Celebrating Choirs of Kansas City

Kansas City is blessed with a number of excellent choirs. Some are professional, some volunteer and others semi-professional. This blog will not delve into professional verses non-professional. Rather the focus is on celebrating a few of the choirs in Kansas City, whose singers reside in Kansas City. These choirs are all composed of singers from the greater Kansas City area.

Over the past weekend these choirs were heard in outstanding performances. Some of these performances were premieres, here and on the road. The three choirs I’d like to feature are The Kansas City Chorale, Charles Bruffy, conductor; Te Deum, Matthew Christopher Shephard, conductor; and the William Baker Festival Singers, William Baker, conductor. Each of these choirs, this past weekend performed music that demands great choral prowess, and nuances that each conductor brings to the art, creating music that is owned by singers and conductor alike.

The Kansas City Chorale premiered, along with two other choirs, the WORLD PREMIER of Requiem by Alexander Kastalsky. Dr. Kurt Knecht, The Chorale's esteemed collaborative pianist, gave a superb rendering of the orchestral reduction. A reviewer made this observation of Bruffy's interpretation of the Requiem: "Bruffy commanded both triumphal phrases and, at times, breathtaking stillness, the phrases lingering on nearly imperceptible pianissimos. The work's finish received a prolonged ovation." 

This is from The Kansas City Choral website:

Commemorating the 100th anniversary of the armistice that ended the War to End All Wars, and in memory of the brave allies who gave their lives for freedom, the Kansas City Chorale, joined by singers from the Clarion Choir of New York and the Chamber Choir of St. Tikhon’s Monastery in Pennsylvania  will perform this moving Russian tribute at the National World War I Museum and Memorial.

One week later, these ensembles will join the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, maestro Leonard Slatkin, Soundmirror, and the Cathedral Choral Society to perform and record the world premiere with symphony at the prestigious Washington National Cathedral in Washington, DC.

I am most envious of the opportunity, as they are affectionately known in Kansas City - “The Chorale,”  they had to perform the Requiem here in Kansas City, and their journey to the Nation’s Capital, to perform it under the baton of Leonard Slatkin. Slatkin is one of our national treasures. In addition to being one of the most respected conductors, he is a teacher of conductors. I had the privilege of studying under one of his students, Tsung Yeh. Tsung Yeh served as his assistant when Slatkin was with the St. Louis Symphony.

What makes The Chorale exceptional, aside from their Grammy Award winning recordings, is that they are a hometown choir comprised of singers from Kansas City, as are the other choirs featured in this blog. There is a movement afoot of bringing in singers to a conductor’s hometown, rehearse for a few days, then present a concert. I am not a fan of this kind of ensemble. Being a part of a community, in which one works, lives, plays and sings, is what makes holistic ensembles. This is a topic for another blog, as the purpose of this blog is on hometown choirs from Kansas City. But it is with worth exploring, at some point.

Te Deum, is another hometown Professional choir:

Te Deum is a choral arts organization comprised of two ensembles: Chamber Choir, which performs a diverse sacred choral repertoire in a uniquely relevant context while creating a musically inspiring, spiritually stirring experience; and Antiqua, which provides Kansas City with a highly skilled ensemble dedicated to historically informed performances of early music.

Their most recent performance, “To Life,’ ncluded a tribute to the centennial of legendary composer/conductor Leonard Bernstein. The choir presented Bernstein’s  “Chichester Psalms,” scored for choir,  soloist, organ, harp and percussion. The piece draws upon the Psalms and the “hopeful, life-affirming messages they share.”  In addition to the Bernstein, there were two world premieres by Karen Siegel and Stewart Duncan, as well as works by David Lang and Aaron Jay Kernis.

Accompanying Te Deum on organ, was Kansas City’s own Grande Dame of the Organ, Dr. Jan Kraybill. For this performance, she played two totally different organs, built to represent different periods. She did an outstanding job of making the Bernstein work on each of those instruments. Jan posted this on Facebook:

Throw this Harley girl a challenge and I will nearly always take it on! Yesterday afternoon and tonight (October 15), I was/am organist for two performances of Chichester Psalms in two different venues with two very different instruments.

