Bush was in Vienna this week and got into it with The Vienna Boys Choir

I didn’t have the bandwidth to learn another piece of music, but my friend Loren did. Or perhaps I just felt shy about singing for a webcam and uploading it to Youtube. It consists of 3746 videos from 73 countries, and will be mastered for installations at venues across the world with HD video and […]

He was a cantor at the Great Lavra on Mt Athos. Once, on the eve of Theophany, he was inspired to sing the hymn O full of grace, thou who art the joy of all creation instead of the usual It is truly meet to bless thee during the Divine Liturgy. When he did this, the most holy Theotokos appeared to him, thanked him and gave him a gold coin as a sign of her favor. The coin is still kept at the Lavra. He reposed in peace. St Gregory's hymn has been sung since that time as part of the Divine Liturgy of St Basil.

On its return to Orthodox Education Day at St. Vladimir's Seminary October 6, 2018, the Boston Byzantine Choir, directed by Charles R. Marge, delivered a beautiful performance at Three Hierarchs Chapel in celebration of the choir's own 25th anniversary.

Dn. Emmanuel speaks about St. Basil and the first of the year.

Bobby Maddex interviews Aleksei V. Shipovalnikov, the director of The Spirit of Orthodoxy Choir.

Fr. Thomas Zain, Vicar General of the Antiochian Archdiocese, tells us about a US tour of the Choir of St. Romanos the Melodist from Beirut. More information can be found at the web site of the Antiochian Archdiocese.

Bobby Maddex interviews Maria Sheehan, the manager of the new Patriarch Tikhon Choir, an American professional choir dedicated to the performance of Orthodox Christian sacred music that is conducted by Maestro Vladimir Gorbik.

Fr. Tom Soroka of The Path and Sermons at St. Nicholas conducts an interview with Fr Igor Soroka as he discusses the 50th anniversary of the Cathedral Choir of the Archdiocese of Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania (OCA) as well as his significant contribution to the development of Orthodox music in the English speaking world. A liturgical choral concert celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Cathedral Choir of Pittsburgh will be held at St John the Baptist Orthodox Church, 601 Boone Avenue, Canonsburg, PA on Sunday, September 29, at 6:00 pm. The concert is open to the public and a social hour will follow the concert in the church hall. For further information, contact Rebecca Danchenko at 412-478-7252.

Bobby Maddex interviews Kyranna Mamalakis, Alexandra Mamalakis, and Regina Vasilopoulos of the Unfading Rose Byzantine Youth Choir. He also speaks with Sotiris and Georgia Vasilopoulos, who are the directors of the choir. The six discuss the new Unfading Rose CD Hymns to the Mother of God.

Gracie is supported by group Echo Connect after she lost her father to cancer when she was seven.

It may not feel or look anything remotely close to Christmas outside, but there is something in the air that brings back that ol’ “It’s after Labor Day, better get ready for Christmas” feeling. A season enjoyed by some, dreaded by others, but necessary for any who are involved with music in the life of a Church. At All About Worship we are here to help you navigate your way through the challenges and on to a successful season of Christmas cheer and high fives from your Pastor.

First up is how and why you should recruit a choir. So let’s begin with why.

1. It looks, sounds, and feels like Christmas: Blame it on Hollywood Producers if you want, but we all have an iconic image of choirs at Christmas lodged into our brain that actually began at the birth of Jesus with choirs of angels. It’s Biblical and it satisfies the itch.
    
2. It gets people involved…at a temporary level: Pastors are supernaturally driven to see the gifts of their people developed. Most worship leaders are concerned about letting people on the team who are may not be the best at singing or those whose abilities are an unknown. The solution is a Christmas Choir. A chance to let people be a part of something in a group setting where voices are blended and there is no promise of further involvement. A win-win situation.
    
3. Talent scouting: Through the process of rehearsals you will have an opportunity to audition people without having an audition. While you may find some who don’t sing very well, you will also find some diamonds in the rough. People who you didn’t know could sing. Once identified, if you want, ask them to be a part of the regular team.
    
