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2 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association IN THIS ISSUE

5 | LEARNING AND GROWING from the president’s pen · by jeffrey benson

6 | “SHOW THEM THE LOVE” letter from the editor · by eliza rubenstein and brandi birdsong

9 | COCOONING the composer’s voice · by dale trumbore

10 | ALL-STATE HONOR CHOIRS by molly peters

12 | 2020 HOWARD SWAN AWARD WINNERS

16 | SEEN & HEARD

19 | NOW WHAT? crowd-sourced resources for remote learning from ccda members

47 | GEORGE HEUSSENSTAMM COMPOSITION CONTEST WINNER by david montoya

66 | NEWS AND NOTES happenings from around the state

69 | VISION FOR THE FUTURE scholarship fund donors

70 | CCDA DIRECTORY our summer home at ECCO is quiet this year, but CCDA members are staying connected as we navigate the pandemic and look ahead to gathering in person in 2021!

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 3 CANTATE Volume 33, Number 1 WHEREAS, Official publication of the the human spirit is elevated to a California Choral Directors broader understanding of itself through Association, an Affiliate of study and performance in the American Choral the aesthetic arts, and Directors Association WHEREAS, Eliza Rubenstein, editor serious cutbacks in funding and support have steadily eroded state [email protected] institutions and their programs throughout our country, GUIDELINES FOR SUBMISSIONS BE IT RESOLVED We welcome and encourage CCDA members that all citizens of the United to contribute articles, announcements, music and States actively voice their affirmative book reviews, job vacancy listings, photographs, and collective support for necessary and other items of interest to Cantate! funding at the local, state, and national Please send queries and article ideas to levels of education and government, to ensure the survival of arts programs [email protected]. You are also welcome to submit completed articles, but please for this and future generations. note that not all articles received will be published. California Choral Directors Association Deadlines for publication are as follows: empowers choral musicians to August 15 (Fall issue); November 1 create transformative experiences for (Winter issue); March 1 (Spring issue). California’s diverse communities. The editor reserves the right to edit all submissions. CCDA is a 501(c)3 non-profit, tax-exempt corporation and an affiliate of the American Choral Directors Association. ADVERTISING IN CANTATE Please visit our website (www.calcda.org) or e-mail us at [email protected] for UPCOMING EVENTS complete information on advertising in Cantate, including rates, deadlines, and graphics specifications. Saturday, September 12: CCDA Fall Advertisements are subject to editorial approval. Conference (check your e-mail and CCDA’s website and social media for developing On the cover: Zooming with the greats. information!)

4 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association From The president’s pen: LEARNING AND GROWING

hat a year 2020 has been so far! None Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Our work Wof us expected our classrooms to look will continue to intentionally diversify our so much like our living rooms, dining rooms, membership and Board of Directors to more and bedrooms this spring, but music teachers accurately reflect the state we serve. We and conductors all over the world pivoted to will create opportunities for our BIPOC virtual environments to provide our singers members and our students. Silence cannot and the best education possible during extenuating should not be tolerated any longer. CCDA Jeffrey Benson is circumstances. I’m unbelievably proud of the will continue to celebrate our diversity and Director of Choral work you’ve all done to adapt, stretch, and empower every choral musician in this state.

Activities at San José grow as choral conductors, as well as advocate for our programs across the state. We have n response to the worldwide pandemic, State University. The a diverse group of musicians and students in ICCDA has been extremely busy working Washington Post hails our organization and it’s our job to serve their to provide our members strong leadership diverse needs even in times of crisis. and exciting events to help lead the way. In his choirs for singing CCDA’s core mission is to empower choral addition to our Tuesday webinar series this “with an exquisite blend, musicians to create transformative experiences past spring and our Summer Choral Summit for California’s diverse communities. In light of in July in place of our beloved conference subtlety of phrasing, recent events in our country, CCDA is moving at ECCO, we will continue to provide confident musicianship forward with a further commitment to take real presentations in the fall, and possibly in spring action in our organization to fight racism. We 2021, on topics related to online and hybrid and fully supported are now working on actionable ways to effect teaching, virtual choirs, and new technologies, tone…that would meaningful change in this arena. Our board as well as reading sessions. CCDA is currently recently approved this statement to show our developing ways to provide honor choir be the envy of some support for Black communities throughout our experiences for our middle school and high professional ensembles.” state and our country: school students in a safe and healthy way that still is exciting for young singers all over the He is also the Artistic The California Choral Directors Association condemns unjust police brutality and the state. Stay tuned for updates. Director of Peninsula murder of Black people. We acknowledge that Thank you to our amazing board members who have volunteered extra hours this spring Cantare, a community these senseless acts of violence stem from the larger issue of systemic racism throughout our and summer to better provide resources for chorus based in Palo nation. It is crucial that we stand in solidarity all of us. Eliza Rubenstein has once again amazed us all by pulling together a truly Alto. He received his to defend human rights and actively call out injustice. Black communities need our support. professional magazine with tremendous Masters degree and his Black lives matter. resources in record time. Molly Peters and her honor choir committee are working tirelessly Doctorate in Choral CCDA is committed to intentional diver- sification of its membership and its Board of to inspire our student musicians in new ways Conducting/Music Directors to more accurately reflect the state virtually. Christy Rohayem stepped up to chair our brand-new Committee for Diversity, Education from The it serves. We also seek to “broaden our tent” regarding the types of choral activities that may Equity, and Inclusion. Her leadership and the Florida State University speak to and honor people of color. Our mission entire committee’s work are leading the way for a more equitable and inclusive CCDA. and his Bachelors cannot and will not be upheld without fighting for marginalized communities. This statement is And finally, Alissa Aune, Buddy James, Arlie degree in Music long overdue and is the first step toward tangible Langager, and Tina Peterson tackled our first Education from New action. Summer Choral Summit in record time—and Where hate divides, choral music has the what a fabulous learning experience for us all. York University. power to unite and educate. It is imperative that I’m proud to be part of such an inspiring the choral community join the fight for equity. group of humans. CCDA continues to learn We will not be silent. and grow because of our members. Thank you for caring about each student. Thank you for This statement is just the beginning. making a difference. Thank you for changing CCDA recently formed a Committee for hearts and minds. Bravi tutti! 

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 5 letter from the editor: “Show them the love”

oday I write, and we all live, under the slavery and all of your classmates turn and Tpall of a pandemic that disproportion- look at you. I’ve had a choir-mate actually tell ately affects Americans of color, amid the me I’d get into a university because I happen echoes of the Black Lives Matter protests to be a black girl interested in opera—as if I that continue to shake our nation awake, wouldn’t get in for my talent or musicianship. Eliza Rubenstein is the and in the mournful reverent hours after civil The idea that I would get things handed Director of Choral rights hero Rep. John Lewis has left this to me for affirmative action purposes when earth. Today—every day, actually—is a good I feel I have to work harder than others to and Vocal Activities at day to listen more than be taken seriously Orange Coast College, to speak, and I’ve asked is a back-handed one of my gifted former compliment. This and the Artistic students, soprano Brandi is one of the many Director of the Birdsong, to be the voice of examples of not being my editor’s column for this taken seriously in the Orange County issue as we discuss, briefly music world, and not Women’s Chorus in print as we’ve done over only as a person of breakfast in the past, the color, but specifically as and the Long Beach experience of being a black a black woman. Chorale & Chamber woman in the choral-vocal world right now. Eliza: I was struck Orchestra. She today by this quote from holds degrees from Eliza: Are there particular Jason A. Dungee: “For pieces of music that have Black conductors, there Oberlin College and been speaking to you these can exist a particular UC-Irvine, and she last several months, during internal tension that the coronavirus shutdown occurs when you realize is a former animal and the protests against that the primary voice shelter supervisor and police brutality? people want to hear “I am something my ancestors from you is one of the co-author of Brandi: For whatever dreamed of” —Brandi Birdsong reason, the Dona Nobis activism, not music.” a book about dog Pacem by Ralph Vaughan Have you experienced that as a Black singer adoption. Eliza’s family Williams has been something that keeps coming up. That may have to do with Walt as well? Do you feel free to create your own includes her partner, Whitman’s text, or the music that marries the path as an artist, or do you feel that the music world is inclined to pigeonhole you? Julie Fischer; a yellow text so perfectly. Brandi: At times, yes! This is tricky because Labrador named Eliza: We want to think of choral in my experiences in choir, my voice is Dayton; and a cat music-making as an inherently inclusive and considered too “rich,” “colorful,” or “big” for welcoming art form, but have there been times some solos or roles. But when certain other named Wilbur. She’s when you didn’t feel that way, and when your opportunities come into play, like a spiritual passionate about choral directors and choir-mates perhaps didn’t or gospel piece, it’s an almost unspoken realize that you didn’t feel that way? decision that I would be considered for it. grammar, Thai food, Brandi: I can’t speak about anyone’s I’ve had people ask why I didn’t audition for photography, and the personal experiences about this subject gospel solos in choir. I’ve never auditioned for gospel pieces in choir, ever. The assumption St. Louis Cardinals except my own, but I think, for me, there is a constant “token black person” role that is can be a little frustrating because when and St. Louis Blues. played. Being in a choir that is diverse but there are other solo opportunities, I’m not still lacks black people is like those painful encouraged or asked why I didn’t audition. I days in high school when the teacher discusses think the main point is that I am more than

6 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association the trauma black people have experienced. I am something my ancestors dreamed of and I want to break more boundaries, not just singing the typical “oh, Brandi can do CCDA’s Fall Regional that for us” repertoire. Conferences have been Eliza: The intersection of the pandemic and the Black Lives Matter uprisings have created a strange and unsettled cancelled due to the atmosphere for all of us. What, if anything, do you want pandemic. to hear from your teachers and conductors in this time? What’s helpful? What’s not? What do you want the choral profession to hear and understand? Check your e-mail and Brandi: I want musicians and choral directors to know that when we, as black people, see brutality filmed every CCDA’s website and day, and when we watch it every day—people who look social media pages for like our brothers, our aunts, our cousins—it’s traumatic. The [African American] music that they perform stems information on other from trauma and pain. It’s hard enough to see people rationalize the killings of black people. But it’s painful opportunities being seeing the music directors we love so much use gospel and developed for this fall. spirituals to make their programs more enjoyable but also be so silent. If you want to tread lightly on this subject and not make public statements that show people where you stand, at least check in on your students and singers. www.calcda.org Show them the love you have for them like the love you show for black culture and music. 

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VOICE FACULTY Melissa Tosh, Marco Schindelmann, Patricia Gee, Cynthia Snyder, Donald Brinegar

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 7 LMU Music Welcomes

DR. T.J. HARPER Director of Choral Activities

Loyola Marymount University Choral Music Program

Located in Los Angeles, the second largest artistic and entertainment market in the country, the LMU Choral Music Program offers undergraduate degrees in music with concentrations in Choral Conducting, Composition, and Vocal Performance. Scholarships are available.

CHORAL ENSEMBLES Consort Singers Concert Choir Treble Voices Sinatra Opera Workshop

cfa.lmu.edu/music

8 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association the COmposer’s voice: cocooning

ack in April, our next-door neighbor humanly possible!” Bpointed out two monarch butterfly cocoons When I got a new commission request a on the side of our house. One was black, nearly month ago, I was startled by my own reaction. I ready to emerge, and the other was lime-green. was excited, sure—I always am, whenever new The next day, the black cocoon was gone—we’d commissions come in—but also unreasonably Dale Trumbore is a Los missed that butterfly hatching—but my husband surprised. Without realizing it, I’d quietly and I spent the following week monitoring the resigned myself to potentially not finding new Angeles-based composer green cocoon, finding excuses to walk past it, work for a year, or maybe several years. When and writer whose music leaning over our washing machine to peer out every 2020 performance I had was cancelled, the window and make sure it was still there. $25,000 of future income lost in a matter of has been performed by Some vapid, basic part of my brain thought: weeks, a small part of me gave up on music organizations including Oh look, a metaphor! Something new and altogether. I’ve spent this summer sluggishly exciting and inevitable in the midst of all this finishing pieces for existing contracts and the Los Angeles chaos and uncertainty. sending those scores off into what feels like a Children’s Chorus, We watched as the green cocoon eventually black hole, every premiere postponed. turned black, then translucent, each dot and But there is still new work coming in. Some Los Angeles Master stripe newly visible on the butterfly’s folded is lined up already; some will emerge when Chorale, Modesto wings. Within the next twenty-four hours, my it’s the right time. I’m telling myself I’ll spend internet research told me, the butterfly would this fall with fewer commissions than usual Symphony, Pacific hatch. I checked it obsessively for so many of finally writing a solo piano piece about how Chorale, Pasadena those hours. memory evolves over time, something I’ve been But just after the chrysalis split, I realized talking about composing for years. I’ve been Symphony, The Singers, the butterfly wasn’t moving. trying to do yoga every day, because it makes and VocalEssence. I looked up what could have gone wrong. Its such a difference to my mental health, even— wings might not have been strong enough, or especially—when that yoga starts with me lying How to Go On, maybe it was sick from the start. But how could flat on the floor, not moving at all. Choral Arts Initiative’s it have made it that far, the chrysalis already And when I feel most despondent about the cracked open, wings fully formed, and not push state of, well, absolutely everything, I ask myself album of Trumbore’s through? what I can control. I’m considering where I have

choral works, was a I told myself not to make a metaphor out power to advocate against racism and white of it. If it was a metaphor, it would be an supremacy in classical music, whether that’s in #4-bestselling Classical uninspired one. Here we all are, stuck inside the texts I choose to set, the peers whose music our cocoons, unable to escape, just like....dead I recommend, or the advice and mentorship I album on iTunes the butterflies? No, I thought. Don’t dwell on it. provide to others. I’ve been asking myself these week of its release. Definitely don’t write about it. questions for years, but the answers are more important now than ever. I can always do better, Hear Dale’s music at ach day is a new struggle. I’ve written and more. daletrumbore.com. Eabout anxiety before; I wrote a whole book There’s only so much we can control in about it. In non-COVID times, I’m worrying normal times, and in the midst of an ongoing about ordinary life: meeting deadlines, getting pandemic, that window is even smaller. Still, new work, whether I’m doing enough, whether after we consider what’s in our power right I’m doing too much. Now I’m concerned now, we can use each personal superpower for for the health of my friends and family and good, controlling what we can: the music we worrying about the future of our country. I’m program in the future, the music we recommend desperately hoping that other members of the to others, and the projects—personal or music community are spending this time in our professional—that we create with the resources respective cocoons thinking about making music we have now. We can tend to our wings, more equitable for all. “What a strange time to keeping them strong so we’ll be ready, when the be alive,” I keep writing in the few work emails right moment comes, to push forward.  I’m sending. “Hope you’re doing as well as is

