Conducting Women's Choirs

SKU: GI.G-9890

ISBN 9781622774005.

In addition to celebrating the history of male choirs in the United States, Conducting Men’s Choirs provides a thorough and practical guide for working with TTBB choruses of any age or experience. The chapters by Jerry Blackstone, Jefferson Johnson, and J. Reese Norris display knowledge gained from over seventy years of collective experience. Additionally, Trott has designed the book to be an outstanding repertoire resource and a window to future possibilities through the inclusion of Marques Garrett’s chapter ‘Composing and Arranging for Male Choirs’ and Gary Packwood’s chapter ‘From Entertainment to Social Justice: Examining Men’s Community Choruses in America.’ The content in Conducting Men’s Choirs represents theory and practice that will benefit all conductors of TTBB choruses. —Kevin Fenton     Florida State University Inspired by Debra Spurgeon’s pioneering book Conducting Women’s Choirs, this companion resource, compiled and edited by Donald Trott, brings together the expertise of eighteen acknowledged authorities on men’s choirs. Conducting Men’s Choirs addresses the unique challenges, considerations, and joys of making music with male singers. The book is organized into three major sections, the first of which contains historical essays on male choirs in the United States. The chapters in this section span a range of relevant topics, including glee clubs in colleges and universities, an examination of some of the nation’s most esteemed and accomplished male choirs, and the role of male community choruses in America. The second section explores key aspects of working with male singers that are vital to the success of any conductor of male choirs. Topics addressed include: How to start a male choir and recruit male singers. Working with middle school boys and the developing adolescent voice. Pedagogical considerations for male voices. Procedures for improving intonation. Standing formations. Warm-ups. Women conductors of male choirs. How to arrange and compose for men’s choirs. A thorough discussion of repertoire for men’s choirs rounds out this resource in the book’s third and final section. Chapter authors explore men’s choir repertoire from a variety of angles: Renaissance music, works by Schumann, Canadian repertoire, and the music of Veljo Tormis. Extensive repertoire listings with hundreds of titles for men’s chorus are also provided for quick and easy reference. Conducting Men’s Choirs is essential for anyone working with male choirs in any capacity. Equally suited for novice teachers and seasoned professionals, this collaborative resource is the culmination of decades of experience and wisdom by leaders in the profession. Donald Trott is Director of Choral Activities at the University of Mississippi (Oxford), where he conducts the Concert Singers, Men’s Glee, and University Chorus. He is also the director of the graduate program in choral conducting and is past president of the Southern Division of ACDA.

SKU: GI.G-9915

ISBN 9781622774371.

In the world of music conducting there exist fundamental practices shared by all conductors regardless of the type of ensemble they conduct. Foundations of Conducting Technique is a comprehensive beginning conducting text—compl ete with pictures, online videos, and supplemental conducting etudes—to facilitate the development of a clear and expressive conducting technique. In this volume, author Frank Eychaner addresses three major areas for beginning conductors: gestural technique, score study, and leadership. For gestural technique, the text details a number of technical skills, including the appropriate use of the body, the roles of the right and left hand, basic conducting patterns and their derivatives, an application of Laban movement analysis, the importance of the conducting planes, and conducting with varied articulations (staccato, legato, and marcato), among others. Using direct language, Eychaner details clear cause and effect relationships between gesture and sound. In addressing score study, Eychaner states that all conducting gestures must be guided b y an accurate and artistic aural image of a musical work. Rather than advocating for one particular approach, this volume presents a number of possible score study methods for the student to explore. The author also includes a convenient and complete score study checklist. Finally, the text addresses how to be an effective and ethical leader from the podium. Eychaner presents the transformational leadership model—a holistic and dynamic approach to leadershipâ€â€� �as a positive pathway for improving the conductor’ s effectiveness on and off the podium. Supplementing the text are music etudes to help students develop the technical skills of the conductor. The exercises are intentionally simple, consisting mostly of rhythmic materials and folk-like melodies, so that conductors can focus on mastery of gestural skills. Foundations of Conducting Technique is a major contribution to conducting pedagogy and an extraordinary resource that distills the essence of effective conducting gesture. An ideal text for undergraduate conducting courses, it is also a practical reference for anyone employed in the field, including music educators, church musicians, leaders of community ensembles, and professional conductors of all ensembles. Frank Eychaner, an international leader in conducting pedagogy, has been an educator and conductor for twenty-five years, working in public schools as well as with professional, collegiate, community, and church ensembles. He is currently Director of Choral and Vocal Studies at The University of Texas of the Permian Basin, where he teaches conducting, choral methods, and choral pedagogy, and conducts the Chamber Choir, Concert Choir, and Men’s and Women’s Choirs. Figure 29.5. Duruflé Requiem. Figure 29.6. Handel's Messiah. Of the Father's Love Begotten Give Thanks Appendix A: Conducting Evaluation Form Extended Bibliography.

