The Choral Conductor's Companion: 100 Rehearsal Techniques, Imaginative Ideas, Quotes, and Facts

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Copyright © 2020 MEREDITH MUSIC PUBLICATIONS

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First Edition

August 2020

Text and cover design: Shawn Girsberger

Print ISBN: 978-1-57463-525-6

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-57463-526-3

FOREWORD

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

INTRODUCTION

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

The Choral Team: Creating a Place for Singers to Belong

Kirk Aamot

Choral Singing and Eudaimonia

Frank Abrahams

Building a Positive Ensemble Culture

Kari Adams

WHY?: One Word to Transform Your Concert Curriculum

Miriam Altman

Useful Compositional Techniques for Directors

Jeffery L. Ames

Leadership through a New Lens

Hilary Apfelstadt

The Antifragile Choir

Eric Barnum

Teaching Traditional South African Music

Michael Joseph Barrett

World Music Pedagogy in Choral Music Education

Sarah J. Bartolome

Creative Musicianship in the Choral Classroom

William I. Bauer

It’s My First Time Music-Directing a Musical—Now What?

Matt Bean

Singers on the Move: Breathing Life into Your Choir through Movement

Jeffrey Benson

Teaching Independence in (and through) Contemporary A Cappella

Jacob Axel Berglin

Balancing Your Feedback Specificity

Tucker Biddlecombe

From the One to the Many: Teaching the Ensemble through the Individual

Geoffrey P. Boers

Developmental Teaching in Choral Rehearsals

Judy Bowers

Vocal Jazz Score Analysis Techniques: Harmony and Texture

Tim Brent

Singing and Intonation, Choices!

Donald Brinegar

The Comfort Zone Assignment

Paul Broomhead

Teaching Sight-Reading to Choral Ensemble Singers

Rachel P. Carlson

Understanding Editions: Using CPDL and IMSLP to Develop Early Music Intuition

Jeremiah Cawley

Hearing Health in the Choral Rehearsal

Sheri L. Cook-Cunningham

AAA for Choral Educators

Edith A. Copley

Connecting: Look Up, Glance Down

Andrew Crow

Generating Gestures: Using Dalcroze Eurhythmics to Prepare to Conduct

Caron Daley

The Conductor as Choreographer: Dancing with Your Hands

Peggy Dettwiler

Commissioning a New Work 101

Dominick DiOrio

Recruiting and Keeping Boys and Men in the Choral Classroom

Peter A. Eklund

Preparing for Improvisation

Frances Farrell

Pragmatic Programming for Perilous Times: Striving to be CEOs

Jason Max Ferdinand

The Culturally Responsive Music Teacher: Considering Equity, Access, & Cultural Competence

Kate Fitzpatrick-Harnish

Five Steps for Planning and Rehearsing Repertoire

Patrick K. Freer

Challenging Unconscious Bias in Musical Style Interpretation

Emily Y. Frizzell

Starting Rehearsals with Consistency: A Recipe for Success

J.D. Frizzell

Involving Students in Repertoire Selection

Janet Galván

Let’s Get Physical!: Movement in Choral Warm-Ups

Melissa L. Grady

Multifunctional Conducting: A Short Course with a Broad View

Alan J. Gumm

Facilitating Positive and Inclusive Choral Experiences for Students with Disabilities

Emily Guthe

The Wedge: Effective Rehearsal Planning to Help Your Choir Peak at the Right Time

