2024 REGIONAL CONFERENCE INTEREST SESSIONS
G Phillip Shoultz, III
Drawing on his experiences as an educator and conductor of church, community, school, and professional ensembles for singers of all ages and abilities, G. Phillip Shoultz, III will invite participants to consider a pedagogy of relationships that fosters belonging, awakens artistry, empowers creativity, affirms identities, and creates a space for courageous singing that seeks to bridge across difference. The session will include singing and interactive elements. Setting the Stage: Purpose Let’s reflect what you value. What is your “why?” Connection is key to deepening impact–our relationships with the singers and the ways the singers connect with each other. Members of the VocalEssence Singers Of This Age (SOTA) will share how the “family” has shaped their lives in ways both expected and unexpected. Video montage of testimonials from SOTA State my why…belonging What is your why? Define Human Compatible Learning Provided criteria for creating an environment of exploration Active Participation: Exploring Collaboration and Co-Creation among singers Relational Pedagogy Case Studies Case Study A: Co-Creation with Composers (featuring “Sing Change” and “The Other Side” with Kyle Pederson) Case Study B: Collaboration with Composers (featuring “Keep On” with Moira Smiley) Case Study C: Collaboration with Culture Bearers (featuring Jayanthi Rajasa & Joe Davis) Case Study D: Connecting with the Community (featuring Neighborhood Block Parties) The four SOTA case studies listed above provide a framework for embracing transformational relationships that nurture the development of diverse choral communities, and provide more compelling musical experiences for our singers, our communities, and ourselves.
Pingyi Song
This research presentation focuses on gender issues in Eastern Asian choral literature and dedicates to the recognition of the underrepresented Eastern Asian composers. This research study addresses the gender issue and bias toward female composers in Eastern Asian musical cultures by reviewing the current choral literature textbooks and scholarly publications on Eastern Asian choral literature. This study argues that the underrepresentation of female composers and compositions in the Eastern Asian Choral Canon shares astonishing similarities in comparison to the gender issue in the Western European Classical Music Canon. According to Marcia Citron’s research study “Gender, Professionalism, and the Musical Canon”, the reason for the underrepresentation of female composers in the musical canon was lacking access to systematic music education, publication, professional review and critique, commission for larger scale choral instrumental piece.
Raul Dominguez
William H. Frey’s Brooking’s Institution essay states that the USA will be “minority White” at 49.7% of the population in 2045. Hispanics, a government term, will be the largest minority at 24.6%. Within the “Hispanic” category, the Mexican American or Chicano/a/e populace, ranks as the highest subgroup, representing 37,186,361 Americans in the 2019 US Census. They are expected to remain the highest subgroup and play a major part of the coming generations. The goal of Nosotres Existimos: Mexican Choral Repertoire and Resources, is inclusion and belonging for the choral conductor’s students and community through programming. Through historic timelines, repertoire lists, playlists, diction aids, and performance practices sources, in the form of handouts and websites, participants will gain some of the necessary means to share UMS voices with their students and audiences. This session also recognizes the role of indigenous peoples and includes all available choral repertoire and resources to share their marginalized voices. At the end of this session, attendees will have more insight on Mexican choral music history. Participants will also have information about where to find Mexican repertoire for mixed, treble, and tenor/bass choruses, as well as access to resources to learn how to lead inclusive performances. The Chicano/a/e population in our country is growing rapidly. In the spirit of togetherness, participants who create space for this repertoire will, in turn, hold spaces for their students to create deeper belonging, allow for unheard voices to be shared, and continue our work to build community through music.
Leticia Grutzmann
Choir singing requires energy, engagement, and readiness. To achieve the full potential of expression, vocal technique, and musicality, singers and conductors must train their bodies and minds as they train their voices and music. This interactive and practical session will provide conductors and teachers of any choir level with a systematic approach to body and mind engagement in warm-ups and rehearsals, rooted in the Alexander Technique, Yoga, Tai Chi, and workout sequences. Each activity will accompany a science-based explanation of how physical exercises can impact students’ ability to engage, focus, improve their vocal technique, enhance body presence, and build a strong community in the classroom. In addition, this session will provide alternative exercises to promote inclusive practice. The main goal of this mind-body approach is to provide the singer with a complete understanding of their body function through body mapping and its application and interaction with singing, and how singers can be more integrated and open to the interpretation of choral music by making themselves mentally available prompted by the release monoamine neurotransmitters conducive with the practice of physical exercises. The session will demonstrate that by adopting this practice of including mindful physical exercises, the choral classroom can serve as a resource to support students’ mental and physical health as it relates to singing and a more balanced life.
