SKU: GI.G-10717
A Mosaic of Historical
Composers and
Compositions.
Composed by Dennis
Shrock. Music Education.
294 pages. GIA
Publications #10717.
Published by GIA
Publications
(GI.G-10717).
ISBN
9781622776597.
Writ
ten by noted scholar and
conductor Dennis Shrock,
Choral Diversity is a
presentation of composers
throughout history who
represent the broad and
diverse canon of choral
music. Included are
twenty women composers
and ten composers of
color, many of whom have
been previously
underrepresented in
studies and in
performances. Each
chapter presents
overviews of the
composer’s life and
choral output,
information and analysis
of selected compositions,
including complete texts
and literal translations
not found elsewhere, and
guidelines that address
related and important
aspects of performance.
Importantly, Shrock
approaches choral
diversity from multiple
perspectives. Most
notably, the book
highlights the music of
women composers—such as
Hildegard von Bingen, Amy
Beach, and Undine Smith
Moore—as well as
composers of color,
including José Maurício
Nunes Garcia, William
Grant Still, and Margaret
Allison Bonds, among
others. Rounding out his
approach, Shrock also
explores the lesser-known
works of familiar
composers such as
Palestrina and Brahms.
The book’s repertoire,
too, represents a
diversity of musical
periods, styles, and
genres—including
chants, madrigals,
chansons, motets,
partsongs, oratorios,
cantatas, and vocal
chamber pieces—all of
which are intended to be
accessible to regular
school, church, and
community choruses. With
its broad scope and
scholarly authority,
Choral Diversity is the
ideal resource for
conductors at all levels
looking to diversify
their concert programming
in a practical and
historically informed
way. Dennis Shrock is
author of ten books,
three published by Oxford
University Press and the
remaining seven published
by GIA Publications. He
has held faculty
positions at Boston
University, Westminster
Choir College, and the
University of Oklahoma.
He has also served as
Artistic Director of the
Santa Fe Desert Chorale
and was a lecturer and
member of the conducting
staff at Yale University.
Shrock received his
master’s and doctoral
degrees in choral
conducting from Indiana
University.
