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FALL 2011 Vol. 32, No.2

In this Issue

See CAREER, pg. 10

Meeting the Challenge - The Creation of a Distinguished Career

Largely recognized for her work with treblevoices and the adolescent changing voice,Billie Hegge-DuVal is recognized for her con-

tributions to choral music in Kansas as the recipientof the 2011 Harry Robert Wilson Award. Ms.Hegge-DuVal influenced hundreds of singersthrough the Kansas Youth Choir and its precedentchoirs, the Kansas Boys Choir and Kansas GirlsChoir, but it was her dedication to meeting the needsof classroom students that developed the expertise toachieve the success enjoyed by the Youth Choir.

After graduating from Wichita State University in1970, Ms. Hegge-Duval began her teaching careerwith a K-12 position in the Sedgwick, KS school sys-tem. After four years at Sedgwick, an invitation toteach in the public schools of Kansas City providednot only a rich year’s experience, but also the connec-tions that led to her most important position: employ-ment within the Buhler school system, beginning in1975. Starting at Union Valley Grade School, andthen moving to the newly built Prairie Hills MiddleSchool east of Hutchinson in 1980, Ms. Hegge-DuVal began to develop the skills and ensembles thatwould bring her and her choristers recognitionthroughout the state and the nation.

The Choral Range plied Ms. Hegge-DuValwith questions, and learned that the desire tomeet needs, educate students, and provide life-changing experiences was at the heart of heraccomplished career.

CR What were your early experiences inmusic? Did these, or how did these, experiencespoint you toward a career as a music educator?

Meeting the Challenge .........................................1President’s Pen ......................................................2Editor’s Box............................................................3

Young Director’s Award........................................5Spinning Straw into Gold .................................. 6

KCDA All-State Women’s Choir ...................... 9ACDA Membership Form.................................19

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Volume 32 Number 2 The President’s Pen“We few, we happy few, we band of brothers.” –WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

“No man is an island.” – JOHN DONNE

“Shared joy is a double joy; shared sorrow is half asorrow” – SWEDISH PROVERB

The longer I direct choirs, and thelonger I live, the more convinced Iam of the fact that it’s all about rela-

tionships. This is not a new concept, but Iguess I’m a slow learner. An introvert bynature, I’ve never found it easy to build rela-tionships. But I’ve grown to understand thatthey are the key to success in just aboutevery area of life. When we take steps tomake our choir a community and a family,and when through our leadership our choirsbecome safe havens, we are meeting oneaspect of the human soul’s greatest need –the need for community.Most of us have experienced a new begin-

ning recently. Whether we direct choirs inschools, community groups, or houses ofworship, the end of summer and beginningof fall means a fresh start, and new faces inour choirs. Have you thought about how tobuild community and family in your choirsthis year? Of course, I feel like I’m “preach-ing to the choir” because I know many ofyou are better and more intentional aboutthis than I am, but I still feel compelled toemphasize the importance of this aspect. Aschoir directors, each of us has the potentialto be a minister in the sense that we care forpeople. Through music, and through com-munity, we have the tools to enrich singers’lives and teach them and ourselves how to bebetter people.To illustrate this facet, I’d like to share

about a wonderful community I recentlyexperienced. Although I sang in a barber-shop quartet in high school and for a shorttime when I was a graduate student, I’venever been an avid “barbershopper.” But thissummer, thanks to a generous scholarshipfrom the Capital City Chorus in Topeka, Ienjoyed an amazing week of singing and fel-lowshipping at the Barbershop HarmonySociety’s Harmony University, which takesplace in St. Joseph, Missouri each summer.This incredible week was full of pleasant

surprises. The firstsurprise had to dowith vocal tech-nique. The oldstereotypical paint-peeling, vain-pop-ping barbershopvocal productionwas nowhere to befound. I took a classcalled AdvancedVocal Technique with Darin Drown, thebaritone of the 2010 InternationalChampionship quartet, Storm Front. Darin, ahigh school choral director in the Denver,Colorado area, taught nothing more or lessthan classic bel canto technique in his class,and the diehard barbershoppers loved it. Iheard beautiful and healthy singing all weekfrom some extremely talented and well-trained singers.The second surprise was that the average

attendee at this conference had an astonish-ing grasp of ear training and functionalmusic theory. I’d always known that barber-shop singing was a completely a cappella art,but seeing the fruit of it still surprised me.These singers—guys and girls—stood aroundin clusters and taught each other new tags ina minute or two. For the uninitiated, a tag isthe last few bars of a barbershop song. Toteach a tag to a quartet, one singer willquickly sing each part a few times to each ofthe other singers, and then they’ll sing ittogether, striving for that coveted barber-shop ring that happens when the chords areprecisely in tune. What amazed me in thisprocess was how quickly the teachers andsingers could communicate and learn theseshort pieces, usually with no printed music infront of them. It was not unusual to seesomeone singing their own line while simul-taneously using hand signs, solfège, or num-bers to remind one or two of the othersingers of their lines. Also, many of thesesingers are always aware of which part of thechord they are singing at any given time.This enabled them to sing their note slightlyhigher or lower than equal temperamentwhen necessary in order to make the chordsring absolutely true. All of this sometimes

Choral Range is a twice-yearlypublication of the KansasChoral DirectorsAssociation, a not-for-profit professional organi-zation affiliated with theAmerican ChoralDirectors Association.

