50 Works in 2 Days!

What a great couple of days as conductor of the Florida All-State Reading Chorus!  It's a peculiar thing... a chorus of the 100 students who scored the highest on their sight-reading and musicianship exams as part of the audition process that come to the first rehearsal having no knowledge of what they might sing.  Thursday morning they received a packet of fifty works I'd chosen from many times and places, historical periods, styles, languages, traditions, contexts and cultures. We then spent all day Thursday and Friday exploring these works and chose four to sing at a public concert Friday evening.  Oh yeah... and SIGHTREAD another piece ONSTAGE. What? (and to add a little extra stress, it was a David Brunner piece!) These students were amazing in everyway. Bravo to them and the teachers who encourage their growth in musical skills and understanding.

College Music Educator of the Year Award

I was honored to receive the College Music Educator of the Year award from the Florida Music Educators Association Friday morning at the state conference in Tampa.  I'm grateful to those who nominated and wrote letters of support for this award and humbled to be among the esteemed colleagues who have received this distinction in the past.  

December in the Northland

I enjoyed the holidays at the Prairie House and Chicago condo, spending time with friends and family, exploring the Christmas markets, new eats, and Andy Warhol at the Art institute.  Lee Kesselman's concert with his DuPage Chorale, the Chicago Master Singers, the road show of White Christmas, and Renee Fleming in The Light in the Piazza at the Lyric were musical highlights, and a lovely "family" Christmas dinner at Doreen Rao's Gold Coast home a new tradition.

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!