Vox Musica's Daniel Paulson to Be a Featured Soloist

The Sacramento choral community knows Daniel Paulson as the Founder and Music Director of Vox Musica.  He is also Resident Artist with the Tahoe Symphony Orchestra and Chorus (TOCCATA), and he will be featured as tenor soloist in their "Summer Solstice Serenade" concert series.  In addition to performances in Reno, Incline Village and South Lake Tahoe, TOCCATA will present this concert in Sacramento at St. John's Lutheran Church (17th & L Sts.) on Sunday afternoon, June 23 at 5:00 p.m.

Paulson will be the soloist in Bach's Cantata BWV 82a Ich habe genung.  For more information, see the event's Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/events/194279794061531/ or visit the TOCCATA website, www.toccatatahoe.com.

Radio Discussion of the Benefits of Choral Singing

The June 3rd broadcast of NPR's "Talk of the Nation" focused on the benefits of singing in a chorus.  Titled "'Imperfect Harmony':  How Singing with Others Changes Your Life," the show featured two guests:  (1) Stacy Horn, author of Imperfect Harmony:  Finding Happiness Singing with Others and (2) Daniel Levitin, professor of psychogy at McGill University and author of This Is Your Brain on Music.  Host Ari Shapiro led a conversation about the benefits of choral singing that included calls from listeners.

To listen to the broadcast, download it, or read the transcript, visit this page:  http://www.npr.org/2013/06/03/188355968/imperfect-harmony-how-chorale-singing-changes-lives.

MaidenSong - A New Choir

Christiana Quick-Cleveland has announced the formation of a new choir for girls ages 11-14.  The first meeting will be July 8 at Northminster Presbyterian Church, 3235 Pope Ave., Sacramento.  For more information, visit www.tianame.com.

RSVP Closing Search for Artistic Director

In March, the Board of Directors of RSVP distributed the following announcement:

Reconciliation Singers Voices of Peace (RSVP), based in the Sacramento CA area, is seeking an Artistic Director. Founded thirteen years ago, this select, auditioned group of 16-18 singers presents two concert sets per year, partnering with local charities and programming repertoire that reflects that charity’s mission; from classical choral literature and madrigals to contemporary music, folk tunes and jazz. This position is part-time, approximately 20 hours per month for 10 months. Salary based on experience. To learn more about RSVP, and for a position description and application materials, visit: www.rsvpchoir.org

Now, the RSVP Board announces that it will be closing the application process on Friday, May 24.  Inquiries should be send to director@rsvpchoir.org. 

Kendrick and SCSO Are Semi-Finalists for The American Prize

Dr. Donald Kendrick, founding Director of the Sacramento Choral Society & Orchestra, Director of Choral Activities at California State University, Sacramento -- among so many other roles and accomplishments -- has just added one more.  He is one of six semi-finalists in this year's competition for The American Prize in Conducting -- Choral Division.  At the same time, the Sacramento Choral Society & Orchestra has been named one of 13 semi-finalists in the "Choral Performance - Community" category.  In the choral conducting and choral performance categories, finalists will be announced after June 3 and winners after July 15.

Here is how The American Prize is explained:  "The American Prize is a series of new, non-profit national competitions in the performing arts providing cash awards, professional adjudication and regional, national and international recognition for the best recorded performances by ensembles and individuals each year in the United States at the professional, college/university, church, community and secondary school levels. Administered by Hat City Music Theater, Inc., a nonprofit organization based in Danbury, Connecticut, The American Prize was founded in 2009 and is awarded annually. The competitions of The American Prize are open to all U.S. citizens, whether living in this country or abroad, and to others currently living, working and/or studying in the United States of America, its protectorates and territories."

There are 7 categories of competition for conducting and 3 for choral performance (community, college/university and youth/high school).  There are separate competitions for vocalists, pianists, composers, chamber music ensembles, orchestras, bands, musical theater and opera companies, stage directors, and art administrators.

There is more information about The American Prize at their website:  http://theamericanprize.org.  Competition updates are at this link:  http://theamericanprize.blogspot.com/.  Other updates are in their Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-American-Prize-celebrating-American-excellence-in-the-arts/214320622728.

Good luck, Don and SCSO!

Sacramento Valley Chorus Takes Second

For the second year in a row, the Sacramento Valley Chorus has taken second place in the Region 12 Competition of Sweet Adelines International, held April 20 in Reno.  This time our local ladies missed first place by only 10 points (out of 620), so congratulations all around!  And if you want to see and hear how they did, videos of the competition are available online at this link:  http://sairegion12.org/events/competition/webcast.html.  The cost is $20 for a password.

Carmichael Singing Community

Christiana Quick-Cleveland has announced a new singing group, the Carmichael Singing Community, and invited people to its first gathering, Friday, April 19 in the Barn at Rudolf Steiner College at 7:30 p.m.  Quick-Cleveland has organized another group, the Chalice Ensemble, which gave a concert/sing-along on March 23 and which organizes its season around intensive rehearsal blocks (see this link).

