"Demain, dès l'aube" is dedicated to my dear friend Lillian Holowka and her partner Donald Bergen, who died less than a year apart in 2013 and 2014. Victor Hugo's heart-wrenching 1847 poem describes a walk he plans to take tomorrow morning ("Demain, dè...  more"Demain, dès l'aube" is dedicated to my dear friend Lillian Holowka and her partner Donald Bergen, who died less than a year apart in 2013 and 2014. Victor Hugo's heart-wrenching 1847 poem describes a walk he plans to take tomorrow morning ("Demain, dès l'aube") through the countryside to his daughter Léopoldine's grave four years after her tragic death in a boating accident, which also took the life of her husband Charles who had tried to save her. Sincere thanks to Matthew Curtis (choralTracks.com) for recording "Demain, dès l'aube." To purchase the sheet music for this song, please contact: info@leadingnote.com. I would like to acknowledge the a cappella choir that I sing in, The Stairwell Carollers, and our director Pierre Massie, for their musical inspiration these past 26 years. I would also like to thank my friends in our "Ad hoc Chorale" for testing out this piece in one of our informal workshops and offering valuable comments. And with deepest appreciation to my brother Adam Rain and m...    less

[A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog From the Front of the Choir] At the beginning of each choir Rehearsal it’s as if the singers have not seen each other for years. They chat away, having a fine time of things. &n...

[A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog From the Front of the Choir] 'Tis the season to be poorly. A warm Rehearsal room is the ideal place to spread coughs and sneezes, especially with all that deep breathing and standing c...

Ave Regina coelorum by Manolo Da Rold SATB (divisi)

Dress Rehearsal recording.

I dedicate this piece to my friends in the composer/singer collective, the Ad hoc Chorale, who tested out this piece in one of our informal workshops and offered valuable comments. "How heavy lies the heart" has drawn inspiration from the traditional F...  moreI dedicate this piece to my friends in the composer/singer collective, the Ad hoc Chorale, who tested out this piece in one of our informal workshops and offered valuable comments. "How heavy lies the heart" has drawn inspiration from the traditional French Christmas carol, "Quelle est cette odeur agréable", which John Gay also set as a boisterous drinking song in the Beggar's Opera, "Fill every glass, for wine inspires us!" In addition, the song draws inspiration from Josquin's Missa Pange Lingua. In early 2018, I applied to be a participant at one of the Vancouver Chamber Choir's Interplay workshops funded by the SOCAN Foundation and to my delight I was accepted. "How heavy lies the heart" was one of the pieces that this amazing choir sight read for me on the spot. VCC director Jon Washburn and choir members then provided me with valuable feedback, for which I am very grateful. I would also like to acknowledge the a cappella choir that I sing in, The Stairwell Carollers, and our director Pierre M...    less

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard that “music is math.” Whether in relation to something simple (counting), or something more esoteric (highly-developed, academic analyses of harmony and structure), or whether it is a misg...

Greetings fellow choral educators!   Please feel Free to click on the links below to hear some of my latest choral music.  Send me an email if you would like some sheet music (great prices)!  I’m also accepting four more commissions...

This Free online workshop presented by the Royal School of Church Music with acclaimed conductor David Hill (director of the Bach Choir, Principal Conductor of Yale Schola Cantorum, and conductor of the BBC Singers from 2007-17) will offer practical advic...

[A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   Occasionally a Rehearsal goes totally pear-shaped and I have no idea why.     photo by hebedesign   Despite my best efforts everythi...