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 9 ALL-STATE Honor Choir updates by Molly Peters

write this article in the midst of a wide range Details are still being worked out, so please stay I of emotion, and I know you can relate. We feel connected to CCDA, or reach out to me with any anxious about returning to school (or not!); we feel questions ([email protected]). extreme sadness at the loss of singing together; we feel frustration with our own children (who, me? no, my he timeline will be similar to our normal schedule for children are perfect angels...); we are worried about Tposting the All-State lists, sending repertoire, and our friends who live alone; we miss our students; we uploading rehearsal tracks. While February seems like a miss human contact; we have lost friends and family long time away, we must prepare for the possibility of a to COVID. This is an incredibly trying time for Virtual All-State Honor Choir. We are still working on everyone, no matter the exact set-up, but what our individual here are some of the circumstances are. aspects the Honor Honor choir Choir committee has may be the furthest already worked out: thing from your mind right now, • Each choir will do but I do want to two selections alone, let you know about and there will be a the changes we are third combined piece making this year. (because we never get We are committed to to do this in person!). giving our students • Students will have an All-State Honor access to rehearsal Choir experience tracks and will be even though our fall expected to prepare Regional Honor their music with your Choirs have been help. cancelled. Members of the 2019 All-State SSAA Honor Choir perform in We are moving concert. (Photo by Robyn Peters) • There will be two all our fall auditions required “rehearsals” online. We will hold a two-round audition process, with our conductors. hoping to make the auditions less daunting for your They will occur sometime in January and/or February, students and for you as you prepare them to audition dates and time TBD. Each rehearsal will be 60-75 from a tiny box on their computer screen. The first minutes long. round will be focused just on the solo (we are looking at • Students will have until sometime in early March using a piece of choral music and having students sing (deadline TBD) to record their videos and submit them their part for a portion of it rather than an Art Song). for the processing of the virtual All-State video. Students’ videos will be uploaded to OpusEvent (or some other online audition platform), and adjudicators Again, this is a work in progress, so please check will score all submissions. We will move the highest- Facebook, your e-mail, and/or the CCDA website for scoring singers on to a second round in which they more updates. In these uncertain times, however, we will do some of the theory portion of the audition live felt it was important to give our students an honor choir via Zoom (or some other platform). It will be like the experience (hopefully like no other)!  regular audition....except online.

10 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 11 CCDA is honored to present the 2020 Howard Swan Award Winners

nna Hamre became Director of Choral Activities Aat California State University, Fresno, in 1999, where she conducted the Concert Choir, Fresno Community Chorus, Master Chorale, and Coro Piccolo. These choirs frequently collaborated with other area musical ensembles, especially the Fresno Philharmonic Orchestra. Her work has taken her beyond the USA to Mexico, China, Italy, Austria, and England. She has served as President of ACDA’s Western Division, and as Western Division Representative on the Council for Choral Education of the National Association for Music Education (NAfME). Her honors include the California Association for Music Education (CMEA) President’s Award (2013), the CMEA Choral Conductor Award (2006), the Fresno State College of Arts and Humanities Excellence in Teaching Award (2003), the Fresno-Madera Counties Music Education Association Choral Educator Award (2003), and more. Anna is the author of The High-School/University Sight-Singer, a music- literacy method in use in every state and several other countries. Her publication The Weekly Sight-Singer: An Abbreviated and Accelerated Method was released in 2011. 

12 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association CCDA is honored to present the 2020 Howard Swan Award Winners

oseph Huszti is Professor Emeritus of Music in the Claire JTrevor School of the Arts at the University of California, Irvine. During his tenure at UCI, twenty-seven international concert tours included prize-winning performances at the International Musical Eisteddfod (1979, 1986, 1992, 1997, 2008), the Béla Bartók International Choral Competition (1988, 1994, 2000), the Koorfest (1979), and the World Choir Games (2006, 2010), among others. In 1965, Huszti and his Bakersfield College Choir were the first American winners of the top prize at the International Choral Eisteddfod in Llangollen, Wales, an ac- complishment that earned them command performances with Pope Paul VI and President Lyndon Johnson. He continues to direct the award-winning Irvine-based Men in Blaque, a TTBB ensemble that has performed and competed around the world. Before coming to California, Huszti headed the choral activities at Boston University’s School for the Arts and directed the Young Vocalists Program at the Tanglewood Festival from 1972-1977. He has collaborated with interna- tionally renowned musicians including Leonard Bernstein, Aaron Copland, and Norman Dello Joio, and he served as president of Western Division ACDA from 1979-1981. 

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 13 14 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association "Ours is not the task of fixing the entire world all at once, but of stretching out to mend the part of the world that is within our reach."

C L A R I S S A P I N K O L A E S T É S f r o m Y o u W e r e M a d e F o r T h i s

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 15 16 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association SEEN & HEARD Coronavirus meant we couldn’t gather this year for our usual CCDA Summer Conference at ECCO, and we’re sad to miss out on the learning and the fellowship we always enjoy there. But our intrepid CCDA board created a fantastic online experience with the CCDA Summer Choral Summit, and while we wait to be able to meet in person again, here’s a look back at some highlights of our last few ECCO costume parties! As always, send your best photos of your choir’s activites—musical or extra-musical—to [email protected] if you’d like them to be considered for publication in a future issue.

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 17 UNIVERSITY of SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA THORNTON SCHOOL of MUSIC

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18 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Now what? Crowdsourced ideas from CCDA members for teaching and directing during a pandemic

e asked, and you came through! We invited CCDA members Wto send us their favorite distance-learning lesson plans and projects to share with their colleagues, and dozens of choral directors—from up and down the state and from every kind of ensemble—answered the call. The next 45 pages are filled with ideas that you’re invited and encouraged to use with your students and singers. You’ll find lessons that are easy to replicate on virtually no notice, and ones that take some extra work; projects that are technologically adventurous, and those that don’t even require internet access; a handful of activities that speak to a particular niche in the choral world, and plenty that can be used or adapted for practically any chorus. What they all have in common is that they represent the ingenuity, the creativity, and the generosity of our CCDA membership. You won’t just find some useful ideas to borrow here—you’ll find a whole stack of new reasons to appreciate everything that this choral community represents. 

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 19 Soundtrack of my life Julie Dana • Fresno City College • Fresno Elementary through adult

Molly Peters shared this with me; I made some adjustments to it for my summer music appreciation class, and their answers were heartfelt and honest. This is that assignment as I taught it, not only during COVID, but also during the uprisings of the Black Lives Matter movement. I felt it was necessary to allow my students—if they wanted—a voice in discussing current events taking place in the world. Their contributions were beautiful.

Soundtrack of my Life

Given the number of people in the world who have turned to music and the arts during the current world events, this assignment will give you an opportunity to share your music and how it has influenced you in your life.

Select three major moments that have affected you in your life. At least one of your moments should represent a current event in our society at this time (e.g., social justice, immigration, pandemic, government, global issues etc.). The others can be personal if you wish (graduation, being born, travels, loss of family, learning a skill, etc.).

The assignment

• Choose one song for each major life moment and write a short (3-4 sentences) overview of why you’ve chosen this music. Please include the artist’s name, the year recorded, and a YouTube link. • Include one image per song. It can be something from your life (a photo), or a photo of the musical artist, or even a drawing or piece of your own art! • You can share any type of music and event for this assignment, as I will be the only one to read and listen.

I look forward to listening to your soundtracks, should you choose to participate in this assignment.

Resources needed: Internet access

20 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Coffee house Jenny Tisi • All Saints Church • Pasadena All choir types/levels

We did an online coffee house. This took place the night of what was to be our spring concert. My middle school and high school choristers performed song that they wrote, or covers. They accompanied themselves on guitar, piano and ukulele. Others contributed by reading poetry, linking their artwork to songs, or playing instruments. We even had family acts! This was streamed live from our church and lots of advertising was done. We drew a pretty decent crowd and everyone was grateful!

Resources needed: Internet access, Zoom or other streaming platform

“Korona Karaoke” David V. Montoya • La Habra High School • La Habra Middle school, high school, community/four-year college

One activity I did to keep my students singing was Korona Karaoke! Students submitted a video of their best karaoke song performance. Some students chose to make beautiful music videos of themselves singing in various locations around the house and yard. Students were very clever and creative! All the students were required to send a recording, but they could also compete for prizes if they wanted to. I had eleven students who wanted their video in the running for simple prizes (Starbucks gift cards for first, second, and third places). All my classes were able to watch and vote, and voting was made easy by using a Google form. The posting of the videos all in one place was trickier, but I purchased a subscription to Padlet.com for $10, and I was able to posts all of the videos together in such a way that students were able to make positive comments about their peers’ videos. (Padlet has a monthly fee and you can cancel at anytime. I also found it helpful for creating video tributes for retirements and graduations.)

Resources needed: Internet, Google forms, and a way to post videos

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 21 The four questions Keith Hancock • Tesoro High School • Rancho Santa Margarita Middle school, high school, commmunity/four-year college

[Editor’s note: We learned after publication that this article was written by, and should have been attributed to, Doreen Scott Fryling of New York. We regret that she was not credited earlier!]

For this assignment, please pick one thing to do. This is an opportunity to direct your own learning and interests. There is no way for us to replicate the beauty and benefits of singing together in real time at this point, but we can continue to thrive as musicians. Realizing that you all have different prior experiences and different ability levels, I have provided learning experiences that allow you to create, analyze, perform, explore, process, practice, learn from others, and learn by yourself. The four questions:

1. What did you do? 2. Why did you pick this experience? 3. How do you know if you learned anything from doing it? 4. What could you do next to extend this experience? Be prepared to receive feedback from me and be willing to answer any additional questions I have for you based on your experience.

Here are your choices (pick one):

Be a conductor: Pick one of our pieces that we are have sung, and go beyond just keeping time and conduct using gestures and cues that you believe would help a choir perform that piece. And answer the four questions. Be a composer who uses music technology: Make a piece of music using garageband or similar program (ask Mr. Hancock for recommendations). Include a vocal line and at least three other sound layers. Tell me about your composition process either by writing up a short summary or recording an audio response that is between two and five minutes long. Your garageband piece should be at least 30 seconds long. And answer the four questions. Be a choral composer who uses traditional notation: Make a piece of music using MuseScore or Noteflight (free online). Compose either a warm-up exercise (complete with lyrics) or a piece for choir (SATB with or without other instrumentation). Tell me about your composition process either by writing up a short summary or recording an audio response that is between two and five minutes long. Your piece length is determined by you. And answer the four questions. Be a performer: Record audio or video of yourself performing your favorite song to a karaoke track. Tell me why it’s your favorite song right now and why you like singing it. And answer the four questions. Be an a cappella performer: Using the a cappella app, record yourself harmonizing in at least three parts to a song of your choosing. You must have at least a verse and a chorus. And answer the four questions. Be a performer/creator: Record an audio or video of yourself performing your own harmony parts that you have made up to a recording of your favorite song. Imagine you are a back-up singer and be creative! Tell me why it’s your favorite song right now and why you like it. And answer the four questions.