Reach us at:www.kansaschoral.com

PresidentDr. David [email protected]

President ElectLaura [email protected]

Vice PresidentGreg [email protected]@buhlerschools.org

SecretaryBecky [email protected]

TreasurerSteve [email protected]

Music IndustryRepresentativeKrista [email protected]

Newsletter EditorDr. Brad [email protected]

Newsletter AdvertisingManagerExhibitorFacilitator/ContactGretchen [email protected] [email protected]

See PRESIDENT, pg. 3

It is often suggested that the six most accurate words in theEnglish language are “It wasn’t funny at the time.” In some events,that statement becomes true the momentthe unfunny ends; other times it may takeyears. Perhaps decades . . .

A corollary to that statement may be“It wasn’t useful at the time” – or at least wedidn’t think it would be. But if you stop toconsider what you know today, how muchof it is attributable to a challenge or even amistake? For me, I can honestly say thatalmost everything I know about goodplumbing is a result of bad plumbing . . .and bad plumbing work . . . by me. I’vegone to telling my students to not be dis-couraged by a challenge or difficulty, but torather approach it as an opportunity to learnsomething new. In the final analysis, it’s very difficult to acquire anew or better skill without having to need a new or better skill –just as stress makes steel and the heart stronger, so challenge cre-ates and strengthens our skills.

The recurring motif throughout this edition of the ChoralRange is how difficulty, challenge, or what appears to be an unfor-tunate situation actually turned out to be a good situation: a pro-gram was strengthened; a teacher was strengthened; new talent wasdiscovered. In the case of our 2011 Harry Robert Wilson Awardwinner, Billie Hegge-DuVal, the challenge to meet the needs ofher positions essentially created a teacher – and created a good one!

Perhaps we ought to adopt as mantra the words of 19th-cen-tury philosopher William James: “Need and struggle are whatexcite and inspire us.” So run to the challenge, and embrace thedifficult; you might really appreciate what you find at the end of thejourney.

KCDA BOARD MEMBERS 2011-2012

Membership ChairAngela [email protected]

WebmasterDustin [email protected]

KMEA State ChoralChairDwayne [email protected]

Repertoire & StandardsRepresentatives

Children’s Choirs(co-representatives)Jason [email protected]

Christine [email protected] [email protected]

Ethnic/MulticulturalPerspectivesHilary [email protected]

Junior High/MiddleSchoolElise [email protected]

Women’s Choirs(co-representatives)Cindy [email protected]@usd376.com

Janie [email protected]@gmail.com

Youth and StudentActivitiesDr. Tom [email protected]

Music and WorshipKevin [email protected]

College and UniversityChoirsDr. Mark [email protected]

Senior High ChoirsMelissa [email protected]

Two-Year CollegeChoirsJodi Frisbie [email protected] (h)[email protected] (w)

Community Choirs(currently vacant)

Jazz and Show ChoirsSusan [email protected]

DistrictRepresentatives

NW DistrictRepresentativeTamra [email protected]@usd211.org

NC DistrictRepresentativeJosh [email protected]@gmail.com

NE DistrictRepresentativeJason [email protected]

SW DistrictRepresentativeJane [email protected]@gckschools.com

SC DistrictRepresentativeClark [email protected]

SE DistrictRepresentativeSusan Laushman [email protected]

Choral Range n

The Editor’s Box

took place in a crowded cafeteria with as many as six or seven dif-ferent groups singing different tags in different keys at the sametime, so it took a lot of concentration!I began this article talking about community, and my experi-

ence at Harmony University was a beautiful illustration of itsimportance. I came to Harmony U as a stranger – I didn’t know asingle person there. When I left I had new friends from all overthe United States, as well as from Canada, Germany, NewZealand, and Australia. Many of the people I met had very littlein common with me – we came from different cultures, educa-tional backgrounds, and career fields, but they all went out oftheir way to welcome this music educator, and to gently teach methe ropes. It was a great lesson in how singing and learningtogether brings people together, and it made me want to go backevery year.Well, the free ice cream 24 hours a day didn’t hurt, either.

David Gardner, President

PRESIDENT, from page 2

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SELECTIONLarge inventory to provide quick service. Carefully

selected to provide the best quality. Designed to save you time in selection and delivery.

EXPERIENCEStaff with creativity, sensitivity and experience to

anticipate your needs and provide effective solutions.

COMMITMENTTo consistently provide the highest level

of professional service.

Krista HartChoral Music Manager7 years, Senseney Music4 years, Music Educator

Vern ZielkeChoral Music21 years, Senseney Music30 years, Music Educator

2300 E. Lincoln,Wichita, KS 67211 1-800-362-1060 316-262-1487 Email: [email protected]

ANNOUNCINGSACRED CHORAL READING SESSION

Saturday, January 7, 20119:00 am - 12:30 pm (8:30 am coffee & donuts)

We will be reading new choral music from a variety of publishers for Lent, Palm Sunday, Easter and Pentecost, as well as general anthems.

Registration Before December 30 - $18.00 After December 30 - $20.00

To Pre-RegisterCall 1-800-362-1060 Online at www.senseneymusic.com

Choral Range n

Alex Underwood, vocal music instructorat Russell Middle and High Schools, washonored at the 2011 KCDA Summer

Convention as the recipient of the KCDAYoung Director Award.

In just three years, Mr. Underwood hastransformed the Russell choral program into aprogram recognized for its quality performanceand literature, as well as the rate at which itsindividual students achieve success. Of the 80singers involved in the program during the2010-2011 school year, 31 were accepted intothe KMEA District Honor Choir, four wereaccepted to the State Festival Choir, and anadditional two were alternates.

A Russell native, Mr. Underwood receivedthe Bachelor of Music Education degree atSterling College, and then returned to hishome town to begin his teaching career. In2010 he received the Kansas Horizon Awardfrom the Kansas Department of Education, inrecognition of his teaching skills.

