regional conferences r s for all of...

Regional Conferences for All of California!

San Francisco ♦ Fresno ♦ Santa Monica

PAGES 4 AND 5

Published by the California Chapter of the American Choral Directors Association Volume 21, Number 1 • Fall 2008

Inside… PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE .......................................2

REGIONAL CONFERENCES .......................................4

HONOR CHOIRS .......................................7

HAROLD SWAN AWARD .......................................8

JANE SKINNER HARDESTER AWARD APPLICATIONS .....................................22

REPERTOIRE & STANDARDS “SHOW”-ING UP AND RAISING THE BAR .....................................11

ROGER WAGNER AND THE SECRET .....................................13

A GLOOMY TIME… A TIME FOR ACTION .....................................14

INSPIRING A LIFELONG ENDEAVOR .....................................15

POPSICLE STICKS… A UNIQUE STRATEGY .....................................16

PROGRAMMING THEMATIC CONCERTS .....................................18

REGIONAL REPS LEARNING CLOSER TO HOME .....................................19

THE UNTAMED JOURNEY .....................................20

MUSIC-MAKING IN THE FAR SOUTH .....................................22

SUMMER CONFERENCE WRAP-UP CONFERENCE MEMORIES .....................................23

CONFERENCE EXCHANGE .....................................25

Howard Swan Award

PAGE 8

VANCE GEORGE

MARK HAYES

JO-MICHAEL SCHEIBE

2 California ACDA • Fall 2008

Official Publication of the California Chapter

American Choral Directors Association

Editor

Douglas Lynn [email protected] c/o 1450 South Melrose Drive, Oceanside CA 92056 760-758-4100 ext 140

Cantate is published three times each year.

Submission Deadlines

Fall Issue — August 1 (published September 1)

Winter Issue — December 1 (published January 1)

Spring Issue — April 1 (published May 1)

Guidelines for Submissions

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

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

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

California ACDA reserves the right to edit submissions.

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A check made payable to “California ACDA” must be postmarked by the submission deadline. You will not be billed. Invoices can be prepared upon request. No copy will run without advance payment. If you would like an ad to run in more than one issue, please include full payment at the time of the initial ad.

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Upcoming Events November 20-22, 2008

CALIFORNIA ACDA REGIONAL HONOR CHOIRS COASTAL ♦ SAN FRANCISCO STATE / ST. IGNATIUS CATHOLIC CHURCH CENTRAL ♦ CLOVIS NORTH HIGH SCHOOL SOUTHERN ♦ SANTA MONICA HIGH SCHOOL

November 21, 2008 CALIFORNIA ACDA REGIONAL CONFERENCES SAN FRANCISCO ♦ LAKESIDE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH FRESNO ♦ CLOVIS NORTH HIGH SCHOOL SANTA MONICA ♦ FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

March 4-7, 2009 ACDA NATIONAL CONVENTION OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA CELEBRATING ACDA’S 50TH ANNIVERSARY

March 26-28, 2009 CALIFORNIA ACDA ALL-STATE HONOR CHOIR PASADENA

Dr. Iris Levine, Women’s Choir Conductor Dr. Joe Miller, Mixed Choir Conductor

July 26-29, 2009 CALIFORNIA ACDA SUMMER CONFERENCE OAKHURST (ECCO)

Rodney Eichenberger, Headliner

March 3-6, 2010 ACDA WESTERN DIVISION CONVENTION TUCSON, ARIZONA

July 25-28, 2010 CALIFORNIA ACDA SUMMER CONFERENCE OAKHURST (ECCO)

Rollo Dilworth, Headliner

Advertisers Index Arrowbear Music Camp .......................................................................................12

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music / California State University, Long Beach.............................................back cover

California State University, Chico........................................................................19

California State University, Fresno ........................................................................6

California State University, Fullerton.....................................................................9

California State University, Los Angeles .............................................................10

Incantato Tours.....................................................................................................21

Sight-Singing Honor Choir and Workshop at CSU Fresno ..................................14

Soli Deo Gloria Singers........................................................................................18

World Projects......................................................................................................17

Music so wishes to be heard that it sometimes calls on unlikely characters to give it voice.

— Robert Fripp

California ACDA • Fall 2008 3

It is GREAT to be involved in the choral arts in California! Our state ACDA numbers over 1,300 members (more than any other state) who quite possibly offer the broadest array of choir types and choral experiences in the country. From jazz to Chinese and Hispanic choirs, and from show choirs to church and school groups, the breadth of music genres is impressive.

By the time you read this, most of you will be back “grinding the wheel” in the classroom, or prepping your church and/or community choir for winter concerts. If you went to the California ACDA Summer Conference at ECCO, you left with lots of new ideas, techniques, and repertoire that you can introduce throughout the year. Our headliner, Z. Randall Stroope, did an outstanding job, as did Charlene Archibeque and our cadre of member-experts, all of whom led sessions that were both informative and innovative. Some of the “must sees” on your can’t-miss list for next time have to include Katharin Rundus, Heather Gold, and Matt Falker!

If you didn’t make it to ECCO, then you will definitely want to attend one of the new Regional Conferences. These events will take place simultaneously across the state on Friday, November 21, in San Francisco, Fresno, and Santa Monica (see page 4 for details). The headliners will be Vance George (SF), Mark Hayes (F) and Jo-Michael Scheibe (SM). You will also get to see first-hand the expertise of our regional honor choir directors: Don Brinegar and Lori Mari Rios (SF), Anna Hamre and Jeff Seaward (F), and Desiree LaVertu and Christopher Peterson (SM). Each conference will have two to four interest sessions, as well as literature-reading sessions. The day will end with an opportunity to visit that region’s honor choir and see these respected conductors direct some of the best high school choral singers from across the state. Space is limited at each venue, so make sure and get your registration in early. And we have a new incentive program: bring a “first-time” friend or colleague to the conference; he or she becomes a member of ACDA, and each of you will receive 50 percent off of that conference’s registration fee!

The California ACDA leadership is busy at work to assist you in the choral arts. Last year, many of you participated in our first member survey. I am pleased to report that your state board

Great Strides! Great Music!

KEN ABRAMS [email protected]

PRESIDENT www.acdacal.org

has made changes as a result of your responses, including forgoing the Fall Reading Sessions in favor of the Regional Conferences, held at new times and rotating locations; revising the scoring and judging processes of the honor choir auditions; separating from CMEA for the production of the All-State Honor Choir (which will be held March 26-28, 2009, in Pasadena); and eliminating the Mid-Winter Skills Workshops. We have also shifted the state Summer Conference to late July, allowing those with early-start classes the opportunity to attend. This last item certainly proved effective this year as we sold out with over 175 participants!

There’s more good stuff to read and learn about in this issue of Cantate, like the great news about our local show choirs at national competitions and the great strides of our Repertoire & Standards representatives.

Your board is committed to this organization, and we hope you are, too. Together, we can further choral education efforts throughout our state and positively impact our singers and ourselves.