Michael Hanawalt

Simple, Fun, and Fast Choral Blend: Just Add Filters

David Harris

Body Percussion to Internalize Even/Uneven Rhythms in Songs

Esther Liu Harris

Are You Ready? Building a Culture of Preparedness

Lynda R. Hasseler

Overtone Singing in Vocal Ensembles

Frank Havrøy

Technology-Assisted Assessment Tools for the Choral Conductor

Jason Hawkins

GUIDE: An Approach to Shaping Student Leaders

Christopher D. Haygood

The Yin and the Yang of Vocal Sight-Reading

Michele L. Henry

Get Out of the Way

Allen Hightower

The Magic of Children’s Voices

Joy Hirokawa

Empowering Strategies for Student-Centered Learning in Choir

Lauri A. Hogle

Solfège Is Not Just for Sight-Singing

Mary Hopper

Expanding Options for the Soprano Voice in the Choral Rehearsal

Laurel Irene

A New Paradigm of Choral Uniform

Nicole C. Lamartine

Breaking Down Barriers for Students with Disabilities in Your Choir

Christine Lapka

Encouraging Musical Choice in the Choral Ensemble

Andrew C. Last

The Choral Warm-Up Period

Anthony T. Leach

The Gospel Choir Sound: Explanation, Production, and Pedagogical Exploration

Jaron M. LeGrair

Music and Movement!

Valerie Lippoldt Mack

How to Succeed as a Chorus Master

Edward Maclary

The Improvising Choral Director

Patrice Madura Ward-Steinman

Semi-Occluded Vocal Tract Exercises in Choirs

Jeremy N. Manternach

Teaching the Choral Singer How to Communicate Text with Honesty and Depth

Ianthe Onelia Marini

Quotes for Life-Giving Choral Rehearsals

Joey M. Martin

Programming for Change

Chris Maunu

Supporting Mindfulness and Mental Health in the Choral Rehearsal

Erynn Millard

Barbershop Harmony in the Choral Classroom

Justin Miller

Basic Vocal Jazz Rehearsal Tips for the Classical Choral Director

Susan Moninger

Teacher Talk

Jessica Nápoles

Multiple Meanings of the Top-Down Approach

Bryan E. Nichols

Rethinking Gender in the Choral Context

Joshua Palkki

Un-learning Heteronormativity in the Choral Classroom

Stephen A. Paparo

Five Team-Teaching Strategies for Choral Conductors and Voice Teachers

Chad R. Payton

Making the Piano Singer-Friendly

Brad Pierson

Choral Resonance: Sound, Science, Spirit

Amanda Quist

A Vocal Cool-Down for Choral Singers

Kari Ragan

Vocal Modeling Strategies for Male Directors of Children’s Choruses

Tiger Robison

Teaching Empathy and Fostering Critical Discourse in the Choral Classroom

Eugene Rogers

Conductor vs. Cooking Appliance: Creating Meaning through Temporal Flexibility

Jake Runestad

Celebrating Connection: Facilitating Culturally Responsive Rehearsals

Jace Kaholokula Saplan

(Trans)Gender Inclusivity in Vocal Pedagogy

William Sauerland[he/him or they/them]

Collaboration and Community in Choral Ensembles

Jo-Michael Scheibe

Christopher D. Haygood

Going Nuclear: Split Your Choir to Unleash Its Power!

Gary Seighman

Consonants: The Foundation for Choral Articulation

Tim Sharp

Developing a Buoyant and Vibrant Tenor Section

Stephen Sieck

Tips for Developing Conductor Expressivity

Brian A. Silvey

Vocal Health Essentials for the Choral Director

Lori L. Sonnenberg

Singing More Musically

Richard Sparks

Recruit from a Position of Strength

Ethan Sperry

Energy Cultivation and the Conductor: The Ancient Practice of Qigong

Elizabeth Swanson

Honoring Female Changing Voices

Bridget Sweet

Starting a Contemporary A Cappella Group

Matthew Swope

Choosing Repertoire for an Entire School Year

Jonathan Talberg

Working with a Collaborative Artist: Your Best Friend or Worst Nightmare

Julia Thorn

Foundations for Creating Artistry

Tony Thornton

Pulse. It’s Everyone’s Business.