Amy Johnston Blosser & C. Andrew Blosser
“Blend. Drop your jaw. Straight tone. Darker.” Most people have likely heard one of these phrases before in a choir, but do these ideas really help inexperienced singers? Due to the nature of the voice, it is the most abstract instrument. What terminology can we use to give clarity to singers that connects them in a relatable way and takes away some of the mystery? Choral Directors are the primary voice teachers for our singers. Are we teaching them the pedagogy behind their instrument in terms that are clear and concrete? Additionally, how can we bridge what can be a disconnect between singing in a choral ensemble and singing in applied lessons? By bringing concepts and skills from voice pedagogy into the choral rehearsal, conductors can better support their singers in their vocal development. This session will provide practical applications of how to teach singers to find and use their authentic voices by sharing suggestions from various vocal pedagogy approaches, including Estill Voice. It is applicable to directors working with high school, college and older community singers.
Mariana Farah, Elizabeth Olson, and Samuel Speer
This session will focus on how repertoire selection can help choirs advance goals that go beyond musical standards. Following the Covid-19 pandemic, conductors and music teachers of all grade levels have reported new challenges in rebuilding their choral programs and helping their singers engage and connect in a group setting. For the last two years, I have attended several ACDA, NAfME, and NCCO meetings with colleagues who revealed facing significant struggles in recruiting and retaining new singers for their ensembles. In this session, I will propose strategies for repertoire selection that will help conductors reflect on broader goals and choirs rejuvenate. As music teachers, it is easy for conductors to focus on repertoire that help students advance their musical skills. While musical growth should remain a core value for literature selection, the need to find text and music that help students connect emotionally and socially has never felt greater. Post pandemic, students have shown heightened social anxiety and greater discomfort relating to teachers and peers in in-person classroom settings. Strategies that I have successfully implemented in the past to motivate students to sing have not lent themselves to the same results in recent years. This has encouraged me to reflect on new ways that repertoire can promote meaningful experiences beyond the concert setting. This session will invite conductors to reimagine new “whys” in their search for music that speaks to broader programmatic needs and help students rebuild their ability to connect and form meaningful relationships.
Frank Eychaner
This session is a deep dive into the most challenging conducting problems and practical solutions so our gestures are clear and artistically communicate the composer’s intent. Using excerpts from the repertoire, Eychaner will identify specific challenges and then lead participants to effectively conduct the music themselves. Some topics to be addressed will include the four types of fermatas, tempo changes, utilizing dry beats and beats of de-emphasis to effectively communicate the artistry of a work, achieving an independent left hand and it’s essential role in artistry, understanding how publishers use notation to reveal the composer’s intent, effectively conducting asymmetrical meter, changing meter, how to mark difficult scores and more. Session participants will be conducting for the majority of the session. There will be a generous resource packet with diagrams, excerpts and links to resources to help anyone grow their conducting skills.
Kirsten Hedegaard
“The social impact of music happens not only through a common understanding of the discourse around it but also through the experience of simultaneity. The mutual synchronizing of sonic and bodily experiences creates a bond that is pre-communicative and perhaps deeper than shared conscious meaning.” This quote from sociologist William Roy speaks directly to the praxis of choral singing, a social activity that is practiced around the globe. In the Western choral tradition, there has recently been a growing trend to address important social concerns through new compositions and innovative programming. Composers have taken on such topics as racism, LGBTQ and women’s rights, gun violence, as well as other pressing social issues. One of the subgenres of this socially conscious repertoire is music that focuses on environmentalism and the growing anxiety regarding climate change. This presentation will address recent activity in the eco-choral genre, including new compositions, grassroots movements in the U.S., and current sociological and psychological research related to the topic. Musical examples from recent compositions will be shared, including works by American composers John Luther Adams, Reena Esmail, Sarah Kirkland Snider, Stacy Garrop, Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate, Jake Runestad, and Robert Kyr. A case will be made for choral music’s utility in mobilizing an effective environmentalist movement within the field and strategies for achieving a synergistic course of action. With hundreds of thousands of singers participating in choral music worldwide, a coordinated campaign to address climate change through singing could produce a powerful forum for conversation, education, and action.
