North Carolina Music Educator Summer 2023

Middle School Choral
In the summer of 2022, I returned home from an incredible
choir tour in Germany and Austria with my community choir
and unknowingly brought home an extra souvenir – COVID!
As I sat on the couch, trying to think of something productive to
do instead of binge watching yet another show, I was inspired by a
choral concert I found on YouTube.
Craig Hella Johnson’s professional ensemble, Conspirare,
performs their concerts in sets or long sections without audience
applause. The pieces seemingly flow one into the next through a
continued piano line, an extended introduction, and sometimes
through – gasp – inserting pop solos, duets, or trios in between
choral pieces. For example, in their Christmas Tour 2022,
Conspirare Sings Remembrance and Joy Concert, the opening piece
was treble voices singing “Edge of Seventeen” by Stevie Nicks,
which led directly into a traditional SATB arrangement of “Veni,
Veni Emmanuel.” I was immediately engaged and tried to make
sense of what I was experiencing from the very beginning.
As I viewed the performance, even on my small computer
screen, I noticed that this through-line allowed me to feel
significantly more connected to the singers and the pieces, and I
found myself excitedly anticipating what might come next as the
connecting thread. I set a goal for myself to try to provide a similar
experience for my students and our audience for our spring 2023
concert.
Emily Turner, Chair
For Craig Hella Johnson and Conspirare, the overarching
themes of their concerts give space for each audience member
to form their own connection to the texts and quotes. In this
particular concert, the idea of remembrance for a young singer
or audience member may take them back to a fond childhood
memory or friendship. An adult may recall a lost loved one or even
a moment in time which they would like to replay differently.
Taking all this into consideration, I chose From Darkness to
Light. The pieces I selected began with texts or themes that felt
darker or heavier, ending with hope and inspiration in pieces that
utilized light. After months of selecting texts and spending hours
with my incredible pianist, Linda Velto, we found a concert order
we felt took the singers and audience members through a journey
in which the music never stopped.
Velto played through the entire concert, creating melodies that
would help us transition from one piece to the next, or extending
the opening to one of our pop arrangements that would help
our young singers know when to come in on time. I even asked
her to play Debussy’s “Clair de Lune” and the first movement of
Beethoven’s “Piano Sonata Opus 27, No. 2” (Moonlight Sonata) to
help with stage transitions. It was glorious! I made a ridiculously
long digital program for the audience to access, just like
Conspirare’s, which included all the texts and an image related to
the piece to spark their journey. We asked the audience to refrain
from clapping for the entire 65-minute performance, and while we
had a few rule breakers during the first few numbers, eventually
they all caught on. Even the students remarked how wonderful it
was to experience the full line of the concert without interruption!
So, here during your summer break, while you’re trying to be
productive, and considering next year’s concerts, I encourage you
to switch it up on your students, yourself, your audience, and even
your pianist! Steal ideas from those who are already doing it well
and from choirs you admire! You don’t have to incorporate every
element I did, but here are a few ideas to try:
Theme it – Choose a theme for your performance. It can be
strict or loose depending on the repertoire you’re using. Ask your
students what they think the theme is after they’ve been working
on all the pieces for a while.
Talk less – Let your students welcome the audience and
introduce the pieces. This is a valuable lesson for your students to
12TH ANNUAL
UNCW
learn about sharing the most important information and in their
stage presence and public speaking skills. For my long transitions,
I had students choose quotes relevant to where we were on our
journey from darkness to light to read at the mic.
Find imagery – Find free images on the Internet or take your
students on a walk around campus with their phones and ask
them to capture photos that remind them of a particular piece
and display them in your program and/or on the screen in your
performance space.
Fewer transitions – The key to keeping the momentum of your
performance is less wait time and transition time. For this concert,
all my students sat on the stage together, on performance risers and
I moved back and forth between the choirs when it was their turn.
Happy planning! And let me know if I can provide resources
for you or help in any way! Most of all, let me know how it goes for
you!
Honor Band Festival
NOMINATIONS & AUDITION
RECORDINGS DUE OCTOBER 15
DECEMBER 7–9, 2023
PERFORMANCES & MASTERCLASSES
AUDITION FOR UNCW SCHOLARSHIPS
WWW.TINYURL.COM/UNCWHBF | CONTACT: DOMINIC TALANCA (TALANCAD@UNCW.EDU)
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