As usual, we want to hear from you. Feel free to drop me a line anytime at [email protected].

Have a great end of summer and a terrific start of the school year. ♦

Innovative and informative music-making at the 2008 California ACDA Summer Conference

FROM THE PRESIDENT


REGIONAL SAN FRANCISCO

VANCE GEORGE

FORMER DIRECTOR SAN FRANCISCO SYMPHONY CHORUS

Lakeside Presbyterian Church 201 Eucalyptus Drive (at 19th Avenue)

DONALD BRINEGAR Mixed Honor Choir Conductor

Pasadena City College

LORI MARIE RIOS Women’s Honor Choir Conductor

College of the Canyons

TOM CARTER Author of Choral Charisma

FRIDAY NOVEMBER 21

► Full-day conference

► Scheduled concurrently with California ACDA/SCVA Regional Honor Choirs

► General Sessions with the headliners

► Interest Sessions with the Regional Honor Choir conductors and other expert conductors

► Registration fee covers

Headliner and interest sessions

Music scores for reading sessions

Lunch

REGISTRATION SPECIAL ACDA MEMBERS

WHO BRING A FIRST-TIME NON-MEMBER, AND YOU BOTH GET

50% OFF ($47.50) OF THE REGISTRATION FEE

(TWO FOR THE PRICE OF ONE)

$95 to register (forms at www.acdacal.org)

CONTACT Daniel Hughes

[email protected] Travis Rogers

[email protected]

California ACDA thanks J. W. Pepper & Son, Inc., for their excellent service in providing music for the

California ACDA Summer Conference and the upcoming regional conferences in November.

Their courteous, fast, and efficient service has been amazing. Thank you, J. W. Pepper!


CONFERENCES FRESNO SANTA MONICA

MARK HAYES

COMPOSER CHURCH MUSICIAN

Clovis North High School 2770 East International Avenue

ANNA HAMRE Mixed Honor Choir Conductor

California State University, Fresno

JEFF SEAWARD Women’s Honor Choir Conductor

College of the Sequoias

DAVID SCHOLZ California State University, Chico

JO-MICHAEL SCHEIBE

DIRECTOR OF CHORAL ACTIVITIES

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

First Presbyterian Church 1220 2nd Street (at Wilshire)

DESIREE LAVERTU Women’s Honor Choir Conductor California Institute of Technology

CHRISTOPHER PETERSON Men’s Honor Choir Conductor

California State University, Fullerton

CONTACT John Tebay

[email protected] Nancy Gray

[email protected]

CONTACT Heather Bishop

[email protected] Gavin Spencer

[email protected]

Registration forms have been mailed to all current members and

are available on the California ACDA website at www.acdacal.org


Regional and All-State Honor Choirs 2008/2009

The 2008/2009 Honor Choir season promises to be an exciting experience for all singers selected to participate in the Regional and All-State Honor Choirs.

Although the Honor Choirs audition booklet was mailed to all schools during August, the audition booklet with all information regarding the dates, fees, policies, and procedures for the All-State and three Regional Honor Choir weekends can be found on and downloaded from the California ACDA web site at www.acdacal.org.

The California ACDA All-State Honor Choirs are no longer associated with the CMEA conference. The singers no longer are required to be housed and fed in a specific hotel. Singers will be paying only the participation fee for their All-State Honor Choir activity. Costs and venues for meals and lodging will be up to the individual singer(s) and chaperone(s) as is the case with the Regional Honor Choir weekend. This means if a singer lives in the area of the All-State Honor Choir venue, or has a friend or relative living in the area, he or she can commute to the Honor Choir activities.

Directors of singers being considered for the All-State Honor Choirs will receive notification by mail of the names of singers accepted or not accepted. The directors will be asked to download all necessary forms and information sheets for the singers from the ACDA Honor Choir web page. It is our intention to utilize the California ACDA web site on a more regular basis so that directors can access Honor Choir information more readily, and costs for All-State Honor Choir participants can be reduced because the cost of postage and printing will no longer be involved.

Check out the Honor Choir information at www.acdacal.org. Encourage your singers to audition for Honor Choir. ♦

2008 REGIONAL HONOR CHOIRS DIRECTORS CENTRAL

Mixed Honor Choir Conductor Dr. Anna Hamre California State University, Fresno Women’s Honor Choir Conductor Jeff Seaward College of the Sequoias

COASTAL Mixed Honor Choir Conductor Donald Brinegar Pasadena City College Women’s Honor Choir Conductor Lori Marie Rios College of the Canyons

SOUTHERN/SCVA Mixed Honor Choir Conductor Dr. Jo-Michael Scheibe University of Southern California Women’s Honor Choir Conductor Desiree LaVertu California Institute of Technology Occidental College Glee Clubs Men’s Honor Choir Conductor Dr. Christopher W. Peterson California State University, Fullerton

2009 ALL-STATE HONOR CHOIR DIRECTORS ALL-STATE WOMEN’S HONOR CHOIR

Dr. Iris Levine California State University, Pomona

ALL-STATE MIXED HONOR CHOIR Dr. Joe Miller Westminster Choir College

SHIRLEY NUTE [email protected]

ALL-STATE HONOR CHOIRS

www.acdacal.org/honorchoirs.htm

www.acdacal.org

CALIFORNIA HONOR CHOIRS


Charlene Archibeque Receives 2008 Howard Swan Award

For each of the last 23 years, it has been the privilege of California ACDA to recognize an outstanding choral director in our state who is retired from fulltime conducting. The prestigious lifetime achievement award given to this conductor is named in honor of

Dr. Howard S. Swan, who was known as the “Dean of American Choral Directors.” Howard Swan’s life spanned nearly the entire twentieth century. It is almost impossible to overemphasize the far-reaching effects of his artistic command, powerful personality, and humanitarian spirit. After beginning his career as a teacher at Eagle Rock High School, Dr. Swan became the choral director at Occidental College in Los Angeles, a position he held from 1934 to 1971. The Occidental College Glee Clubs under his direction gained national stature, performing with exquisite tone quality and electric communication. Dr. Swan became the mentor of multiple generations of choral directors. Conductors from all over the country would come to study with him at Oxy, and subsequently at Cal State Fullerton and UC Irvine. His integrity, high view of the artistic/human role of the choral director, and compelling ability to challenge and inspire students and colleagues to greater vision and higher standards awakened the collective conscience of the choral world. It is for this reason that the book containing his writings and speeches is entitled, Conscience of a Profession: Howard Swan, Choral Director and Teacher; it is available from Hinshaw Music. ♦

The 2008 Howard Swan Award honoree, Charlene Archibeque, is a Professor Emeritus from San Jose State University who recently retired after directing the Choral Music program there for 35 years. Her retirement celebration was a wonderful testimony to her years of influence upon singers and choral conductors as hundreds of her former students joined together to perform for her one last time for an audience of a thousand! In addition to San Jose State, she taught for thirteen years in San Diego at all levels of public school music and taught the first experimental program in team-teaching at the junior high level.