In response to being selected the KCDAaward, Mr. Underwood replied, “I feel incredi-

bly honored toreceive thisaward. I havemuch respect forKCDA and howour colleaguesget along andhelp one anotherfor the advance-ment of singingand music in thestate. I look up toso many of thee x p e r i e n c e dmembers of theorganiza t ion ,and hope to con-tinue to follow in their footsteps.” With achuckle, he continued, “I am grateful to KCDAfor the award and the sweet new plaque I get tohang in my office!”

Congratulations, Mr. Underwood, for yourselection as the 2011 KCDA Young DirectorAward.

Alex Underwood Honored as 2011 KCDA Young Director Award Recipient

Y O U N G D I R E C T O R A W A R D

T

The Kansas Choral Directors Association (KCDA)Young Director Award is given to a deservingchoral director who has completed no more thanfive years of directing. Candidates for this awardshould exhibit characteristics of master conductorsand have demonstrable influence on their choir(s),shown by quality of literature and performance,size and growth of the choral program, andachievement at festivals and performances.Candidates may be nominated by their peers or byan administrator. Nominations are to be submitted

by letter or e-mail to the KCDA president, outlin-ing the nominee’s accomplishments. The awardrecipient will be selected by the KCDA board ofdirectors. Submissions are due by May 1 of eachcalendar year; the award will be presented at theKCDA Summer Convention. Submissions for the2012 KCDA Young Director Award should be sentto: Dr. David Gardner, KCDA President, 501 E.11th Avenue, Winfield, KS 67156; or by e-mail [email protected].

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Spinning Straw into Gold

Janie Brokenicky, Riley County High SchoolCo-chair for Women’s Choirs

Once upon a time (that time being 4years ago), I had “that girl” in my ensem-ble, a sophomore. One of those kids whowalked around with an ingrained chip onher shoulder. The one that makes youwonder why she keeps enrolling, whenthe idea of opening her mouth and actual-ly trying seems foreign. You start to won-

der if she chooses to not open her mouth, or if the lip-ringprevents it from being possible. Yet, for the next two yearsSarah’s name (not her real name) kept showing up on myconcert choir roster, an un-auditioned mixed ensemble.

Then her senior year rolled around, and much to mychagrin, I found her name on my roster for Rhythm n’Blue, an auditioned jazz group. I made my way down tothe counselor’s office to propose a change in schedule.However, I was told that there was no other class for herduring that hour, and that she was already an aide the fol-lowing block. Defeated, I walked back to my classroomassuming that this was going to ruin my otherwise-strongensemble.

One of the requirements for being in the ensemblewas that each student must prepare a solo to perform atleague contest. I met with each singer individually to dis-cuss options, but nothing that I played sparked her inter-est (I had already explained that Kelly Clarkson is not anoption). But then Sebben crudele caught her ear when I sangit for someone else, and she asked if she could try it.Skeptical, I said, “Sure.” And that is when my jawdropped: out came this crystal-clear, Enya quality voicethat floated through the air like a bird.

At the end of the year, Sarah performed a solo for thespring concert. She surprised everyone in the audience,including her parents. Her sound brought tears to my eyes– but not as many as the email I received from her mom

the following week. She thanked me for giving her daugh-ter the opportunity, but more importantly for raising herlow self-esteem.

Sarah went on to sing in choir at the community col-lege she attended the following year. It is the Sarah’s thatkeep me teaching.

Jodi Frisbee, Dodge City Community CollegeR&S Chair for Two-Year Colleges

My first job was a 6-12 vocal/choralposition. One of the classes was the 7/8thgrade chorus, which met during the finalperiod of every day. During my first yearI really struggled with keeping the stu-dents on task - there was always a lot oftalking at the end of the day andoften high amounts of energy because of

a game, a dance, or a social event coming up. It reallythrew me for a loop as a young 23 year old teacher, andmany hours were spent with colleagues and friends dis-cussing what I could do.

About half way through my 2nd year of teaching, aformer teacher said something off-handed that was exact-ly what I needed to hear: “Wow, Jodi, they sound just likeyou when you were in Jr. High. We could never get you tostop talking about anything and everything!” That wasmy “light bulb” moment: these weren’t students talkingout of turn and misbehaving according to my teacherinstincts – they were just young teenagers talking aboutwhat young teens talk about. Many of them had not seeneach other all day, and this was their time to catch up. Itsounded very familiar to me from my own pre-teen years.

So, I devised a plan to give them 60 seconds after thebell rang to get everything out about their day, get theirfolders, and get to their seats. After a week of this new“daily recap” minute, I couldn’t believe how well it worked

It is said that every cloud has a silver lining, and if that is indeed true, we should look forward to cloudy days. In this issue,KCDA board members were asked to share an experience in which what seemed to be a difficult and challenging situation– and even a no-win situation – turned out to be an experience that improved them as a teacher and/or benefitted the stu-

dents under their care.

Choral Range n

and how quickly they got to the choir task at hand. And,to top it all off, from that time on, I really started lookingforward to the end of my day and the amazing energy thestudents brought to the rehearsal. I’m sure that many ofmy former teachers would have never guessed that all ofmy talking in class would eventually teach me a very valu-able lesson as a teacher myself!

Steve Miller, Hesston High SchoolKCDA Treasurer

As my wife and I were beginning oursecond teaching positions, we were veryexcited. The facilities at our new locationwere beautiful, and we had been veryimpressed with the administration dur-ing our interviews. We approached ourjobs with all the enthusiasm and positiveoutlook that young teachers have.