Patrik Thurner

Singing Is Forever

Kimberly VanWeelden

Exploiting the Power of Dialogue in the Choral Rehearsal

Jason Vodicka

Under Pressure: Avoiding Rehearsal Traps

Brandon Williams

Choral Pedagogical Planning for Student Success

Brian J. Winnie

Six Facets of Teaching Culturally Diverse Musics

Hyesoo Yoo

Conduct What You Mean: Synthesizing and Developing a Consistent Conducting Vocabulary

Alan Zabriskie

ENDNOTES

The Choral Conductor’s Companion is the distillation of one-hundred separate books, a complete choral library, into the single driving ideas behind what could be a full book on every topic developed in this Companion . This is the gift of this publication: one hundred great ideas condensed to their very essence. As one of the contributors to this enormously practical and timely publication, my essential idea followed the exact rubric that each and every author followed in their reduction. Readers will appreciate the discipline at work in breaking complex subjects down to their very essence; but this was the purpose of this resource.

Depending on how one divides their rehearsal year, there are enough distilled ideas of transformational practicality in the following pages to introduce and cover over two years of rehearsal weeks. In addition, these are not simply transformational ideas, they have been refined and are presented by transformational individuals—a literal who’s who of choral leadership. This group-sourced compendium of wit, wisdom, and applied pedagogy is the very definition of best practices.

I am also especially grateful for the donation of royalties from this book to the American Choral Directors Association.

— Tim Sharp, Executive Director

American Choral Directors Association

Each and every contributor in this book deserves more gratitude than I can ever provide. They remained steadfast, flexible, and collaborative while writing these articles during the COVID-19 pandemic. To me, this showcases the professionalism, character, and kindness of spirit and sharing that makes each of them inspiring colleagues and mentors to so many. Thank you to each of them and their loved ones for taking time to share their knowledge and experience with the profession. May this book also connect each of us more deeply to one another.

To the American Choral Directors Association, thank you for their continued support of vocal/choral education and research. I hope the royalties from this project help support those future endeavors.

Finally, I give thanks to my colleagues, family, partner, students, and friends who supported this project and my passion for helping others on their journey.

—Brian J. Winnie, Project Coordinator/Editor

I continue to be inspired by the advances in research and pedagogy within the vocal/choral profession. There is so much to celebrate and so much information available to better ourselves, our craft, and our students. Even better, we can gain access to this information in an instant. Advancements in technology have allowed us to create and more easily share resources, view vocal performances from around the globe with the click of a button, and attend professional development webinars to learn about research and experiential approaches. But with all of this access to information, it can be hard to know where to start. How do we wade through the many potential topics to improve our teaching? How can we learn from the many experts in our field? Where can we find information in one easy-to-access resource? These questions were the impetus for this collaborative book project.

After some initial research and having worked with Garwood Whaley, the incredibly gracious and welcoming President and Founder of Meredith Music Publications (MMP), I was inspired by Gary Sith’s The Conductor’s Companion. His book, published by MMP, focused on the instrumental conductor-teacher, and this book serves as a companion text focusing on the choral/vocal conductor-teacher. It keeps Gary’s original design and includes 100 short articles offering rehearsal techniques, imaginative ideas, and pedagogical/philosophical considerations. It also includes 100 quotes and composer/conductor facts to inspire your teaching and ensembles.

It was my hope to invite as many contributors to this project as possible. So, this companion includes 100 authors from around the world who are expert choral pedagogues, composers, conductors, vocologists, music therapists, researchers, speech-language pathologists, studio teachers, and more. Together they showcase exemplary records in teaching, research, performance, and professional practice. Within this resource, you will find many of the articles are research-based and include further reading suggestions for you to get to know more about the subject matter of the article. Some topics naturally overlap, but each article offers a unique viewpoint to consider. Additionally, each author is a specialist in their topic area and would welcome further conversations about their research.

This resource was intended to be equally beneficial for beginning vocal ensemble conductor-teachers, undergraduate/graduate choral methods classes, and experienced professionals. You will find the articles appear in alphabetical order by author. However, allow yourself to pick a page and get started at any point in the book!

None of us, including me, ever do great things. But we can all do small things, with great love, and together we can do something wonderful.—Mother Teresa

—Brian J. Winnie, Project Coordinator/Editor

Kirk Aamot is Director of Choral Activities at Montana State University in Bozeman, where he teaches choral conducting and choral methods while conducting the MSU Chorale and Montanans.