4. It Boosts Attendance: More people involved means more people will show up for the special service. (Also a great reason to include a Children’s choir in your plans as well)
    
5. It’s Fun: Gatherings are a big part of Christmas and it can be a lot of fun. Have people bring snacks and let there be an element of social time.

Ok so now you’re motivated to do it. But now ‘the how’ comes to the forefront so here are some tips:

1. Decide if you’re a recruit/plan or a plan/recruit: If you have a specific piece of music you want to do, it might determine the kind of voices that you are looking for. Thus changing how you will recruit. For example a men’s number will obviously not include the ladies. It might also be that the piece is complicated or that you only have sheet music so a certain level of knowledge or skill is required to participate. However you can also recruit and see whom you get. Then adjust your plan accordingly.
    
2. Determine the Qualifications and Commitment: Make a list of the requirements for participation. Make sure to think about Age, Gender, Ability, Part they Sing, and whether they need to attend your church. You will also want to be able to communicate when rehearsals and events are.
    
3. Ask the Traditional Ways: When it comes to asking for participation most people immediately turn to the bulletin or ask for time during the announcements. A sign up table in foyer or/and a web based sign up form can add some names.
    
4. Ask the Non-Traditional Ways: Have your pastor or announcement person ask the congregation for a show of hands of who has ever been in choir.  Take a moment and look around as these are prime targets for recruitment. If you feel comfortable in doing so, put a little social pressure on these people from the stage to participate.
   
   While the above mentioned methods are good, hands down the best way to recruit is to ask personally. But who to ask? And more specifically what to ask? The best way is to ask anyone, “Do you know anyone who sings?” or “Do you know anyone who was ever in choir?” That’s when people will tell on their friends and neighbors. Giving you the opportunity to approach that person and say, “I heard you used to be in choir?” and then ask them to be a part of the group.
    
5. Have the next step determined: Make it easy to do and clear to understand what to do next. Do they need to fill out a form or just show up at this place on this date?
   
   I would recommend getting people to put their name to something as it can have a higher level of cementing their decision. People are more likely to come if they have signed up rather than if they can decide later if they are coming or not.
    

Hopefully you have inspiration and motivation surging through your veins at this very moment for an amazing Christmas season. In the coming weeks through articles and podcasts we will be discussing what to sing, how to teach people their parts even if they can’t read music, and where to find those resources. But for now, get started because it’s almost the middle of September and time is running out.

Auer Hall, Simon Music Center
Wednesday, November 13, 2024, 8 – 9pm

Brittany Lasch is assistant professor of music in trombone at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. She is also on faculty at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute and serves as principal trombone of the Detroit Opera Orchestra.

Nov 15, 2024, 5pm EST

Join the Tufts Third Day Gospel Choir as they present their spring concert under the direction of David Coleman.

Building: Aidekman Arts Center
Campus Location: Medford/Somerville campus
City: Medford, MA 02155
Campus: Medford/Somerville campus
Location Details: Cohen Auditorium, Aidekman Arts Center
Wheelchair Accessible (for in-person events): Yes
Open to Public: Yes
Primary Audience(s): Alumni and Friends, Faculty, Parents, Students (Graduate), Students (Undergraduate)
Event Type: Performance
Subject: Arts/Media
Event Sponsor: School of Arts and Sciences
Event Sponsor Details: Anna Grffis
Event Contact Name: Anna Grffis
Event Contact Email: anna.griffis@tufts.edu
Event Admission: Tickets are $7 for general admission seating and can be purchased at www.tuftsdramadancetickets.com.
More info: as.tufts.edu…

World Cafe correspondent John Morrison digs into the South African gospel group's latest record, which recontextualizes classic club hits.

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Congratulations to the following students that were named to the MSVMA All-State Vocal Jazz Choir.  These nine students were selected from an extremely difficult video audition.  The choir has a max of 20 singers. An unprecedented 45 percent of the all-state qualifiers are all from Forest Hills Northern. They will perform at the MENC State […]

The post FHN Choir Students will perform at MSVMA in January appeared first on Forest Hills Public Schools.

