The Dance Sing Groove Concert was AWESOME! Congratulations to the MHC Girls' Choir and Children's Choir on a job well done. All of our hard work and preparation paid off in full! The audience loved the concert, I had fun, and all the performers did too!
And here's a special thank you to the band who played the Mamma Mia music, our dance teacher, and to the helpers up in the technician booth who truely saved the evening! This wasn't possible without your contributions!
Have a great summer! See you back at rehearsal on Wednesday, September 15, same time, same place!
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Friday, April 16, 2010
Looking ahead to Fall 2010
Hello Choirs! This may be a bit premature, but I've started plans for the fall. The MHC Adult Choir, Girls' Choir, and Children's Choir are going to bring Medicine Hat a fantastic 2010/2011 concert season! We are going to start off with a Halloween concert. I know, I know - you're worried. But you shouldn't be. It is going to be light-hearted, accessible, and a ton of fun. Check out the tentative program:
MHC Halloween Concert (please send suggestions for a better title...)
Saturday, October 30, 7 pm (TENTATIVE)
MHC Adult Choir
MHC Halloween Concert (please send suggestions for a better title...)
Saturday, October 30, 7 pm (TENTATIVE)
MHC Adult Choir
- Harvest Hymn - Ryan Taylor - I like the text in this piece. It may be a stretch for a Halloween concert... we'll see...
- A Halloween Quodlibet - Ryan Taylor - this is a piece that will continue teaching us how to have fun with choral music. A quodilbet is a group of songs that can be sung at the same time.
- Ho, Ho, Ho, Dido & Aeneas - Henry Purcell - Purcell is a famous English composer and he just happened to write an opera with a scene full of scary witches, perfect for Halloween. We will do part of a scene from this opera. These are the chorus parts:
- Score 1
- Score 2
- Score 3
- Recording (this recording includes the recitatives, and duets which happen between each chorus part - we will do the entire scene as heard here. If you're interested in seeing the scores for the other sections, click here)
- Deamon Irepit Calidus - Gyorgy Orban
- Recording (the tempo in this recording is quite slow, but it allows for you to hear each part better. We'll go as fast as snot. Check out other youtube videos to see how differently each choir does this song!)
- Score - this piece is relatively new so it is not available in the public domain and therefore I cannot link to it. You'll have to wait until September to see the score for this!
- Translation:
- Daemon irrepit callidus
Allicit cor honoribus;
Daemon ponit fraudes inter laudes, saltus, cantus
Quidquid amabile daemon dat
Cor Jesu minus aestimat.
Cordis aestum non explebunt, non arcebunt, Daemon!
The demon sneaks expertly,
Tempting the honorable heart;
He offers trickery amid praise, dance, and song.
However amiably the demon acts,
it is still counted less than the heart of Jesus.
Poor, passionate, undisciplined demon!
- Old Abram Brown - Benjamin Britten
- Witches Chorus, Macbeth - Giuseppe Verdi
- Score (pages 8-16)
- Recording
- Translation:
- Che faceste? Dite su!
Ho sgozzato un verro!
E tu?
M’è frullata nel pensier
La mogliera d’un nocchier
Al dimòn la mi cacciò
Ma lo sposo che salpò
Col suo legno affogherò
Un rovaio io ti darò
I marosi io leverò
Per le secche lo trarrò
Un tamburo! Che sarà?
Vien Macbetto. Eccolo qua!
Le sorelle vagabonde
van per l'aria, van sull'onde
Sanno un circo lo intrecciare
Che comprende e terra e mar.
What did you do? Say now!
I’ve slaughtered a boar,
And thou?
To me fluttered in thought
the wife of a sailor
she cast me out to the devil
But the spouse who sailed
with his ship, I’ll drown.
I’ll give thee a north wind
The billows I will raise
I’ll drive him onto the shoalsA drum! What will it be?
Hail now, Macbeth!
The sisters vagabond
go through the air, go on the waves
They know a circle how to weave
- The Fate of Gilbert Gim
- A Tragic Story - Benjamin Britten
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Congratulations Adult Choir!
The Music of the Americas concert was a great success! It was an incredible journey! Thanks to the choir for working hard and playing hard! A special thanks to all the soloists: you sounded great! And thanks to the audience for coming out and supporting us!
The MHC Adult Choir is finished for this season. Our next choir rehearsal is:
Tuesday, September 14, 2010; 7 pm
Choir Room, Cultural Centre
EVERYONE IS WELCOME: returning members, new members, scared members, everyone!