Then reality reared its ugly head. The choral skills ofthe students were not of the highest caliber, I had a lot ofwork ahead of me. The exciting Knut Nystedt 6-part acappella song that I had selected at the summer readingsession was NOT going to work. I would be doing well ifwe would be able to sing anything a cappella at all. It is notfun going to contest knowing that you are not going to dowell.

The discipline in the school was also sadly lacking.Students were often disrespectful and poorly mannered.When classes decorated their hallways at homecoming,the decorations would be torn down by others by the nextday. Teachers were told to park in the lot in front of theschool to help prevent their car tires from getting slashedor their paint job scratched.

We spent four years at that school. Gradually, thechoirs improved – not to any level of excellence, but towhere they at least sounded respectable. Through adver-sity we became tougher and more creative. As my wifesays, “That is where we learned how to teach.” It also gaveus a tremendous appreciation for better situations we haveexperienced since then.

But the most positive aspect of those years was therelationships we developed with students. We have greatstories of students – both good and bad – that we have toldmany times. One story is about Terry Reed, a “good ol’

country boy.” I don’t know what kind of home life he had,since I never met his parents. Often I would ask him whyhe looked so tired, and he would reply, “Mr. Miller, I spentthe whole night coon hunting and only got two hours ofsleep in my pickup before I had to come to school.” ButTerry loved music. He would often walk around singingthe opening tenor line of Palestrina’s Sicut cervus in hisnasal country twang.

After high school Terry became a truck driver, and Ididn’t hear from him for nearly 25 years. Having returnedto his home town for a high school reunion, he visitedwith some fellow classmates about how much they hadenjoyed choir. He wanted to give me a call and wonderedif anyone knew where we lived. He was able to track usdown and called one evening. We had a great time visit-ing, and I asked him what he was doing. He said he was apartner in a construction company that served a multistatearea in the south. But the job he enjoyed the most wasdriving bus for a company out of Nashville that providedtransportation for touring musicians. He had been drivingfor the Jonas Brothers the week before, had breakfast withKid Rock that morning, and next week he was headed outto New York because he was driving Paul McCartney onhis USA tour.

Susan Lauschman, Pittsburg High SchoolKCDA Southeast Kansas District Representative

At Pittsburg High School, sopho-mores are required to take a class calledFocus. It is a career based exploratorycurriculum that allows them to beginthinking about the future. Unfortunately,the fine arts and FACS teachers are askedto teach this class as part of their teachingload. For the first quarter of the first year

of doing this, I griped and moaned about teaching some-thing unrelated to my discipline. I went as far as calculat-ing the number of hours that I was unable to go over tothe middle school to assist the vocal program, and insteadwas expected to teach this class. Well …

One day in Focus class, out of the blue, one of thebiggest, burliest, and most popular of our football players

See GOLD, pg. 17

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MS/JH National Conference for Choral Music

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Interest Sessions • Panel Discussions

• Tone Development

• Participant Involvement

• Classroom Management

• Sightreading and Literacy

• Physiology and Psychology

• Interactive Classroom Strategies

Judy Bowers

Margie Camp

Rollo Dilworth

Patrick Freer

Kari Gilbertson

Gretchen Harrison

Alan McClung

Mary Jane Phillips

Rebecca Reames

…. and more!

Cambiata Composition Initiative:

David Childs and Laura Farnell

Research Roundtable and Poster Session

hosted by Judy Bowers and Jessica Napoles Submission deadline: 12/1/11

Pre-Registration Deadline: January 30, 2012 Hotel Accommodations: SWACDA Headquarter Hotel – Sheraton Dallas 1-888-627-8191 Deadline: January 30, 2012 Contact Resources: Email: [email protected] Site: www.music.unt.edu/cambiata SWACDA Site: www.swacda.org

Authentic Middle Level Choral Performances and Demonstration Choirs

• Hernando MS • Briarhill MS • Arbor Creek MS

Treble Choirs

Mixed Choirs

Cambiata Boys

• Parkhill JH • BlalackMS • Rice MS

• Loiederman MS • Young JH • Beckendorff JH

• Greiner Academy

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Choral Range n

KCDA All-State Womens Choir

It truly was a “Choral Music Experience” forthe young women singers in the 2011 KCDAWomen’s Summer Honor Choir. Guest con-

ductor Dr. Doreen Rao, founder of the CMEInstitute for Teacher Education and truly one ofthe finest international teachers of choral singing,brought her passion and energy to every rehears-al. A great teacher of text and music history, Dr.Rao led the young women in bringing to life greatchoral music from the classical period throughcontemporary periods. Choral directors whoattended rehearsals benefited from the experienceas well, receiving lessons in score study.

The 2012 Women’s Honor Choir will featureKristina Caswell MacMullen, Visiting AssistantProfessor of Choral Studies at The Ohio StateUniversity, where she conducts the symphonicchoir and teaches choral pedagogy to undergrad-uate and graduate students. Professor Caswell-MacMullen is gaining a national reputation as aconductor following appearances at the MichiganAll-State Women’s Honor Chorus in 2011 andthe Michigan Regional Mixed Chorus in 2010.Most recently she was runner-up in 2011 in thegraduate-level conducting competition forACDA. In 2008 her choirs were featured onSandra Snow’s rehearsal strategy video, “ChoralConducting/Teaching”, published by GIA.