Jessica Steuver
Gender historically has played an inescapable role in the choral music ensemble. Traditionally, biological sex has contributed to choices that choir teachers make regarding students’ voice part identification, uniform, repertoire, ensemble names, and more. Unlike the binary of biological sex, gender identity and expression is comprised of behaviors, physiological and psychological attributes that are more nuanced than reproductive organs. People who do not express their gender in a way that matches their biological sex are known as gender nonconforming. As gender nonconformity is gaining more acceptance and representation (along with political pushback), students are feeling more comfortable coming out and exploring their gender identities. This presentation will outline existing research on the experiences of choir students who identify as transgender, nonbinary, or gender nonconforming (including research from Garrett, M. L., & Palkki, J. (2021), Bartolome, S. J., & Stanford, M. E. (2017), Gurss, G. (2020) and more), provide examples of vocal exercises appropriate for trans voices, video interviews from gender nonconforming choral students, and steps educators can take to ensure they are creating a safe, welcoming choral learning space for all students. The goal of this session is to give current and pre-service music educators recommendations for the creation of safe learning environments from the perspectives of gender nonconforming choral students and their teachers.
Austen Wilson
This interactive and practical session will provide tools to revitalize ensembles in music ministry settings and enable meaningful experiences for singers and congregation members. Based on concepts found in the book The Art of Gathering by Priya Parker, the author writes the following:
“When we don’t examine the deeper assumptions behind why we gather, we end up skipping too quickly to replicating old, staid formats of gathering. And we forgo the possibility of creating something memorable, even transformative.”
The first part of the session will present a framework about intentionally creating memorable events, rehearsals, and worship services to build stronger ensembles and communities. Specific and varied stories from over 15 years in music ministry will demonstrate how the concepts can be applied in a wide variety of contexts.
In the second part of the session, attendees will brainstorm ideas for a variety of gatherings. Those who attend will have practical ideas to take back to their own worshiping communities and feel rejuvenated and empowered to make positive changes in their own context.
David Mennicke & Carl Clomon
As choral artists and educators, we are called to respond to the recent–and ongoing–issues of racial injustice and violence. Yet doing so can be fraught with conflict and controversy. This session shares a process of how groups of musicians from within and beyond the Rondo neighborhood of St. Paul, Minnesota came together to jointly heal. The collaboration grew out of relationships built over the years between Concordia University, St. Paul’s music program, Walker|West Music Academy (a community music school uplifting Black musical culture), Mt. Olivet Missionary Baptist Church (a prominent Rondo Black church), 29:11 International Exchange from South Africa, NUNNABOVE, and other area partners. Leaders from each group devoted a year to process, build trust, and plan a series of events to inform and engage the performers and audience. Activities included service projects, artist/social activist panel discussions, and a community supper with facilitated table dialogue. The project culminated in a Black History Month concert of celebratory music by each of the partner ensembles, an intermission panel discussion with Black social justice activists, and massed choir/orchestra pieces that confronted the trauma racial conflict wreaks on all people. The performance ended with music of hope and encouragement for how to go forward. The resulting honest acknowledgement of wrong and uplifting celebration of the good led to deep, transformative relationships that have laid the foundation for future positive action together. This session will include insights and musical performances from one of the project’s partner ensembles, 29:11 from South Africa.
Tom Carter
Many choral directors would like the singers in their choirs to be more facially and physically expressive, but they’re not quite sure how to facilitate that expression. Often their attempts are not as successful as they’d like, but they feel powerless to affect further change. This interest session will present a practical technique that can immediately transform a choir’s expressiveness, leading to a new connection with Self, the music, other singers, and audience members. Based on cutting edge neuroscience and Method acting principles, this session is applicable to singers and directors of all levels. The techniques work just as well with children as they do with adults, and the results are palpable immediately. When a choir using these fresh tools performs, the audience is transported to a whole new depth of connection; the process rejuvenates the old paradigm, allowing both singers and audience members the chance to rejoice in their shared humanity. In the session, Tom will provide specific tools that directors can use as soon as they get home, tools that will be instantly familiar because they are based on everyday human behavior. The hour will begin with the participants and demonstration choir engaging in fun and simple exercises to illustrate the basic concepts. After these foundational ideas are explored, the participants will learn how singers can play with them while they sing. Using a very simple framework, the demonstration choir will apply these tools to some of their repertoire while Tom coaches them, empowering them with authentic expression.