See you in September! Have a great summer! Oh, and keep checking back here for updates on next semester's repertoire, concert dates, and other incredibly interesting info!
The MHC Adult Choir is finished for this season. Our next choir rehearsal is:
Tuesday, September 14, 2010; 7 pm
Choir Room, Cultural Centre
EVERYONE IS WELCOME: returning members, new members, scared members, everyone!
See you in September! Have a great summer! Oh, and keep checking back here for updates on next semester's repertoire, concert dates, and other incredibly interesting info!
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Music of the Americas
MHC Adult Choir Spring Concert
Tuesday, April 13; 7 pm
Fifth Avenue Memorial United Church
This high energy concert features folk songs and spirituals from North and South America and is easily accessible to all audiences. Come be inspired and leave whistling one of these catchy tunes!
Tuesday, April 13; 7 pm
Fifth Avenue Memorial United Church
This high energy concert features folk songs and spirituals from North and South America and is easily accessible to all audiences. Come be inspired and leave whistling one of these catchy tunes!
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
The Rotary Music what?
Even though the two weeks of the Rotary Music Competition oops I mean Festival have now come and gone, the work as a teacher is by no means finished. The week following the festival, although less hectic in scheduling, is still stressful.
I am a liar. I didn't like doing it, but I lied to my students. I told them this wasn't a competition. And they believed me. That is until they performed, got some great feedback from the adjudicators, and then watched another kid get handed a trophy. This week I have had to explain to my students firstly, that I lied and just wanted them to do their best while not worrying about being competitive, and secondly, that no matter how they placed, they are worthwhile students and musicians.
I realize that I set my students up to be shocked. I simply figure that it is stressful enough for students to prepare a piece, memorize it, miss school, get dressed up, and perform (perfectly of course) in front of friends, family and a judge. Adding the competitive factor just doesn't seem right when you look at the long list of inevitable performing stressors. And really, how does one explain how music is made into a competition?
I thought I'd take a stab at seeing how the words in the title "Music Festival" came to inevitably mean 'Music Competition' as they do to us here today, in Medicine Hat. With the help of dictionary.com, I found the following:
I was shocked. Who put that quote there? It's not about the prize or the competition? The RoseBowl has not one, but three adjudicators!!! Their sole purpose (and the sole purpose of the entire concert) is to decide who is best. What is going on here? Who is selling us these lies? (sorry again to some of my students)
The competitive factor seems to foster the worst in people: parents who live vicariously through their children (22 classes by one kid? seriously?), teachers who use the festival to increase their exposure and prestige (auditions to be accepted into a teacher's studio? that's a little backwards!), kids performing to win money and "hardware" (trophies, that is).
Perhaps my second most frustrating moment was when I found myself feeling tense while waiting for the adjudicator to reveal the results for one of my students. I now ask myself: why was I tense? Is it because my student may beat another teacher's student? And, it would follow, of course (hope you can hear the sarcasm here), that I would then be a better teacher. I am frustrated because I had fallen into the trap of the competition.
The blame can't be put solely on the students, parents, and teachers. We've been set up by the people who have gone before us: the past Rotarians, past parents and teachers, past winners and losers, and the now grown-up students. We've been set up by the rules and regulations. The Rotary Club prides itself on sponsoring the festival for 54 years and they have done a great job. It is truly an amazing feat to get this entire thing organized. Anne Carrier, the club, and all the volunteers are doing fantastic work. It is now time to change; it is not necessary to offer the exact same festival year after year. Arts competitions are an old-school way of thinking; from the stuffy, overly formal competitive atmosphere at each venue, right down to the signage, programs, and red blazers.
This is a call for change. Let's have a real festival - a festive festival. It means that there won't be a grand RoseBowl winner. You won't have a chance at getting a trophy. There will be no opportunity to gloat. It also means that there won't be eight RoseBowl losers, there won't be over a thousand participants trophy-less, and there will be no misunderstanding as to why one kid is or isn't better than another. Instead, the focus can be on the art and entertainment of music, our common talents and interests, and building one another up. If you want to compete, baseball season is right around the corner.
I wrote a lot. Probably too much. The Rotary Music Festival uses another quote on their website:
"Where words fail, music speaks" ~ Hans Christian Anderson
I am a liar. I didn't like doing it, but I lied to my students. I told them this wasn't a competition. And they believed me. That is until they performed, got some great feedback from the adjudicators, and then watched another kid get handed a trophy. This week I have had to explain to my students firstly, that I lied and just wanted them to do their best while not worrying about being competitive, and secondly, that no matter how they placed, they are worthwhile students and musicians.