We would love to receive audition CDs fromyour singers! Use the audition Alleluia as part ofyour daily-warm-up so the students will be famil-iar with it when they record the CD. Thewomen’s choir will rehearse during the summerconference in Topeka on July 12-14, 2012, per-forming the concert the evening of the 13th atGrace Episcopal Cathedral. Recorded auditionsconsist of (1) the unaccompanied Alleluia; and (2)two unaccompanied major scales on the syllable,“loo” the first beginning at the middle of thesinger’s range and proceeding to her lowest accu-rate note, and the second from the middle of thesinger’s range and proceeding to her highest accu-rate note.

The application and the Alleluia may bedownloaded from the KCDA website(www.kansaschoral.com). Audition tapes andCD’s may be brought to the KCDA booth duringthe KMEA In-service Workshop in February. Ifyou are submitting auditions by mail, applicationsand tapes/CDs must be postmarked by March 9,2012. Those selected for the choir will receive themusic in mid-Spring so that they may beginlearning the music prior to the end of the schoolyear.

We look forward to hearing your girls!

“It’s great working with girls that have the same passion as you do and who are really high caliber singers.”~ Molly Foster, 3-year member of the KCDA Women’s Honor Choir, Sterling High School.

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BHD Like most music educators, I’ve lovedmusic for as long as I can remember. I began pianoat a very early age and sang all the time. Our fami-ly sang in the car, on camping trips, and in churchchoirs but music education became a real priority tome as a third grader when we moved to Wichita.The Wichita Public Schools were just on thethreshold of beginning a very intense approach tomusic education in the schools. By the time I was infourth grade at Stearman Elementary, we had amusic specialist come to our classroom about twicea month; luckily for me, this was Betty Welsbacher.By fifth and sixth grade, we had music about once aweek and my teacher was Betty Partridge (we’restill very close friends and she sings in SymphonyChorus with me.) I loved those thirty minutes ofsinging, and watched with great interest how shetaught us to read notes, rhythms, and listening toone another. I loved singing parts and suppose I wasgood enough at it that Mrs. Partridge chose me tosing in the All-City Sixth Grade Honor Choirunder the direction of Harold Decker. That namedidn’t mean anything to me at the time, but the joyof that performance was unforgettable (I still havethe vinyl recording of that performance!). CurtisJunior High was absolute heaven for me—choirthree days a week and many opportunities for extra-curricular ensembles and vocal solos. My choraldirector in seventh and ninth grade was Ruth AnnPyle who really piqued my interest because she wasa woman conducting choral music. Our Girls GleeClub was chosen in the ninth grade to sing atKMEA, and performed Britten’s A Ceremony ofCarols. That was the first of many times for me toeither perform or conduct at KMEA, ACDA orMENC.

If Curtis Junior High School was heaven forme, I don’t know the term I would use for my expe-rience at Wichita Southeast High School. Becauseof an accelerated learning program I was enrolled inat Curtis, most of my required subjects were com-plete and I could take several hours of music andforeign language. The choral conductor my sopho-

more year was James Hershberger, a master at vocalproduction and technique. To sing in a mixed choirdaily was pure delight for me. We were all very dis-appointed when he said he’d be leaving, but thatdisappointment was short-lived when we met hisreplacement, Vernon Nicholson. He introducedthe Choraleers and Madrigals to wonderful stan-dard literature and prepared us to perform at con-sistently superior levels. During a rehearsal in myjunior year, he needed to take a phone call andturned the rehearsal over to me. Needless to say,that was it for me: I loved conducting the choir.

I had already begun taking voice lessons atWichita State University from Inez Jamison while Iwas in high school, so it was just a natural transitionfor me to continue my pursuit of music educationin my home town. Besides the privilege of studyingin Inez’ studio, perhaps the person who made thebiggest impression on me was Dr. EuniceBoardman. She not only had written all the text-books used for music classes in Kansas, but was alsoa master in planning sequential, meaningful lessonswith measurable goals and expectations. Even up tomy last day of teaching, I never taught without alesson plan—I could have, but I didn’t dare! As asenior at WSU, I student taught under Ross Hearnat Derby High School. My mother was head of theEnglish Department at Derby, so we could ridetogether and share stories of our day.

These educators, in addition to many mentorsand friends, supported my passion for music and forteaching music. Following these educational expe-riences, I was able to go out into the field with con-fidence and a curiosity for what would lie ahead. Ican’t imagine doing anything else and am gratefulfor the many wonderful experiences the music pro-fession afforded me.

CR What surprised you—pleasantly orunpleasantly!—during your first years of teaching,and how did you adjust?BHD First of all, I had a wonderful first teachingposition. I was in a small community where I was

CAREER, from page 1

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responsible for K-12 Vocal Music. You realized in avery short time if you didn’t do your job in fourth,sixth or eighth grade, you weren’t going to havemuch of a high school choir! Probably the experi-ence at this school that saved my life during thosefirst four years was the camaraderie amongst thefaculty who were mostly young, married couples,struggling to do all the right things in their youngcareers. In spite of Dr. Boardman’s expert trainingin writing lesson plans, twenty minutes for firstgraders, forty minutes for fourth graders and fifty-five minutes for high school choir seemed inter-minably LONG! I worked so many hours on week-ends to make adjustments to my use of time and bythe time I retired for the third time in 2008, I neverknew where the time went and could have alwaysused more! Of the 125 students in the high school,105 were in choir—and nine of them joined me inperformance with the Kansas Ambassadors ofMusic annual European performing tour under thedirection of Vernon Nicholson.

