Articles
The Berkshire Choral Festival is summer camp for adults who can't get enough of choral singing during the year. A first-time attendee shares her adventure in choral fantasy land.
Do you ever wonder what choral conductors think about after the last orchestra rehearsal before the big performance? Chorus America contributor Kelsey Menehan sat down with Craig Jessop at the Berkshire Choral Festival to find out.
I don't know about you, but I have received at least one letter telling me that, no, I would not be singing in the chorus next year. So it was a great balm to read this post-audition letter from the late great choral director Robert Shaw to the members of one of his early choral groups, The Cleveland Orchestra Chorus.
The Olympic Games always bring forth moving stories of athletes overcoming great odds to participate in this grand quadrennial event. This year there's another "Olympic" story, just as inspiring, not about an athlete, but about a 14-year-old singer named Gianna Horak.
Aged rock stars, protesting Estonians, South African orphans—all play starring roles in three films that sing of the power of choral communities.
Since its premiere in 1937, Carl Orff's bawdy rollick through the fields and swamps of Love, Lust, and Booze has commanded the kind of following that rock bands dream of. Among the zipped up, stiffly starched giants of the choral repertoire, Carmina Burana is the bad girl who can't seem to keep her blouse buttoned.
It's important for a chorus to convey messages through marketing communications that are consistent with the brand conveyed through its musicmaking. A periodic brand audit—conducted either by a consultant or done yourselves following the simple steps below—will help bring you into alignment.
Marilyn Horne, one of America's most celebrated opera stars, decided to shine the spotlight on the next generation.
In his recent book egonomics: what makes ego our greatest asset (or most expensive liability), co-author Steven Smith explores the power of ego to enhance communication and organizational effectiveness. Because choruses, like many arts organizations, are comprised of community boards and often little or no staff—all led by an artistic director whose vision, talent, and charisma play a major role in galvanizing and motivating the activities of singers, board, and staff—the quality of communication among them is vital to organizational health. Smith elaborates on how ego can be harnessed to foster effective communication.
The goal of a concert is not to perform great music well, but to co-create personally relevant experiences together inside the music.
There are a few things we could all benefit from knowing about how a chorus functions as a nonprofit organization.
Tenor Michael Lichtenauer describes his unlikely journey from a desk job in Kansas to a career as a professional singer with Chanticleer and then the Los Angeles Master Chorale—and the lessons he learned along the way.