I realize that I set my students up to be shocked. I simply figure that it is stressful enough for students to prepare a piece, memorize it, miss school, get dressed up, and perform (perfectly of course) in front of friends, family and a judge. Adding the competitive factor just doesn't seem right when you look at the long list of inevitable performing stressors. And really, how does one explain how music is made into a competition?
I thought I'd take a stab at seeing how the words in the title "Music Festival" came to inevitably mean 'Music Competition' as they do to us here today, in Medicine Hat. With the help of dictionary.com, I found the following:
- MUSIC - an art of sound in time that expresses ideas and emotions in significant forms through the elements of rhythm, melody, harmony, and colour
- FESTIVAL - a period or program of festive activities, cultural events, or entertainment
- COMPETITION - rivalry for supremacy or a prize
- ART - the quality, production, expression, or realm, according to aesthetic principles, of what is beautiful, appealing, or more than ordinary significance
It follows then, that a music festival should be a place where people are entertained, hear something extraordinary, and share themselves and their talents. How have such innocent, beautiful and noble virtues become clouded by rivalry and supremacy? How are one person's ideas and emotions better than another's? How is one performance better than another? Sure, one kid may have missed a note while another kid didn't. One kid may have played Rachmaninoff and another played a C-major scale. Does a person really set out to learn Rachmaninoff, C-major scale, Schubert, the box-step, a flawless legato line, or even the meaning of a simple quarter note in order to be better than a peer?
At what point can we gather and build each other up? Why can't we inspire one another because of the commonalities that unite us; right now, it seems, that our commonalities pit us against each other. Imagine the day when kids can listen to their adjudications and feel comfortable accepting constructive criticism because they know there is no one in the room looking to be better THAN someone else, just be better themselves. The festival would be a place where the art of music and true friendships would blossom.
This whole business of a festival rather than a competition really came to a head for me when I was preparing a student for the RoseBowl. For those of you who don't know, the RoseBowl is a competitive concert featuring the best performers from the entire festival. The single best performer at this concert wins the RoseBowl, and is thus dubbed the best musician of the festival. While looking over the concert program, I read the following quote on the front page:
"In music festivals the object is not to gain a prize, not to defeat a rival, but to pace one another on the road to excellence." Sir H. Walford DaviesI was shocked. Who put that quote there? It's not about the prize or the competition? The RoseBowl has not one, but three adjudicators!!! Their sole purpose (and the sole purpose of the entire concert) is to decide who is best. What is going on here? Who is selling us these lies? (sorry again to some of my students)
The competitive factor seems to foster the worst in people: parents who live vicariously through their children (22 classes by one kid? seriously?), teachers who use the festival to increase their exposure and prestige (auditions to be accepted into a teacher's studio? that's a little backwards!), kids performing to win money and "hardware" (trophies, that is).
Perhaps my second most frustrating moment was when I found myself feeling tense while waiting for the adjudicator to reveal the results for one of my students. I now ask myself: why was I tense? Is it because my student may beat another teacher's student? And, it would follow, of course (hope you can hear the sarcasm here), that I would then be a better teacher. I am frustrated because I had fallen into the trap of the competition.
The blame can't be put solely on the students, parents, and teachers. We've been set up by the people who have gone before us: the past Rotarians, past parents and teachers, past winners and losers, and the now grown-up students. We've been set up by the rules and regulations. The Rotary Club prides itself on sponsoring the festival for 54 years and they have done a great job. It is truly an amazing feat to get this entire thing organized. Anne Carrier, the club, and all the volunteers are doing fantastic work. It is now time to change; it is not necessary to offer the exact same festival year after year. Arts competitions are an old-school way of thinking; from the stuffy, overly formal competitive atmosphere at each venue, right down to the signage, programs, and red blazers.
This is a call for change. Let's have a real festival - a festive festival. It means that there won't be a grand RoseBowl winner. You won't have a chance at getting a trophy. There will be no opportunity to gloat. It also means that there won't be eight RoseBowl losers, there won't be over a thousand participants trophy-less, and there will be no misunderstanding as to why one kid is or isn't better than another. Instead, the focus can be on the art and entertainment of music, our common talents and interests, and building one another up. If you want to compete, baseball season is right around the corner.