22 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association The four questions, continued

Be a teacher: Find a video online that would be valuable for your peers to watch that is related to singing/ choir/music. Write up an explanation of why it would be beneficial for anyone in our class and what you learned from watching it. Provide some prompt questions that could help students think about the content in the video. And answer the four questions. Conduct an interview: Ask a family member you’re stuck with (or call someone) about their music making. Some possible questions are: Did they/do they have formal or informal music education? How do they prefer making music? What impact has music had on them? Do they think that all students should be exposed to music education? What memories do they have about music making? Write up a summary of your findings with any insights you have about this interaction or record an audio response that is between two and five minutes long. And answer the four questions. Do a comparative analysis: Find two recordings of the same piece by two different artists (you could use one of our choral pieces we are preparing or a song recorded by two different artists). Analyze how they are similar and how they are different and why you prefer one over the other. Write up an analysis (at least two hundred words). And answer the four questions. Explore music careers: Consider all of the ways that you consume music now that you are social distancing. Explore and pick a music career that is responsible for bringing music into your home (e.g. sound engineer, commercial artist, film composer, jingle writer, Youtube artist). Write up a short summary of what this person does, what type of schooling would be helpful for this career, skills necessary for this job, and your thoughts on that profession. And answer the four questions. Listen to Song Exploder: Pick your favorite artist or explore someone new. Listen and respond to one of these Song Exploder episodes. http://songexploder.net/episodes What is their creation process like? What surprises you about this episode? Write up a summary of your findings with any insights you have about this or record an audio response that is between two and five minutes long. And answer the four questions. Make a presentation: Using a slide presentation, share with me your favorite piece of music. Format your slides like this: slide #1 title and artist, slide #2 an analysis of the piece from a construction standpoint, slide #3 why we should listen to this piece, slide #4 a link to a recording. And answer the four questions. Pitch an idea: If you would like to create your own music learning experience, pitch your idea here. I will review your suggestion and give you the go-ahead or offer suggestions for making it viable. Be sure to make your case for why you would benefit from your own idea. You will receive credit for the assignment (not the pitch- so pitch early). And answer the four questions at the conclusion of your work. Propose a choral program: Create a choral program of your own. Decide how to structure your program and pick pieces that fit your vision. Create a budget and go to jwpepper.com to find out the cost and what is available for different kinds of choirs. Include at least nine choral pieces for three different choirs. Create a slideshow with a slide for each piece that explains why you have chosen that piece and a link to a recording of it. Have one additional slide that explains your vision. And answer the four questions. Research: Pick one of our pieces we are preparing and do some research on it. Things to consider might be intent of the composer, context of time and place, lyric interpretations, and/or structure of the composition. Write up a detailed description of the piece that demonstrates your understanding of it from a deeper perspective. And answer the four questions.

Resources needed: Internet

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 23 Choir newsletter William Paisner • Southwest Women’s Chorus • Temecula Adult community, church

I create and post a newsletter every week to our community of current members, alumnae who have shown an interest in returning, and remaining alumnae. It includes 4-5 examples of past chorus YouTube submissions to keep their memories functioning plus a specific YouTube or Facebook video that moves me and that I want to share.

Resources needed: Internet, e-mail

Google sites Heidi Harriss • Actis Junior High School • Bakersfield All choir types/levels

I used Google Sites to create a website that students could visit to choose from a variety of activities to keep them musically engaged while they are studying from home. The activities allowed for students to explore different facets of music. The autonomy allows students to direct their own learning in a meaningful way. The particular activities I chose are specific to middle school and could also be used by elementary students, but a director could modify the types of activities for their group appropriately. My website can be viewed at: https://sites.google.com/ pbvusd.k12.ca.us/actischoir/home.

Resources needed: Internet, e-mail

24 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Low(er)-stress virtual choir Nicole Dedmon • Fullerton College • Fullerton High school, community/four-year college, adult choirs

Virtual choirs are very popular right now for very obvious reasons, but the downside to them is the incredible amount of time and technical expertise on the part of the conductor required to pull one off. Also, the main creative process behind the virtual choir is enjoyed by only the conductor, which defeats the purpose of encouraging students to have independent ownership of the musical process. So, I plan to do several of my pieces as virtual choirs with audio only. Since this is much faster to sync and put together, I want to include student input on this process— begin the recording process early, then meet over Zoom to listen to it and provide feedback. For example, how is the energy level? Where could articulations be better? Where could our tuning be better? I would then have them re-record a final time. This obviously takes much more time and requires an earlier start to the recording process, so it means that it will be harder to get through a large amount of repertoire, but I believe that including student input will really help to improve their skills throughout this time of virtual learning.

For presentation in a “virtual concert” format, it is certainly better to have some sort of visual component. One option is to simply have students lip sync along on Zoom, but I think a more creative option would be to collaborate either with the art department or the media department, or perhaps even the theater/dance department. Some of these professors might be just as in need of COVID-era activities for their students as we are, and they might be happy to provide a visual media to accompany the recording.

Also, I will be taking advantage of the time we now have to spend on other non-performance aspects of music making. I am very interested in hearing student input on the analysis of these pieces, and I plan to have live discussions, but also to have them write a short paragraph after these discussions, essentially to function as program notes. I will select some of these and feature them in the video, so that viewers can see into our creative process a little bit more. My overall goal is essentially to create a “choral collage” of our repertoire that has a throughline for our audiences. It is essentially a combination of a concert and a final project.

Of course, this is not “choir” in the traditional sense, but we have to find a way to continue their collaborative music making skills in a way where they are actively engaging and taking ownership of the musical process. Perhaps it is not a bad idea to take this time to teach them the skills of critical listening. We will emerge with better, more independent singers who are able to reach a higher level of music making at a faster rate when we can be back in person.

Resources needed: Internet, recording device, laptop with access to basic recording software (SoundTrap, for example), a collaborative department across campus

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 25 Songwriting challenge Ariel May • Canyon High School • Anaheim Middle school through college choirs

One of our most requested and engaging assignments was a Songwriting Unit. I taught this during the Fall semester, so the students were excited to do it during distance learning as well. Students followed the form (at right) for the process, which required them to write a verse and chorus. For the songwriting unit, students were provided with two accompaniment tracks—slow and upbeat—using the same chord progression (1-4-6-5). The accompaniment tracks can be simple recordings on piano or guitar. The students were instructed to choose between the provided accompaniment tracks and practice improvising a melody over the recording. While listening to the track, they were encouraged to write down any thoughts, feelings, or lyrics that came to mind. Some students came up with a melody first, while others began with lyrics. Once they had secured one of the two, they worked on the other. Advanced students were given the option to create their own accompaniments.

For the final submission, students recorded a video of themselves singing their song with the accompaniment track playing from another device or playing their own accompaniment.

Duration of assignment: 3 weeks

Checkpoints: select any collaborators (solo, duet, trio); submit melody (audio recording, submit lyrics: share inspiration for the lyrics; submit chord progression; submit final video recording.

Additional learning: collaboration (students can collaborate with partners); submit notation of their melody (all or 4-8 bars); submit rhythmic notation.

Resources needed: Internet access, smartphone or other video recording device.

26 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Songwriting challenge, continued

Songwriting Assignment 1 NAME:______

The process of writing a song can unfold in many different way: start with a melody, a rhythmic groove, accompanying chords, etc. For this assignment, follow the steps below on your own or with a partner. After completing this form, record a video of you singing your song with the accompaniment (you must be visible & clearly heard). Upload your video to Google Classroom.

1. CHORDS- Listen to the provided accompaniment tracks (Google Classroom) for the verse and chorus. The most common chords are 1-4-5, the Primary Chords. Advanced: choose your own chords.

2. FEEL- Choose the feel of the song. For this assignment, there are two provided accompaniment tracks: Slow and Upbeat. Advanced: record chords in your own tempo, rhythm, and meter.

3. LYRICS & MELODY- Create a melody & lyrics that fit your chord progression. Lyrics can be about your week, school, a mood, the world, a relationship, your favorite ice cream, etc.

4. FORM- For this assignment, you only need to write Verse 1-2 and Chorus 1-2. Advanced: add additional sections (e.g., Verse 1-2, Chorus, Verse 3-4, Bridge, Chorus).

——————————————————————————————————————————

Verse- Chord Progression: 1-4-6-5 Chord Names: _____ - _____ - _____ - _____

Chorus- Chord Progression: 1-4-1-5 Chord Names: _____ - _____ - _____ - _____

LYRICS Verse 1 Verse 2

______

______

______

______! Chorus 1 Chorus 2 (can repeat Chorus 1)

______

______

______

______

Song Title:______

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 27 Students in charge Scott Glysson • Cal Polytechnic University • San Luis Obispo All choir types/levels old enough to participate

Once a week, each section in my choirs took a turn leading some type of fun activity of their design. It is amazing to see their creativity, and this makes them feel like they are invested in the time together. Some were musically rewarding (in my women’s chorus, one section chose to present a few pieces by female composers), and others just lots of fun (everything from sharing their pets on screen, to “kahoot” question-and-answer games to learn more about their classmates. It was important, in this time, to take time out and simply connect with each other on a basic human level.

Resources needed: Zoom or Skype access

“Si le le” F. May Le Roy • Cathedral City High School • Cathedral City All choir types/levels

Our choirs enjoyed this simple song by Bobby McFerrin (arranged by Paul Smith), as taught by the members of Voces8 in this video for everyone to participate in via singing and/or body percussion: www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9xDt4oduYE

[Editor’s note: Check out Voces8’s other “#LiveFromHome” videos on YouTube for lots of terrific interactive options!]

Resources needed: Internet access

28 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Interview an adult Kim Nason • Capistrano Unified School District • Mission Viejo Elementary, middle school/junior high

My teaching partner and I created an assignment for our fourth graders in which they interviewed an adult (a parent, grandparent, or neighbor) about a song that had been important to them.

The students were first asked if they had a song that was inspirational or made them happy, and why they liked it. Then, they asked an adult to name a song that inspired them and talk about why it was important to them. The fourth graders found a recording of this song recommended by an adult and listened to it, then wrote about how they felt when they heard it.

As an extension, students were asked to make a Google slide presentation of the information that they got from their interview, including images of album covers and artists.

For our fifth graders, we asked our students to interview an adult with questions including “What songs were sung to you as a child?”, “Do you remember any bedtime songs?”, “What songs would you sing on a road trip?”, “What do you remember about music in school when you were young?”, “Did you sing in a choir or play an instrument?”, “What was your favorite band or artist when you were in high school?”, and “Can you share any memories about a concert you attended?”

Then they were asked to listen to one or more of the songs that were mentioned in the interview and write a brief comment about the music.

When they completed the interview, they too had an opportunity to make a Google slide show presentation to share with the person they interviewed.

This assignment was simple, but could easily be expanded for older students to be a more detailed interview about musical tastes, genres, artists, and composers.

Resources needed: Internet, ideally, but this could be done offline as well

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 29 COVID concert series Julie Dana • Fresno City College • Fresno Any choir type/level

Since we were shut down the day before our first concert of the semester, in an attempt to still have a concert experience for the end of the semester, I had our Canvas platform divide my ensembles into small groups of six or less. They were given “topics” (secretly to each group), such as Healing, Freedom, Fire and Water, etc., and asked to put together a concert, 15 minutes in length, using choral recordings from YouTube, Vimeo, etc. We were meeting via Zoom on a regular class schedule, and I gave them time in breakout rooms during our class. In those breakout rooms, they discussed, shared videos, and assembled their concert materials. Most groups put their “concert” together via YouTube playlist.

Required along with the music selection was: • An “acknowledgements” page, allowing them to show me who did (or didn’t) do the work. • “Program notes,” similar to what they have seen in their own concert programs, including translations, why they selected the piece, or how they came up with the music and the order. They were not allowed to use any music we had performed or studied in class!

They loved the assignment and asked to have it included in our work when we are back together.

We had a two-night Zoom watch party with all of the ensembles and concerts mixed together. My student leadership and I met and I showed them the topics (here I found out that they were super secretive about their topics, as none of them knew any except their own; they were giggling and saying “awesome!” when they saw others’ topics). The student leadership then was tasked with putting the concerts together solely with the topics considered. I acted as the secretary only, and let them discuss how to put the playlists in order to create a program. (It was really great to hear them putting it together!)

On the evening of the concerts, we all tuned in, I introduced the group, they introduced their concert and shared their program notes in the Zoom chat feature, and they shared their concerts.

My only change to our next semester’s assignment will be that I will request the concerts ahead of time so that I can share them using my own internet access, which is better than some of the students’; we had a couple that did not play properly due to bad connection.

Resources needed: Internet, Zoom access

30 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association COVID concert series, continued

CHORAL ENSEMBLES FINAL PROJECT SPRING 2020

Small groups will be assigned in each class to make up a production team!

Your goal is a 15 minute Choral Concert that will be viewed by your colleagues during an

“FCC CHORAL CONCERT NIGHT” (Or NIGHTS) during the week of (Exact dates and times to be announced later).

All three ensembles will participate in this ZOOM event at the same time!