While at San Jose State, she built a strong choral studies program. Conducting the Concert Choir and Choraliers in hundreds of concerts during her tenure, her choirs performed at 25 regional, divisional, state, and national Conventions for ACDA and MENC. The Choraliers recorded seven professional compact discs; and if you don’t have them, you should get them as they are wonderful resources of literature and beautiful singing! They took their music around the world on tour on 16 different occasions. Under her direction, they were named as winners of seven of the most prestigious competitions in Europe including: Choir of the World at the Wales Eisteddfod; the famed Grand Prix in Tallin, Estonia; and the Spittal competition in Austria. In addition to her collegiate ensembles, she has conducted All-State Choirs in 43 of the 50 states and six provinces of Canada, as well as MENC and ACDA divisional honor choirs.

More than 80 conductors have completed their

HOWARD SWAN

JULIE DANA [email protected]

VICE-PRESIDENT www.acdacal.org

masters degrees in choral conducting under her supervision, many of whom you have seen at ACDA conventions directing their own ensembles and carrying on the legacy of their fine training.

Those of us who were not able to work with her at San Jose State were given the opportunity through the many workshops that she gave around the United States, including the 34 summer workshops she hosted at her home university,

(Continued on page 9)

Dr. Charlene Archibeque (right) with Julie Dana, California ACDA Vice-President


Swan Award

which was where I had the privilege of working with her.

She has served as headliner, panelist, presenter, speaker, and clinician at conferences around the world, including ACDA national and divisional conventions, the World Choral Symposium in Rotterdam, Holland, the National Australian Choral Symposium in Melbourne, the International Music Workshops in Lausanne, Switzerland, the USAREU in Berchtesgaden, Germany, and the National Federation of Music Societies in York, England, where she was the first woman and first American to present! She has received numerous awards for her work as an educator and conductor.

As a person who was told in my undergraduate conducting class that I would never be a professional conductor because it was a man’s profession, I am one of a generation of female conductors who can look to her and those who followed her and thank them. She was the first female professor to conduct and build a program at the university level—a program that was unparalleled in quality for many years.

In describing her, former students have spoken of her inspiration, of her unending desire to educate herself and be a life-long learner; they describe her as a “trailblazer,” not only for women in conducting, but for the model of what a conductor can be! She taught her students how to run an efficient rehearsal and never settle for “good enough.” One told me she said, “the one thing that separates a really good educator who is good at their craft and a not-so-good educator who is good at their craft is the love for their students.” After speaking with her former students, it was this quality that was ever-present in her teaching; she always has had a REAL LOVE for her students.

On behalf of the California State ACDA membership, I am humbled and honored to be able to present our 2008 Swan Award to Dr. Charlene Archibeque. ♦

— from Julie Dana’s speech at the 2008 California ACDA Summer Conference presenting the Howard S. Swan Award

(Continued from page 8)


REPERTOIRE & STANDARDS

“Show”-ing Up and Raising the Bar

In Show Choir, the bar is continually rising, and EVERYTHING—the shows, the vocals, the choreography, the sets, the wardrobe—has evolved into something much better, grander, and greater than previous years!

2008 was probably one of the most remarkable years for show choirs that California has ever witnessed!

Hart High School traveled to Sullivan, Illinois, in March and competed against several of the best show choirs in the Midwest, including the legendary “Attaché” from Clinton, Mississippi, which has gone undefeated in show choir competitions nationwide since 1994! Hart High School’s “Sound Vibes” took top honors by winning Grand Champion and claiming a national title over the awesome Clinton group as well as the best in Indiana and Illinois!

Two weeks after this historic moment, another “never before” moment occurred in Hawaii! Chula Vista High School’s “The Main Attraction” won Grand Champions at the FAME National Show Choir Competition held in Honolulu! Chula Vista High School has never had a national title from ANY group at their school, and it was their premiere show choir to be the first to bring a national title to the school! It was the ARTS, not sports, that brought a national title first to CVHS! Hart was also there, and their girls show choir, Hart High School “Hartbreakers,” won the Girls Show Choir Division, which gave them a Girls national title as well!

Two weeks later, John Burroughs High School sent “Powerhouse” and “Sound Sensations” to Chicago to compete at the FAME competition there! Clinton was again present as well as top groups like North Central from Indiana, Wabounsie Valley and Mount Zion from Illinois! Both Burroughs’ groups won Grand Champion in their respective divisions!

Another two weeks later, Burbank High School’s “In Sync” and “Impressions” went to represent California at the FAME competition in New York! There they both won Grand Champions completing the California sweep from 2008!

That was SEVEN California Show Choirs competing at four different national-level competitions, and SEVEN bringing national championships back home to California! The

entire show choir world was talking about this never-done-before feat that California did in 2008.

Los Alamitos traveled all the way to China in 2008 and has said farewell to long-time director, Dr. Randi Carp, who is leaving the west coast and moving to the east coast. The new director has been announced, and it is Mr. David Mollenkamp, former director at Sullivan where he won several national championships there!

Below are links for current and future show choir directors to reference. ♦

showchoir.com – The community of show choir where you can find out what is happening in your region as well as the nation!

showchoirbuzz.com – A wealth of contacts for show choirs!

showchoirindex.com – Another show choir page on information

scvachoral.org – Southern California Vocal Music Association information

wengercorp.com and stageright.com – Two great places to shop for staging and other show choir tech needs

jwpepper.com – Need music? Rivars.com – Need Wardrobe? satinstitches.com – More wardrobe! showchoirdesigns.com – And more wardrobe... coffieldco.com – Yet more wardrobe! fameevents.com – Information on FAME

national competitions! keynotearts.com – Showstoppers national

show choir competitions! showchoirnationals.com – Want to go to

Nashville for a national competition? heritagefestivals.com – Like to travel and

compete? musicintheparks.com – Competitions and a

theme park visit! showchoircamps.com – The BEST show choir

camp in the United States.

TONY ATIENZA [email protected]

SHOW CHOIRS www.acdacal.org/

show.htm

LINKS TO THE 2009 SHOW CHOIR COMPETITIONS in Southern California can be found on

the California ACDA website at

www.acdacal.org/show

The entire show choir world was

talking about this never-

done-before feat that

California did in 2008.


In my first year at CSU Long Beach, I had lunch with Jeff Reynolds, the head of brass studies at Long Beach, and a legendary bass trombonist who played with the Los Angeles Philharmonic (and on every imaginable movie soundtrack) for four decades. I was starting my career as a university professor and he was finishing his. Naturally, I was mining him for any scraps of knowledge that might make me a better teacher and musician. We got to talking about my first conducting teacher, Roger Wagner1. Jeff said to me, “I played Pinkham’s Christmas Cantata for Roger in what must have been the Master Chorale’s first performance of it. I remember being awestruck by the beauty of the choir, by its impeccable intonation, and by the degree of control they sang with. Being a church choral director at the time, I walked up to Roger after the rehearsal and said something like, “How do you do it? How do you get them to sing so well?”