The Carmichael Singing Community is described as a "group for people who enjoy singing together." Quick-Cleveland further explains, "The idea is to bring us all together to support each other in the activity of singing. What we do from there, how we structure it, the form of the specific vision, that is the work of the collective that comes."

For more information, visit the Tiana Music Enterprises website at www.tianame.com or contact Christiana Quick-Cleveland directly at christiana@tianame.com.

Woodland Chamber Singers to Carnegie Hall in 2014

The Woodland Chamber Singers will make "a special appearance at Carnegie Hall in March 2014.  [They] are being featured as a showcase choir in an evening performance for junior high, senior high, and college choruses attending the New York Choral Festival workshop. The opportunity for the Singers to represent the Woodland community in New York City is an inspiration to younger choral singers and a great source of pride."

Fundraising for the trip has begun and will be part of Woodland Chamber Singers' upcoming concerts on May 11 & 12.  For details, see their listing in the Sacramento Choral Calendar at this link.

Webcast of Barbershop Competition

Region 12 of Sweet Adelines International will hold its annual competition in Reno on April 19 & 20.  Local choruses Sierra Gold (Auburn) and the Sacramento Valley Chorus (Sacramento) will, of course, be competing.

This year, for the first time, it will be possible to watch a live webcast of the competition, plus gain access to archives of the competition until May 5.  The quartet competition starts on Friday, April 19 at 3:15 p.m.; the chorus competition starts on Saturday, April 20 at 12:15 p.m.

The cost is $20 for a personal password, and for an extra $5, you can send a "shout out" to your favorite competitor and have it read out loud to the audience.  Unfortunately, the webcast is not compatible with iPhone, iPad or iPod.  Details are at this address:  http://sairegion12.org/events/competition/webcast.html

Sierra Gold Seeking New Director

Barb Tincher is retiring as Director of Sierra Gold Chorus, the women's barbershop chorus that is a chapter of Sweet Adelines and that rehearses at Dewitt Center in Auburn.  The chorus is seeking a new director and taking applications through April 15.  Details are in their website:  www.sierragoldchorus.org.

Innovative New Website for Chanteuses

I monitor websites of all the choruses in the greater Sacramento area, and there’s only one I would give an A+ rating to – Chanteuses’ recently redesigned site at www.chanteuses.org. Here are some of the features that make the site stand out, aside from the bright colorful images and clean design throughout:

• Everything you might need or want to know (or that they might want you to know) is clearly and briefly presented on the home page – without clutter: the schedule of upcoming concerts, a news feed, CD information, a rotating “billboard” of items they want to highlight, etc.
• The home page has links to the principal parts of the site at the top, where you would expect it. But the footer at the bottom of every page has not only those links, but contact information, and a link to sign up for their e-newsletter (managed by Constant Contact).
• One of my favorite features is the page devoted to the 18 singers and their music director. There is a head shot identifying each person by name, and when you click on their picture or name, you get a bio, plus links for e-mail, their Facebook page and any other contact point they might have wanted to make public.
• To promote their professionally produced Christmas CD, they have provided 30-second samples of each track.
• There is a page of their history, a concert page that lists events through the end of the year (with a link to reviews), a donation page, and a page that highlights their patrons.

Of course, the challenge in any website is keeping it current and providing new interest, so Chanteuses has carved out a bit of extra work for someone in the organization. But the introduction of this site has raised the bar for the sites of small choruses in our area.

 

 

American River Chorus Is Now Voices of California

Formed as recently as 2010 as a chapter of the Barbershop Harmony Society, the American River Chorus has changed its name to Voices of California, in part to eliminate any confusion that they are affiliated with American River College.  But another motivation for the new name is to give the chorus a fresh image.  They explain:  "We wanted to 'rebrand' ourselves as our reputation grows and more people recognize the level of talent we bring to the stage. We are a dynamic singing group committed to truly entertaining shows for all ages. We put about 75 men (from ages 11 to 85) on the risers for a performance, but even more than that come to our weekly practices from as far away as Lake Tahoe, Modesto, Chico, and even Reno and Santa Rosa. Why? Because it’s so much fun to sing this well!"

Part of their success is evident in the fact that they have been invited to perform at the Barbershop Harmony Society's International Conference in Toronto in July.  Of more than 800 eligible choruses, only 29 were invited.

Voices of California will present its spring concert at the Crest Theatre in two shows on Saturday, May 11.  For more details about this event in the Sacramento Choral Calendar, click on this link.

And here is an invitation they have sent out regarding their upcoming Guest Night:  "The Voices of California is holding a Guest Night, Thursday, April 4th 2013 at 7:30 PM. Singers are invited to visit the premier men’s a cappella chorus in the Greater Sacramento area. Guests are promised an evening of singing, fun and fellowship. The location is the Collins Teen Center in West Sacramento."