I wrote a lot. Probably too much. The Rotary Music Festival uses another quote on their website:
"Where words fail, music speaks" ~ Hans Christian Anderson
Monday, March 8, 2010
Rotary Music Festival - Thoughts
Hi all! I have no idea who reads this anymore, but after such a long day, I will use this as a means of organizing my thoughts, reflecting back, and looking forward.
The Rotary Music Festival is such an interesting, dynamic, and complicated experience. Organizers, teachers, students, performers, accompanists, adjuticators, and volunteers all come together with a common purpose: to make music. The logistics of an event like this seem huge, even impossible; the preperation seems unmountable at times I'm sure. Teachers and students prepare in advance for days, weeks, months, and even years.
I never participated much in music festivals when I was younger (more about that at a later time perhaps), but I am now participating as a teacher and accompanist. It is only the second day of the festival, and so much has happened. I had a huge day today: accompanying 13 kids, warm-ups, lessons, three choir performances. Lots to ponder. I like lists; they organize. Here are my Rotary Music Festival Day 2 lists:
Failures:
The Rotary Music Festival is such an interesting, dynamic, and complicated experience. Organizers, teachers, students, performers, accompanists, adjuticators, and volunteers all come together with a common purpose: to make music. The logistics of an event like this seem huge, even impossible; the preperation seems unmountable at times I'm sure. Teachers and students prepare in advance for days, weeks, months, and even years.
I never participated much in music festivals when I was younger (more about that at a later time perhaps), but I am now participating as a teacher and accompanist. It is only the second day of the festival, and so much has happened. I had a huge day today: accompanying 13 kids, warm-ups, lessons, three choir performances. Lots to ponder. I like lists; they organize. Here are my Rotary Music Festival Day 2 lists:
Failures:
- Putting one of my students in the wrong vocal class and almost getting her disqualified. I guess I wasn't paying close enough attention - you live, you learn - won't make that mistake again.
- Wearing dress shoes all day long. I have the sorest hips in town.
- Being an ass in Grad school and then having to own up later. The choral adjudicator was my old prof. I wasn't a good student in Grad school.
- Judging a book by its cover. Always somewhat emberassing when you catch yourself pulling this one...
- 0 for 2 winning roll-up-the-rims
Successes:
- Watching a trio of voice students flabbergast an adjudicator. Kids who don't know their own talent amaze me.
- Witnessing a student cram, with all her might, all the French diction possible into her head to prepare, forget some of it during performance, but still finishing with a smile and a positive result
- Making a few extra bucks playing the piano. (but I've had to practice)
- Changing.
- Having the Children's Choir mezmorize the adjudicator with energy that bubbles over, and voices that sing uninhibitedly
- Hearing the adjudicator speak to the parents of the choristers: "Please continue to support your children by keeping them in choir. They are learning, growing, and experiencing a much more valuable form of music than what a finger and an iPod can bring."
- The Girls' Choir got the highest choral mark of the day with their performances.
- Trusting in the natural leadership abilities which have lay dormant in each choir when the conductor can't be there to help
- Getting the Adult Choir out of their comfort zones a bit, working hard, performing at festival, and being succesfull.
- Having a beer with my old prof and apologizing.
- Enjoying the overwhelming feeling of pride that all my students bring me.
- 0 for 2 FREE roll-up-the-rims.
And thats only day two.
~Brad
Thursday, February 25, 2010
MHC Junior Children's Choir Schedule
Just in case you forgot, or lost the newsletters, here is what we're up to:
.
Wednesday, April 7 – no rehearsal (Spring Break)
Wednesday, April 21, 4-5:30pm – Dress rehearsal (Black Box Theatre, Cultural Centre)
Wednesday, April 28, 4-5:30pm – Dress rehearsal (Black Box Theatre, Cultural Centre)
Sunday, May 2 – Performance: “A Barnyard Moosical” (Black Box Theatre, Cultural Centre), 1:30pm call time, 2pm performance
Wednesday, May 5, 4:45pm – Last rehearsal / party
MHC Children's Choir Schedule
Just in case you forgot, or lost your newsletters, here is what we're up to:
.