Roger’s response was, “Know what you want to hear, and know how to get it.”

Roger Wagner and The Secret “Know what you want to hear, and know how to get it.”

Jeff told me those twelve words had stuck with him throughout his entire career as a teacher and performer. Almost a decade after hearing the story, they ring in my head every time I plan a rehearsal.

Many young conductors and teachers begin by teaching a piece and then deciding how it should sound. I’m sure this is a mistake, and I want to offer my—and most of my teachers—idea of score study.

Sitting at my desk with a score in front of me, I ask myself “What do I want to hear here? How do I want this articulated? If I had the most perfect choir in the world, how would this sound?” Then I ask myself the second part, “How am I going to get the choir to do this? What can I do in warm-ups that will teach this concept? What analogies, metaphors, or stories will help to illustrate what I want to hear? What can I pull out of my bag of tricks that will help the choir to execute exactly what I want to hear?” I am always aware that knowing how to get what I want is secondary to knowing what I want. If I have a crystalline sound in my head, the how will come—sometimes miraculously—by study and in rehearsal.

With more experience, I find that I’ve condensed Roger’s words from “know what you want to hear, and know how to get it” to “Know what you want, and know how to get it.” The bestselling book The Secret, offers this insight: “your thoughts and your feelings create your life.” This ‘law of attraction’ brings what you think about most into your experience. The book has been much praised and much derided, but we can certainly agree that successful people know how to go about getting the things and experiences they desire by focusing their energy on the positive, and by going wholeheartedly toward their goals. Successful choral directors learn how to create the choir they want by knowing exactly what it is they want to hear. ♦

1 Roger Wagner (January 16, 1914-September 17,

1992) was an American choral musician, organist, composer, arranger, administrator and educator. Founder of the Los Angeles Master Chorale, Professor Emeritus at UCLA, Distinguished Professor of Choral Music at Pepperdine, Dr. Wagner’s profound influence on choral music in California and beyond continues through his recordings, arrangements, and students’ teaching.

Repertoire & Standards?

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

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

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

DR. JONATHAN TALBERG

[email protected]

YOUTH & STUDENT

ACTIVITIES www.acdacal.org/

student.htm



TO MUSIC (AN DIE MUSIK) by Franz von Schubert

You lovely art, in how many gloomy hours, When life’s fierce orbit entangled me, Have you kindled my heart to warmer love. Have you carried me away to a better world.

Often has a sigh, flown from your harp— a sweet, holy chord from you— unlocked for me the heaven of better times. You lovely art, I thank you for this. You lovely art, I thank you.

Oh, the heaven of better times—when none of our music programs were being cut and no grants frozen! I came across this beautiful text just yesterday as my advanced women’s choir sang An die Musik by Schubert in summer vocal camp. It was like a whispered voice in my ear reminding

A Gloomy Time…A Time for Action me why I became a choral director and what I have to offer my students—perhaps, more importantly, what music has to offer them and what an important job I have, as a conduit, to help them access that lovely art.

It is a gloomy time. I had numerous conversations with fellow choral directors at the California ACDA Summer Conference at ECCO this summer about cut programs and lower numbers in their choirs as more and more academic requirements were pressed on our already stressed-out students. In my school district the elementary general music has been cut to balance the budget. My own grants from Sacramento were “frozen” until further notice.

It would be so easy and understandable to give up and accept the lot I have been given. But I won’t. Now is the time for action; to be sure that I



A Unique Opportunity for Choristers! Can you sing this exercise? If you can, you are eligible for an honor choir. If you can’t, you are eligible to learn.

Rodney Eichenberger conducts a California

Sight-Singing Honor Choir

High-School Students and College Freshmen and Sophomores Workshops available for any singer looking to develop reading skills

Saturday, January 24, 2009 • 9:00am - 6:00pm California State University, Fresno • Concert Hall

Contact Dr. Anna Hamre for registration information for Honor Choir or Workshops

[email protected] or 559-278-2539 or www.acdacal.org

KAREN GARRETT [email protected]

WOMEN’S CHOIRS www.acdacal.org/

women.htm


www.acdacal.org The California ACDA Website

Resources ● Event Dates ● Registration Forms

Inspiring a Lifelong Endeavor Assessment, in our teaching business, is often

quick and easy. It might be quite a challenge for the history instructor to determine if the student has a good grasp of concepts (e.g., the causes of World War I). The choir director, however, knows pretty quickly if the altos know the right notes. We constantly assess what we are doing. We mount concerts, we enter competitions, we participate in festivals. We evaluate our recordings, we seek ratings, we teach new literature.

James McCray, composer and choir director with many successes to his credit, suggested another tool. “Evaluate yourself,” he said, “by whether or not your students continue singing when they leave you.” Do we give our students the inspiration to see choir as a life-long activity? Do we teach the skills that will allow them to do it?

Choir directors can “do” inspiration as well as anyone. We know the literature that raises the roof, the events that challenge the singers, and the trips that excite the populace. However, inspiring the singers to perform well at an immediate event is one thing. Inspiring them to see choir participation as a lifelong endeavor is much more challenging for all of us in the choral business.

One of the great difficulties involves imparting the skills that equip our singers to participate successfully at the next level. At least on occasion

we all rely on lining out singers’ parts. We sometimes distribute part recordings, which will ensure we can perform any desired work this semester. But will our teaching allow our students to walk out the door with the skills to be successful at the next level? Can our choristers sight-sing a successful honor-choir audition? Earn a scholarship to college? Secure an opportunity to sing in a professional ensemble or a good community choir? After all, what singer even wants to join a community chorus to sing a Bach motet when she or he can only learn it by rote?

The excitement of successful sight-singing infuses an entire ensemble with incomparable momentum. There are many methods and resources available to the choir director dedicated to teaching students to read music and to grow through the many stages of musical literacy. More than anything, we teachers need to set aside rehearsal time to create consistent practice and frequent individual assessment. How hard that is, but how great the rewards!

Our singers want to present today’s awesome performance. Taking the time and effort to teach them necessary skills will ensure they have awesome singing experiences for the rest of their lives. ♦


ANNA HAMRE [email protected]

COLLEGE & UNIVERSITY

CHOIRS www.acdacal.org/

college.htm

recruit as many students as possible into my program and to fight for every penny to provide for them the experience they deserve. In two years I will be at my district doors helping to reinstate general music at the elementary level.

I will do all this because we know a truth that has escaped many decision-makers above us—the musical art we can give to our students will kindle their heart to a warmer love—in a way that algebra cannot. We are the torch carriers of a cure for life’s fierce orbits that entangle us. We can help transport them, if even for a moment, to a better world. And for this, let us truly be thankful. ♦


A Gloomy Time…A Time for Action

What singer even wants

to join a community

chorus to sing

a Bach motet when she or he can only learn it by

rote?


