Conducting & Performing

Chorus America advances the artistry of choruses by providing masterclasses for choral conductors, sessions on repertoire and performance practice, convenings of artistic directors, research on conducting careers and transitions, information on performance trends and innovations, and forums for discussion of artistic issues.

Articles

Best Little-Known Choral Recordings

Best Little-Known Choral Recordings

Helene Whitson | Repertoire, Singing

Choral music sleuth Helene Whitson has sifted through used CD bins and trolled the Internet to bring you some of the hidden gems of the choral repertoire. Read more

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Eric Whitacre Speaks Out

Eric Whitacre Speaks Out

An Interview With Choral Music's Rock Star

Kelsey Menehan | Composing/Commissioning, Education, Impact/Value, Innovation, Profile, Social Media

Eric Whitacre muses on how he gets inspired to compose, his special connection with young people, and what he thinks about the future of choral music. Read more

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What Is "Shape-Note" Singing?

What Is "Shape-Note" Singing?

Elisabeth Higgi... | History, Repertoire, Singing, Technique/Tool

In this musical tradition, singers read a variety of different note shapes—each one corresponding to a different syllable: fa, so, la, or mi. Read more

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Inside Conspirare: A Different Kind of Chorus

Inside Conspirare: A Different Kind of Chorus

Kelsey Menehan | Composing/Commissioning, Innovation, Performance, Repertoire

Choruses have a real chance to be innovators and maybe help lead the way for all the arts. Read more

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A Performance of a Lifetime

A Performance of a Lifetime

Children's Choruses Sing at Barack Obama's Inauguration

Jan-Marie Petersen | Children/Youth, History, Profile

Children's choruses from San Francisco sang for millions at the inauguration ceremony of President Barack Obama. Here's what happened on that historic day. Read more

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A Conversation with Craig Hella Johnson

A Conversation with Craig Hella Johnson

Chorus America Staff | Conducting, Innovation, Performance, Repertoire

We sat down with Conspirare founder and artistic director Craig Hella Johnson to get the inside scoop on how the group came to be and the magic behind their success. Read more

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Ligeti in Winter

Ligeti in Winter

Gregory Boals | Audiences, Impact/Value, Rehearsal, Repertoire, Singing, Symphonic

Much in the same way you might stop and get to know your neighbors during a snowstorm, a difficult piece can draw singers together in solidarity amdist the flurry of notes. Read more

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Conquering the B Minor Mass

Conquering the B Minor Mass

Chorus America Staff | Composing/Commissioning, History, Rehearsal, Repertoire, Technique/Tool

The Bach B Minor Mass takes Olympian fortitude to learn and perform. In this interview with conductor and historian Dennis Shrock, we take a look at the history of the work and what singers can do to make the performance experience easier on themselves. Read more

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Where You Lead, They Will Follow

Where You Lead, They Will Follow

An Interview with Sir David Willcocks

Chorus America Staff | Composing/Commissioning, Conducting, History, Profile, Rehearsal

Famed conductor Sir David Willcocks speaks about his special love of choral singing and of choral singers through his experience as director of music at King's College, Cambridge and of the Royal College of Music's Bach Choir. Read more

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He Changed Choral Music in Canada

He Changed Choral Music in Canada

Chronicling Elmer Iseler's Impact

Walter Pitman | Conducting, History, Profile

Ten years after his death, a new book about conductor Elmer Iseler examines his legacy on choral music not just in Canada but throughout the choral music field. Read more

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Resources

Events

ProMusica Arizona presents "A Night with Stradivarius"

ProMusica Arizona presents "A Night with Stradivarius"

Phoenix, Arizona

yvonne dolby | Adults/Seniors, Audiences, Children/Youth, Families, General

ProMusica Arizona Chorale & Orchestra(PMAZ) is partnering with celebrated violinist Elizabeth Pitcairn to present “A Night with Stradivarius.”  The signature artist performs in partnership with one of the world’s most legendary instruments, the Red Mendelssohn Stradivarius of 1720, said to have inspired the Academy Award-winning film “The Red Violin.” The event is a milestone for PMAZ—the group’s first concert in Phoenix’s beautiful and historic Orpheum Theatre, as well as its first collaboration with an artist whose performance credits include the great concert halls of the world. The concert is also the first appearance by the artist in Arizona.            Read more

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Community Show Choir "Hitmakers" Performance, June 15

Community Show Choir "Hitmakers" Performance, June 15

2707 Buffalo Speedway, Houston, TX 77098

Houston Choral ... | Adults/Seniors, Audiences, Civic Engagement, General, Participation, Performance, Repertoire, Singing, Venue, Volunteer