Your concert will consist of youtube videos played in succession as a concert. (YouTube playlist is fine!). Or if you want to get fancy, you can do some kind of power point presentation with introductions to the songs as you go…. Be creative, just let Mrs. D know what your plans are first! There should be no less than 3 pieces in the concert but probably 4 short, 3 minute pieces will work!. A little short is fine, but please don’t make it longer than 15 minutes!

• The videos must be of choral ensembles. This can include one jazz or acappella ensemble as long as you have other more traditional pieces represented as well! • Work together as a team in your small groups on your private Canvas Chat Rooms! • Develop strategies for viewing youtube videos or searching out music in other ways and then find a video performance of it. • You may not use any music that we have performed previously or prepared this year in class OR music that you have heard at a choral festival recently. i.e. – Don’t use some popular Jake Runestad composition that we’ve heard at several festivals. But DO use another, not so well known, Jake Runestad composition that you find in searching your topic. • Be creative with your topic and research texts that might fit in with your topic! • Look up music from some of the ensembles that Mrs. Dana has posted in your Canvas class PAGES area… this might give you a good start on finding some interesting literature. • Please prepare program notes of some sort about each piece in your concert. This can include information about the composers, or poet, or why you selected the piece and how it fits into your program. (Make sure it is your own words please!) • Be sure to have an ACKNOWLEDGEMENT PAGE listing each member of your group and their contributions to your project!

Each group will have a different concert theme so we will get some great music shared!!!

Your project MUST be completed by Friday ! And turned in to Mrs. D so she can check it out, make sure it works etc.

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 31 Connect with the text Tom Carter • Pinewood School • Los Altos Hills All choir types/levels

Objective: To deepen the authentic connection between singer and text, singer and song, and choir and audience.

Overall process: Encourage the singers to imagine a context for the singing of the song. When would someone sing this song? To whom would they sing it (sometimes it’s easier to call this person the Other)? How would they want to affect their Other? Through a series of small group or teacher-led exchanges, help them to flesh out the specifics. For example, if the song is “This Little Light of Mine,” the singers might come up with the story that they are singing to a friend who is suffering from a lack of confidence. The way they’re trying to affect that friend could be “to give them back the confidence they lost and encourage them to live life to the fullest.” Note: It doesn’t matter if they are accessing a true or imagined story—if they flesh out the details, their connection will be just as authentic either way.

Deepen the connection: Once they have a story that makes sense to them, encourage deeper and more specific connections. Using the above example, prompt them in interchanges like these. Q: What specifically did your friend do that led them to be discouraged? A: They didn’t make the team they wanted to. Q: What team? A: The varsity tennis team. Q: How do you know? A: They told me. Q: How badly are they taking it? A: They have stopped communicating with their friends, and they have given up on their dreams of going to college on a tennis scholarship. In short, they are devastated. Q: If you get through to them, how will they change? A: When I can get them to restore their confidence, they will be their laughing, joyful self again, and they will get back on the court!

Choose stories: At this point, each singer could choose the story that intrigued them the most (of the ones they just heard), and spend a few minutes journaling/thinking about all the specifics they would know if this story were real. You could also break them into small groups which would then come up with one or two stories per group. After they do so, each group would share with the whole choir. Who is/are the person(s) they’re singing to? What do they look like? What’s their name? What’s their relationship to you? Where are they as you sing to them? What are they doing or saying right before the music starts? What do they do/how do they change as the song progresses. The entire choir doesn’t have to embrace the same story! As long as the scenario gives a compelling reason for the singer to sing those words—and doesn’t contradict the desired mood/ tone of the piece—it will enhance the overall performance.

Further down the road: If you are working virtually, the singers could do all of the above as they prepare. If you are able to sing as a group (online or in person), the singers would incorporate their imaginations, trying to affect their Other(s) as they sing.

32 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Connect with the text, continued

Deeper dive: Other small group or individual activities include fleshing out the details within the text, and empowering the singers to know what they would know if they were a real person singing these words in their imagined or real-life context. To do this, singers go word by word, line by line, making specific and personal all that is general. In “This Little Light of Mine,” each singer would know which personal “light” they’re singing about . . . just as they would know why the Other’s light has been tamped down. So, when they sing, are they referencing themselves giving classroom speeches with more confidence? Trying out for the school play? Standing up to a bully? Telling their parents that they want to be a singer rather than a doctor?!

If the text is more detailed, the singers have more specific opportunities to put flesh and bone on words, deepening both meaning and authentic connection as they do so. For example, look at some of the lyrics in Stanford’s “The Blue Bird”: “The lake lay blue below the hill, / O’er it, as I looked, there flew / Across the waters cold and still / A bird whose wings were palest blue.” Singers learning this glorious piece would deepen their authentic connection by fleshing out each image. Q: Where is this lake? What does it look like? How big is it? What surrounds it? What about the hill? How big? What colors? What vegetation? What smells? What were you doing there? How far away was the blue bird? How was it flying? What was the weather? What were you doing there? How did this experience affect you in the moment? In other words, the singers get to flesh out all the specific details so that when they sing, they are “remembering it” just as if they really lived that experience. As they sing, their imagination taps in, resulting in a much deeper personal connection that will show on their faces, in their bodies, and in their voices. Working in small groups, the singers can ask each other these sorts of questions and build an even more vibrant connection to the song.

Pedagogical support: Certain practices go a long way to help singers who are trying to develop a full human connection to the text. Certainly, the establishment of a safe environment is crucial (the more supportive the leader and the group, the more the singers will be willing to risk full expression). As they explore free and connected movement that is tied to their story, their faces will express what’s going on for them. Rather than telling them to look a certain way or express a particular emotion on their faces on in their voices, guide them back to their connection -- it’s all about that Other and the specifics they’ve fleshed out. You want them to look enthusiastic or “alive”? Entreat them to “do whatever it takes to get your Other to smile!” If you are standing in front of them, you can be their Other. No need to make a face that you want them to model or entreat them to do anything; they are trying to affect you, not the other way around.

Much more on all of this on www.choralcharisma.com, including a step-by-step mini-workshop to help explain and undergird the process (see “Session Notes”). Feel free to drop me a line for support/clarification as well: [email protected].

Resources needed: Internet access

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 33 “Echo Music” Paul Kimball • Lincoln Unified School District • Stockton All choir types/levels

We need to figure out a way to sing live through Zoom, but as we all know, the delay factor makes it impossible to stay together. I experimented with my own high school and middle school choirs and came up with a solution, and two original compositions, that I call Echo Music. It’s outside the box, but it’s inside the reality of distance rehearsals. The basic principles:

• Don’t worry about when entrances happen. Think about the beauty of echos in a cave. • Do small groups or soloists throughout the piece. • Have piano solos and tremolo chords to help with pitch. • Piano parts should be played with one hand when choir sings.

The text of “Nocturne” is all about echos and is in the public domain. I also arranged “Swing Low/Sakura/Shalom Chaverim” for middle/beginning high school. Both work for a large variety of voices. Chords are built for scared individuals, lots and lots of solos can be assigned, and I included very few dynamics because they are difficult to control in computer meetings!

I’d like to see composers run with this so that we can have live musical experiences. I am more interested in spreading the concept than these particular pieces; I am giving them away, so feel free to share. E-mail [email protected] for full scores and a demo!

Resources needed: Internet access; Zoom or Google Meet

34 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Postcards from the edge Eliza Rubenstein • Orange Coast College • Costa Mesa All choir types/levels

This isn’t a musical activity at all, but as we’ve all been reminded these past few months, music-making is only one element of our responsibility to our students and singers.

During a weekly Zoom meeting with my Orange Coast College Chamber Singers, I told them that I was using my stay-at-home time to clean out some drawers, and that if they’d like to receive an ugly card from me, they only needed to message me a mailing address or enter it into the Zoom chat.

Almost everyone in the group was excited to get mail (I was reminded that their generation doesn’t really do cards), so I collected a long list of addresses, and sent each of them a card with a personalized message and a sticker. The ones who got ancient, hideous Christmas cards were perhaps the most delighted of the bunch; many of them texted me photos of, or made social-media posts about, their cards upon arrival.

As a bonus, it gave us a reason to discuss the importance of supporting the U.S. Postal Service.

I’ve kept the list, and will do another round or two of cards during the summer. Who doesn’t love Christmas in August?

Resources needed: A drawer full of old stationery and a roll of stamps

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 35 Building Bridges Transforming Lives Power of Music

Explore Remarkable Destinations Nearby

Hawaii Los Angeles & Disneyland Montreal & Québec City Nashville

New Orleans New York Toronto & Niagara Falls Washington DC

Amazing choral events in Costa Rica, England, Estonia, France, Germany, Choral Festivals Israel, Italy, and Portugal.

2344 Perimeter Park Drive, Atlanta, GA 30341 | 770.220.2242 | www.perform-international.com | [email protected]

36 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association CAL POLY MUSIC BACHELOR OF ARTS IN MUSIC

MINOR IN MUSIC

The Cal Poly Choral Program has four choirs: PolyPhonics, University Singers, Chamber Choir and Women’s Chorus. There are opportunities in I’VE FOUND A SECOND classical, jazz, opera and more! HOME IN THE MUSIC DEPARTMENT Directed by Scott Glysson, the choirs tour nationally and — Music Major Studying Voice internationally and have a choral exchange program with Kenya. THE FACULTY GUIDED MUSIC MAJOR FOCUS AREAS ME THROUGH MY • Music Education • Composition UNDERGRADUATE • Music History or Ethnomusicology EXPERIENCE AND INTO • Sound Design LIFE AFTER COLLEGE • Jazz — Spring 2020 Graduate • Performance

CAL POLY Cal Poly is located in San Luis Obispo, on California’s beautiful Central Coast. Cal Poly has been accredted by the National Association of Music (NASM) since 2004.

CALIFORNIA POLYTECHNIC STATE UNIVERSITY / SAN LUIS OBISPO / CA / 93407 MUSIC DEPARTMENT / 805-756-2406 / MUSIC.CALPOLY.EDU

facebook.com/cpmusic @calpolymusic, @calpolychoirs

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 37 SAVE THE DATE Pacific Choral Festival

April 23 - 25, 2021* Faye Spanos Concert Hall Stockton, CA More info: go.Pacific.edu/ChoralDay

High school musicians are invited to join conservatory faculty and students for: •Workshops •Presentations •Rehearsals •Performances

*The dates are subject to change due to COVID-19

38 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 39 Be a rapper Miguel Chicas and Ebun Agboola • Irvine Unified School District • Irvine Elementary, middle school/junior high, high school

We created a three-lesson activity to introduce our upper elementary students to rapping. In lesson 1, students watched a video in which they were introduced to rap. After watching the video, they were to select one of the four Dr. Seuss passages in the graphic at right, and one of the two beats we provided. Students were then asked to record themselves speaking the passage over the beat with a rhythm of their own. They were given examples of how to do it, as well as step-by-step instructions.

In lesson 2, students listened to three songs and completed a Google form, sharing whether or not they believed each song was rap or not. (The songs we chose were “Benny’s Dispatch” from the musical In the Heights, “Parents Just Don’t Understand” by Will Smith, and the recording of a YouTube video of an opera singer singing Rossini’s aria Largo al factotum over a beat.)

In lesson 3, students were asked to write their own rap. We found that a lot of students had thought the recording of Largo al factotum was a rap while the other two were not. Before they wrote their own raps, we had students watch a video that discussed how the act of rapping is a technique, while rap/hip-hop is a genre. Following the video, they had to come up with a theme (favorite food, something they like to do with their friends, hobbies, etc.). Using this theme, they made a list of 10-20 rhyming words, which they used to help them write four lines of their own rap. (i.e. “when I go for a run, I have a lot of fun.) Then they chose a beat that was provided for them and rapped their lyrics over it.

There were many benefits to this activity. We were able to discuss how rapping is just rhythm over music. Students were able to compose their own rhythms. Students were able to express themselves (we heard a lot about how they were frustrated or sad about not being able to be at school). We were able to relate rapping to recitative, which then allowed us to introduce them to opera. Also, we were able to help students realize that rapping in itself is not a negative thing, as it can sometimes be portrayed in popular culture, but a really neat way for people to express themselves.

I believe the biggest challenge we faced was getting students to use the beats and record themselves at the same time. It varied depending on what the student had available. However, we found that if the students used Flipgrid, they were able to record themselves and play the recording in a different tab at the same time.

Resources needed: Internet access, recording devices that allow them to play audio as well as record themselves at the same time

40 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Be a rapper, continued

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 41 The Joy Project Andrew Ball • Corona Del Mar High School • Newport Beach Middle school/junior high or high school

One of our big successes during distance learning was our Joy Projects—small-scale video projects aimed at adding some joy to the world. They worked great for a number of reasons:

1. They continued to foster community in a time of quarantine, as students commented on and shared each other’s videos. 2. They taught students how to use some of the software students would be using for other aspects of our class. 3. There’s really very little onus on the teacher to micromanage, freeing us to catch up on the multitude of other projects that we’re putting together.