A year ago, I wrote an article and issued a challenge for you to learn and implement something new into your teaching method. I hope you answered my call and it was a huge success! I also wrote about being selected for a school-wide direct instruction team to improve our school’s test scores and the training I had to go through with the core subject teachers. That was my BIG, new challenge and it was interesting at times and boring at others! I would like to share with you some of my experiences and some of the techniques I tried in my class.

First, the “leadership team” was comprised of four core subject teachers, me, and our principal. The teachers traveled to the training together and really got to brainstorm or just vent on the drive to and from the training. The teachers that I traveled with are all wonderful teachers who have great success in the classroom. Some of the things we learned were a bit repetitive, but some ideas were new to all of us. As a music teacher, I didn’t know a lot of the techniques and strategies they were being taught, and if I did know it, I knew it by a name from the “dinosaur age” of education classes. What I did realize is that music teachers use their own style of a lot of the techniques and that’s what makes our programs so successful. So by the end of the training, these core teachers who I traveled with gained a respect for the intricacies and deductive thinking that teaching music involves.

Popsicle Sticks…A Unique Strategy? The one technique that stood out the most to

me was Choral Response. It’s funny to me that they call it by this name because, as a music teacher, that’s what we do all of the time with singing, speaking in rhythm, AND asking “What time are you supposed to be at the concert?” over and over. In this, I was reassured that most choral teachers are using good teaching methods by the way we are trained to handle large groups, especially in our ability to keep up with the massive organization involved in getting all those loose ends to come together for all of our performing students!

A new strategy for me was using Popsicle sticks for questioning students in class. I wrote the name of each student on a separate Popsicle stick in one class and put those sticks in a deep red (school color!) cup. I did the same for all of my classes. The idea is to ask a question and then make a big deal of mixing the sticks, which gives “wait” time for all students to think of the answer, and then pull a stick and call that student’s name. Using this as a technique insures all students are responsible for paying attention to the question as you might pull their name for the answer. This strategy also gives all students time to think, which is most important, because studies have shown that every child thinks differently and at their own pace. Instead of asking questions and picking on



LINDA LOVAAS [email protected]

MIDDLE SCHOOL & JUNIOR HIGH

SCHOOL CHOIRS www.acdacal.org/

middle.htm

ACDA Advocacy Resolution Whereas, the human spirit is elevated to a broader understanding of itself

through study and performance in the aesthetic arts, and

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

Be it resolved that all citizens of the United States actively voice their affirmative and collective support

for necessary funding at the local, state, and national levels of education and government,

to ensure the survival of arts programs.

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


hands raised, you are making EVERY student responsible for the answers. More often than not, you have students who want to answer every question, but then you have students who never want to answer because they know your other student will take care of answering. If you call on a student and he doesn’t know the answer, then tell him you will come back and ask for him again in a minute and then mix and pull another stick for someone else to answer. If that student gives the correct answer, then go back to the student who didn’t know and ask them the same question now that the answer has been said. This gets them to pay attention to the answer AND repeat it, which improves their chance of remembering it in the future.

I found that the Popsicle stick strategy really worked in a lot of choral situations. It took some practice to feel comfortable with it. It made such a difference during class when I was teaching about tempo markings, time signatures, history, lyrics, and many other areas. Even in rehearsing, I’d want to ask a dynamic marking or purpose of phrase or why something is the way it is and I’d reach over, shake the sticks, and pull a name. I was surprised at how much the attention level had improved in class and how every student seemed to feel a bigger part of the picture. I was astounded at the answers coming from students who didn’t really participate much in the past. This new strategy opened doors to even bigger discussions than I had ever had before.

Just know that if you try this technique, it will feel awkward at first. Don’t give up. It took me a week or so to get the hang of it. I told my students that it was a new technique I had learned and it was supposed to make them “smarter” and I wanted to try it out. They were cooperative. Make sure you outline the rules with them first. That means breaking old habits, like calling out the answer before they are called on and not to raise their hand with the answer unless

(Continued from page 16) you ask for it. As we all know, our students are very trainable.

I move very fast in my rehearsal time so that I don’t lose that junior high short attention span. The sticks slow the process down, but I have learned to make a dramatic game out of it and I found that more of my students retained more than I have seen before. That was the most exciting result because I feel that I have great rapport with my students and they learn a lot in my class, as well as they love to be there. Using this method made my success even stronger. Other teachers at my site are using this technique and are noticing differences in their subject area. I doubted I’d see any changes in chorus, but I was wrong!

Other ideas you can use instead of Popsicle sticks are dice, a bingo machine, tongue depressors, and metal tags. I use my red cups with each period written on the outside of the cup. I’ve seen little wooden chests, key rings for the metal tags, and fancy painted tin cans. If you try this, have fun making it something your students will identify with.

As I said last year, just because we teach music doesn’t mean that we don’t try new things in our rehearsals. The whole idea is to educate our students in music using good educational tools. Get involved with your school training and try what you learn. Some will work well for you and some won’t, but give them a chance. I hope you will find even more success in your search to be the best teacher you can be. ♦

Popsicle Sticks


Have you been playing through your piles and files of music searching for just the right songs for your programs? One way to help with your decision-making is to pick a theme for your concert. With the theme in mind, you can decide between several favorite songs easier just because of their connection or lack thereof with your chosen theme.

Having incorporated thematic concerts for the last several years, I find there are even more benefits than just the help in choosing music. It inspires the cover art and my director’s message. Rather than once again saying how “glad I am that they came to the concert, enjoy,” I am able to set the mood of what the audience is about to hear. It makes the experience for both singer and listener much more cohesive.

I first started with thematic spring programs, and now am doing the same for my December concert. My board requested I rename my Christmas concert, so it morphed into the “Holiday” concert which was very unsatisfactory to me. My retort was, “Which holiday?” If we are referring to one, why can’t we name it? Then it

became “Songs of the Season.” Better, but which season? Winter Concert would have been more acceptable since at least it is referring to something tangible. So, last year a theme! “Songs of Peace” allowed me to program many Christmas songs, but also music that conveyed the message of peace (Dona Nobis Pacem, Ma Navu, A Shlosha D’Varim). It was delightful. This year, my title is “Rejoice,” and any song about joy or celebration seems to fit (Il est Ne, Deck the Hall in 7/8, I Saw Three Ships Come Sailing In, How Beautiful Are the Feet, Sing We Now of Christmas, Here We Come a Wassailing, Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day, Pat-A-Pan).

Spring concerts have many more possibilities. “Sail Away” featured songs that had some connection to water (Shenandoah, Blue Waters of the North, Bring a Little Water, Sylvie, Candle on the Water, Down by the Riverside, The Trout, Dome Epais, Skye Boat Song, The Water Is Wide). We even added Enya’s “Sail Away” as exit music to walk off the risers.

