Several years ago, I put together a list of my Top 50 Favorite Anthems for Children’s Choir.
But there are so many wonderful anthems out there for children’s voices, who can stop at 50?!
You know I can’t.
So today, I’m sharing the sequel you’ve all been waiting for: 50 more favorite anthems for children’s choir.
This list includes mostly unison and two-part music, with a few 3-part pieces for those of you with older elementary choirs and/or larger groups.
Over the last several weeks, I’ve been compiling repertoire lists by Black composers for use in worship and sacred settings. So far, I’ve published lists of sacred organ music, 2- and 3-part sacred choral anthems, and SATB sacred choral anthems.
Today, I’m sharing Part 4 in this series: art songs & spirituals for solo voice.
This list includes familiar spirituals and new compositions by composers such as Harry T. Burleigh, Edward Boatner, Undine Smith Moore, Rosephanye Powell, Uzee Brown, Jr., H. Leslie Adams, Florence Price, and many more.
It’s hard to believe it’s been almost four months since the COVID-19 pandemic swept through the United States (along with the rest of the world). In its wake, we watched as everything shut down, plans were canceled, and everyone stayed home.
Now that things are opening again (with new safety protocols and limitations in place), many music directors are turning their attention to the fall: Will we be able to gather in person again? If so, what will that look like?
Over the last few weeks, I’ve been compiling repertoire lists by Black composers for use in worship and sacred settings. So far, I’ve published lists of sacred organ music and 2- and 3-part sacred choral anthems.
This week, I’m excited to share Part 3 in this series: 108 sacred choral anthems for SATB choir.
This repertoire list includes familiar spirituals as well as new compositions by Black composers in the 20th and 21st centuries. You’ll find 40 sacred octavos and links to three SATB collections for a total of over 100 anthems to use with your choir in the future.
This year has brought some unprecedented challenges and the global pandemic has changed the way choirs and musical ensembles gather and make music together. Many choirs moved to online rehearsals this spring, using Zoom or Facebook Live to stay connected and try to continue making music the best they could. But with the technology we have available to us and unpredictable internet speeds at home, we’ve all learned that it’s really not possible to sing or play together in real-time.
Today, I’m sharing some helpful digital tools and resources that can be used in online choir rehearsals (synchronous or asynchronous) or in-person, if and when you’re able to return to that. You’ll find digital tools, game ideas, teaching strategies, and curriculum resources that were designed especially for distance-learning situations.
Last week, I shared the first post in a new series I’m putting together this summer: Music by Black Composers: 105 Sacred Works for Organ.
As I mentioned in that post, I believe it’s important to listen and learn from the African-American and Black community during this time, to ask ourselves: Are we honoring all the voices that have contributed to our field? Are we celebrating the diversity of composers in addition to diversity in styles?
If you work with a children’s choir or youth choir or are looking for a few simple pieces by Black composers to introduce to your adult choir in the future, here’s a list of anthems to get you started.
Last week marked the end of the school year (and 12 weeks of online teaching) and the start of something new. A simpler schedule, a slower pace, a season to plan and prepare for what’s next.
What is next?
For many of us, there’s still a lot of uncertainty about what the next few months will hold. Will we return to in-person teaching? Will schools and churches reopen? Will it be safe to sing together, play together, be together?
We don’t have the answers just yet. But what we do have is an opportunity to plan and prepare.
Friends, my heart is heavy with the events of this past week: the violence, the riots, the hatred, the bigotry. It's hard to know what to say.
I'm afraid that hate is growing stronger + that we are growing numb to it.
But now is not the time to stay silent, to keep our thoughts and feelings to ourselves. To effect change, we need to start conversations, wrestle with ugly truths, and do the hard work of learning to be better.
The past few weeks, we’ve been reminded yet again of the racial inequality that has plagued the United States and other parts of the world for centuries.
This week, like so many others, I’m taking some time to read, learn, and listen to the black community and begin the work of change. Here are a few small ways I’m taking action:
We donated to an African-American cause we care about.
I started reading Blindspot: The Hidden Biases of Good People.
We started conversations about racial injustice with friends and family members.
I’m spending time researching music by black composers (and women, in particular) to learn more about their contributions to the field.
I started thinking about the repertoire we study, perform, and teach; the composers we study in music history, the music shared in worship, and the musicians from history that we introduce to our students. Are we honoring all the voices that have contributed to our field? Are we celebrating the diversity of composers in addition to diversity in styles?
A partial result of my research is the list you see below: 105 sacred works for organ for use in both worship and recital settings.
Are you looking to incorporate more diversity into your repertoire? Are you looking for ways to feature African-American and black voices in the music you choose?
Perhaps this is a starting place.
This weekend, we passed Day 50 of shelter-in-place (or “pause” as we’re calling it here in NY State).
There are a few things I’ve learned so far:
You can get a lot of things delivered.
Teaching online is not as limited as I once thought.
That being said, Zoom fatigue is real.
I can give Steve a haircut.
Time is passing very slowly. Also, what day is it?
I can make pizza rolls (trying sourdough this week — wish me luck!).
Puzzles are a great way to pass the time.
Music is a gift we can give and receive right now.