SKU: GI.G-995

UPC: 785147099529.

†œI would tear a hole in the sky so I could pull out the heart of the moon for thee.” From “As I Walk the Silent Earth” by Thomas LaVoy Performed by the Westminster Williamson Voices, conducted by James Jordan. Works by: Ola Gjeilo, Eric Whitacre, Thomas LaVoy, Stephen Paulus, Aaron Copeland, Blake Henson, Benjamin Britten, Tomás Luis de Victoria, Dan Forrest, Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, Arvo Pärt, Alice Parker, Anton Bruckner, and Maurice Duruflé. Produced by James Whitbourn   A stunning new recording from James Jordan and the Westminster Williamson voices. Music opens us to a more radiant and brilliant life through sounds and words. There is music that, by its very nature, “tears a hole in the sky”—the “sky” of our spirits and souls. Certain music, certain composers, and certain performances have a way of “tearing a hole” into us perhaps even bringing new meaning to what we do and how we live. The music of Hole in the Sky has a common thread in that all the pieces, in some way, provide an illuminative hole, through both sound and text, into a deeper understanding of life and living. It explores the many worlds of choral sound. From Ola Gjeilo’s “The Spheres,” to Mendelssohn’s stunning work for women’s choir, “Veni, Domine,” to “She Weeps Over Rahoon” by Eric Whitacre, to the joyful “Jubilate Deo” of Benjamin Britten, this music will touch the depths of your soul. Be bold, take a breath, and dare to fall through. Westminster Williamson Voices under James Jordan is one of the great choirs of the world. Theirs is a sound which can set the soul at rest. James Whitborn.

SKU: PE.EP72698A

ISBN 9790577010519. 210 x 297mm inches. English.

Commiss ioned by Making Music with funds from the Nicholas Berwin Charitable Foundation

First performance: 12th March 2016, Waltham Singers, conducted by Andrew Fardell, King Edward's Grammar School, Chelmsford.

Mus ic runs through the story of Arion, which begins with a singing competition in Sicily. Arion wins the prize, and this puts his life in danger: his newfound wealth excites the Greed of the sailors who are supposed to be bringing him back to Corinth, and they threaten to kill him.  They allow Arion to sing one last song, and the power of his singing attracts dolphins to the ship.  At The End of his song, he jumps overboard, and one of the dolphins carries him to safety.  So Arion’s musical gift gets him into trouble, but it is also his salvation.  

The idea of being rescued by a music-loving dolphin is very appealing.  In Robert Graves’ account of the myth, the dolphin could not bear to be parted from Arion, and accompanied him back to court, where “it soon succumbed to a life of luxury.”  However, Herodotus says that, after his rescue and return to Corinth, Arion failed to return the dolphin to the sea, and it died there.  Apollo placed the dolphin among the stars, and next to it, Arion’s lyre, in recognition of his musical skill.  This is one of the mythical explanations of the origins of the constellations Delphinus and Lyra.

It seems natural to sing a story that has singing at its heart.  When I was asked by the Nicholas Berwin Charitable Trust to write a choral work for Making Music, something that would be within reach of many choirs, and involve children, this story struck me as ideal: the men of the chorus could be the bloodthirsty sailors, and the women could create an atmosphere of mystery for the arrival of the dolphins, represented by children’s voices.  There would be one solo voice: Arion, the marvellous singer.  Andrew Fardell, the conductor who was advisor to this commission, had suggested that I might use the same instrumentation as a popular arrangement of Orff’s Carmina Burana, a work that, as well as using children’s chorus, features a solo countertenor.  I thought the magical, otherworldly quality of this voice would help to convey the extraordinary effect Arion’s singing had on all who heard it. 

- Jonathan Dove