“The World Is Full of Poetry” allowed me a chance to use many pieces by famous poets, and in addition, our singers had the opportunity to submit their own original poems, which we published as an insert to our program. Examples of repertoire included When Cats Run Home (Alfred Lord Tennyson), Ca’ the Yowes (Robert Burns), Three Rhymes (Robert Louis Stevenson), Two Poems of Emily Dickinson, Dirait-on, Dreams (Langston Hughes), and the Irish Blessing.

Other themes have included, “The Song that Nature Sings” (Linden Lea, Down in the Red River Valley, The Sunny Side of the Street, Wade in the Water, The Swallow, The Storm Is Passing Over), “Musical Journeys” (Path to the Moon, Velvet Shoes, Erie Canal, Reflections of a Lad at Sea, J’entends le Moulin, Where Go the Boats, I’m Goin’ Up a Yonder), and “All Creatures, Great and Small” (Badgers and Hedgehogs, All the Pretty Little Horses, Don Gato, The Birds, Were I a Tiny Bird, All Things Bright and Beautiful, and YES, Rossini’s Duetto Buffo Di Due Gatti).

I’d be glad to send you the full program and publisher info of any of the songs we used in each concert. Send me any concert themes you have used successfully. I’d love to be inspired by your choices. Happy programming! ♦

Programming Thematic Concerts

BETH KLEMM [email protected]

CHILDREN’S CHOIRS

www.acdacal.org/children.htm


Soli Deo Gloria Singers

Dr. Julie L. Carter conductor

Christmas Concert

Friday, December 5, 7:30 pm

First Presbyterian Church 1540 M Street • Fresno, CA 93721

Tickets $10.00 at the door

Additional information and audition inquiries at [email protected]


Learning Closer to Home This fall will be an exciting new change for

ACDA with the addition of our fall regional conferences that will be in conjunction with our regional honor choirs all over the state. I am writing regarding the Central Region Honor Choir and regional Conference which will be held in Fresno. This is the first time in a long time that I won’t need to travel somewhere to go to an ACDA event. In fact, it will be less than a mile from my home, and a few steps from my classroom.

I had the wonderful opportunity to open our district’s fifth high school this past year and along with that, the opening of our Performing Arts Center. This is where we will have our honor choir rehearsals and performances.

The honor choir conductors will be Anna Hamre for the Mixed Choir, and Jeff Seaward for the Women’s Choir. The very talented Mark Hayes will be our headlining clinician for the conference.

Mark Hayes will speak in three main sessions, and we will also hear from Anna Hamre and Jeff Seaward during the Friday scheduled conference. Conference attendees can also observe honor choir rehearsals at some point.

We will hopefully see some new faces at the regional conference. This year will be fresh and new for ACDA. I hope you will choose to be a part of history and renew your energies in the choral part of your life. ♦

HEATHER BISHOP [email protected]

CENTRAL www.acdacal.org/

central.htm

REGIONAL REPRESENTATIVES


Can you believe we’re back in school already? During my summer break, it is against the rules for my friends to mention how many weeks or days remain before the first day of school. I hope you had an opportunity to charge those teaching batteries and strengthen the soul with the spirit of music. After experiencing the genius of Dr. Z. Randall Stroope and Dr. Charlene Archibeque at the Summer Conference at ECCO, I feel primed and equipped to leap on board for an untamed journey through another school year.

At many schools, the first major event of the school year is regional and state honor choir auditions. The auditions take place on September 20 and 27, and October 4, depending on your school’s geographic location. That doesn’t give you much time to prepare your young singers for their audition. If finding time is your concern, please read on for some suggestions that will save you time, more adequately prepare your auditionees, and have every student in your program proficient in performing these foundational exercises required for the audition. The skills demonstrated in the audition are fundamentals for our students, regardless of their desire to be in honor choir. Why not save yourself valuable time and allow every single student in your program to learn those skills together? It’s a win-win.

Every student should have the opportunity to sing an Italian art song at least once in his/her lifetime. This is the perfect opportunity. Select one song (from Schirmer’s 24 Italian Songs and Arias) per class and spend a few minutes teaching it each day. Most students can have the song learned and memorized in a week or two from just participating in the daily rehearsal. Then if someone wants to audition—even at the last minute, a song will already be in place. I also give each student a CD with the piano accompaniment. It can be purchased with a book if you wish. One of my most well-respected colleagues told me she followed this similar practice. It turns out that one of her classes loved their Italian art song so much, they were offended when it wasn’t programmed into their next concert. Students love them! I taught “Sebben Crudele” to my beginning men’s choir last fall and they had a ball with it. I urge you to give it a chance—you might be surprised.

Teaching students to sing major and minor

The Untamed Journey

triads and major and chromatic scales is a core concept that must be taught to everyone. Excluding the chromatic scale, these patterns are quite easy to teach and don’t take much time. Teaching the chromatic scale is somewhat more challenging. There are several different methods for naming tones in this particular scale. Some directors teach students to count from 1-13 and others use the text “Mary Had a Little Lamb” while others use note names (C-C#-D-etc…). If students are familiar with the keyboard, a method that Dr. Charlene Archibeque implements is to have students close their eyes and physically play the pitches on an imaginary piano. Note that students may use whatever fingering they wish, even if it only requires one finger. The physical action of playing the notes bridges the vocal coordination of matching the correct pitches in the pattern. This technique works exceptionally well.

Since sight singing demands such a generous amount of daily attention, you now have an additional motive to ensure it happens effectively. Use a method that you are comfortable with and be consistent. No matter what method you choose, consistent daily practice will bring well-deserved success to your students. If you need to implement a new method of sight singing, just practice with your students. You will internalize it quite rapidly. In my opinion, sight singing becomes laborious when copied examples and/or books have to be distributed to students frequently. Here’s what I do now, and I love it. I bought a subscription to www.choraltech.org (an online sight-singing program) a few years ago and with it came a PDF file of 700 sight-reading examples that progress from easy to difficult. In my classroom, sight-singing examples are cast onto a screen on the wall using an LCD projector. The class can now read it together. NO MORE PAPERS OR SIGHT-SINGING BOOKS! The logistics of sight singing are finally simple.

The remaining fundamental is tonal memory. This portion of the audition is simple to practice and very beneficial for aural training. Play a five-note passage on the piano and have the class replicate it in a “call and response” style. Start with a simple pattern and progressively construct them to become more complex. I prefer to



GAVIN SPENCER [email protected]

NORTHERN www.acdacal.org/

north.htm

Audition skills are

fundamental for our

students regardless of their desire to be in an

honor choir.


challenge the ladies and gentlemen separately so it can be done in the appropriate octave. This can be done in less than two minutes per class period.

Practicing these fundamental characteristics of singing in the classroom will make all your students better musicians. However, this is not a substitute for individual practice. Nor does it eliminate the students’ need to receive one-on-one coaching. But now your time can be spent polishing and perfecting prepared music instead of laboriously drilling scales and triads for each and every student individually.