Frank Abrahams, Ed.D., is Associate Dean and Professor of Music Education at Westminster Choir College of Rider University in Princeton, New Jersey. He was founder of the Westminster Conservatory Youth Chorale and editor of the Westminster Conservatory Youth Chorale Jewish Music Choral Series distributed by Hal Leonard. With Paul Head, he is co-author of Teaching Music Through Performance in Middle School Choir published by GIA and the Oxford Handbook of Choral Pedagogy (Oxford University Press).

Kari Adams, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor of Choral Music Education at Florida State University. She is a passionate conductor, teacher, and researcher. Her studies and practitioner articles have been published in Music Educators Journal, Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, International Journal of Research in Choral Singing, and Journal of Research in Music Education.

Miriam Altman, is an elementary and middle school music teacher in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She is a frequent presenter, guest conductor and workshop facilitator, and her students have had the honor of performing at various state and regional conferences. She humbly gives mad props to her tremendous CMP colleagues for constant inspiration, especially Patty Schlafer, for edifying the ideas of this article.

Jeffery L. Ames holds a B.M. with a double major in Vocal Performance and Piano Accompanying from James Madison University, and an M.M.E. and Ph.D. from the College of Music at The Florida State University. He is an active composer, clinician, and guest conductor.

Hilary Apfelstadt, Ph.D., is Professor Emerita at the University of Toronto. She has mentored nearly 90 graduate students, many of whom hold significant positions in choral music. A prolific author, she published a book about Ruth Watson Henderson (I Didn’t Want It to Be Boring), several book chapters, and numerous articles. She has guest conducted throughout North America and Europe. A past national president of ACDA, she now serves on the editorial board of the Choral Journal.

Eric Barnum, D.M.A., is currently the Director of Choral Activities at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. He holds a D.M.A. in Choral Conducting from the University of Washington (Seattle, WA), an M.M. in conducting from Minnesota State University (Mankato, MN), and B.A.’s in Composition and Vocal Performance from Bemidji State University (Bemidji, MN). He is a respected speaker, conductor, and internationally celebrated choral composer.

Michael Joseph Barrett, D.Mus., is the conductor of the award-winning Tuks Camerata and a Senior Lecturer in Choral Music Studies at the University of Pretoria. He is a frequent guest conductor, lecturer, and adjudicator for international events and a well-known composer/arranger of traditional South African Music (Walton and SBMP).

Sarah J. Bartolome, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Music Education at Northwestern University and the Associate Director of the Evanston Children’s Choir. A children’s and choral music specialist with an interest in ethnomusicology, she has completed fieldwork in Ghana, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Panama. In 2013, Dr. Bartolome was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to study music in Lithuania. She is also the author of World Music Pedagogy V: Choral Music Education (Routledge, 2019).

William I. Bauer, Ph.D., is Area Head for Music Education, Director of the Online Master of Music in Music Education program, and Professor in the School of Music at the University of Florida. His research and pedagogical writings appear in prominent journals and he has presented at conferences and other events throughout the world. His book, Music Learning Today: Digital Pedagogy for Creating, Performing and Responding to Music, applies technology to music teaching and learning.

Matt Bean, D.M., Professor of Musical Theatre and Voice at Western Illinois University, loves teaching vocal technique (belt, pop, and classical) and how to bring songs to life. He has music-directed and conducted more than fifty musicals so far. He holds music and theatre degrees from Indiana University, Manhattan School of Music, and Brigham Young University. On the side, he enjoys lyric writing and composing innovative musical theatre songs.

Jeffrey Benson, Ph.D., is Director of Choral Activities at San José State University where he oversees five choral ensembles and teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in conducting and choral literature. He received his M.M. and Ph.D. from The Florida State University and his bachelor’s degree from NYU. Dr. Benson is a frequent guest conductor as well as a published composer and arranger with Colla Voce and Santa Barbara Music Publishing.