The students were given the following assignments:

Joy Project #1

Goal: To put some good into the world by creating a video that will bring a smile to someone’s face, utilizing only resources found at home.

Step 1: Figure out something you can do that might put a smile on someone’s face. This can be done on your own or with others, be as simple or complicated as you would like. Here are some options (these were hyperlinked to examples) if you’re having trouble thinking of your own thing:

• Sing a cover of a song you like • Play a cover of a song you like on an instrument you’re pretty good at • Play a cover of a song you like on an instrument that you’re god-awful at • Write an original piece of music and perform it • Create a parody of a popular song and perform it • Tell a joke • Juggle well • Juggle poorly • Do a dance • Do a magic trick • Find a creative use for a household object • Perform a monologue • Or something completely different

Step 2: Make sure that the execution of your idea follows the following criteria:

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• STAY HOME (immediate yard okay) • Keep it clean (if you wouldn’t want me showing it to the principal, don’t do it) • Make sure we can see your face for at least part of the video • Keep it positive (no pranks, no sad songs) • You may involve other people, but you are the star of the video • New content only! Please don’t send in an old video of yourself.

Step 3: Record your video. This can be done using your phone’s video app, or using the Screencastify extension on your chrome browser (which allows you to record video using the camera on your chromebook or laptop). You can install Screencastify by going to www.screencastify.com.

Step 4: Upload your video to Google Classroom.

Joy Project #2

Goal: To provide positive feedback on your peers’ Joy Projects

Step 1: Log onto google drive using your school account, and go to our Joy Project submissions. You will not be able to access the files if you are not logged into your school account.

Step 2: Watch videos uploaded by your ensemble and leave positive comments for five or more of them. Please be aware that it will display your name with your comment, so please be sure you make good choices. To leave a comment on a video, click on the comment button on the upper right-hand part of the screen as you’re watching the video, and write something kind for the person who submitted it.

Step 3: Now watch some videos from other ensembles, leaving positive comments for five or more of them. Just as with the comments for people in your own ensemble, be courteous to the people whose videos you’re commenting on.

That’s it! Make sure you’ve left comments for a total of ten or more videos.

Resources needed: Internet access, video/audio recording devices (smartphones work best)

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 43 Talent show Melissa Trevino Keylock • San Diego North Coast Singers • Encinitas All choir types/levels

San Diego North Coast Singers is hosting a summer on-line talent show for each choir. Singers who wish to participate can share whatever talent they want to share- they can sing, dance, play an instrument, act, tell jokes, juggle, read a poem they enjoy, show a completed drawing, craft, or artwork, etc. It gives each child a chance to “shine” in a way that makes him/her/them feel confident in a way we can’t normally do with the time restrictions of live rehearsals and performances.

Resources needed: Zoom or similar conferencing platform

Kahoot! Jakob Swetland • Cantate Community Choir • Irvine All choir types/levels

The activity that probably drew our members closest to one another was a Kahoot! night. Kahoot! is a quiz game that consists of three wrong answers and one right answer. I am able to input the questions that were sent to me on kahoot.it, where colors and shapes were added to each response to the questions. Players can use the app or go online, enter a code that they receive (when the game is started and the screen is shared on zoom), enter a name or nickname, and wait for other players to join. I had them submit questions about themselves or about other members for the quiz. If a member wanted to explain their answer, we had a little story time as well. This idea I got from my mentors and current professors Dr. Istad and Dr. Peterson, and I decided to give it a go with my own choir! Members were encouraged to bring their favorite snack or pet, or any family members who wanted to join the fun. It was a great time, and it really brought all of our members together at our last meeting.

Resources needed: Internet Access, Zoom (or Google Hangout), Google Forms

44 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Program notes Genevieve Tep • Carlmont High School • Belmont High school, community/four-year college, adult choirs

Students write program notes on songs of their choice, or music provided by the instructor.

Resources needed: Internet access

Program Notes Instructions

Contents: Program notes MIGHT contain the following information - you choose the most relevant and interesting info to include. • Composer info, including biographical information and what motivated them to write the song, when the song was premiered, who it was written for, etc • Information about the text, poetry, poet, or lyrics • Historical background • Compositional tools used by the composer • Interesting “tidbits” about the song

Writing Mechanics: • Your name and choir will be on the top of your write up • Each entry will have the Title (BOLD, non Italic) then the composers FULL NAME, birth and death date next to the title • Within the the write up, song titles are in Italics and are capitalized • In the write up, the Þrst time you state the composers name you use their full name, after that refer to them only by their last name.

Program notes should be between 75-150 words long, and include a translation if the song is in a foreign language. (Translation is not included in the word count)

Sources: You should have at least two sources sited for each song. Begin in your sheet music, then go after a couple of additional online sources.

Online sources are Þne for composer background - if the composer is living go to their website! If the composer is deceased, wikipedia is Þne for basic historical info about the composer. You may also look at CPDL.org for translations and composer information. Poets.org is a good website to Þnd information about poets and poetry. Your own interpretations of the text and song are an acceptable thing to include as well. Include a list of links to your sources on your google doc under the program notes.

Submission: Submit your assignment to school loop or google classroom. PAPERS not submitted through either google classroom or school loop will NOT BE GRADED.

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 45 Remote sight-reading Josh Small • Ukiah Unified School District • Ukiah Middle school/junior high, high school

Objective: Students will sight read melodic and rhythmic examples.

The teacher will: 1. Select 4-bar melodic and/or rhythmic examples for the students to perform (some challenging, some easy). 2. Screenshot and upload them to Google classroom. 3. Create a short video walking them through examples that are similar to their assignment by recording your screen and using your voice and mouse to show them (visibly and audibly) how to perform the example. 4. Upload this video to classroom. 5. Offer virtual sessions to work with students. The time delay is a challenge, but I have found that a consistent, audible tempo makes it possible. See notes on other strategies below. 6. Provide feedback as students turn in submissions.

The students will: 1. Practice the sight-reading excerpts. 2. Schedule a time for a virtual lesson if they need help. 3. Record their performance (all that really matters is the audio) on their phone, chromebook, laptop or other device. 4. Upload their recording to the appropriate Google classroom assignment.

Best practices and suggestions • Start easy. Let the students be successful. Before transitioning to remote learning, I considered my choirs to be decent sight readers—ot superior, but adequate for their level. Once I started these individual assessments, I learned that most of the students were just following a couple leaders (sound familiar?) and were not actually too secure in their own abilities. • Go back to basics and start at the beginning. In my first videos, I went back to identifying, explaining, performing and showing the basic rhythmic values and solfeggio syllables. Start at the beginning and sequence their learning; lead them to what you want them to achieve. • Sight Reading Factory (www.sightreadingfactory.com) is incredible. Pay for the teacher subscription and purchase the student subscriptions so they can practice. Identify the levels or make custom levels, and use these as your official “assignment” excerpts (I just took a screenshot of them). SRF does have a recording and assignment functionality, but I wanted to keep it within Google Classroom for ease in grading and notification. • Time delay and sight reading: There is a time delay. I found that during the virtual lessons with a student, I could tap the tempo and use my mouse to bounce on top of the note in time. If I was

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leading in this manner, I would do my best to stay consistent and listen to their performance, knowing it was technically “behind.” The consistency allowed them to maintain a consistent tempo. It takes a little time to get used to, but I found it worked wonders for the students who needed to see and hear how to perform a rhythmic or melodic phrase. • Less is more! These are time consuming to grade. Keep it to 4 bars and 1-2 assignments a week. Encourage the students to practice other examples at the same level in SRF, then record when they are ready. I started with four per week and eventually moved to two, because it was taking me hours and hours to provide feedback and grade each example.

Variations • Students (individual or in groups) can write a melodic or rhythmic example and upload their performance of it. You can also have students perform another student’s example. • Give dictation assignments in which the teacher performs and records a 4-bar rhythmic or melodic example and uploads the performance for the students to notate.

While it’s not the most “fun” thing, I noticed so much growth in my students. Before remote learning, students often told me they were awful sight readers and didn’t make any effort to get any better. Remote learning required students to take ownership of their learning and provided me with the time and resources to individually assess each student’s level and provide intentional, meaningful, and actionable feedback specific to their performance and needs.

Resources needed: Internet access and two internet connected devices (chromebook/laptop, cell phone, etc.), sightreadingfactory.com subscription

CONGRATULATIONS TO GREG LAPP, the 5th winner of the annual George Heussenstamm Composition competition!

Greg’s THREE SONGS FROM TWELFTH NIGHT were selected by our team of judges from 21 excellent entries. We’ll need to wait till next summer to read the piece as a group at our summer conference, But Greg’s piece was presented at this July’s Choral Summit. Congratulate Greg and see more of his work at www.greglappmusic.com!

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 47 Caro mio ben Alan Garcia • Magnolia High School • Anaheim High school

During our shutdown, each of my students learned Giuseppe Giordani’s Caro mio ben in either Eb or C Major, and recorded their performance to a pre-recorded accompaniment track. These recordings were individually uploaded for assessment for supportive and constructive feedback. The purpose of this assignment was to give each of my students an individual assessment using the same base material while also teaching a foreign language and bel canto performance style. Typically, this assignment is given to each student as a final; in-class meetings allow us to learn the song as a group, create supportive camaraderie, and promote positive learning experiences in solo voice and technique. I tell my students that there is no such thing as a good “solo singer” or a good “choral singer,” but simply good “singers” who work hard, persist, and maintain an openness to learning. I also use this assignment as a vehicle to promote growth over aptitude, reminding students that each musician is on their own musical journey and that singing solo in front of your peers is an accomplishment all on its own.

In the world of COVID, this assignment had to be formatted to replace in-class masterclasses and practice with several key resources to help them complete the assignment. These included annotated PDFs of the piece in both keys, high quality recordings of the piece in various voicings, a pre-recorded accompaniment track, and various methods for students to submit recordings.

• Annotated PDFs in both keys allowed for my students to choose a range that is comfortable for them while also providing Italian pronunciation on the same document as the music. I did not require any student to sing in a specific key, regardless of voice type sung in choir. Students who struggle with musical literacy can also be given clarity as to which line to follow while learning music individually. Caro mio ben has several public domain editions easily accessible for printing, annotating, and scanning. • Because many students are aural learners who use reference recordings to influence their singing, I knew picking proper recordings of the song was paramount. Instead of relying on professional recordings by accomplished opera singers, I chose to ask personal musician friends of mine to record themselves singing it with appropriate technique and timbre for a young singer to emulate. This mainly focused on freedom of the voice, openness of vowel, and natural vibrato. By having my friends span several voice types, it made each recording more relatable to each student regardless of section. Once I received each recording, I uploaded each one to our online system for students to download. • For a pre-recorded accompaniment track, there are several available for purchase and/or download online. I am a terrible pianist, but I can play Caro mio ben in C and Eb. I chose to record an accompaniment track myself. This also allowed me to record a version of the accompaniment with a metronome as well. • We used Schoology as our primary online learning platform, but file upload seemed to be a recurring issue. To accommodate, I allowed students to send in the file via e-mail, YouTube,

48 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Caro mio ben, continued

Dropbox, or any other method of file transfer, so long as it met the deadline. • In the past, success with this assessment revolved around breaking down the Italian art song in small pieces and building trust amongst the classroom to promote vulnerability. Online, students lose the repetition of hearing each student sing the piece several times and lose the opportunity to feel the support of their peers. However, they gain the privacy of individualized feedback and no audience. In order for students to be successful in an online setting, I knew every student would need access to all the resources and guidance to properly navigate them. For several of my students, the amount of resources could be overwhelming. To check-in with students, I used in-class meetings, office hours, and appointments to talk about the assignment, demonstrate the recording process, re-teach pronunciation, and answer any questions. Any students who wanted to practice their recording also had the option to schedule a timeslot for practice with me.

Accommodations • This assignment was hardest during its first implementation, when almost all students were unfamiliar with Italian art song. This will be the fourth year I’ve assigned Caro mio ben as a final, so the veteran choir students now find the assignment highly accessible. This allowed me to focus on my new members and to use veteran singers to assist less confident singers. • While I gave this lesson to each student, the actual assessment differed based on the choir. Chamber Singers (advanced mixed) and Vocal Harmonia (intermediate treble) each had to learn, perform, and record the song in its entirety. However, Concert Choir (beginning mixed) simply learned the A section of the work; I offered the remainder of the piece as extra credit. • For my students who are part of a special education program, I followed each student’s IEP and gave more time, assistance, and resources as each student required. • For my English Language Learners, I relied on the visual cues and notes that I included on the physical PDFs of each score. This included pronunciation, marks to delineate between vocal line and piano, as well as more time and assistance if needed. • In the weekly class meetings and office hours, I retaught pronunciation, answered any questions, and allowed myself to be available for assistance. Students needing more help were given timeslots for additional individual instruction as well.