Brian Winnie
Sight-reading or sight-singing is an integral aspect of musicians’ training, and research suggests that better sight-readers tend to be better performers (Hayward & Gromko, 2009). Common categories assessed during sight-singing include tone, technique including pitch and rhythmic accuracy, and musicianship (Texas sight-reading rubric, 2017). These categories require singers to master skills in music literacy, audiation, and vocal technique before becoming proficient sight-readers. Singers must understand how to produce pitch and sustain it over time (rhythm and tempo) in various styles and how to sing expressive choices such as dynamic changes and phrasing. Yet few research studies have investigated the effect of voice quality training on pitch accuracy, intonation, and expressive sight-singing scores. Since our cognitive capacity is limited (Cowan, 2010), learning voice quality in conjunction with foundational musical elements of pitch and rhythm may help singers reduce cognitive load while engaging in sight-reading tasks. This workshop will explore the commonly assessed categories of sight-singing and integrate a “sounds first” perspective using the principles of Estill Voice Training. These categories include rhythm, tempo, pitch, tone, intonation, and expression (including phrasing, articulation, and dynamics). We will answer questions about sequence of instruction and how many elements to focus on at one time. We will also discuss strategies to teach students how to analyze a score before sight-singing. Participants will actively engage in a sight-singing activity and label their attractor state habits.
Gerrit Scheepers
This session will give an overview of the traditional languages found in South Africa, and how to prepare to teach traditional South African choral music to your choir. The presenter will focus on authenticity, the importance of textual research, appropriate choreography, and authentic inclusion of percussive accompaniment. Some attention will be given to clarifying, social, political, and religious contexts of selected pieces. The presenter will also cover the pronunciation of the most common clicks, unique consonants, and other unusual sounds. All these concepts will be tied together through a hands-on “reading” component. The attendees will sing through sections and practice pronunciation with the presenter. This presentation will include 6-8 pieces.
Roger Emerson
The session will provide choral voicing options to meet the needs of both the changing transgender voice and those of cis-gender singers. As choir directors are faced with more students who identify as transgender, the need to be able to chose literature that meets those needs is imperative. In addition to existing voicings, options for adapting scores with a new “flex” part using guidelines created by Stevie J. Hirner will be included. The outline: Introduction – Background as the parent and vocal coach of a transgender son. Existing Voicings: 3-part mixed, SSA, SAT(B) will be presented and read by attendees. Adapting: Creating a 5th, flex part from existing SATB voicings will be demonstrated. The key learning outcomes include building awareness of the needs of singers going through both a voice change and a life-change, awareness of terms and categories of singers, placement within the ensemble, voice testing and part creation will be explored.
Lindsey Bruner Woodcock
We often strive to create magical musical moments for our singers, but what about our audiences? This session proposes simple strategies for informing, inspiring, and connecting to audiences through interactive concerts. While program notes and onstage remarks do help orient listeners, actively engaging audiences leads to more soul-stirring listening experiences and builds community in the concert hall. Attendees will be invited to reflect on the concert norms we often take for granted and breathe new life into the way we reach out to parents, friends, and novice listeners in our audiences. An interactive concert element can be as simple as inviting listeners to reflect on their emotional responses to musical passages, or as adventurous as teaching audiences to sing along with part of a piece. This session will demonstrate how to engage audiences by 1.) selecting an effective aesthetic “entry point” into a piece of choral music, 2.) connecting to what the average listener already knows, and 3.) creating an interactive experience that hooks listeners before they hear the concert in its entirety. Attendees will act as a sample audience while they experience interactive strategies such as Emotional Framing, Piece Simulation, and Listening to Layers. Participants will leave this session with a collection of interactive concert activities, games, unique concert formats for different types of choral pieces, and the tools needed to create dynamic performances that will sweep up and draw in audiences. These approaches are advantageous for use by professional, school, and civic ensembles of all ages.
