SATURDAY, JANUARY 9, 2021 - 8:00AM-1:00PM
In this time of virtual choirs, remote and hybrid learning, trying to stay afloat as a choral director has certainly been a challenge in 2020! Avoid the “deep freeze” after the holidays with a “January Jumpstart” into 2021! Spend the day with fellow choral directors as we explore new strategies for inclusive teaching and conducting. This interactive online workshop will be led by experts in the profession and will be sure to have you refreshed and ready to take on whatever 2021 has in store for us!
This event is open to ACDA and non-ACDA members from all states and countries. Designed for all levels of choral conductors working in all contexts.
Zoom links will be sent to registrants a week before the event!
This event is open to ACDA and non-ACDA members from all states and countries. Designed for all levels of choral conductors working in all contexts.
Zoom links will be sent to registrants a week before the event!
Schedule:
Time |
Session |
8:15-8:30am |
Welcome and Introductions |
8:30-9:20am |
Session A: Songs from the African Diaspora Dr. Diana Saez, Towson University; ACDA East Encompassing Genres R&R Chair Prof. Diana V. Sáez from Towson University will take us on a musical journey through Latin America. She will present a group of choral arrangements based on folk music that shows a strong African influence. We will learn about the cultures that contributed to the creation of the music, its sounds, and musical instruments. |
9:25-10:15am |
Session B: Teaching with Respect: Purpose, Difference, and Community Dr. Stephen Sieck, Lawrence University; Author of Teaching with Respect: Inclusive Pedagogy for Choral Directors In this session, we start with the big questions – why do we teach people to sing together, and how do our actions align with our values? Then we’ll unpack the traditional conducting education, noting where it supports our values and where it may get in the way. Does our choir program structure favor certain kinds of voices? Does our audition process favor certain backgrounds or privileges? Do our singers have an appropriate way to identify their preferred name and gender? What does anti-racism look like in a choir? The presenter will share real (and sometimes difficult) examples from his own pedagogical journey. |
10:15-10:30am |
Break |
10:30-11:20am |
Session C: Meet Me in the Middle: Understanding Diversity in the Classroom Robert T. Gibson, Reed Middle School; Missouri State University When a student enters your classroom, how do we bring them into our world? How do we create skilled and independent musicians while appreciating and building upon their diverse musical backgrounds? As educators, it is important to value our students and the diversity they bring to our ensembles. Join Professor Robert T. Gibson (conductor, educator, clinician, composer) as he shares his perspective on embracing differences and motivating students who come from a wide range of musical experiences. |
11:25am-12:15pm |
Session D: Is there an APP for that? Acquiring, Preparing, and Presenting World Music for Choirs Dr. Angela Kasper, Western Washington University This session will describe approaches to finding, studying, and teaching diverse choral music to choirs. General principles will be given as participants explore diverse music suitable to choirs of all ages. |
12:20-1:00pm |
Session E: Social Justice Songbook: Treasure Trove for Choirs Shawn Funk, Pittsburgh Youth Chorus; ACDA-PA Youth Choirs R&R Coordinator Rebecca Dougan, Pittsburgh Public Schools Using the accessible Social Justice Songbook, excerpts will be shared to highlight how the melding of text and tune can propel choral singers to exam history and forward motion in the social justice movement. While traditional teaching techniques will be examined, this session will go beyond the printed page. The Social Justice Songbook can be found here: https://www.justicechoir.org/songbook/ |
Session Presenters:
Diana V. Sáez
|
Diana V. Sáez is the newly appointed Director of Choral Activities at Towson University in Baltimore where she directs the TU Chorale, Women’s Choir and Choral Society. Before coming to Towson, Sáez was serving as Visiting Choir Director at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois where she conducted the College Choir and Madrigal Choir. Previously she served as Visiting Choir Conductor at McDaniel College in Westminster, MD. She also directed the Catholic University Women’s Choir for six years.
Sáez is frequently invited as guest conductor, adjudicator and lecturer in the United States and abroad. She has presented interest sessions at national and regional ACDA conventions. She has served as guest conductor in Colombia and has directed regional honor choruses in Virginia, Maryland, New York and Pennsylvania. Her choral music and arrangements are published by Boosey and Hawkes and by the Roger Dean Publishing Company, a division of The Lorenz Corporation. |
Angela Kasper
|
Angela Kasper (Broeker) was recently hired at Western Washington University where she conducts four choirs and teaches undergraduate courses in choral methods. Before this appointment, she was Director of Choral Activities at the University of St. Thomas for 20 years during which time her choirs performed at national, regional, and state conventions of the American Choral Director's Association and toured extensively in Asia, Europe and South America.
In addition to her university responsibilities, Dr. Kasper presents for national, regional, and state conventions of the American Choral Directors Association, the National Association for Music Education, the Organization of American Kodály Educators, and the American Orff-Schulwerk Association. She serves as guest conductor for numerous honor choirs including the ACDA National Children’s Honor Choir in 2015, honor choirs at the Eastern, Southern, Southwest, North Central, Northwest and Central Division ACDA regional conferences, National Honor Choirs at numerous OAKE conferences, and all-state choirs in more than 35 states. International conducting engagements include honor choirs in Beijing, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Seoul, Qingdao, Nanjing, Guangzhou, Sao Paulo, Curitiba, and Dubai. |
stephen sieck
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Dr. Stephen Sieck serves as Co-Director of Choral Studies and Chair of the Voice Department at the Lawrence University Conservatory of Music in Appleton, WI, where he directs choirs and teaches conducting and choral rehearsal techniques. Steve also serves as the immediate-past-president of WCDA. He is the author of Teaching of Respect: Inclusive Pedagogy for Choral Directors (2017) and Rehearsing the Choir (2019). His recent presentations about inclusive pedagogy include: ACDA Central/North-Central Region (2020) and Northwest Region (2018), Wisconsin-ACDA keynote address (2019), and Iowa-ACDA summer symposium (2018).
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ROBERT T. GIBSON
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Houston native Robert T. Gibson is a conductor, educator, and clinician who desires to develop future music educators for the next generation. He has held middle school, high school, collegiate positions, and has served as guest clinician in Texas, Missouri, and Pennsylvania, Kansas, Tennessee, and New York. Robert currently resides in Springfield, MO where he is the director of choirs at Reed Middle School as well as adjunct professor at Missouri State University. Gibson received a Bachelor of Music Education from the University of North Texas and a Masters of Music at Missouri State University. He is a proud member of Phi Mu Alpha Fraternity as well as Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. Robert’s choral arrangements can be found through Walton Music and Alfred Publications.
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SHAWN FUNK
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Shawn Funk has been working with young voices for more than 30 years and recently retired from Fox Chapel School District after 32 years of service in public school music education. In addition to his teaching appointment there, he served as the district’s music department chair for 17 years. He has held adjunct professorships in music education and piano at Clarion University, Point Park University and Duquesne University, and he currently serves as a part-time faculty member at the Mary Pappert School of Music, Duquesne University. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in music education as piano and voice major and a Master of Music degree in piano performance.
In 2011, he received Pennsylvania Music Educators Association’s “Citation of Excellence Award” for his work in the area of music education. He has been a featured presenter at numerous national conferences of the American Orff Schulwerk Association, state, division, and national NAfME conferences, as well as state, division and national ACDA conferences. Currently, he serves as the Youth Choir R & R Coordinator for ACDA-PA, as well as Artistic Director for the Pittsburgh Youth Chorus since 2015. |