Jacob Axel Berglin, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor of Choral Music Education at Florida International University. He holds a B.M. from Valparaiso University, teaching certification from Western Michigan University, an M.M. from the University of Michigan, and a Ph.D. from Northwestern University. He is a frequent clinician, serves as Director of Education for the Contemporary A Cappella Society, and has published works in the Choral Journal and the Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education.

Tucker Biddlecombe, Ph.D., is Director of Choral Studies at Vanderbilt University and Director of the Nashville Symphony Orchestra Chorus. He holds a B.M. from SUNY Potsdam, an M.M. in Choral Conducting, and a Ph.D. in Music Education from Florida State University. He was a recent guest lecturer and clinician at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing.

Geoffrey P. Boers, D.M.A., is Director of Choral Activities and the Ruth Waters Professor of Music at the University of Washington Seattle, where he leads a program widely recognized as innovative and forward thinking, focused on nurturing the whole student as conductor-teacher-scholar-servant-leader. His research is focused toward developing new thoughts on conducting gesture and rehearsal pedagogy as informed by vocal science, neuro-science, and recent vocal pedagogies; and their impact on empathy, perception, learning, and personal transformation.

Judy Bowers, Ph.D., retired from Florida State University, currently serves as the Biedenharn Endowed Chair for Music Education at the University of Louisiana Monroe, tasked with creating a summer-only master’s degree for practicing music teachers and restructuring the undergraduate music education program. Music degrees were earned at Texas Tech University, B.S. in Music Education, and Louisiana State University, Ph.D. in Music Education.

Tim Brent, D.M.A., is a musician whose writing is beautiful, awe-inspiring and strikingly original (Arts Atlanta). The recipient of 9 DownBeat Magazine awards as a vocal jazz educator, pianist, arranger and performer, he is currently a music instructor for the University of Miami, and a free-lance composer and arranger. Tim is active as a composer and performer and works regularly as a vocalist and pianist. He has performed and/or recorded with such names as Bobby McFerrin, Mel Torme, Ingrid Jensen, Brian Lynch, Ed Calle, Dick Oatts, and Latin Grammy award-winner Obie Bermudez.

Donald Brinegar is Professor Emeritus at Pasadena City College where he taught for thirty-nine years. Brinegar is a noted lecturer on historical tuning, vocal technique and conducting pedagogy. His book, Pitch Perfect A Theory and Practice of Choral Intonation is available on Amazon.com.

Paul Broomhead, Ph.D., is a Professor in the Brigham Young University School of Music where he serves as Choral Education Coordinator. He is the author of the book What is Music Literacy? and has served as co-editor and contributing author for the books, Arts Education and Literacies and (Re)Imagining Content-Area Literacy Instruction. He has published articles in over a dozen regional, national, and international journals and has been a guest presenter/conductor in several states. As a former junior high and high school teacher Dr. Broomhead’s favorite teaching assignment at BYU is to conduct an un-auditioned choir in the BYU Evening School.

Rachel P. Carlson, D.M.A., is the Director of Choral Activities at Shepherd University in Shepherdstown, WV, and founded and serves as Artistic Director of Six Degree Singers, a community choir based in Silver Spring, MD. She has toured the nation as a freelance professional choral singer and soprano soloist with many top professional ensembles. Dr. Carlson presents workshops and masterclasses in schools throughout the region and is in demand as a clinician, adjudicator, presenter, and guest conductor.

Jeremiah Cawley, D.M.A., has conducted across the US and UK. He has sung with GRAMMY-nominated True Concord and founded the new music ensemble The Box Is Empty. He serves on the organizing committee for the Oxford Conducting Institute, and his dissertation was nominated for ACDA’s Herford Prize. Jeremiah received his D.M.A. from the University of Washington. He is Director of Choral-Vocal Activities at Loras College, having held posts at Western Kentucky and Georgia State Universities.

Sheri L. Cook-Cunningham, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Music Education at Washburn University. She holds B.M. and M.M. degrees from the University of Missouri - Kansas City and a Ph.D. in Choral Pedagogy from the University of Kansas. She regularly presents her research on choral warm-ups, hearing dosage and hearing conservation in choral settings, and historical choral diction practices.