For my non-organist friends: every pipe organ is a custom-designed work of art. My favorite, and the most challenging, part of being a traveling organist is getting to know the unique characteristics of each instrument and coming up with creative solutions for the various challenges presented by the musical score. Bernstein’s score in this case is quite a challenge in itself.

A summary of just the physical differences at the console: yesterday’s instrument is by Richards, Fowkes (their Opus 22, inaugurated just last year), tracker action, 3 manuals, flat pedalboard, with sequencer. Tonight’s is by Aeolian-Skinner (Op. 1411, installed in 1963), rebuilt by Quimby in 1993, electro-pneumatic action, 4 manuals, concave radiating pedalboard, no sequencer. Tonal differences abound as well, of course.

One-word summary: Fun!

I love my job(s).

In closing, mention must be made of The William Baker Festival Singers. The Festival Singers is akin to the auditioned community choir, including professional singers, all of which volunteer their time to be part of this ensemble. The singers just returned from a series of concerts in the Washington DC area. According to Baker – “The weekend was one of the Festival Singers finest hours.” Members of this ensemble, live, work, play and make music her in Kansas City. What makes this group standout, is the residence composer program offered to young composers.

Ed Frazier Davis, is the current composer in residence with the Festival Singers. A work by Mr. Davis, has been presented on each Festival Singers program, since Ed joined the group. Most of the pieces performed by the Festival Singers are premiers of Ed’s compositions, including major works with orchestra. On a side note: Ed is the Bass Section Leader/Assistant Choral Director at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, here in Kansas City, of which I am Music Director/Organist.  

In closing, these three ensembles are stellar examples, each in their own right, of choral music making that raises the bar of what can be accomplished within one’s community. Kansas City has numerous ensembles, beyond these three, that are worth mentioning: Kantorei, Schola Cantorum, MusicaVocale, and many others, including our ensemble, the St. Andrew’s Singers.

I do hope you’ll check out these ensembles - by attending a concert or two.

Current Evolution of Music Usage for Weddings

Ah, weddings, sometimes music selection is a walk in the park, at times a whirl wind of ongoing negotiations, most of the time it’s a breeze, and the happy bride and groom zip off to begin their new life as a married couple. This brief article will not delve into what is appropriate music for weddings. Rather, we’ll discuss the prelude at wedding ceremonies.

In the early days, preludes were twenty to thirty minutes long, and consisted of various “classical” selections. Although some couples would like to pick that music. It is easily averted with a simple statement: “Attendees are usually loud. Because of this, quiet music is provided, as when the organ is prominent, so are the conversations. Because of this, we offer various classical selections.” This has worked out pretty well, until the last few years.

Occasionally, there would be the weddings where attendees did not understand what common etiquette for a church wedding is, and the conversations are very loud. Of late, this has become the norm, including groups of people standing in the isles/pews, and carrying on as though they are in a school playground. As was discussed earlier, the volume of the talk is contingent upon the dynamics of the organ music being played. There have even been times when the talk continued while the family members were escorted to their seats, right up to the entrance of the bride’s mother.

Is there an answer? Sure! I recall one wedding where there was a guest officiant, he came out during the prelude to address the attendees. He stated that in our church, we listen and pray during the prelude. At that moment it was great. However, soon after you could sense the tension in the room.  

After a recent wedding, that included the new “pew dismissal,” a discussion with the pastor included a thoughtful shift in what we as a church would offer wedding couples. Now, if you haven’t experienced the “Pew Dismissal,” the bride and groom return to the front of the nave and greet each person in the church, beginning with their families with a hand shake/hug and with brief congratulatory back slapping. They are then sent on their way. In our nave, this is approximately twenty minutes. Rather than an extended prelude, a three to four-minute prelude, as on Sunday morning (although this past week it was eight + minutes) would be offered prior to the processions (family, wedding party, bride) begin as a sign that the service is about to begin. This solves many issues on various levels:

1.       The organist doesn’t just play background music for idle conversation, and there is a signal for the start of the service.  The prelude could probably be one from Sunday repertoire, or a recital/concert selection.   

