The Road Home

Friday's concert with the University of Central Florida's choirs was a memorable one -- and my last with them.  The program featured some of my favorite works by James Mulholland, Frank Ticheli and Daniel Kallman, Lukas Foss' Behold! I Build An House (which was on my first concert program at UCF), Steven Sametz' short but exquisite I Have Had Singing and the premiere of David Dickau's The Rose of Midnight, written for this occasion. And a few of my own pieces.  It all centered on the theme of traveling the road, taking the journey, being on the path, going home (and was a happy coincidence that the concert occurred on St. Cecilia’s Day, the patroness of musicians!)  A huge thank you to my students, friends and colleagues Kelly Miller and Robin Jensen, and the many UCF choir alums and friends who attended, for the beautiful music, surprise tributes, and well wishes. 

Prestigious Award from Florida ACDA

I was surprised and happy to be the first recipient of Florida ACDA's Impact Award for Distinguished Contributiion to the Choral Profession at the state conference a few weeks back.  Thank you to my friends and colleagues!

A Busy Fall

It's been a busy fall for new works!  In addition to the new treble version of HIGH FLIGHT for Martha Shaw and the Spivey Hall Children's Chorus and SPIRIT OF THE LAKE for Nancy Plantinga and the Lakeshore Community Chorus in Saugatuck, Michigan, I rescored WELL SUNG SONG for Ahra Cho's Little OL Korea choir.  THE UNKNOWN REGION for SATB chorus and piano was delivered to Robert Lamb and the Brevard Community Chorus for their 50th anniversary a few weeks back and I just finished an arrangement of the Spanish lullaby Arrorró mi Niño for Wayland Rogers.

It's Time for Pumpkin Spice!

Well, a few months have come and gone without an update and we've moved into pumpkin spice season already! I was on the graduate faculty at the VanderCook School of Music in Chicago this summer, teaching an advanced choral conducting course and directing the graduate chorale -- wonderful students in a strong program and supportive atmosphere.  (And graduation in Orchestra Hall!) A musical highlight of the summer was hearing Yo-Yo Ma play the Bach cello suites on the great lawn of Milennium Park in Chicago with Doreen Rao and friends. Loved the river and lake cruise with VanderCook students, faculty and staff, bike rides along Belmont Harbor and Lake Michigan, the Old Town Art Fair, yummy food in outdoor seating (PingPong, Spacca Napoli), and neighborhood walks.

At Martha Shaw's request, I've rescored my HIGH FLIGHT for treble voices, which she'll premiere with the Spivey Hall Children's Chorus for the ACDA Children and Youth Choir retreat in Atlanta in January.  Also finishing up SPIRIT OF THE LAKE for the 10th anniversary celebration of the Lakeshore Community Chorus in Saugatuck/Douglas, Michigan, on a new text by Michigan poet Linda Nemec Foster.  Nancy Plantinga will conduct that premiere in May.

Have begun my last semester of teaching at the University of Central Florida, which will culminate in a grand celebration concert in November.  It is, however, still hovering around 90 degrees in Orlando...

Chanton, mes AMIS in Beijing!

The combined choirs of the Association for Music in International Schools (AMIS) performed my CHANTON, MES AMIS, written for their choral festival in Beijing, on Saturday, March 2nd. Thanks, Scott Lounsbury, for another fantastic text in a dozen languages for these singers from thirty-eight international schools -- Bombay to Bangkok, Brussels to Beirut!