Edith A. Copley, D.M.A., is a Regents’ Professor and Director of Choral Studies at Northern Arizona University where she conducts the Shrine of the Ages Choir and teaches conducting and graduate choral literature. She is a life member of ACDA and has served in various capacities, including state and western division president. Dr. Copley has presented sessions, adjudicated festivals, and guest conducted throughout the US and overseas in eleven countries.

Andrew Crow, D.M.A., has served on the faculty of Ball State University since 2009. In addition to teaching at the university, he has served as a church musician for twenty years in a dizzying array of denominations. He earned degrees from University of Minnesota, Temple University and The Ohio State University. Dr. Crow received the 2017 Mayor’s Award for Arts Leadership in the Muncie, Indiana, community.

Caron Daley, D.M.A., is Director of Choral Activities and Ensembles Coordinator at the Mary Pappert School of Music at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, PA. Choirs under her direction have performed across the Northeast, including at the 2019 National Collegiate Choral Organization Conference. In 2013, Caron founded the Halifax Choral Conducting Institute, and in 2019, inaugurated the HCCI Women’s Conducting Intensive. She currently serves as President of the American Choral Directors Association of Pennsylvania and an Associate Editor for the NCCO Choral Scholar.

Peggy Dettwiler, D.M.A., is Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities at Mansfield University in Mansfield, Pennsylvania, where she conducts the Concert Choir, Festival Chorus, and Chamber Singers, and teaches choral conducting and methods. She holds the Doctor of Musical Arts Degree from the Eastman School of Music, Rochester, New York. She has served as a guest conductor and lecturer throughout the country and has given presentations at numerous NAfME and ACDA Conventions.

Dominick DiOrio, D.M.A., is Associate Professor of Music (Choral Conducting) at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music where he has also served as director of the new music chamber choir NOTUS since 2012. He is a prize-winning composer with over 50 published works and over 100 performances of his music every year around the world. www.dominickdiorio.com

Peter A. Eklund, D.M.A., is one of the foremost national authorities on male chorus singing. He possesses a unique ability to work effectively with musicians of all levels of performing experience. He’s the Director of Choral Activities at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, conducts the flagship choral ensemble, heads the Master’s and Doctoral choral conducting programs, and conducts the Men’s Chorus (membership has increased ten-fold during his tenure); Eklund’s choirs have performed on more than 50 peer-juried conferences.

Frances Farrell, D.M.A., is a choral educator within the Halifax Regional Arts Program in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. In 2018, Frances was awarded the Outstanding Dissertation Award by Choral Canada for her work Improvisation in Choral Settings.

Jason Max Ferdinand, D.M.A., is the director of choral activities at Oakwood University. He directs the Aeolians and, as evidenced by noteworthy awards, has distinguished himself on the national and international choral stages. He is a published composer with GIA publications and has a choral series with Walton Music. Ferdinand holds non-terminal degrees from Oakwood University, Morgan State University, and a doctorate in choral conducting from the University of Maryland.

Kate Fitzpatrick-Harnish, Ph.D., is associate professor of music education at the University of Michigan. Fitzpatrick is an active and prolific researcher, specializing in urban music education, marginalization, and equity. Her book, Urban Music Education: A Practical Guide for Teachers, was published in 2015. Fitzpatrick serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Research in Music Education and is a former award-winning, inner-city public-school music teacher.

Patrick K. Freer, Ph.D., is Professor of Music at Georgia State University and former Visiting Professor at the Universität Mozarteum Salzburg (Austria). He holds degrees from Westminster Choir College and Teachers College-Columbia University. He has conducted nearly 100 professional and/or honor choirs in more than 30 countries. Dr. Freer is Editor of the International Journal of Research in Choral Singing and past editor of Music Educators Journal.