2.       In terms of the “Pew Dismissal,” what would have been a prelude, can be used to this end, not extending play time. Yet, volume is not an option. So, let it rip.

3.       When the “Pew Dismissal” is no longer a fad. One will spend less time playing for weddings than in the days of the twenty to thirty-minute prelude.  

I’m most interested in your thoughts. What you share could be useful for others as they discern how their work is affected by playing for weddings, specifically the organ. I wish you a great wedding season, as that has moved from spring to the fall. We have ten weddings this fall. This amazing, in that one of the couples must be a member of the congregation. Rather than marrying anyone that wants to rent the room, we only marry members. That is very exciting, making our church a vibrantly growing congregation. Blessings! 

St. Andrews 2018-2019 Choral Evensong/Sunset Concert Series

St. Andrew's Episcopal Church in Kansas City (6401 Wornall Terrace), Missouri offers Choral Evensong on a regular basis (schedule below), featuring the St. Andrew's Sings, a semi-professional ensemble. In addition to Choral Evensong, we offer a variety of other events that are attractive to families. I do hope you will consider joining us for some, or all of our arts offerings.

Organs of Paris - Part I

In July 2017, I had the privilege of attending a week-long organ improvisation intensive with some of France’s finest improvisors. An exciting aspect of this adventure was the opportunity to play some stunning and historical organs in Paris. In addition to the wonderful organs, one makes wonderful new friends at these offerings. 

Overall it was a great week, and a memorable experience. 

Sponsored by Organ Promotion, Germany



One of the highlights of the trip was playing the organ at Église Sainte Madeleine.

...with Frederick Blanc

One of the most spectacular organs, Van den Heuvel, 1989 V/147, using both pipe & digital sounds and mechanical action or electric action, Église Saint-Eustache. 

Baptiste-Florian MARLE-OUVRARD 

One of the most unique places was the Église Saint-Pierre-de-Chaillot. Being a completely concrete building, it was impervious to damage from bombing (unless a direct hit), was built to house an organ designed by Marcel Dupré. The organ was never built, as metal was needed for the war efforts, and not organ pipes.
  

                       Samuel Liégeon   

Painted Ukrainian Easter Eggs (Krashanky)

Elaborate painted Easter eggs are a Ukrainian art form in preparation for Easter with fasting and prayers, and a few days before the holiday they bake Easter cakes called Paskha to have them blessed in church, and paint elaborate Easter eggs.

Egg decorating is found around the world, according to the old legends, the world appeared from an egg. Eggs were painted with wax technique across Europe and in ancient India, symbolizing all things alive in the world. Painted eggs were believed to help in various situations. They were used to treat diseases, put out fires and protection from insects and rodents; they were also given as gifts to one’s significant other.

During the 6th century A. D. painted eggs were accepted in the Christian tradition as a symbol of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Painted Ukrainian Easter eggs are called Krashanky or Pysanky. The difference is that Krashanky eggs are painted in a sole color and Pysanky eggs are multicolored. To make Krashanky eggs, Ukrainian’s often use natural colors from nature.

One example of making Krashanky eggs - place the skins of several onions in hot water and let them sit in the water for several hours. After a few hours, bring the water and onion skins to a boil. Once the water begins to boil, add the uncooked eggs and let boil for 10 minutes. After it Krashanky have very beautiful red color (red onion skins), or a golden brown (white onion skins). Some have been known to wrap each egg in the onion skins for deeper, richer colors. Pysanky eggs are a bit more demanding, as they require some artistic abilities, as you can see from the example. Each Ukrainian pysanky egg has its own design which is painted with a paintbrush.

Easter egg painting in Ukrain, until recently, was considered a woman's art. Eggs were painted from Candlemas (February 14) until Trinity Sunday (43 days after Easter).

.