Supplemental Assignments Depending on the prior knowledge of your students, this lesson can be extended and supplemented with building block assignments on IPA, Italian diction, Italian art song history and background information, and bel canto style and performance practice. It could also be supplemented with general music theory assignments, such as note identification, score scavenger hunts, poetic interpre- tation, and related musical exploration. The possibilities are endless!

Resources needed: Internet access, recording/playback device

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 49 2020: The Virtual Concert Anabel Pauline • Los Amigos High School • Garden Grove Middle school/junior high, high school

A project I plan on doing with my students this fall is creating a Virtual Concert called “2020” that reflects the collective human experience of this year. Students will be placed into groups and given the task of programming a themed three-song concert set for which they will record audio and create music videos. Below are the first two activities I’ve planned for this project.

Activity 1: Create a playlist Our first activity for this project will be to create a playlist. The objective is to create themed playlist of 5-8 songs utilizing the students’ preferred music platform. The platforms that are the most accessible to create playlists on are YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Music. Students will need to select a theme, and they can pick any theme that fits under the umbrella of the year 2020. Options they can consider include quarantine, pandemic, school, changes, social justice, human rights, current events, moods, etc. Students will be asked to submit 2-4 sentences describing their chosen theme and how it fits into the overall theme of 2020, as well as a link to their playlist.

I did this assignment as a stand-alone assignment during distance learning, and students enjoyed getting creative in choosing themes for their playlists; they explored new music they wouldn’t have otherwise listened to in order to find music that fit their theme. It serves a diverse population of singers by encouraging student choice and providing multiple means of expressing those choices (sharing through a platform they are comfortable with).

Activity 2: Program a concert set proposal Using their themed playlists as a starting point, students will be placed in groups of 4-6 people (depending on class size) and collaborate on programming a three-song concert set that tells a story. They will present the details on a Google Slides presentation.

Students will collaborate with their group to decide on the following elements of design: theme, story line, song choices, background design, props, and attire. Students will distribute the work evenly amongst group members to complete their Google Slides presentation. Each team member should be responsible for completing at least one slide, in accordance with the following plan:

Slide 1: Title of your concert set that reflects your theme Slide 2: Story arc and song details • Provide a list of the songs and the composers • Include song lengths • Write a few sentences summarizing the story your set is telling

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Slides 3-5: One slide per song • Link to the song • Link to the sheet music • Describe how the song progresses the storyline Slide 6: Props and backgrounds you might want to use • Include images Slide 7: Attire throughout the set • Include images

I did this assignment as an individual activity, and it had similar benefits as the playlist activity, such as fostering creativity, encouraging student choice, and providing multiple means of expression. This activity will further serve a diverse population of singers by adding the element of collaboration with peers of various skill sets in order to successfully program a concert and create a presentation.

Once each group’s proposal is approved by the teacher, groups will move forward with creating their virtual concert set. I plan on breaking down that process with the following activities:

Activity 3: Prepare concert music Activity 4: Create video storyboard Activity 5: Record and edit concert music videos

Resources needed: Internet access, smartphone or other device

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 51 Waveforms Michelle Hawkins • Skyline College • San Bruno Jazz choirs at any level

Our jazz choir recorded a short passage and analyzed the waveforms for musicianship and ensemble skills feedback.

Using a free, online DAW (digital audio workstation) such as www.bandlab.com, the instructor uploads a short passage for their students to sing along with and match as closely as possible. These can be melodic or rhythmic passages. Singers, using their laptop or smartphone, can then record themselves singing with the passage, and compare their waveform with the original track waveform. Students will be able to visually analyze their entrances, cut-offs, articulations, and dynamics. If they are copying a rhythmic sample, they can see visually where they tend to rush or drag on certain rhythms. The analysis can be done via Zoom with the entire class or one on one as individual assignments.

Resources needed: Smartphone or laptop, headphones, internet access

52 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Zoom scavenger hunt Diana Landis • Our Lady Queen of Angels Catholic Church & Southern California Children’s Chorus • Newport Beach Elementary, middle school, junior high, and children’s choirs

I was furloughed from my church choir job but wanted to provide some closure to the year. We recently held an end-of-the-year party on Zoom where we chatted and presented certificates of participation and attendance awards (we shared the screen to show samples of the certificates). The highlight of the party was our Scavenger Hunt. I had prepared a list of ten items and announced each item one at a time. For example, “You have 30 seconds to find something that starts with the first letter of your name.” (By giving them a time limit, we avoided sitting and waiting for one kid wandering around the house!)

Two of the favorite items were finding a kitchen instrument and finding a real instrument (they can take their camera or phone to the instrument to show it off if it’s not portable). We then asked anyone if they wanted to play their instrument for us, and most did! We closed the party by singing (muted) and dancing to a piece from the choir musical we had been working on. I had a video of them from rehearsal that I shared so they could watch the choreography and do it at home.

I had planned to assign points to different items, but in the end, it was so much fun that everyone was a winner. I mailed their real certificates and some special stickers for playing the game the week after the party.

The kids loved the Scavenger Hunt. I have kids from grades 3-8, and even the junior high singers loved it!

Resources needed: Internet access

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 53 Meet The Aeolians Jim Blackett • Irvine Unified School District • Irvine High school, community/four-year college

This guided listening activity gives students the opportunity to experience Oakwood University’s The Aeolians’ magnificent performance from the 2019 ACDA National Conference in Kansas City. After watching the performance on YouTube, students respond to the following ten questions on a Google form. In addition to developing students’ aural skills, these questions also serve as a review of the academic language of vocal music: phrasing, diction, placement, onsets, etc.

1. If you were telling someone about this performance who has not seen the video, how would you describe the ensemble’s diction? Consider consonants, vowels, onsets (how the choir begins to sing a note), and releases. 2. What do you notice about the sound of the section you sing in? 3. What was your favorite piece the choir sang (and why)? 4. In Dale Trumbore’s “In the Middle,” the composer uses word painting, a technique in which musical elements reflect the literal meaning of the lyrics. How does Trumbore use word painting to emphasize ideas of “time” in the song? Consider timestamp 4:12, where the choir sings “Time is always ahead of us...” and refer to the full lyrics here: https://www.daletrumbore.com/ in-the-middle 5. The title of “Regina Coeli” by Vytautas Miskinis means “Queen of Heaven” in Latin. At timestamp 8:46, how does the choir’s placement help bring these lyrics to life? Remember the framework of placements 1-5, where placement 1 refers to the brightest, most forward sound. 6. “Singet dem Herrn” by J.S. Bach. Traditionally, in a concert that combines choir and orchestra, the orchestra sits in chairs in front of the choir. In this performance, however, the instrumentalists are interspersed among the choir, and they stand to perform (except the cellists, who remain seated). What do you think is the purpose of this innovative arrangement, and how might it benefit the performance? 7. “Jubilate Deo” by Pietro Ferrario. Consider the rhythmic feeling at timestamp 14:08-14:22. This passage can be considered an example of asymmetrical meter—a rhythmic pattern in which pulses contain different numbers of beats, resulting in a feeling of unevenness. (Some examples of asymmetrical meter include 5/4, 7/8, and 11/8.) Can you figure out which type of asymmetrical meter is represented here? Additionally, how do some choir members’ physical movements help encourage rhythmic unity during a tricky passage like this? 8. “My Lord What a Mourning,” arr. by William Dawson: A lyric that is repeated frequently throughout a song is called a refrain. The refrain of this song is “My Lord, what a mourning, when the stars begin to fall.” From 20:01-22:30, how does the choir maintain musical interest while singing this singular refrain? You might consider dynamics, phrasing, and diction.

54 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Meet the Aeolians, continued

9. “Smile” arr. by Cedric Dent. How does the choir adjust their sound while the soloist is singing? Some musical elements to consider are volume and placement. 10. “Promised Land” by Ken Burton. What impact did the staging and narration have on you? Or, how did the staging and narration add to the performance?

Students then participate in a class discussion. If instruction is online, sharing can be sequenced so that students first type their responses into the chat box and then volunteer to verbally elaborate on them. This way, all students have the chance to make their thoughts known. (In my experience, most enjoyed discussing questions #2—because they got to speak with pride on behalf of their vocal section—and #3, because they got to share their personal musical preferences.) Students can also propose their own discussion questions.

Adapt the questions to emphasize concepts/skills that your ensembles have been working on!

Resources needed: Internet access

Listening journal Ariel May • Canyon High School • Anaheim Elementary, middle school/junior high

Every Monday, I posted a performance from YouTube (choral, vocal jazz, art song, aria, a cappella, etc). Students filled out provided information about the composer, performer, time period, ensemble type, style, meter, and tonality. Additionally, students provided 2 complete sentences about the performance using academic language, including Italian musical terms, tone, blend, balance, intonation, expression, dynamic contrast, phrasing, breathing, facial expression, engagement, vibrato, etc.

This assignment facilitates discussions about the arts from multiple perspectives (media, history, religion, politics, culture, etc). Administrators appreciate this type of assignment as it supports literacy, development of academic language, analytical skills, cross-curricular learning, and more.

Resources needed: Internet access, device (smartphone, computer, or tablet)

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 55 Virtual classrooms Samantha Gossage • Capistrano Unified School District • San Juan Capistrano Elementary, middle school/junior high, high school, children’s

I want to talk about Virtual Classrooms! As many music educators found during our virtual teaching time, virtual classrooms can be a fun, engaging way for students to participate in music exploration interactively. It’s also a great way to add a personal touch to your lessons with little messages and bitmojis. Once you have your classroom set up, it becomes easy to switch things out and add new content—just like your real classroom! Creating one is as simple as finding a room background, furniture, and icons and adding links to the pictures. There are many “how to build a virtual classroom in Google slides” YouTube video tutorials to help you get started.

As a primary music teacher, I chose to use my virtual classroom (screenshot included) as an activities center for the last weeks of school. I added videos to interactive websites such as Chrome Music Lab and Groove Pizza, YouTube videos of classical works and stories, and interactive Google Slides activities. The students were guided to click on a bitmoji of me first, which led to a YouTube video on me singing our opening song, doing some warm-ups, and introducing them to the classroom.

So, how can this be useful in all music classrooms? The virtual classroom is a place to hold content. The possibilities are endless for what material you choose to actually put into your classroom. Virtual classrooms can be used to hold practice tracks, listenings, and sight-reading exercises as everyday things at a secondary level. Entire lessons can be created and put on their own slides as themes. For example, you can have a music history slide that includes articles, listenings, and activities. Personal videos you record can also be uploaded to YouTube and linked to your classroom for students to see and hear you! These personal videos are a great opportunity to guide them through how your virtual classroom works, lead warm-ups, and give a lesson while creating or continuing that personal connection.

As I mentioned before, you can also create interactive activities such as listening activities. A colleague of mine, Carly Hancock, created a few of these for our younger students. One activity asked students to listen to a series of sounds being played and identify whether the sounds were ascending and descending. Another activity had a similar concept, but students were asked to identify the rhythm being played (screenshot included).

The ideas and content that can be created and included in a virtual classroom are limitless. They can be a great interactive tool for keeping students engaged while keeping content organized.

Resources needed: Internet access, device (smartphone, computer, or tablet)

56 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Virtual classrooms, continued

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 57 Rehearsing virtual choirs Scot Hanna-Weir • Santa Clara University • Santa Clara Middle school through adult

A huge component of what we do in choir is perform, evaluate, and perform again—hopefully with improvement. That’s the arc to a successful rehearsal that leads to a successful performance, and the structure that allows our singers to grow as musicians. We need to hear what we’re doing, learn what we can improve, and execute those improvements. As conductors, we shape our singers’ progress by coming up with creative analogies and rehearsal strategies, and iterating these concepts until we reach a polished performance. But how do we do that with virtual choir?

By using an iterative approach to creating a virtual choir, we can provide opportunities for feedback and growth for our students, similar to a normal rehearsal, only much, much slower. This approach compels us to do fewer pieces, but to experience them in a more robust and comprehensive way. Over the ten-week spring quarter with my non-auditioned concert choir at SCU, we did one virtual choir project. That’s it. This gave us the time to rehearse, record, give feedback, and improve.

The three iterations 1. Initial video is submitted and peer-evaluated anonymously (two evaluations per submission). 2. Second video is submitted and gets individualized feedback from the director. 3. Third and final video is submitted and used for the finished project.

Setting up the initial submission: We had a Zoom rehearsal to walk through the overall details of the piece. I gave them a recording of that rehearsal, a guide track with the score and me conducting to MIDI instruments and a click, individual practice tracks with their parts highlighted, and a marked score that reflected our initial rehearsal.

First submission checklist 1. Try very hard to clap exactly when instructed to do so in order to synchronize your track 2. Sing expressively (dynamics and articulations) 3. Look engaged as you sing 4. Use headphones!!!!! 5. Record your video in landscape (phone held like this == not || ) 6. Listen to your own recording afterwards and make sure you weren’t too loud for your microphone or too soft to hear

Peer evaluation rubric: Use the rubric provided to give your fellow singer ideas of where they were successful and where they can improve. Your grade is based on your completion of this assignment, not the quality of your performance. (Please do try to do your best!) We hope through feedback from your peers and me, this will improve throughout the quarter. When you review your peer, remember to be kind, and as specific as possible. The reviews from your peers on your video will appear anonymously—but kindness is still important.