Lastly, teach your students to be confident. Teach them to reach their potential by creating the most beautiful art possible. Teach them character development and genuinely expressive communication. Teach them about classy dress and how to enter a room with poise and dignity. Teach them the value of honest and comprehensive preparation. Teach them to be a star, but with grace and humility.

I hope many of you will give your kids the opportunity to be a participant in what may be a life-changing chapter in their lives. Anton Armstrong of St. Olaf College inspired me as a high school student in the Oregon All-State Honor Choir. For me, that experience was the decisive moment in my life that led me to become a choral conductor.

Many of my own students have been everlastingly touched by the honor choir experience and so can yours. I challenge you to go for it. ♦


The Untamed Journey

Friday, November 21

California ACDA REGIONAL CONFERENCES

San Francisco ♦ Fresno ♦ Santa Monica

JOIN US!

www.acdacal.org


JANE SKINNER HARDESTER MEMORIAL AWARD

Applications Now Available Jane Skinner Hardester (1922-2006) had a

long and distinguished career as a choral educator in the ACDA Western Division. In recognition of her outstanding leadership and contributions to ACDA and her dedication to the choral art, the Jane Skinner Hardester Memorial Award has been established.

This award will be presented each year to two aspiring choral conductor members of ACDA to support their attendance at a workshop or conference that will assist them in their professional development as a choral musician.

Choral music teachers in their first seven years of full-time pre-collegiate teaching will be eligible.

Applicants must submit an application form, a one-page letter stating the applicant’s goals in attending the workshop or conference, and two letters of recommendation (one professional and one personal). The application may be down-loaded from the ACDA Western Division website:

www.acdaonline.org/Western/HardesterApp.doc

Recipients of the award will submit a report to the Western Division president within six months following the receipt of the award. Recipient reports will be published in the ACDA Western Division newsletter, Tactus. Availability of funds will determine the amount of the awards presented annually.

Applications should be submitted to the president of the Western Division by September 15, 2008. The selection of recipients will be made in mid-October 2008, and all applicants will be notified by mid-November 2008. ♦

Music-Making in the Far South I am pleased to be your new representative for

the Far South Region of California ACDA. Special thanks to Bill Hatcher for his service these past four years as our representative. By now you know that we did not hold our Reading Session in Long Beach this year. Instead we are planning an exciting new Regional Conference that will take place on November 21 during Honor Choir weekend in Santa Monica.

Here is exciting news about the Regional Conference! Invite a friend who has never been a member of ACDA to attend one (non-members must join ACDA in order to attend), and when your friend joins ACDA while registering for the conference, both you and your friend will receive a 50% discount on your conference registration fees. The cost for the conference is only $95 and includes lunch and music packets. We will have reading sessions, interest sessions, and more. Check the California ACDA web page for more information, and remember to “Bring a Friend” and you both get a 50% discount.

Now that you have November 21 on your calendar and if you teach high school, be sure to have your students audition for regional honor choir. ACDA members in Southern California should note that our honor choir is sponsored by SCVA (Southern California Vocal Association). Please refer to the SCVA web page for dates and online registration for auditions. There is a link to SCVA on the California ACDA honor choir web page. Auditions are September 27 and October 4, with a registration deadline of September 13. Some All-State Honor Choir members will be selected from among the SCVA Southern Regional Honor Choir participants, which includes California ACDA Southern and Far South Regions.

One idea I’d like to share with you for the fall is to consider bringing in a guest conductor for the day to work with your choirs in a clinic format. It’s a great way for your students and you to get feedback from another conductor and to reinforce what you have been teaching. Maybe there is a local college conductor who would be available.

Please feel free to email me with questions or concerns ([email protected]). I am your voice for ACDA and here to serve your needs. I look forward to seeing you at the Southern Regional Conference, November 21 in Santa Monica. Check

out our California ACDA web page (www.acdacal.org) often for updates and as a resource during the school year. Have a wonderful year. ♦ NANCY GRAY

[email protected]

FAR SOUTH www.acdacal.org/

farsouth.htm



Conference Memories In addition to all of this, we had extremely

valuable interest sessions presented by Heather Gold (“Music and Ideas for the Changing Voice”), Doug Albertson and Vern Sanders (“Good New Church Songs for Good Old Church Choirs”), Roger Guerrero, Mary Purdy and Tammi Alderman (“High School Nuts and Bolts”), Lisa Friedrichs (“Building Beautiful Tone for Women’s Voices”), Dr. Katharin Rundus (“Secrets of Breath Management Revealed”), Matt Falker (Vocal Jazz), and Gail Barbour (“Recruiting and Keeping Boys in Your Choir”). I deeply thank all of these special people for investing a tremendous amount of time and thought into these very valuable sessions! The panel discussions were also uniquely fresh and informative. Jeff Morton, Lou De La Rosa, and Bruce Lengacher shared their ideas on “Practices and Perspectives On Sight-Singing.” Tammi Alderman and Genevieve Sagi led a discussion about “Honor Choir Preparation.” Lisa Friedrichs, Heather Bishop, and Gail Barbour guided us through “Group Management and Discipline.” Last but not least, David Scholz. Jeff Seaward, and Jan Lanterman facilitated a discussion about “Adult Choir Concerns.” I am grateful to these “seasoned” teachers and directors for their willingness to share their ideas and skills.

As I reflect on the growth I’ve made by being chairperson of the Summer Conference these past two years, it is amazingly obvious that success is due to the help and support of everyone involved, from the head clinician to the kitchen staff preparing our food. We are extremely fortunate to be members of a professional organization that promotes an atmosphere of acceptance, encouragement, and support. I am once again

looking forward to another school year, largely due to the wealth of new ideas and inspiration I gained at the Summer Conference this year. As Dr. Stroope put it, “only in others can we renew our life and so perpetuate ourselves.” I look forward to our Summer Conference next year with Rodney Eichenberger (July 26-29, 2009). ♦

Our 2008 California ACDA Summer Conference was another well-attended and enriching experience in every way!

Dr. Z. Randall Stroope, our headliner clinician, was such an inspirational and effective teacher. Many of us have been preparing ourselves intrinsically for meeting and getting to know him, and gleaning as much in three days as possible. Speaking for myself, I planned a repertoire of music for my students this past year that included one piece by Z. Randall Stroope for each group I directed. I made it my personal goal to become familiar with as much of his music as possible before the Summer Conference.

When I first met Dr. Stroope, I immediately became aware of his kind, humble, intuitive character. His sensitivity and intelligence radiate through every word he speaks and every piece of music he writes. He presented an excellent session on “Teaching Head Voice to Young Men.” I am so grateful to Heather and Dan Bishop and Randy Hyatt for bringing some of their wonderful students to serve as “vocal models” for this session. (I learned soooooo much and will refer to those notes many, many times this year!)

Dr. Stroope also presented sessions on “Innovative Programming for Today’s Learners and Listeners,” “PERFECTing PITCH,” “Ten Easy-to-Remember Concepts to Build an Incredibly Musical Ensemble,” and “The DNA of Leadership.” The handouts for all of these sessions will be posted on the California ACDA website (www.acdacal.org).