It was during these first four years that Ibecame a member of KMEA. I looked forward eachyear to the annual February Convention (as it wascalled in those days) so I could hear exemplary per-forming groups, read new repertoire and attendsessions that might help my growth as a music edu-cator and conductor. Through the KMEA networkand under the mentorship of Mildred Fulhage andJohn Albertson, I accepted a position teaching ele-mentary vocal music from 1974-1975 in KansasCity. The urban setting was a stark contrast to myfirst rural teaching experience and I was glad I was-n’t totally a novice. Mildred Fulhage’s job as musicsupervisor was to visit our classrooms unannouncedand advise, make suggestions or simply encourageyou to “carry on.” Since I sang in John Albertson’schoir and directed the children’s choir at his church,it was he who suggested I look into the Buhler jobafter only being in Kansas City one year. That waslife changing for me as Buhler (and the Hutchinsonarea) was just a blank canvas waiting for somethingor someone to come in and develop the potential,and this was music to my ears.

From 1975-1980, I was the director of vocalmusic at Union Valley Grade School, which includ-ed grades K-4 general music and one seventh andone eighth grade choir. The second year I was inthe Buhler district, the Union Valley Eighth GradeChorus was chosen to sing at KMEA. In 1980, Imoved to Buhler’s newly constructed Prairie HillsMiddle School. In keeping with middle school phi-losophy, all students at Prairie Hills enrolled invocal music in both seventh and eighth grade. Thecurriculum consisted of four sections of chorus andtwo sections of general music. There was really nocurriculum in existence for either the choir or gen-eral music, so many hours were spent developing asequential general music curriculum and choirrehearsals appropriate in pace, vocal skills andrepertoire for the adolescent voice. Although thechoirs at Prairie Hills were non-select, they, alongwith a Girls’ Ensemble, were chosen for numerousappearances at KMEA In-Service Workshops.Probably no organization helped me more in dis-covering repertoire for the children’s choir and theadolescent choir than ACDA. Our summer stateconventions and the national conventions openedmy eyes to some of the most useful techniques andrepertoire as well as sharing of ideas with some ofthe leading conductors in the nation.

While teaching in Buhler and living inHutchinson, I spent my summers completing theMaster in Music Education at WSU. It was duringthis time that I studied and adapted an interdiscipli-nary approach to rehearsals and general music les-sons. Through an awareness of the integratedapproach to instruction, the choral director has theopportunity to guide students in the discovery ofthe connections across content areas.Interdisciplinary teaching needs to begin with thechoral director’s initial presentation of a composi-tion. To engage students in disciplined musicalstudy in which the musical outcome will be artistic,every composition must be explored in a variety ofways. The interdisciplinary approach is not, in myopinion, an “exploratory frill,” but rather anapproach in which students not only develop skills

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but discover the music’s structure, form, and feel-ing. Through an interdisciplinary study of a com-position, the choral singer becomes an owner of theart. Integrated curriculum, interdisciplinary units,and knowing the needs of each child all require anincredible amount of preparation; but, preparationtime saves the teacher and the student incalculabletime throughout the school year. The daily 42minute (in my case) rehearsal may resemble a “per-formance” as the conductor strives to present mate-rial in an animated and enthusiastic manner, utiliz-ing samples of art work, history, recordings and rel-evant warm-ups to the repertoire being presented.As music educators, we do all of this and muchmore to make every rehearsal so interesting that thestudent wants to develop the singing voice, studyquality repertoire, perform expressively, and discov-er and understand a wide variety of musical styles.

CR Talk about the formation of the KansasYouth Choir. In addition to its inception, whatlong-range effects did you see it to have for bothyou and your singers?BHD In 1983, The Reno Choral Society inHutchinson, Kansas, asked that I form a boy choirto perform the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carolstraditionally heard at Cambridge, England, eachyear on Christmas Eve. Based on recommendationsfrom area music teachers and church choir conduc-tors, the initial year of the Kansas Boys Choir per-formed the Festival with 160 male treble voices andmembers of the Reno Choral Society.

In 1984 we began auditioning boys for theKansas Boys Choir. We generally selected 70-90boys ranging from fourth to eighth grade (or aslong as the boy could still sing in his treble voice—when we went to Carnegie Hall, I had some boys inthat choir who were juniors in high school.) TheKansas Boys Choir began taking annual tours inJune each year, balancing the tour with perform-ances in churches, concert halls, or festivals, andattending ball games, art museums, amusementparks, or any other regional point of interest.

In 1990, I was invited to audition to do my doc-torate at University of Indiana, Bloomington, to

study with Dr. Mary Goetze. This was one of thefew programs in the nation to recognize a doctor-ate in choral conducting of children’s/youth litera-ture. I was accepted, but when I interviewed someof the recent graduates and learned about the col-lege positions and salaries they were going toaccept, I declined, returned to Buhler, and startedthe Kansas Girls Choir. Auditions were open togirls from 5th to 12th grade, and we typicallyaccepted 80-100 each year. The Girls Choir alsowent on tour each summer, making for a busy Junefor conductor and accompanists!

In 1994 we combined The Kansas Boys Choirand The Kansas Girls Choir as the Kansas YouthChoir. The reason the board and I chose to do thiswas that we were selected to sing at Carnegie Hallin May of 1995 and I did not want to choosebetween the girls or the boys to go to New York.We really had to focus on our fund-raising andactivity planning and knew it would take a very sin-gularly focused effort. We traveled to New Yorkwith 125 choristers and fifty-five adults, and per-formed a 25-minute solo performance one day, andthen a combined performance with the HoustonChildren’s Choir the next, with guest conductorJean Ashworth-Bartle. A line of Shakespeare fromA Midsummer Night’s Dream kept going throughmy head:

First, rehearse your song by rote, To each work a warbling note.Hand in hand, with such grace,Will we sing and bless this place.