Setting up the second submission: While some singers did a great job recording the piece using the

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initial set of tools, some of my less experienced, less confident singers needed more tools. I had some students who did not submit because they didn’t feel like they could accomplish the task, so I created additional aids for the second round. In hindsight, I probably could have anticipated this and made these for everyone from the start, but having them for the second round was beneficial.

Individual rehearsal videos and pronunciation guide: I made nine short videos, one with a slow walk-through of the pronunciation of the Swahili in our piece and then eight others (each about 8-10 minutes in length) going through each of the eight parts in detail, slowly, and rehearsing all of the challenging spots of the piece.

Specialized guide tracks: A few singers clearly struggled to find their parts in the sea of MIDI instruments. Many of them are singers who I have had in live choir before and who I know can succeed when they are singing in their section. To simulate this, I took several singers who had very successful early submissions and synced up their video to the guide video. This allowed singers to see and hear an actual person singing their part as they recorded their second or third iteration.

Setting up the final iteration: I gave specific feedback to each of my singers through comments in our learning management system and when warranted, attached an individualized guide track with someone singing their own part.

Real voices guide track: For the final iteration, I took eight singers who had good first or second round recordings and made a demo recording of our piece. The production value was low. I used my initial conducting video with the clap lead in, then brought in eight singers and a soloist and made sure that the volume level wasn’t too high to avoid clipping. That was all the editing I did, but this gave singers a real ensemble to sing with for their final performance.

The student experience: While the iterative process isn’t strictly necessary for all students in the choir, neither is our normal rehearsal process. The fact that we all do it together is what improves the ensemble and everyone grew by submitting multiple iterations of the piece. In particular, several students who struggled at the start felt empowered and grateful that they were able to participate. As one singer wrote:

“This class was far out of my comfort zone and caused me to push myself, and I feel that this class helped me so much during my time in quarantine. Thank you so much for spreading the joy of music and helping students as much as you possibly can even in a virtual environment. From the first to the second to the third video I felt better and better until I did my best! I am really happy that I challenged myself with choir and had the honor to learn from you even in a virtual choir! I really enjoyed this quarter in choir and wanted to make sure you had felt the appreciation since it is really hard to teach and feel the rewarding aspects of teaching (my mother is a kindergarten teacher and misses the fun parts of teaching and interacting with students and I think this is true no matter the level). I am excited to hear the final track for ‘Baba Yetu’!”

I’ve created a web page that gives examples of the videos I created to help my students through this process.: www.scothw.com/projects/virtual-choir/rehearsing-virtual-choirs-an-iterative-approach/

Resources needed: Smartphone, second connected device, headphones, internet access

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 59 Music in the Air Rebecca Lord • formerly in Los Angeles and Northridge Jazz choirs at any level

I have subscribed to MITA (Music in the Air): www.ArtsInteractiveInc.com

It is a fabulous website, and it would be an invaluable resource during the pandemic. It is an online learning platform for music educators and students with a variety of ready-to-go resources, including information on musical time periods and their historical contexts, different musical styles, forms, composers, and music from around the world. There are fun interactive listening samples and scores, videos, and other ways to explore and learn about music. This could be a fabulous hassle-free addition to curriculum. It is engaging and extremely well done, designed and created by UCLA’s distinguished professor of music Robert Winter.

Resources needed: Smartphone or laptop, headphones, internet access

60 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Virtual improvisation Eliza Rubenstein • Orange Coast College • Costa Mesa College or community choirs

My college singers love doing improvisational warm-ups when we’re rehearsing in person—a passion that served us well when we were suddenly forced to go remote and I wasn’t yet up to the challenges of a full-scale virtual choir.

We also have a sequence of Recording Techniques classes at OCC, and their students needed projects that they could do from home, so their instructor and I decided to collaborate. I gave our Chamber Singers the assignment—if they wanted to participate—of recording a vocal improvisation of up to 30 seconds in the key of G-flat (major, minor, whatever) on their phones, and sending the recording to both instructors. Most chose to take part, and some created multiple recordings.

The Recording Techniques instructor shared the collected clips with his students, and gave them the challenge of combining any or all them into an interesting audio mix. The results were marvelously creative and diverse: Some students added beats and made dance remixes, some used special effects to give their project a cinematic feel, and all seemed to have a lot of fun with the assignment.

I was drawn to one of the resulting mixes in particular; its haunting, echoey qualities seemed appropriate for this disorienting moment in our collective experience. We happen to have a talented photographer in our choir, so I combined the one-minute-long audio track with some of his equally moving photos from our June 2019 trip to New York, and posted the result on our social media pages. It’s been viewed more than 1,200 times, and only about 50 of those are from me in the moments when I miss my students the most. (You can find it by clicking to “videos” on our Facebook page if you’d like: www.facebook.com/OCCmusicdept)

Resources needed: Smartphone; the ability to create an audio compilation or a colleague/student who is willing and able to do so

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 61 Jazz choir at a distance Michelle Hawkins • Skyline College • San Bruno Jazz choirs at any level

Michele Weir, renowned jazz vocalist, pianist and educator created a list of 7 pedagogical options for online teaching. This list is the product of lengthy conversations with jazz directors across the country. She has me given permission to share this list with CCDA. This is extremely helpful info for jazz choir educators. Please include links to the websites that are included in the document.

1. Reading You might start with basic sight reading—solfege or singing notes on numbers of the scale. Then move to jazz choir passages, like an 8-bar passage, or more. All singers can potentially read the soprano part (in their own range,) then alto, tenor, bass. If it’s swing, you can have students can speak (read) rhythms/ lyrics only at first. Start with a ballad, do a swing tune or passage, do a bossa, then break into 5-part or 6-part chords when ready.

2. Jazz theory: Learn it by singing it Learn the jazz chord types, then arpeggiate them on numbers (1, 3, 5, b7, 5, 3, 1). Do ear training quizzes (“what is this chord type?”), then start on vocal group voicings—simple 4-way close chord voicings (what part am I singing? root? third?) Then sing (with associated ear training also) the extensions (9, 11, 13 and their alterations), then inversions and other voicing types. Study excerpts from arrangements, asking “why is this chord hard to tune?” “Is this an open or closed voicing?” “What two parts have the most dissonance and why?” Play a note, then assign parts: “everyone sing ‘oo,’ with bass on 3rd, tenors on the b7th, altos on the 9th, soprano two on the #11, and soprano one on the 13th.”

3. Listening Guided listening instruction: Listen to the same recording multiple times. Upon each successive listening discuss the following: • Personal reactions: “Do I like it?” and “How does it make me feel?” • Musical elements: “Is that electric or acoustic bass?” and “Is that a turnaround • progression on the intro?” • Analysis of the interpretation: “How are they using [or not using] vibrato, tone, stylistic • inflection, phrasing, and conversationalism? How’s the blend and balance?” • Explore the history and musical background of the artist, making it sort of a jazz appreciation activity. Please see the Listening Lessons classes at www.MusicHabit.com.

62 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Jazz choir at a distance, continued

4. Rhythmic work Listen to different tracks in all styles: swing, funk, Brazilian, Afro-Cuban, shuffle, jazz waltz, etc. • What is the groove? • Tap the quarter note. • Speak in rhythm the 8ths on doo-ba—are they straight? Swung? Shuffle? • Do reading exercises with rhythms only—in swing feel, then in straight 8ths—the same exercises back and forth. • Can you step or tap in tempo while doing these activities?

5. Parts learning Learn parts to arrangements. Assign a section leader and send different voice part sections to separate online breakout rooms to rehearse. Use excerpts from your repertoire, and have note texts for evaluation and grading. Use parts tracks; these are available from Kerry Marsh, Jeremy Fox, and others. Also see Kerry’s class “Online Skills for Vocal Jazz Ensemble” at MusicHabit.com and Kerry’s new project, “SkyTracks,” available at his website: www.kerrymarsh.com.

6. Solo singing/vocal improvisation Spend some time listening to recording and practicing vocal solos. Singers will need to have accompaniments in their location. These can be made using the player function in the iRealb app. It doesn’t even have to be a full song; you can have new students learn 16 bars of a song to get the experience. Scat-singing warmups as part of class. There are a lot of materials available: www.MusicHabit.com has classes by Rosana Eckert, Aimee Nolte, and soon will have MusicHabit Workouts (a series of scatting and other exercises based on different tunes), which will be built for use in the classroom.

7. Virtual choir And last but not least: Of course virtual choir is also a great option, and probably the best way to simulate a live jazz choir experience. Consider doing it not only as an end-of-semester single song. If possible, consider recording some short excerpts first, early on, as a regular part of your activities during the semester. This should make the final “concert” song or songs stronger.

Resources needed: Internet access

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 63 Personal playlist Jessica Pettygrove • Montebello High School • Montebello Middle school through college

Using a variety of different sources/similar project ideas online (primarily for English classes), I created instructions for a “Personal Playlist Project,” a project meant to tell a student’s individual story of significant moments in their life through song. Especially during distance learning, this allowed students to understand how powerful music has been in their lives as a tool to heighten positive emotions and cope with negative ones.

Throughout our time learning online, I wanted to emphasize the importance of not only enrichment and theory assignments, but also creative and mental health check-in assignments as well. For many of my students, home was (or is) a stressful place to be, thanks to issues with family, responsibilities outside of homework, finances, limited/no WiFi, etc., whlie school was their safe place where they could have the most positive interactions of the day. It was important to me to allow the students many opportunities to dive into work that served them more deeply than key signatures and solfege. The project encouraged students to share as much or as little as they were comfortable with sharing, and many had breakthrough moments with me in our discussions of their song choices. It has been an incredible way to explore the musical interests of my students beyond choral music, something that I am always seeking to do in order to keep students engaged throughout the year and to program more music that they like and are drawn to.

This project is also a subtle way to work on English skills and concepts, as the students are asked to organize their ideas in a purposeful way when presenting the songs, as well as to discuss these ideas with complete and clear sentences. For English Learners or students with special needs, you can include sentence frames for their projects, offer ideas for life moments as starting points, conduct one-on-one conference calls to ask interview-like questions instead, or pair students with higher- achieving peers or students with fluency in both English and the other student’s L1 to present to each other online.

Most of my students submitted this project in the form of Google Slides or a Google Doc. Once they had submitted their assignments, I created a Spotify playlist with all of the songs they chose, in hopes that some of the other students’ song choices could resonate with them as well.

An important thing to remember when administering this assignment is to give the students space and freedom to tell as much or as little as they feel comfortable sharing about their own stories. For many, the moments they remember in their lives are not often positive and can bring up trauma that has not fully healed or been properly taken care of. For others, they will struggle to feel as if they have had any significant moments in their lives at all and may opt out of the project altogether. Although this project can be difficult for some students emotionally and mentally, many complete the assignment feeling seen, heard, validated, and relieved. Give them lots of time to complete this project (I gave them about 3 weeks). Encourage them to talk with friends, family members, or even you to explore

64 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Personal playlist, continued

ideas, discuss songs, and revisit or confront both new and old feelings and memories that they may encounter. As their teacher, you may learn things about them that you didn’t know before, however strong a relationship you may already have with your students prior to this assignment. I absolutely did. Projects like this display to the students that you care about them and their experiences, which will further contribute to your classroom atmosphere, how they connect to new or unfamiliar music, how they connect to each other, and how they connect what they learn about themselves, music, and the world in your class to their future experiences beyond your classroom.

Resources needed: Internet access ideal, but this could be done offline as well.

This is a creative project for you that I hope you will enjoy doing. Take your time and be creative. My hope is that by the end of this project, you will find it meaningful. In projects like this, we are exploring just how incredible the power of music is. This is as deep and/or as personal as you choose to make it.

Keep this in mind—The events/moments that you choose for your soundtrack have most definitely defined the person you have become. As you prepare to enter the world as adults— going off to college, entering the work force, joining the military— or even just continuing in high school, think about the person you are today, and how you got here.

1. Brainstorm a list of the most meaningful moments in your life (thus far). What events have shaped who you are, what you believe, and how you view the world? 2. Select AT LEAST 6 of the most important moments from your list. 3. Now comes the fun part: Link these events to the music you listen to. You must connect each event you have chosen to a different song.This is a challenge for some students and easy for others; I encourage you to grasp at a greater knowledge of music and share your ideas with others. Some of you will have similar events and you might just find some new music you love. Talk to one another. Share your ideas. 4. Next, put your songs in order. This should not be random! Put together your soundtrack in a meaningful way. This does not have to be chronological, though it might be. 5. In a brief paragraph (at least 1 sentence per song), introduce each event/song (include the artist and the title). As you reflect on these things, remember that this is why the organizing principle (the order you put your songs) is so important. 6. Finally, in a short conclusion (at least 3 sentences), thank the listeners for “sharing” these meaningful life experiences with you (remember, you are writing this for someone who cares and is paying attention— me!). This is where you should sum up what this project has meant to you.