  The Houston Choral Showcase "Hitmakers" Spring Show will be June 15, featuring choral arrangements of hits from the 1950s to the present day and including some hot-off-the-press 2013 Oscar winners. Read more

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An American Tapestry

An American Tapestry

400 Squaw Creek Rd., Olympic Valley, 96146

Truckee Tahoe C... | Performance

The Truckee Tahoe Community Chorus is celebrating the rich history music plays in the fabric of America with their spring concert series titled “An American Tapestry.”  The concert will feature folk, dance, music theatre, and spiritual music depicting the diversity of music in American culture, both past and present.  www.singttcc.org Read more

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An American Tapestry

An American Tapestry

400 Squaw Creek Rd., Olympic Valley, 96146

Truckee Tahoe C... | Performance

The Truckee Tahoe Community Chorus is celebrating the rich history music plays in the fabric of America with their spring concert series titled “An American Tapestry.”  The concert will feature folk, dance, music theatre, and spiritual music depicting the diversity of music in American culture, both past and present.  www.singttcc.org   Read more

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New Jersey Chamber Singers performs the Duruflé Requiem in Red Bank

New Jersey Chamber Singers performs the Duruflé Requiem in Red Bank

Red Bank, NJ

New Jersey Cham... | Performance

Maurice Duruflé’s Requiem stands among the most respected masterworks in the canon of choral repertoire.  Drawing inspiration from Gregorian chant, this requiem evokes a profound depth of human emotion that is timeless yet still speaks to the modern soul.  We invite you to surrender all that is out-of-reach and immerse yourself within the lush harmonic colors and generous textures of French romanticism.  Join us on this musical quest for healing as we explore both our human frailty and our spiritual immortality. Read more

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New Jersey Chamber Singers performs the Duruflé Requiem in Manasquan

New Jersey Chamber Singers performs the Duruflé Requiem in Manasquan

Manasquan, NJ

New Jersey Cham... | Performance, Repertoire

Maurice Duruflé’s Requiem stands among the most respected masterworks in the canon of choral repertoire.  Drawing inspiration from Gregorian chant, this requiem evokes a profound depth of human emotion that is timeless yet still speaks to the modern soul.  We invite you to surrender all that is out-of-reach and immerse yourself within the lush harmonic colors and generous textures of French romanticism.  Join us on this musical quest for healing as we explore both our human frailty and our spiritual immortality.  Read more

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New Jersey Chamber Singers performs the Duruflé Requiem in Neptune

New Jersey Chamber Singers performs the Duruflé Requiem in Neptune

Neptune, NJ

New Jersey Cham... | Adults/Seniors, Audiences, Diversity, Families, General, Impact/Value, Innovation, Performance, Repertoire, Singing, Venue

Maurice Duruflé’s Requiem stands among the most respected masterworks in the canon of choral repertoire.  Drawing inspiration from Gregorian chant, this requiem evokes a profound depth of human emotion that is timeless yet still speaks to the modern soul.  We invite you to surrender all that is out-of-reach and immerse yourself within the lush harmonic colors and generous textures of French romanticism.  Join us on this musical quest for healing as we explore both our human frailty and our spiritual immortality. Read more

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The Washington Chorus Presents "Comin' Up Shoutin'"

The Washington Chorus Presents "Comin' Up Shoutin'"

Washington, DC

The Washington ... | Performance, Singing

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Masterworks at San Roque - Mozart and Beethoven

Masterworks at San Roque - Mozart and Beethoven

3200 Calle Cedro, Santa Barbara, CA

John A. Lynn | Audiences

  ·         JoAnne Wasserman, Conductor ·         Alexander Wasserman, Guest Artist, Piano ·         Mozart: Grand Mass in C Minor ·         Beethoven: Choral Fantasy Read more

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Time Zones ~~ Bach and Chaplin Merge!

Time Zones ~~ Bach and Chaplin Merge!

Pittsburgh, PA

BriGuySinger | Adults/Seniors, Audiences, Children/Youth, Conducting, Diversity, Families, History, Impact/Value, Innovation, Performance, Repertoire, Singing, Symphonic

The season of examining time and travel finishes with a juxtaposition of two distinct Time Zones, the first being that of our forebear and namesake, Johann Sebastian Bach, and the second being that of a writer, star and legend of the silent screen, Charlie Chaplin. In combining the musical genius of Bach with the brilliant silent narratives of Chaplin’s films, the Bach Choir bridges these two bountiful eras, creating a thought-provoking connection between artistic genres. Read more

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Dialogue

Questions During Rehearsal?

Questions During Rehearsal?

Anonymous | Rehearsal, Singing

Conductors, do you let your singers ask questions during rehearsal? What are the pros and cons? Read more

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