Here is an old post that I found in my drafts folder. With my regional auditions coming up again here in a month I thought it would be relevant to go ahead with the post and try to get some ideas.

What do you do to help your students prepare for an audition?

Yesterday we had auditions for our Regional Honor Choir. I had 9 students qualify which is awesome considering I had 12 audition. I am not happy with my low numbers auditioning but that is a discussion for another day.

The audition is broke up into 2 different auditions. Sight Singing and a Solo. Both with different judges.

The recent plan to forgive student loans is shining a light on the disparity between four-year college programs versus careers in skilled trades.

Unable to gather due to the Covid-19 pandemic, choir members of the Anglican Church of Bermuda recently created a music video to celebrate Pentecost on Sunday [May 31]. Rev Gavin Tyte told Bernews, “Traditionally at Pentecost, in the Cathedral, Spirit of the Living God has been sung. However, as we were unable to gather, the […]

Minister of Education Diallo Rabain commended the talented students at Northlands Primary School for their rendition of Kirk Franklin’s “Bless Me,” which garnered recognition from the renowned gospel artist on Instagram. A spokesperson said, “The Minister of Education Diallo Rabain JP, MP extends congratulations to the incredibly talented students at Northlands Primary School for their […]

Two sisters from east London will perform as part of a choir made up of children from around the UK.

Shallaway Youth Choir is bringing a program of music to the Basilica in downtown St. John’s on Remembrance Day. Artistic director Kellie Walsh says the choir will sing about such topics as the Unknown Soldier and schoolchildren who care for Newfoundland graves in London. Where Once They Stood will be performed at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Monday.

The Penn State School of Music will present three choir concerts on Sunday, Nov. 17, in the Recital Hall on the University Park campus. Featuring world premieres, folk traditions and themes of community and aspiration, these concerts will make for a lovely Sunday afternoon of music for audiences of all ages. 

Dr John Wright is intrigued by some singers who became ill long before the UK's first known Covid-19 case.

The quirky cover of Christmas tunes was designed to to highlight the importance of goats in poverty-stricken societies.

IT IS all about the money, money, money that can be raised by Southampton’s rhinos.

Join the famed choir for their 2020 Come and Sing workshop.

Lichfield date marks one hundred years of Bach in the city.

Audio Plugin Deals has launched a two week sale on Vocalisa Slavic Women’s Choir, offering a 69% discount on the Kontakt library by Impact Soundworks. Discover the powerful sound of Slavic (Bulgarian-style) singing as performed by an all-female chorus: sopranos, mezzos, altos, soloist, and full choir. Vocalisa features many important syllables and consonants idiomatic to […]

The post Vocalisa Slavic Women’s Choir by Impact Soundworks on sale for $39.99 USD appeared first on rekkerd.org.

Soundiron has released its newest Vintage Keys Series sample library Principessa, a vintage 86-key synthesizer for Native Instruments Kontakt. This library captures the vintage and classic sound of the very rare “Princess” organ. This 2-tiered electric organ has a rich analog synthesizer tone with a creamy low and mid-range and soft rolled-off highs. We’ve captured […]

The post Soundiron releases Principessa, Kazoo 2.0 & Cacophony + Free Olympus Choir Elements Preset Pack appeared first on rekkerd.org.

Rast Sound has announced the release of its new sample library Distant Choir, a free Kontakt instrument library featuring a collection of solo vocal recordings from over 20 countries. The 210 MB library includes 5 playable choirs. Distant Choir is our solo vocal recordings, coming together as a choir through sound. We are releasing the […]

The post Rast Sound Distant Choir free vocal recordings for Kontakt appeared first on rekkerd.org.

A lot of these Buddha Machine Variations have been static/semi-generative things that just proceed under their own power. This is, I think, only the second where I intrude and do something to initiate changes. The source audio is a loop of a Philip Glass choral piece emanating from the edition of the Buddha Machine created […]