choirs Joyce Keil 729 Sequoia Avenue San Mateo, CA 94403 650-358-0702 home 650-342-8785 office [email protected]

Children’s Choirs Beth Klemm 1008 Acorn Drive Arroyo Grande CA 93420 805-481-1189 home 805-460-2500 office [email protected]

College & University Choirs Anna Hamre 34279 Old Mill Road Auberry CA 93602 559-855-8747 home 559-278-2539 office [email protected]

Community Choirs David Scholz Music Department CSU Chico 400 W Second Street Chico CA 95929 530-588-5231 cell 530-898-6127 office [email protected]

Ethnic & Multicultural Perspectives OPEN

Jazz Choirs John Knutson PO Box 8106 San Luis Obispo CA 93403 805-546-3100 x2667 [email protected]

Male Choirs Lori Marie Rios 2850 Montrose Avenue #22 La Crescenta CA 91214 818-248-2803 home 818-952-4205 office [email protected] [email protected]

EXECUTIVE BOARD

REPERTOIRE & STANDARDS CHAIRPERSONS

All-State Honor Choir Chair Shirley Nute 937 Cornell Drive Burbank CA 91504 818-845-2683 [email protected]

Regional Honor Choir Chairs CENTRAL Elizabeth Hodgdon [email protected] COASTAL Genevieve Sagi Tep [email protected] SOUTHERN (SCVA) Rodger Guerrero [email protected]

Summer Conference Chair Jo Anne Stoddard 2295 Alice Place Paso Robles CA 93446 805-237-8042 home 805-434-5845 office [email protected] [email protected]

EVENTS CHAIRS

COMMUNICATIONS

Newsletter Editor (Cantate) Douglas Lynn 1450 South Melrose Drive Oceanside CA 92056 760-758-4100 x140 [email protected]

Website Coordinator Mark Alberstein 332 East Ashland Avenue Visalia CA 93277 559-623-1149 [email protected]

California Chapter American Choral Directors Association c/o Douglas Lynn, Editor 1450 South Melrose Drive Oceanside, CA 92056

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Documents

Cantate v21 n2 Winter 2009 DRAFT - calcda.orgcalcda.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/cantate_vol21_no2_winter2009.pdf · 2 California ACDA • Winter 2009 Official Publication of the