Emilie Bertram
Ensemble conductors often feel as though we are racing against the clock, constantly attempting to balance the needs of our students, administrators, community, colleagues, and ourselves. Often, in an effort to “save time,” conductors develop habits that unintentionally work against our best efforts for efficient and effective rehearsals. Drawing on her experience as a classroom teacher, ensemble conductor, student teacher supervisor, methods instructor, and frequent guest clinician, Dr. Bertram will offer observations of common problems that may not be working to your favor, as well as tips to address the issue. Examples include, 1) using warm-ups as opportunity to teach for transfer rather than part of a “to do” list, 2) ensuring conducting gesture truly matches the vocal model and/or verbal instructions, 3) common pit-falls of repertoire programming, 4) over commitment, and 5) building your honest feedback network. This session is primarily aimed at early career teachers, those who are 5 years or less into their journey, but also offers opportunity for all conductors to reflect on their teaching behaviors and the implications those behaviors may have on their ensembles.
Jennifer Rodgers
Treble choirs play a vital role in our choral community, but often hold a middle role in our choral programs. In this session, we’ll explore the treble choir from multiple angles – equitable structure and role, strength of community, and diversity of sound – and seek to expand the parameters and potential of modern treble ensembles. A central component will be a participatory exploration of healthy “brassy” and “lofted” timbres that can open up a palette of tone and expression to use across widely diverse repertoire. The Cantamus ensemble from Iowa State University will demonstrate distinct vocal timbres. Student leaders will present on the ensemble’s community and culture, including an alum who conducted research observing the social dynamics, leadership, and practical functioning of the choir.
Adam Zrust & Will Alderman
Adding percussion instruments into a choral rehearsal can quickly rejuvenate our repertoire and spark great joy in our singers. While many contemporary choral composers write music with percussion accompaniment, often “ad lib” is the only instruction. Whether you are playing the part yourself, or helping students find success, playing technique can drastically augment or diminish a performance. This hands-on session will provide playing techniques for all levels of experience, sample repertoire from across the globe, survey a wide variety of Western and non-Western percussion instruments, and explore substitutions when instruments are not readily available. From the basics of hand-drumming to advanced techniques in a variety of styles, participants will leave inspired and more confident to incorporate percussion into rehearsals and performance.
Adam Zrust is Director of Choral Studies and Assistant Professor of Choral Music Education at Northwest Missouri State University. He maintains an active schedule conducting honor choirs and is frequently invited to present at various conferences across the United States and abroad. Dr. Zrust’s scholarly expertise is grounded in rehearsal efficiency. Other areas of scholarly interest include innovative trends in conducting pedagogy, singing for social harmony, and music from underrepresented communities and cultures. He has been published in the Journal of Research in Music Education, Florida Music Director, and with GIA Publications. Adam earned a PhD and MME in Choral Conducting and Music Education from Florida State University and holds degrees in Music Business and Music Education from the University of Nebraska-Kearney. He is a member of the American Choral Directors Association, Missouri Music Educators Association, and the National Association for Music Education.
Graeme Morton
Australian choral composers have long been active in writing music for choirs but are almost totally unrepresented by publishers in the USA. This session will introduce USA choir directors to this music and the themes that are reflected in this repertoire – some of which is distinctly Australian and much of which is universal. As a participant you will sing highlights from this music, will listen to recordings and learn how to access these resources. You will take from the session valuable insights into this music as well as a packet of samples. Target Audience –Conductors in education (elementary, secondary and college), church and community directors. The session is intended to cover a wide span of repertoire for school, church and community, but can be tailored to any one of these sectors if preferred, should that help to give balance to your overall conference program.
Tamarceo Shaw
This session will focus on key elements for developing the voices of choral students. The human voice is a powerful tool. Singers use their voices to express meaning and emotion in vocal literature. However, this cannot be effectively achieved without a basic understanding of how the vocal mechanism functions. Many students will enter the choral classroom with a love of singing but knowing little about healthy vocal production. Choral students who have a strong foundation in vocal pedagogy will also foster good vocal habits, prevent vocal injuries, and contribute to a balanced choral sound. Participants in this session will gain knowledge and tools to assist choral students in achieving their full vocal potential. Topics of discussion in this session consist of body alignment, breath management, tone, vocal warm-up & cooldown, and vocal health. The body alignment section will address how the body must be positioned for all the muscles involved in singing to engage properly. In the breath management section, it will highlight how singers support their voice and maintain a good airflow. The warm-up and cooldown section will cover what it means to prepare the entire body for singing and to transition the voice back to speaking after singing. How a singer produces the tone is essential to creating a strong sound and the tone section will focus on singing with an efficient tone. Finally, the vocal health section will provide information on how to care for the voice and body and how to prevent vocal injuries.