Emily Y. Frizzell, D.M.A., is Assistant Professor of Music Education at the University of Memphis. She is also the founder and director of the Memphis Youth Chorale. Dr. Frizzell has been an active choral music educator in the Memphis area since 2009, serving on several leadership committees and earning various accolades throughout her tenure.

J.D. Frizzell is the Director of Fine Arts and Director of Vocal Music at Briarcrest Christian School in Memphis, TN, where he is responsible for coordinating all Fine Arts programs (K2–12th grade). His ensembles have performed at regional, national, and international conventions. Dr. Frizzell has had many best-selling compositions and arrangements with major publishing houses. He also co-authored A Cappella Warm Ups and Teaching Music Through Performance in A Cappella.

Janet Galván, D.M.A., is Director of Choral Activities at Ithaca College. Recognized as one of the country’s leading conducting teachers, she has conducted throughout North America, Europe, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Brazil. She has conducted professional orchestras including Virtuosi Pragenses and the Madrid Chamber Orchestra as well as national, divisional, and state choruses throughout the United States for the American Choral Directors Association, National Association for Music Educators, and the Organization of American Kodály Educators.

Melissa L. Grady, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor of Choral Music Education at The University of Kansas (KU). She received her Ph.D. in Choral Pedagogy from KU and both her previous degrees in Music Education from Wichita State University. At KU, Melissa teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in music education and directs the University Singers. An active researcher, her research interests include effects of conducting gestures on choral sound, choral warm-ups, female adolescent changing voices, choir spacing, and performance movement.

Alan J. Gumm, Ph.D., is professor of choral music education at Central Michigan University. He holds a B.A. from McPherson College, a M.M. from Fort Hays State University, and a Ph.D. from University of Utah. Gumm authored articles in journals that include Choral Journal and books that include Making More Sense of How to Sing. He has served on the ACDA Research and Publications Standing Committee and National Core Arts Standards Music Performing Ensembles writing team subcommittee.

Emily Guthe, M.M., M.A., MT-BC, is a Board Certified Music Therapist at the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio. She received her M.M. in Choral Conducting from the University of Tennessee and her M.A. in Music Therapy from the University of Iowa.

Michael Hanawalt, Ph.D., is Director of Graduate Choral Studies at Florida State University. He holds a B.M. in vocal performance from St. Olaf College, an M.M. in choral conducting from Michigan State University, and a Ph.D. in Choral Music Education from Florida State University. Dr. Hanawalt was a founding member of the male vocal ensemble Cantus, and has held faculty positions at St. Olaf College and Wichita State University. He is also the former Chorus Director of the Wichita Symphony Orchestra and the current Artistic Director of the Tallahassee Community Chorus.

David Harris, D.M.A. (CU Boulder), directs the professional, volunteer, and children’s choirs at FCCLA, is a gigging singer and composer, and the co-founder/director of VoiceScienceWorks. He is a frequent contributor to various publications, Ensemble Director of the N.E.O. Voice Festival, and co-author of voicescienceworks.org. His podcast Underground Ictus focuses on the integration of voice science, neuroscience, and compassion as a leadership practice into the choral experience.

Esther Liu Harris, Ed.D., is Visiting Assistant Professor at Aaron Copland School of Music Queens College, Adjunct Professor at Steinhardt NYU, Faculty at the Juilliard School Pre-College Division, & Choral Director at Packer Collegiate Institute (Grades 4–12). She holds an Ed.D. from Teachers College, Columbia University, an M.M. with Kodály Emphasis from Holy Names University, & Summer Studies at Kodály Pedagogical Institute of Music, Hungary. She is a frequent clinician in the New York area, has published and presented research in conferences.

Lynda R. Hasseler, D.M.A., assumed the directorship of the renowned Capital University Chapel Choir in July, 1990, making her the first woman to head a choral program at a Lutheran college or university. Now celebrating her 30th year, she loves her work as Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities in the Conservatory of Music at Capital University, in Columbus, Ohio, where she directs the Chapel Choir, Choral Union, and Philomel; and teaches conducting.

Frank Havrøy, Ph.D., is a