C O N T E N T S March 2021 Volume 2 Number 3 Kirsten Norman leads LaVonne Yazzie you through our March gives a detailed newsletter. She previews review of the what you’ll discover in successful 2021 Coro this engaging issue Lux annual Janfest virtual event Go to the article Go to the article Dr. Joe Alcorn offers the Bradley Ellingboe gives latest news on the covid- his insights on Igor 19 virus and a forecast of Stravinsky and his what singers can expect Symphony of Psalms in the coming months Go to the article Go to the article Ashley Jonkman Doing good as reports on her we do well interview with Giving the highest George Arthur, Coro quality performances, Lux Board President we also give back to the community Go to the article Go to the article Great ways to financially Performances by help Coro Lux other local music For donors, it is about organizations leaving a legacy and Find out about insuring their gifts their future concert support the values and schedules and cyber causes that are most events important to them Go to the article Go to the article A brief introduction to the articles you’ll find in our March issue by Kirsten Norman Welcome to the March Coro Lux newsletter! With COVID-19 vaccinations underway, and some easing of restrictions around the state, it feels like it could actually be spring here in New Mexico. I say it could be spring, as in most of the country it feels like someone left the freezer door open to the Arctic Cir- cle, turning half of North America into one giant frozen popsi- cle. While we wait to defrost, here’s a bunch of new Coro Lux article to keep you entertained. This month we have a nice variety of articles for you. Ash- ley Jonkman has a great interview with George Arthur, our multi-talented Coro Lux Board President and bass. George has been with Coro Lux since its inception and with an extraordi- nary art background has been invaluable to Coro Lux as our graphic designer. LaVonne Yazzie has written a wonderful recap of our third annual MLK JanFest celebration, In the Time of COVID: Singing in a Strange Land. Finally, our Artistic Director Brad Ellingboe dives into the world of Igor Stravinsky, specif- ically his Symphony of Psalms. Once Coro Lux begins regular performances, which we hope will be soon, you can expect to see Symphony of Psalms as part of our upcoming repertoire. Until next time, stay warm and please stay connected in song! Return to the contents page The Symphony of Psalms is a three-movement choral symphony composed by Igor Stravinsky in 1930 during his neoclassical period. The symphony derives its name from the use of Psalm texts in the choral parts. Igor Stravinsky Highlights of 2021 MLK Janfest “In the time of covid: Singing in a strange Land by LaVonne Yazzie LaVonne Yazzie The new year started off with a bang for Coro Lux in the form of our 3rd Annual MLK JanFest virtual celebration presented on January 16th. This year’s festival theme, “In the Time of COVID: Singing in a Strange Land,” was a beautiful testimony to the strange times that we are living in at present, while detailing the musical history of the African American spiritual and black gospel music and how these two genres influenced the civil rights movement from the 1960’s that continues today. The celebration kicked off with the lecture “Medical Perspectives: Singing in the Pandemic” by Dr. Joe Alcorn, a bass singer in Coro Lux who is also a Doctor of Medicine, and a retired medical Poster with Dr. Rollo Dilworth pictured professor at the University of New Mexico. Dr. Alcorn, who provides updates on the novel coronavirus in the Coro Lux monthly bulletin, explains how the novel coronavirus affects the human body in a biological lecture, explaining how the virus’ spike proteins are integral to the way this virus infects its host by hijacking the body’s hardware to produce their own virus cells. Dr. Alcorn clarifies that the “seriousness is not due to its lethalness, but its infectiousness,” with the epidemic showing that some (Article continued on following page ) (JanFest continued) individuals are more at risk, specifically people of color, populations with co-existing conditions, varying levels of fitness, nutrition, immune function and behavior. As for choral singing, Dr. Alcorn explains “singing is just as effective as coughing and sneezing in spreading this virus,” encouraging COVID-prevention practices like wearing a mask and social distancing, ultimately closing with the reflection, “how we fare depends upon our neighbors nearly as much as ourselves.” The virtual celebration continued with the lecture “Spirituals and Gospel Songs: Singing in a Strange Time” by Dr. James “Jimmy” Abbington, Associate Professor Dr. Joe Alcorn of Church Music and Worship at Candler School of Theology at Emory University, and a well-known teacher, compiler, and historian of church music, and the second African American hymnodist