Wednesday, March 3 – Regular Rehearsal but in College Theatre to prepare for Rotary
Monday, March 8 - Rotary Music Festival, arrive 5:30, perform 6:00; College Theatre
Saturday, March 20 - Choralfest Calgary, bus leaves Cultural Centre at 9:45am
Wednesday, April 7 – no rehearsal (Spring Break)
Sunday, April 25 – Music for Life Concert (St. Paul Lutheran Church) 1pm call time, 2pm concert
Tuesday, May 4, Spring Concert Dress Rehearsal
Wednesday, May 5, rehearsal TBA
Saturday, May 8, Spring Concert
Monday, February 15, 2010
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Thursday, January 21, 2010
A Pilgram of Sorrow... Which is best?
The MHC Adult Concert Choir is going to learn this piece. Which do you prefer? Why?
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Didn't My Lord Deliver Daniel?
The MHC Adult Concert Choir is working on this piece! Check out these other choirs' performances!
Monday, January 4, 2010
Sunday, December 27, 2009
New Semester - Looking forward!
Hello Adult Choir! Now that Christmas has come and gone, and we have performed a ver successful Christmas concert (thanks, again!), it is time to look forward to our spring concert. We have a very exciting and eclectic program lined up: works that span the Americas.
Here is a taste of what to expect this semester!
Here is a taste of what to expect this semester!
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Vivaldi a HUGE Success!!!
4 ensembles
100 performers
500 in the audience
--------------------
1 fantastic concert!
A huge thank you to all the performers, parents, and teachers that made last nights concert a smashing success! It is a special opportunity to have a concert that spans the generations; we had performers and listeners of all ages, 5-75!!! It was also wonderful to have such a full house of excited and attentive listeners!
Thank you to the MHC Adult Choir, and Girls' Choir; I appreciate your dedication and hard work, they have surely reaped reward. Thank you to the Junior Orchestra, your hard work certainly paid off - you sounded fantastic. And thank you to the Academy Orchestra; your professionalism and focus take our music making to the next level.
And finally, a huge thank you to all the faculty and staff who made this concert possible - I have very much enjoyed working collaboratively, and look forward to our next project, whatever that may be!
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests." Luke 2:13-14
100 performers
500 in the audience
--------------------
1 fantastic concert!
A huge thank you to all the performers, parents, and teachers that made last nights concert a smashing success! It is a special opportunity to have a concert that spans the generations; we had performers and listeners of all ages, 5-75!!! It was also wonderful to have such a full house of excited and attentive listeners!
Thank you to the MHC Adult Choir, and Girls' Choir; I appreciate your dedication and hard work, they have surely reaped reward. Thank you to the Junior Orchestra, your hard work certainly paid off - you sounded fantastic. And thank you to the Academy Orchestra; your professionalism and focus take our music making to the next level.
And finally, a huge thank you to all the faculty and staff who made this concert possible - I have very much enjoyed working collaboratively, and look forward to our next project, whatever that may be!
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests." Luke 2:13-14
Monday, November 2, 2009
Hello Academy Orchestra!
Hey Guys! Check out all the info below! Some great links, vidoes, and interesting tidbits on Vivaldi. I'm getting very excited for this concert and very excited to work with you! Cheers!
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Vivaldi part help - voices
Here are some links to very helpful webistes that will help you learn your parts for Vivaldi's Gloria. Follow the links, then choose the appropriate voice part and take a listen!
http://s119247422.websitehome.co.uk/midimusic/Vivaldi/Gloria/gloria.html - midi files with emphasized voice parts
http://www.cyberbass.com/Major_Works/Vivaldi_A/vivaldi_gloria.htm - midi files with emphasized voice parts
http://www.sad60.k12.me.us/~lowell/NobleChorusPage/VivaldiProject.html - mp3 files with actual people singing emphasized voice parts. Very cool, but not the best model of how we want to sound. Nevertheless, this can still be a very helpful site.
To download tracks, right click each link and click 'save as'. You will then be able to make a CD or put them on your iPod.
If you have found other sites with similar options, please email the links and I will post them here.
http://s119247422.websitehome.co.uk/midimusic/Vivaldi/Gloria/gloria.html - midi files with emphasized voice parts
http://www.cyberbass.com/Major_Works/Vivaldi_A/vivaldi_gloria.htm - midi files with emphasized voice parts
http://www.sad60.k12.me.us/~lowell/NobleChorusPage/VivaldiProject.html - mp3 files with actual people singing emphasized voice parts. Very cool, but not the best model of how we want to sound. Nevertheless, this can still be a very helpful site.
To download tracks, right click each link and click 'save as'. You will then be able to make a CD or put them on your iPod.
If you have found other sites with similar options, please email the links and I will post them here.
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