Those 25 minutes had to have been the quick-est 25 minutes of my life, and the members of theKansas Youth Choir were responsible for makingthem the most beautiful of my musical life. It was sorewarding to see the culmination of so manyrehearsals, so many hours of planning, so manyfund-raisers … but more than anything, witnessing125 young choristers give everything they had,remembering all the nuances and details that mustcome together for a truly great performance.

The group remained as the Kansas Youth

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Choir through my retirement from the choir in2001. From 2002-2006, Lisa Fairbairn directed thechoir but because of severely declining numbers,the board determined it was best to make that itsfinal year. The Kansas Youth Choir honored mywork as it performed the final concert in May 2006.

When this whole adventure began, I had noidea the long range effects or even the possibilitiesof where we might end up. I was just blessed to haveso many committed singers and parents that it con-tinued to grow each year in scope, purpose, reper-toire and tours. Once again, I learned from myKansas colleagues and from attendance at ACDAconventions. The directors of children/youthchoirs in Kansas (Mary Lou Martin, Walnut ValleyYouth Choir; Norma Preheim, Newton Children’sChoir; Marilyn Killian, Wichita Children’s Choir;Janeal Krehbiel, Lawrence Children’s Choir; andlater, Christy Elsner, Allegro Children’s Chorus)were all extremely supportive of one another bysharing ideas, and repertoire, as well as combiningfor festivals. It was a wonderful network.

CR Did you see the field of music educationchange throughout your career? What might begood, what might be bad?BHD The most drastic change I have seen sincestarting my teaching career in 1970 is the varietyand excellence of literature in my particular area ofinterest. God bless Joyce Eilers’ and RogerEmerson’s hearts, but their arrangements didn’tquite provide for the clear, free treble tone of chil-dren, or the range of the adolescent middle schoolchoirs. When I heard the Toronto Children’s Choirfor the first time in San Antonio in 1987, I knewthis was the choir that would demonstrate to theAmerican Choral Director’s Association the artisticcapabilities of children. Since that time, I had thedistinct privilege of hearing Jean Ashworth-Bartle’schoir on several occasions and attending workshopsunder her direction. I have shared her recordingswith many colleagues in Kansas and the SouthwestDivision of ACDA, but more importantly with mystudents as a model for fine singing and standards inrepertoire. As conductors of children/youth choirs,

we also have wonderful choral series from DoreenRao, Henry Leck, James Litton, Moses Hogan (ifyou have the divisi!), Mary Goetze, John Rutter,Robert Harris and Anton Armstrong. These choralseries have provided us with variety of style,rhythms, language and culture.

Perhaps the second great change since I havebeen teaching is the number of woman conductorsat all levels of choral music. When I graduated fromcollege in 1970, it was difficult for women to findtheir way into junior high/middle school and highschool positions. When I attend ACDA conven-tions and reading sessions, I am thrilled to see thenumber of women in our profession.

It has been an inspiration for me to see thegrowth of Kansas ACDA. We must all work togeth-er and help one another, especially the new, youngconductors, by giving encouragement and mentor-ing help when asked. The leadership in our KCDAthese past few years has been tremendous in build-ing membership and providing meaningful andhelpful workshops, reading sessions, and concertpossibilities. I have served on many boards for bothKMEA and ACDA and know the time and com-mitment it takes, and as I now sit back and observeI am very appreciative of those who are now takingthe leadership reigns and serving quite capably.

CR With your experience, what would do youthink are important facets of music education,important skills for a choral music educator to pos-sess, or particular pitfalls to avoid?BHD

“It is difficult to imagine a future for thiscountry and for the world as a whole unless

social, cultural, and religious differencesamong people can be respected and we can learn from each other’s accomplishments

as well as each other’s mistakes.”Anthony Seeger (Celebrating the

American Music Mosaic MEJ 1992)Zoltan Kodaly felt there was a close relation-

ship between the music of the people and the musicof great composers. He believed that a love for themasterworks could be cultivated through knowl-

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edge of and love for folk music. Geographical andcultural understandings are effectively exploredthrough interdisciplinary units. Folk songs, taughtin the vernacular, are accessible as early as firstgrade. Simple foreign rounds and canons, in nativelanguage, provide excellent resources for warm-upin preparing a larger work in that same language.Kodaly’s conception of music was as a basic aca-demic subject equal in importance to language,mathematics, and the social sciences. Although hebelieved deeply in the emotional values of music,Kodaly felt it imperative that love of music be sup-ported by knowledge about music. Keeping inmind the premise of approaching the rehearsalthrough an interdisciplinary study of a composi-tion, the arts have a great opportunity for positivevisibility. Through continual music training, net-working with colleagues, and curriculum structuredto meet the unique needs and behaviors of students,the choral conductor has limitless possibilities fornurturing artistic growth in every child.

As music educators we have both the challengeand the obligation to guide “ordinary kids” toaccomplish “extraordinary things.” Never shouldthe quality of literature, level of performance, orexpectation of individual potential be sacrificed. Aneducator first and foremost must be physically andmentally strong. Since my extra-curricular choirvery fortunately was allowed to rehearse at myschool, it was not unusual for me to spend severalfourteen-hour days each week in the choir room.To be able to continually be effective throughouteach rehearsal and general music class, preciseplanning was a must. Fortunately, I’ve always had astrong organizational mind which really kept me ontrack and made efficient use of the students’ time.Communication, not only in the rehearsal, but withparents, other faculty members, administration andaccompanists is of paramount importance.