to be elected as a Hymn Society fellow. Dr. Abbington opens with Psalm 137, where the Israelite captives have been requested to sing joyful songs for their Babylonian captors, to which they respond: “How can we sing the songs of the Lord while in a foreign land?” Dr. Abbington muses, “Much like the children of Israel, we are living in a strange land and in a strange time.” Dr. Abbington details two indigenous American genres of music, the negro spiritual and black gospel music. The negro spiritual is an “outstanding branch of folklore, and as folk music, it is apart of a musical tradition that has been evolved through the process of oral transmission.” Citing Dr. Uzee Brown, the negro spiritual was a slave survival tool with four characteristics: spirituality, creative ingenuity, adaptability, and the will the persevere. On the other hand, the development of black gospel music began at the turn of the 20th century (Article continued on following page ) (JanFest continued) as congregational music, primarily in Pentecostal congregations before moving to urban settings in cities like Chicago and New Orleans where it was influenced by jazz and blues. Dr. Abbington shares the life of Howard Thurman, a renowned American author, philosopher, There’s a time theologian, educator for applause, and civil rights leader who was a mentor to and a time for a Martin Luther King helping hand Jr. and who studied spirituals extensively. Although many of our activities Dr. Abbington also cites have been curtailed by the need to quarantine, nonetheless, our Charles A. Tindley, a expenses continue. As we do prolific hymn writer everything in our power to and progeniture of emerge from this pandemic as a black gospel music healthy organization, we ask that who pastored during you consider making a contribution. World War I, the 1918 Coro Lux is a 501(c)(3) non-profit Flu Epidemic, and the and all donations are Great Depression. tax-deductible as allowed by law. Go here to donate: Dr. James Abbington The virtual MLK https://abqcorolux.org/donations/ Janfest closed with the lecture “African American Music & Social Justice” by Dr. Rollo Dilworth, Professor of Choral Music Education at Temple University. Dr. Dilworth delves into the relationship between the African American spiritual and how it functions in today’s climate, reflecting on “George Floyd and We’re on Breonna Taylor and so many others who have lost their lives over the past year as a result of racial YouTube! discrimination and violence.” The African American spiritual played an important role during the time of slavery as it was the means of communicating coded messages, and since the modern-day civil rights movement has its roots in the deep South, spirituals were perfect for “the moment to move forward social justice causes.” In closing, the 3rd annual MLK JanFest teaches that African American spirituals and black gospel music, though created during the darkest type of oppression, are examples of the ongoing fight against the evils of racism and discrimination. Though COVID-19 has affected the art of choral music in an oppressive, physiological manner, it Check us out. still allows for optimistic hope for an end to the https://www.youtube.com/ pandemic and the restoration of choral singing for channel/UC7MYTsW_bnjJun31GBHjwjQ all peoples. Return to the contents page Covid-19 update: Viral mutation and human vaccination by Dr. Joe Alcorn The most commanding aspect of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic now is probably the interplay of viral mutation and human vaccination. Almost anything I write today about this interaction will be superseded by the time this newsletter is available. But we’ll be better able to understand the evolving story if we try and clarify some of the concepts and nomenclature. Therefore I want to review the vocabulary of “mutations” in context . And though it is (mostly) SARS CoV 2 mutations that are in the News, I will start more generally because it’s easy to forget what an integral part of Life’s variety is attributable to mutation - they are not just the sinister ploys of a menacing virus! I’ll assume a basic working knowledge of the virus which, if you have the time can be reviewed on this video: Anyone interested in a deeper dive into vaccination and the immune system itself will find a lucid article in The Atlantic from last summer: https://www.theatlantic.com/health/ archive/2020/08/covid-19-immunity-is-the-pandemics- central-mystery/614956/ Mutant Spawn My brothers like to refer to my sons as Mutant Spawn. And I bet any fifth grader would define a Mutant more or less as (Article continued on following page) (Covid contunued) someone with an inborn error of development that results in the ability to emit magnetic rays or fire or some kind of freezing substance - always from the extended hands, never from the elbow or ankle as near as I can tell.