Bert Pinsonneault
During the COVID-19 pandemic, singers’ ensemble experiences were fundamentally changed whether by singing alone into a digital space; singing six, or nine, or twelve feet apart from others; the altered hearing of singing into a mask; or even going without a choral experience for some period. Seeking to “rejuvenate” our choral sound, this session focuses on concrete tools and vocal/choral exercises to strengthen the ears of choristers for more consistent intonation and more focused vocal production. Attendees of this session will learn the methodology behind various ensemble exercises and will participate in singing several example exercises that can be “brought home” to their own choirs. The research behind these exercises is based partially on Edwin Gordon’s music learning theory, and also the research of the presenter. Materials will be used from the presenter’s published work Intonation (Graphite Publishing) but with the intention of freely giving information and techniques, not trying to encourage sales of the published work. Intonation is separate but related to choral timbre. This presentation gives tools for exploring intonation without bias toward any particular choral sound or genre.
Jennifer Hutton
Many choral ensembles take pride in offering singers a welcoming place to belong, relate to others, and experience freedom of expression. However, unfortunately, sometimes singers in choral ensembles feel judged, taken-for-granted, or marginalized (Hutton, in press; O’Toole, 2005; Shaw, 2020; Sweet, 2018; Talbot, 2017). How can choral leaders help every singer feel seen and valued while supporting individual singers’ growth within the larger group? This session encourages choral leaders to reflect on their practices and to rejuvenate choral ensembles using the model of choir as a garden. When an ensemble is cared for as a garden, each singer grows in a dynamic ecosystem with others. Each voice is recognized, nurtured, and valued for the qualities it brings to the group. In a choral ensemble as garden, the group 1) values all voices, no matter their skill, experience, characteristics, or identities, 2) engages singers in collective ownership of the rehearsal and performance processes, 3) communicates that there are many “right” ways to make choral music, and 4) demonstrates care for each singer’s contribution to the whole. Session attendees will explore specific practices that honor all singers’ voices. These practices include teaching and learning away from a printed score, inviting democratic leadership, facilitating creative and improvisatory activities, engaging in singer-led community-building, and encouraging varied vocal tone qualities and varied choral traditions (de Quadros & Amrein, 2023; Perkins, 2018). The approach to choir as garden helps leaders shape a community where all individuals sense that their voices matter and their presence is valued.
Shannon Gravelle & Nathan Edwards
What sound technology do you need for your choral program? What questions are helpful to ask your sound technicians? What if you are doing it on your own? Whether you need a refresher on sound technology or to establish a foundation, join Nathan Edwards and Shannon Gravelle for a presentation and Q&A on sound technology. This all-encompassing presentation will provide an overview of some of the most common technical challenges that choral directors face. The goal is to capture or amplify the best possible quality of sound for the least amount of effort, complexity, and investment. This will allow directors to focus on what they care most about – the sound of the choir – while ensuring that the technical setup maximizes their sound. In addition, not all directors and programs have access to a large budget, expensive equipment, or sound technicians. Quality recordings have been a barrier for some schools with smaller budgets to submit for conferences, and this presentation attempts to address some of those barriers. This presentation will provide a foundation so that directors who have sound technicians can communicate their needs most effectively, and directors without technicians can create quality recordings for archival purposes, memory keeping, or conference submissions. Topics included in this presentation are: setting up a basic PA system, connecting equipment such as microphones and playback devices, how to position microphones, what types of microphones to use, use of handheld recording devices, and how to maximize a budget and minimize setup time.
Matthew Myers & Sara Bray
By learning how to structure team-building activities in choral rehearsals and retreats, choral conductors can create the ideal opportunities for singers to develop skills that directly correlate with the National Core Arts Standards and National Institute for Excellence in Teaching (NIET) Rubric while growing in comfort and confidence among their peers. Team building in retreats as well as during class will help students to celebrate their differences and rejoice in their commonality. While these activities are fun, they are pivotal to instructional needs as well because of their correlation to the National Core Arts Standards and NIET Rubric. This session can help choir directors of all levels to rejuvenate the energy within their ensembles. Application to middle school, high school, college/university, and community/adult choirs will be specifically addressed. Participants will receive a handout featuring several team-building examples, including instructions, purpose/goal, instructional use, length, group size, age group, and materials needed, as well as a correlation to the national standards and NIET rubric. Participants will also receive a template that helps them to create additional activities to apply to their own classroom culture and specific instructional needs.