We were also extremely fortunate to have Dr. Charlene Archibeque as a featured clinician. Her “Voice Building” session was wonderful and included many warmups with effective gestures to go with them! She also presented sessions on conducting, Renaissance performance practices and “Char’s Quick Fixes for Common Choral Ailments.” All of the handouts for these sessions will be posted on the California ACDA website.

JO ANNE STODDARD

[email protected]

SUMMER CONFERENCE

CHAIR www.acdacal.org/

ecco.htm

SUMMER CONFERENCE 2008

Z. RANDALL STROOPE

RODNEY EICHENBERGER

Only in others can we

renew our life and so

perpetuate ourselves.


FESTIVALS These are the festivals that were posted on the board. If you are interested in any of these festivals,

contact the people below. If one of these festivals is yours, or you have one to share, please send your information to Mark Alberstein at [email protected] and he will post it on the California ACDA website (www.acdacal.org).

Conference Exchange I just returned from the California ACDA

Summer Conference with Z. Randall Stroope and it was a huge success! This year I was asked to put up four poster boards to provide a place for people to share specific ideas and information: first week activities and icebreakers, classroom strategies and discipline techniques, upcoming festivals, and directors who have taught or are currently teaching band and choir. The purpose was to provide information for new as well as seasoned teachers to keep their classes entertained and organized. It also allowed festival information to be available and gave some contact names for networking for the band/choir teacher!

I hope you will find this information helpful. I strongly encourage you to check out the California ACDA website (www.acdacal.org) where there is a tremendous amount of information available.

LINDA LOVAAS [email protected]

SUMMER CONFERENCE

CO-CHAIR www.acdacal.org/

ecco.htm

STRATEGIES FOR DISCIPLINE The following ideas were posted to help with

discipline. Begin rehearsal by singing a standard phrase

daily. In religious schools one could chant “The Lord be with you.” Then they sing back “and also with you.”

For silence: Wear a watch. When talking starts, say nothing and look at your watch. Someone will say “Shhh. She will keep us after class.” Keep them after for every minute that they waste.

Central Coast Men’s Choir Festival Templeton High School October 3, 2008 Clinician: Dan Earl Contact: Jo Anne Stoddard, [email protected]

Fall Festival for Middle School Choirs Pioneer Middle School Portervillle October 25, 2008 Clinician: Polly Vasché Contact: Fred Knutson, 559-782-7200

Pre-Festival Choral Clinic Valley Oak Middle School, Visalia February 20, 2009 Clinicians: Jeff Seaward and Charlotte Garcia Contact: Peg Hutson, 559-303-9179 or [email protected]

Azusa Pacific University March 19, 20, 2009 Clinician: Eph Ehly Contact: Harold Clousing, 626-815-6000 x3589

Children’s/Youth Festival April 4, 2009 Clinician: Granville Oldham Contact: Beth Klemm, [email protected]

Napa Valley Choral Classic April 8, 9, 2009 Host: Travis Rogers Clinicians: Jo-Michael Scheibe, Jing Ling-Tam, Josh Habermann

Central Valley Junior High Choir Festival Davis November 7, 2009 Contact: Bill Zinn, [email protected]

Community College Choral Festival Sierra College April 24, 2009 Contact: [email protected]

Kodaly Elementary Honor Choir Los Angeles May 16, 17, 2009 Contact: Eloise Porter at [email protected], 818-704-0960

Contact me if you have additions to any of these lists, and I will publish them in the future! ♦

SUMMER CONFERENCE 2008


BAND/CHORAL TEACHER DIRECTORY These people are or have been a band director and have taught chorus (or still are). They can be

contacted if you need information or want to share ideas or are a new teacher in this situation who needs help. I hope you will all communicate with each other and pool your resources!

Conference Exchange

Name Game – Have your class form a circle. Each person must say their first name then a phrase with the first letter of their first name (e.g., “Charlene Came on a Camel” for Charlene Archibeque).

Shoe Game – Divide students into two teams and then split each team in half. Put half of the students from one team on one side of the room and the other half of the team across from them on the other side of the room. Do the same with the other team. (If you have a small group, don’t split the teams.) Have all students remove their shoes and put them in the middle of the room. After all have removed their shoes, go and mix them all up into one big pile (they will place them neatly or away from others to find them better later. You will hear groans when you mix them all up!). When you yell, “Go,” or whistle or count 1 – 2 – 3, have the first person from all four sections run to the middle, find their shoes, and put them COMPLETELY on. Then they run back to their side, tag the next person and then sit at the back or side of the team line. The winning team is the one who has BOTH halves of their team sitting first! NO CHEATING!

FIRST WEEK OF SCHOOL ACTIVITIES/ICEBREAKERS

Egg Toss – Have class go outside and toss raw eggs to each other without breaking them.

Evolution Game – All students begin as “amoebas.” They have to squat and move in that position close to the ground with no sound. They should meet up with another “amoeba” and then play Rochambeau. The winner becomes a “chicken” and gets to be in a half-crouched position making chicken squawk noises and flapping his or her “wings.” They must find another “chicken” and play Rochambeau again. The winner becomes a “dinosaur” and walks on tip toes making dinosaur noises and must find another “dinosaur” to play the game. The winner of this Rochambeau becomes a human and gets to sit down. Anytime anyone loses ANY Rochambeau, they ALWAYS go back to being an “amoeba” and must find a like kind to play the game to evolve. Hint: Use your officers to demonstrate how to be these creatures. Be creative and wild. It is a great physical warm up with a lot of laughing and bonding over being silly.

Michael Duffer Baldy Mesa Elementary (grade 4-5) Heritage Elementary (grade 4-8) [email protected]

Kristen Ruby Armona Elementary Parkview Middle School [email protected]

Nancy Dutton Anderson Union High School [email protected]

Nanette Wehe Windemere Ranch Middle School [email protected]

Tamara Dibble Phillips Brooks School [email protected]

Trudy Leachman [email protected]

David Martin Aragon High School [email protected]

Bill Zinn Davis Jr. and Sr. High [email protected]

Richard Wong American High School [email protected]


Summer Conference 2008


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

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

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

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


Bay Area Daniel Hughes 6023 Joaquin Murieta Ave Apt A Newark CA 94560 415-596-6594 [email protected]

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Boys’ Choirs OPEN

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

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

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

Ethnic & Multicultural Perspectives OPEN

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

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

EXECUTIVE BOARD

REPERTOIRE & STANDARDS CHAIRPERSONS

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

Regional Honor Choir Chairs

CENTRAL Elizabeth Hodgdon [email protected]

COASTAL Genevieve Sagi Tep [email protected]

SOUTHERN (SCVA) Rodger Guerrero [email protected]

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

EVENTS CHAIRS

COMMUNICATIONS

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

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

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

PRSRT STD AUTO

US Postage Paid Riverside, CA Permit 1645

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