Submit your writing as a Word or GoogleDoc. You may also choose to be more creative and make this more of a presentation style with Prezi, PowerPoint, GoogleSlides, or a video. Submit your playlist as a screenshot, or if you'd like to submit a link to your playlist on iTunes, Soundcloud, or Spotify, that works, too!

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 65 Send news of hirings, retirements, awards, News and notes commissions, premieres, collaborations, or from around the state projects to your regional representative!

FAR SOUTH REGION to July 17 in coordination with Point garage. They also recorded a virtual Loma Nazarene University, and will choir performance of “Never One The San Diego Master Chorale and primarily be led by Juan Carlos Thing” by May Erlewine, arranged music director John K. Russell led Acosta (Sacra/Profana and Village by Corie Brown, which can be a virtual community sing of the Fauré Community Presbyterian Church) found on YouTube. Requiem on June 26. Singers from and Dr. Keith Pedersen (Point the San Diego region and beyond Loma Nazarene University and La Nancy Hill retired from Anderson were able to virtually perform the Jolla Presbyterian Church). and West Valley High Schools in work from their own homes, led by Anderson after 34 years of teaching. the music staff and soloists of the NORTHERN REGION Nancy spent her entire career at Chorale. these schools, directing a variety of Happy sixteenth anniversary of the choirs, musicals, bands, and even the Dr. Arian Khaefi, Director of Sacramento Choral Society and culinary arts program. She started a Choral Studies at San Diego State Sacramento State University’s first non-profit in her area to help support University, prepared and produced a European tour. The Sacramento her programs and bring music to kids virtual choir performance of “Healing Choral Society and Conductor in an underserved area. Life beyond Heart” by Jacob Narverud, which Donald Kendrick partnered with the classroom includes running her featured 75 singers from around the Sacramento State Choral Music theater company, Axiom Repertory the world, including SDSU Choral Program on their first European Theatre in Redding. Studies students. tour in 2004 with performances in Munich (Ottobeuren Abbey), BAY AREA Dr. Emilie Amrein, Director of Prague, Vienna, and Budapest. The Choral Activities at the University 120-voice chorus partnered with four The San Jose State University of San Diego helped to create the European professional orchestras to Choraliers and the Kirby Chamber Choral Commons, a community perform Hadyn’s Harmoniemesse, Singers presented a world premiere where choral musicians and Lauridsen’s Lux Aeterna, and of Melissa Dunphy’s Eight of Swords organizations can find information Dvořák’s Te Deum. The tour was in honor of the 100th Anniversary and educational resources meant capped by a professionally mastered of Women’s Suffrage this past May. to promote equity-centered choral CD recording by Radio Hungary in Conductors Alex Koppel and Dr. futures. The focus of the Choral Budapest’s famed Liszt Academy, Jeffrey Benson presented the Commons is to provide strategies a recording concert hall. Their premiere virtually on a brand-new for innovation grounded in critical platform for streaming concerts called and equity-centered values. More European Horizons CD is available online at Amazon and CD Baby. Feel-it-Live. information can be found at www. choralcommons.com. Chanteuses, Sacramento’s premier Bay Area ensembles recorded women’s ensemble, directed by and produced many virtual choir San Diego-based professional chorus productions in spring 2020, and a Sacra/Profana will produce their William Zinn, has continued number of ensembles, including the annual Summer Choral Intensive weekly Zoom meetings throughout Piedmont East Bay Children’s Choir (SCI) in a virtual format. This the pandemic shutdown. On (“Music of the Pacific Rim” and continues their mission to provide Saturday, June 27, Chanteuses held “Spring Sing”) and Scola Cantorum high-level choral opportunities to an outdoor rehearsal hosted by a Silicon Valley (“Virtually Elijah”), middle and high school students in member in her neighborhood park. produced full online concerts and San Diego. And since SCI is online Everyone wore a mask and stood in programs. this summer, they invite like-minded a large circle spaced at ten feet. It students from across the country to was wonderful to see each other and The Santa Clara University join. SCI takes place from July 13 sing! Next thought: an open parking Chamber Singers, under the direction

66 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association of Scot Hanna-Weir, performed the first live about audience comfort levels for future concerts. Kudos concert over the internet by a university ensemble in to this group, and others not mentioned, for sharing their the United States. The performance, “Embrace the optimism and enthusiasm and keeping the music alive. Lag,” featured four pieces of aleatoric music that capitalized on the natural latency of the internet but Nicole Lamartine comes to the Central Coast as the still allowed for live collaboration. While most of Sorensen Director of Choral Music at UC Santa Barbara. the rehearsal time was spent trying to troubleshoot For twelve years prior, she was the Director of Choral connectivity issues and audio settings, the end Activities at the University of Wyoming, where both of result was still something that felt like a live choral her choirs had the honor of singing at Northwest ACDA performance for both the singers and the audience. and Northwest NAfME conferences. She is in demand across the nation as an All-State Joyce Keil is retiring clinician, and has conducted from the Ragazzi Boys festivals all over the world. Nicole Chorus, which she founded in 1987. Nearly has been an active member of 33 years ago Joyce ACDA as Northwest Region noticed that girls had President (2016-2018), Wyoming plenty of available outlets President (2009-2014), Chair and lots of support for of the national Collegiate Honor public singing, but while Choir (2009) and national boys were welcomed at Women’s Honor Choir (2013), mixed choirs, it wasn’t as ICEP conductor exchange socially encouraged and program conductor to China didn’t provide the same (2014), and a member of various supportive atmosphere. selection and audition committees. When she brought together boys only, they ABOVE: Joyce Keil (left), Peggy Spool CENTRAL REGION found a place to thrive. From an initial group This fall the Central region welcomes new teachers of 12 boys, she built an organization that now Cameron Clarno (Clovis East High School), Tara embraces more than 250 young singers from over Haner (North High School/Frontier High School), 100 schools in more than 30 counties. Her Ragazzi Johnny Santiago (McKee Middle School), and Dr. Jeff boys have toured the world, and performed with Wilson (Fresno Pacific University). We wish them great major symphony and opera companies. Kent Jue success in their new appointments! will take over as Ragazzi’s new Artistic Director. We say goodbye and wish success in their graduate studies At the end of 2020, Peggy Spool will retire from to Kyle Ball (San José State University), Jack Bertrand Vivace Youth Chorus, which she founded in 2003. (Michigan State), and Carlin Truong (University of During her tenure as artistic director, Vivace’s choirs Houston). You will be missed! have performed at conference and international festivals, on international tours, and with numberous professional and community ensembles. Kristina SOUTHERN REGION Nakagawa has been tapped to succeed Spool. When asked about her successor, Spool said, “She Karen Garrett has published a new book, Sight Singing for brings a wealth of experience to Vivace...I look Festival Choirs, now available in PDF digital format from forward to our collaboration in the coming months J.W. Pepper.  as I prepare to turn over the helm and to the coming years under Ms. Nakagawa’s excellent leadership!” Thanks to our Regional Representatives (Alissa Aune, CENTRAL COAST REGION Northern; Buddy James, Bay Area; Angel Vázquez- Ramos, Central; Carolyn Teraoka-Brady, Central Coast; During our lengthy intermission during this Tina Peterson, Southern; and John Russell, Far South) for pandemic, the Canzona Women’s Ensemble, under collecting and sharing news from their areas! Send your news Directors Jill Anderson and Cricket Handler, to your regional representative if you’d like to be included in a have kept their audience up to date with inspiring future issue. music and words, and surveyed patrons for feedback

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 67 68 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association Vision for the Future Scholarship Fund Donors

special care has been given to the preparation of donor acknowledgments. We regret any errors or omissions. please contact us at (657) 217-0767 or [email protected] with corrections. Thank you for your support!

President’s Circle President’s Circle Genevieve Tep * Diamond ($1000 and higher) Silver ($100-$299) Andrea and Mike Townsend Jeffrey and Jose Lédon Anonymous Dr. Angel M. Vázquez-Ramos and Lori Marie Rios Charlene Archibeque Jody R. Vázquez * and Bryan D. Walker * Kyle Ball in honor of Shirley Nute, Don Jeffrey Benson * Sponsor ($50-$99) Brinegar and Bruce Mayhall Jenny Bent Dana Alexander Jack Bertrand * Clement Cano President’s Circle in honor of Kimberly Dunn Adams Dr. Jennifer Garrett Platinum ($500 and higher) and Jennifer Garrett Jeff Morton Daniel Afonso * Glenn Carlos Brianna Mowry Tammi Alderman * Mike and Julie Dana * Carolyn Teraoka-Brady * in honor of the past and present Rodney Eichenberger David Vanderbout CCDA board Roger Emerson * John Sorber * Angelina Fitzhugh Supporter (up to $50) in memory of Clark Skogsberg Mary Hamilton Anonymous Brandon Harris Karen Garrett President’s Circle Anthony Lien * Caitlin Giusta Gold ($300 and higher) in honor of Buddy James, Michael Debra Golata Kenneth J. Abrams Najar, and Matthew Potterton Othello Jefferson Lou De La Rosa * Albert Mabeza Heather Mitchell in memory of Jim Heiner Michael Mares Joshua Palkki Duane and Linda Lovaas * MaryClare Martin * Jason Pano Nick Strimple * in honor of Lena and Art Babin in honor of Lou De La Rosa, in honor of James H. Vail and Signe Boyer Robert Istad, and Dr. Jonathan Talberg * Mary Monaghan * Christopher Peterson Burt and Polly Vasché * Kristina and Ryan Nakagawa * Joyce Pricco in honor of Lois Caran, Joe Huszti, Jared Pugh and Charlene Archibeque Peter Reinman National Concerts Zanaida Robles Susanna Peeples * Gavin Spencer Dr. Christopher and Tina Peterson Dwight Stone Olga Spriggs

* Founder’s Circle

Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 69 CCDA BOARD Directory

EXECUTIVE BOARD REPERTOIRE & RESOURCES

President REGIONAL Children’s & Ethnic & Multicultural Jeffrey Benson REPRESENTATIVES Community Youth Perspectives (408) 924-4645 La Nell Martin Anthony Arnold [email protected] Bay Area Buddy James (510) 350-6639 (408) 799-5867 President-Elect (510) 885-3128 [email protected] [email protected] Chris Peterson buddy.james@ (657) 278-3537 Junior High & Middle LGBTQ Perspectives csueastbay.edu [email protected] School Josh Palkki Central Angelina Fitzhugh (202) 679-3350 Vice President Angel Vázquez-Ramos (650) 387-6730 [email protected] Robert Istad (714) 305-1087 [email protected] (562) 822-5952 Music in Worship [email protected] [email protected] Senior High School Christy Rohayem Development & VFTF Central Coast Stacey Kikkawa (510) 908-3047 Lori Marie Rios Carolyn Teraoka-Brady­ (310) 551-5100 [email protected] (805) 689-­ 1780­ [email protected] (818) 679-7463 Pop & A Cappella [email protected] [email protected] Two-Year College Bret Peppo Treasurer Far South John Sorber (925) 808-9689 Jenny Bent Arlie Langager (559) 303-9961 [email protected] (707) 664-3925 (858) 774-0412 [email protected] SSAA Choirs [email protected] [email protected] College & University Lauren Diez Membership Northern Corie Brown (714) 904-1035 Polly Vasché Andrew Kreckmann (541) 743-6335 [email protected] (209) 526-9692 (973) 903-0466 [email protected] pollyvasche pacbell net @ . [email protected] TTBB Choirs Executive Administrator Student Activities Mel Carrillo Southern Kathleen Preston Susie Martone (559) 827-3560 Tina Peterson 921 N. Harbor Blvd., #412 (415) 735-0910 [email protected] (562) 453-9681 La Habra, CA 90631-3103 [email protected] [email protected] Vocal Jazz (657) 217-0767 Choral Composition Michelle Hawkins [email protected] David Montoya (650) 738-7134 (626) 419-8031 [email protected]

EVENT CHAIRS [email protected] Community & CASMEC chair Summer Conference Professional Choirs Kristina Nakagawa at ECCO Tammi Alderman (408) 205-6050 Jeffe Huls (626) 299-7020 x3615 artistic@ [email protected] [email protected] resoundingachord.org Alissa Aune (co-chair) [email protected] All-State Honor Choirs Molly Peters (213) 880-7597 COMMUNICATIONS [email protected] Cantate Editor Webmaster & Social Media Coordinator CLA Coordinator Eliza Rubenstein Graphic Design Jason Pano John Sorber [email protected] Anthony M. Lien (408) 768-0733 (559) 303-9961 cantate.editor@ (530) 204-8512 [email protected] [email protected] gmail.com [email protected]

70 • Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 California Choral Directors Association FRESNO STATE

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Leading the Way Cantate • Vol. 33, No. 1 • Fall 2020 • 71 California Choral Directors Association 921 N. Harbor Blvd., #412 La Habra, CA 90631-3103

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