Holy Week Music 2018 - St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, Kansas City

PALM SUNDAY 10:15 AM
Service Music (sung by all): Sanctus - Alexander Kastalsky/Vozzella
Agnus Dei - Alexander Arkhangelsky/Vozzella
Anthem: O vos omnes - Tomás Luis de Victoria

MAUNDY THURSDAY 7:00 PM
Service Music (sung by all): David Hurd
Prelude: Pange lingua – Bablo Bruna
Anthems: Wondrous Love - Robert Shaw/Alice Parker
Ubi caritus – Ola Gjeilo

GOOD FRIDAY NOON
Pianist: Joy Bower
Piano solo: What Wondrous Love is This - Michael Sharp/Carol Tornquist

GOOD FRIDAY 7:00 PM
Anthem: Adorámus te, Chríste – Théodore Dubois

GREAT VIGIL OF EASTER 8:00 PM
Trumpet: Iskander Akhmadullin
Service Music (sung by all): Sanctus - Franz Peter Schubert
Fraction - Arlen Clarke
Anthems: Ave Verum - Francis Poulenc
My song is love unknown – Donald Busarow
The Strife is O’re – Robert J. Parker

EASTER DAY 8:00 and 10:15 AM
Brass Quintet and Percussion
Organists: John Schaefer
Service Music (sung by all): Song of Praise – G. F. Handel (Hallelujah!)
Sanctus - Franz Peter Schubert
Fraction - Arlen Clarke
Prelude: Finale from Symphony 2 “Resurrection” – Gustav Mahler
Anthem: Most glorious Lord of life – John Rutter
Hymn Settings: Old 100^th - Vaughan Williams
Jesus Christ is risen today - John Rutter
Hail the day that sees him rise - Jeremy J. Bankson
Welcome, happy morning! - Craig Phillips
Alleluia! Give thanks to the risen Lord - Hal Hopson
Postlude:Trumpet Tune in G – Jeremey J. Bankson

John Williams – A Genuine Soul

John Williams is one of the most gracious greeting musicians in front of his house composers of our time, has entrusted his scores to the Julliard School. His music reaches far beyond comprehension. This is an outstanding way to keep one’s legacy alive, through the finest institution of music in the World. Although, some look at John Williams as a populist composer, he is a historian on compositional style, and embraces the great techniques of composer such as Mahler, Berlioz, Brahms, Mozart, Beethoven, and has the ability to instantly recall these ideas while creating masterworks of originality in the 21^st century. Very few composers, other than Leonard Bernstein had this ability. I celebrate Mr. Williams gift to Julliard. Below is a sampling of his musical career.

John Williams, born in Floral Park, NY (1932) is the biggest name in the history of movie music and, probably, the most widely-heard composer of the last one hundred years. Williams began composing for television in the late 1950s, eventually moving on to feature films later in the 1960s. In 1972 he won an Oscar for his orchestration of the music for Fiddler on the Roof, the first of many big-time awards in his career. In 1974 he began a long and fruitful collaboration with Steven Spielberg that would lead to some of his best-known work, including the Oscar-winning scores from Jaws (1975), E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) and Schindler's List (1993). His other memorable scores come from the six Star Wars films of George Lucas, and from Spielberg's Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and its Indiana Jones sequels, to the Harry Potter (2001) series. In addition to his prolific output of movie compositions, Williams has been a guest conductor of orchestras all over the world, including a stint as the conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra (1980-93), and the recipient of more than a dozen Grammy awards. His film work includes music for Superman (1978); Oliver Stone's Born on the Fourth of July (1989, starring Tom Cruise); Angela's Ashes (1999, with Emily Watson); and Hymn to the Fallen from “Saving Private Ryan” (1998, starring Tom Hanks and Matt Damon).

His early TV career including composing music for Lost in Space, The Time Tunnel and Gilligan's Island.

Hymn to the fallen

Harry Potter theme

Gilligan’s Island

Lost in Space

Jaws

Star Wars

Star Wars Cantina Song

Close Encounters

Indiana Jones

Superman

Shindler’s List

Fiddler on the Roof

Born on the Fourth of July

Angela’s Ashes

March from Midway 
.

