In choral music, I found my tool for social change. Growing up in a Latin American country with a sociologist mother, I witnessed social injustice firsthand. I gained class consciousness and experienced crises personally. I'm talking about financial crise...

If you enjoy singing with others, you will love being a member of the Tri-Cees Community Chorale. the group performs something for everyone: Seasonal Favorites, Classic Hits, Spirituals, Broadway Showtunes, Standards, World and Historical music. We mee...  more If you enjoy singing with others, you will love being a member of the Tri-Cees Community Chorale. the group performs something for everyone: Seasonal Favorites, Classic Hits, Spirituals, Broadway Showtunes, Standards, World and Historical music. We meet Tuesday evenings from 7:00 to 8:30 P.M in the sanctuary of United Presbyterian Church in Slatington, PA.  

ENTERING the SHELL Love is alive, and someone borne along by it is more alive than lions roaring or men in their fierce courage. Bandits ambush others on the road. they get wealth, but they stay in one place. Lovers keep moving, never the sam...  moreENTERING the SHELL Love is alive, and someone borne along by it is more alive than lions roaring or men in their fierce courage. Bandits ambush others on the road. they get wealth, but they stay in one place. Lovers keep moving, never the same, not for a second! What makes others grieve, they enjoy! When they look angry, don't believe their faces. It's spring lightning, a joke before the rain. they chew thorns thoughtfully along with pasture grass. Gazelle and lioness, having dinner. Love is invisible except here, in us. Sometimes I praise love; sometimes love praises me. Love, a little shell somewhere on the ocean floor, opens its mouth. You and I and we, those imaginary beings, enter that shell as a single sip of seawater. Texts by Rumi, translated by Coleman Barks © 1995 Coleman Barks. Used by permission. Performed by the Millennium Consort, Martin Neary, conductor, and the Pomona College Choir, Donna Di Grazia, director. Water Ruminations is a setting of six...    less

[this is a version of a post which first appeared on my blog from the Front of the Choir]   Back in 2008, BBC television ran a series called Last Choir Standing, basically a knock-out choir competition.     On their website they...

[this is a version of a post which first appeared on my blog from the Front of the Choir]   My real love is to teach a lot of relatively simple songs so people can spend more time singing and less time learning in a workshop (see We’ve come ...

[this is a version of a post which first appeared on my blog from the Front of the Choir]   Three years ago, for the first time in over 13 years, I started a choir from scratch. I put a call out to my readers for advice on how to recruit singers t...

[A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog from the Front of the Choir]   I’ve written before about how hard it is to get a cross-section of ages and genders in your choir (How to recruit singers to truly reflect your...

[A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog from the Front of the Choir]   Singing is very simple really: you open your mouth and the sound comes out.   photo by chaosmunkey   But we often allow our heads (an...

[A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog from the Front of the Choir] Ann read my post the six qualities need to be a good choral director and it sparked off a quite a rant. photo by bagogames She has obviously had a bad exp...

[A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog from the Front of the Choir]Many choir leaders have a strong style and particular choice of repertoire. they lead large, thriving choirs which have a strong vision. Other choir leaders...