Perhaps one of the most helpful pieces ofadvice I received from a few mentors early in mycareer was to become involved in directing festivalmass choirs and adjudicating music festivals. Bothof these experiences taught me to evaluate a per-formance very quickly and verbalize either the pos-

itive things or make suggestions for change on thespot and under pressure. After many experiences atboth conducting festival choirs and adjudicatingcontest, I experienced more effective skills inrehearsals with my own choirs, and an improve-ment in my verbalizing or demonstrating alterna-tive interpretations of a passage in the music. Inrecent years, I have to admit being a bit intimidat-ed by the new rubric used by KSHSAA, but I’vegrown much more comfortable with it, and as longas there remains a place on the adjudication sheetfor written comments, I will continue to enjoy mybusy judging schedule from early March to lateApril.

With the exception of Kansas City and Maize,my teaching experience has been in relatively smallschool districts. The biggest “pitfall” in districts likeBuhler is to forget that you’re not “the only gig intown.” My choir students were always involved insports, drama, forensics, art, school government,and church activities. Most difficult was schedulingensemble practices or vocal solo lessons, but Ilearned to strike a happy medium and wait forwhen the student was available. I had a high schoolgolfer who studied voice with me from the time hewas eleven years old. He sang solos at contest everyyear and was in KMEA State Choir multiple years.He would call me from the golf course and say “It’sgoing to be at least another hour” – but he nevermissed a lesson. In a small district, you make thesecompromises.

CR What is your response to being the recipi-ent of this year’s HRW Award?BHD When Greg Bontrager called me in Aprilto tell me I was to be the recipient of the HarryRobert Wilson Award, I was extremely surprisedbecause I was not actively teaching or conducting.But, as I looked at the list of the other recipients, Ifound that I personally knew all but one of them asa colleague, mentor, teacher or friend. Knowingthe integrity of their work and the respect theyhave earned from members of KCDA, I am sohonored to be among those receiving this distinc-tion.

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The Harry Robert Wilson Award is presented annu-ally to a Kansas choral director who has demon-strated a high level of commitment and contribu-tion to the choral art in Kansas. Candidates arenominated by their peers, and may be submitted byletter or e-mail to the KCDA Past-President. Thenomination should include the nominee’s places ofemployment and a short statement outlining

achievements and influences. Submissions are dueby May 1 of each calendar year; the award will bepresented at the KCDA Summer Convention.Submissions for the 2012 Harry Robert WilsonAward should be sent to: Greg Bontrager, KCDAPast President, 313 Campus Court, North Newton,KS 67117; or by e-mail to [email protected].

HARRY ROBERT WILSON AWARD

T

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asked if we could play “name that tune” duringFocus (keep in mind that I hold class in the vocalmusic room). I thought he truly wanted me to get offtask from the lesson, and somehow make fun of themusic program. To my GREAT surprise, for everyshow tune that I played, this young man knew everylyric, and burst out in song to continue singing forthe entire class. It was a magical moment. I con-vinced him to audition for the musical that winter, aswe were producing Seussical. He was perhaps thebest Horton the Elephant we could have had.Because of his participation, the majority of the ath-letic program – coaches, and players – were in atten-dance at the sold out performances. It was the begin-ning of a great transformation of our departmentthat is now respected throughout the building. Ihave since found a few more “vocal gems” within anon-vocal class that I still teach at Pittsburg HighSchool.

Clark Comley, Sterling High SchoolKCDA Southcentral Kansas DistrictRepresentative

I really don’t ever get toowound up, but something usuallyhappens in the spring that upsetsme. Usually it is a scheduling issue –as when choir was scheduled duringlast hour of the day, or recent dis-cussions about moving to a blockschedule. But one thing I have

learned through the years is that most of the stuffthat I worry about really doesn’t matter that much.My choir’s quality and ability to sing well reallydepends on me and my teaching more than anyschedule or rehearsal time. Within each schedule Ihave worked with there have been positive thingsthat have happened as a result of it. When I wasmoved to last hour of the day, I learned that I hadmore flexibility for rehearsing. I have been able todismiss the women when I wanted to just work withmen, and vice versa, which was a great help inpreparing glee clubs for contest. I also formed sever-

al ensembles that I did not have before. I set them upso that when certain teams were gone in the spring Istill had most of the members of the ensembles inrehearsal.

We did go to a full block schedule this year, butthe administration agreed to require students whowant a music class to enroll in both blocks at the endof the day. The result is that the band and choir bothmeet every day, and I actually get to work with morestudents more often than in the previous schedule.

Mark Bartel, Friends UniversityR&S Chair for College/University Choirs

Every choral conductor can tellstories of how a physical illness orinjury has impacted their rehearsalsand performances. My list includesthe usual culprits, such as ear infec-tions, the flu, and colds, which makeit difficult to hear the choir and todo vocal demonstrations. A number

of years ago one nasty cold progressed to laryngitis,and I spent a week in front of my choirs without avoice. While in many teaching situations such apredicament would require a substitute or the can-cellation of class or rehearsals, my hands and armswere perfectly fine – I had plenty of energy, just novoice. What remained for me to do was simply por-tray an image of the music through the primarymeans at a conductors’ disposal: use of gesture anduse of facial expression.

Reminded of that foundational lesson that aconductor’s job is to “show” and not to “tell,” I spenta week re-remembering and re-thinking how I con-duct rehearsals and how rehearsal efficiency can beincreased, learning can be enhanced, vowel shapesand posture can be modeled more effectively, andlistening from both choir and conductor can berefined. Most importantly my choirs and I had acrash course in understanding the language mostimportant to our joint enterprise: the language ofthe body.

GOLD, from page 7

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