The following question is posted by Matt Lee @ J.P. Stevens High School: How important is sight reading in your audition process?
Please answer via the ‘Ask A Choir Director’ box and the results will be reported back here!
Please register here!
The award-winning founder and conductor of The New York Virtuoso Singers and The Canticum Novum Singers, Harold Rosenbaum will share insights, tips, and demonstrations for conductors and choral singers based on his 50 years in the field.
Dr. Rosenbaum’s masterclasses provide choral conductors with positive and supportive feedback, a deeper understanding of their art, and an opportunity to grow under the guidance of a world-renowned maestro.
The Glee Club from The United States Military Academy at West Point will be performing their Spring concert on Saturday, March 18, 2023 at 7:30 pm at the First Presbyterian Church of Freehold (Monmouth county).The concert is free to the public and there will be a “Meet & Greet” after the performance.
On Friday, 2021 November 12, Harvey Mudd College’s Office of Alumni and Parent Relations hosted Mudd Talks: “Making Music Using Low-Latency Technology in the New Jersey Gay Men’s Chorus.” David Liao (NJGMC bass section member) and Sarah Michal (Artistic Director, New Jersey Gay Men’s Chorus) gave a presentation including live demonstrations of singing using Soundjack and LiveLab.
The video recording of the session has been posted on Harvey Mudd College’s YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHuZggd_3Cc, and an accompanying website is at https://15til.com/talk.njgmc.
Resources:
Compiled by: Libby Gopal, Dr. Lynnel Joy Jenkins, Dr. John Wilson
The following list of choral conductors and clinicians was born out of a need to make it easier to find,
contact and schedule exemplary women of color with the hope of promoting gender and racial equity. With the
help of Dr. Lynnel Joy Jenkins and Dr. John Wilson, we compiled a list of conductors who can enrich, inspire
and coach festival ensembles, adjudicate events and professional development sessions. A special thanks goes
to Dr. Janet Galván for creating the resource that inspired the name of our compilation that focuses on women
choral conductors of color in the northeastern United States. If there are women in your choral community you
would like to empower and promote by including them in this resource, please reach out to me at
libby.gopal@eastorange.k12.nj.us
Hello NJ A
CDA,
I’m thrilled to be working with this wonderful board as the new R&R chair of a cappella and jazz! I am entering year 12 of NJ teaching (5 at John Witherspoon Middle School and 7 at Hopewell Valley Central High School). Contemporary ensembles played a large role in both my programs’ strength, as well as providing a future path of performance for students beyond public school. I am interested in learning about all your various types of contemporary groups and I hope we might be able to find a way to sing for each other in the future! I thank you in advance for taking a few minutes to fill out the google form. Please reach out anytime with questions, ideas, or concerns. Email is best: randywhite@hvrsd.org – Thanks!! -Randy
Hello Fellow ACDA Members!
It is an absolute privilege to serve as the president of the New Jersey Chapter of ACDA for the next two years. I’m sending this message to introduce myself and to comment on the year ahead. I am very excited to be working alongside our past-president, Anne Matlack, our president-elect, Libby Gopal, and the rest of our fabulous state board.
Next fall will undoubtedly be filled with the joy of singing together. I am so eager to connect with people and to make music again! As we celebrate our return to in-person music making and turning off Zoom, I imagine that we’ll also be taking stock of our programs and diagnosing how the past year impacted our singers. All of us, from the youngest singer to the most experienced conductor, will need support. I want to encourage you to reach out to colleagues, ask for new perspectives, mentor a new teacher, or simply collaborate. Some of the greatest joys I’ve had in my professional life have been in collaborating with my colleagues. If you’re not sure where to begin, start with the amazing humans that comprise our state board! Collaboration is a great antidote to exasperation!
If you’ve recently graduated and will be starting a new job next fall, congratulations on your appointment! We’d love to help you as you get settled in your new position. We’re developing a roster of master teachers who you can call on to visit your classroom. We know you’ll profit from their experience and from having a friendly face in the room. New teachers, I hope you’ll take advantage of this, and if you’re a veteran looking to connect, you are also most welcome to be involved. If you’re interested in taking advantage of this opportunity, let me know by filling out this form! Veterans, are you welcoming a new colleague into your district? Please let us know who they are so we can send them a welcome from NJACDA!
As you plan for the year ahead, I hope that you’ll consider getting involved in the Voices United Choral Festival, High School Choral Festival, or the Elementary and Junior High Honor Choirs. I know that you and your students will love these experiences.
If you are looking for an amazing professional development opportunity, check out “Beyond Song Selection: An Intro to Decolonizing and Antiracist Approaches in the Music Classroom.” This event, led by Brandi Waller-Pace, takes place on Zoom this Tuesday, June 29, from 7-9. This amazing event was organized by Dr. Anne Matlack and the Harmonium Choral Society. Click here to register and for more information!
Thanks for all you do for choral music and for your students. Have an incredible summer!
Dear ACDA Members,
My two years as president of your amazing board draw to a close this month, and I want to reach out and congratulate ALL of you in making it creatively through a year none of us could have imagined. As some of us return to actually hearing/performing music live, we sigh with relief that our singers also persisted through the love of the art and not only retained, but learned new skills during this time. We’ve gained perspective on what is really important, the community of our singers and the joys of process.
You will be in great hands as John Wilson takes over as president in July, and I am so happy to congratulate Libby Gopal as our new president-elect. You will hear more from both of them at the end of the month.
I want to thank Chris Thomas, past president, for his years of service, leadership and mentorship. I also thank Josh Melson for running in our election, and for agreeing to stay on as our most awesome Membership and Communications Chair.
We lost a great teacher and dedicated member of the board this year, Ginny Moravek. Please read her tribute here. Donations in her honor can be made to the Mason Gross School of Arts Music Department Scholarship fund at give.rutgers.edu, or to the JPStevens Choir Scholarship Fund, at www.jpschoir.org.
I am excited that NJACDA is co-sponsoring Beyond Song Selection: An Intro to Decolonizing and Antiracist Approaches in the Music Classroom on Tuesday June 29 at 7 pm. (include attached flyer image)
This is a workshop for all teachers of song in all classrooms or choirs, led by Brandi Waller-Pace, Founder and Executive Director of Decolonizing the Music Room.
Choral pedagogy and practice are rooted in the Eurocentric language of 19th century dead white men (and, yes, we can still love them). How can we use a decolonized and culturally responsive approach to engage, empower, and educate without tokenism or cultural appropriation? In this session, attendees will learn vocabulary foundational to decolonizing and antiracist approaches in order to develop common language, as well as explore identity and positionality as it relates to their practice.
Brandi Waller-Pace is the Founder and Executive Director of Decolonizing the Music Room. You can find her full bio, and purchase tickets ($20 per zoom screen) here. http://www.harmonium.org/events/2021/6/29/decolonizing-the-music-classroom
I hope to see you June 29! PD certificates are available upon request. For other anti-racist resources, check out this link on the NJACDA website.
Thanks to those who attended (and contributed to) our Spring “Pop-up PD” sessions. Recordings and Docs from Easy Virtual Choir for Technophobes, What Worked For Me: (Elementary & Middle School Strategies), and Flexibility And The Church Musician are available here.
These sessions REPLACED our summer conference. Get yourselves outside and enjoy friends, family and some well-deserved R & R!
Thank you for the honor of serving you as president. Please reach out to any board member, especially R & R representatives in your fields, and let them know how we can be of help in the future.
Happy Summer! –Dr. Anne Matlack