Wi-Fi Blocking Paint

* Here is another useless product to make you say, hmmm.  Developed at the University of Tokyo, the first paint that can block radio frequencies from being broadcast outside of your happy abode, according to university sources: “the paint is said to be the first that can block radio frequency in higher spectra where Wi-Fi and other higher-bandwidth communications occur rather than just low-frequency wireless like FM radio. Most Wi-Fi technologies operate at 2.4GHz; the Tokyo paint can reportedly block frequencies all the way up to 100GHz, with a 200GHz-blocking paint now in the works.” 

Other applications include churches, movie theaters, concert halls, conference rooms, class rooms and offices to keep cell phone signal at bay.  No more ringing, glowing phone screens at movies and concerts, cheating on exams will no longer be possible, and  the wife can’t call in the middle of a meeting to let you know that your kid is not really sick (it’s just an excuse to get out of the meeting).  Look at all the great applications for this neat new product.  However, according to most engineers - if security is the issue, most, if not all Wi-Fi systems have:  "Surely the thought of having to redecorate a building in order to provide Wi-Fi security is more costly and complex than the security functionality available in even the cheapest of Wi-Fi access points..."

What makes the paint work?  Simply, the paint contains aluminum-iron oxide particles.  If you are looking for greater security, don’t waste your time.  Yet, other applications, such as theatres and class rooms, may make it well worth the expense, when and if you need to repaint, or in new construction.

Other than the report from the University, no testing, etc. has been done on this product, making it a developed, un-proven idea.  Let’s wait and see where this will go. Until the paint is available, just get a copy of “Paint your Wagon,” featuring Lee Marvin and Clint Eastwood, and enjoy at night at home with no cell phones or Wi-Fi.

* DISCLAIMER: This author found the paint, and it's uses interesting. However, in no instance is the author recommending this product, or the usage of frequency blockers of any kind.

.

Top 10 (Humorous) Ways to Redirect Non-Singers

Top 10 Ways

A Church Choir Director Tells You (indirectly)

That You Need a New Passion

10.   The St. Peter’s Choir voted to move weekly practice to 4:30 a.m. Wednesday. It's ok if you don't like to get up that early.

9.       When we ordered the sheet music for our upcoming cantata, they left out the section with your part.

8.       We’ve run out of chairs in the choir. We’ll let you know when we get another one. 

7.       We’re short an usher today; could you help? 

6.       We need strong singers like you in the pews.

5.       Did you know singing can aggravate sinus problems? 

4.       We still need good people for the handbell choir. 

3.       It is a shame composers do not write more songs in your style. 

2.       You have a unique range — you hit both notes very well. 

1.       Did you know there is a new study starting the same night the choir rehearses? You might really get a lot out of it.

A+++ (the all-time classic) – “Just move your lips!”

.

Help me, my pastor is a Micro Manager!

Many times pastors are not the best managers of staff and have difficulty distinguishing between delegation and empowerment. How many times have you heard this when listening to your pastor share their philosophy on management: “I don’t micro-manage, I empower my team members to succeed.” However, upon further examination, we discover that there is no difference between delegation and empowerment in the mind of your pastor. It is not difficult to distinguish the difference. Simply stated - delegation is having someone else do what you could do just as well yourself.

In contrast, empowerment encourages you to function on a higher level of expectation, using your abilities and talents to do mundane and complicated tasks without close supervision or direction. Thus, allowing your pastor to focus their energy on much more important things such as preaching and teaching.  In the “Parable of the Talents” we read:                                            

Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his property to them.  To one he gave five talents of money, to another two talents, and to another one talent, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. The man who had received the five talents went at once and put his money to work and gained five more. So also, the one with the two talents gained two more. But the man who had received the one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master's money. After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. The man who had received the five talents brought the other five. 'Master,' he said, 'you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.' His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'  The man with the two talents also came. 'Master,' he said, 'you entrusted me with two talents; see, I have gained two more.'  His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'  Then the man who had received the one talent came. 'Master,' he said, 'I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed.   So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. (Matthew 25:14-25a, NIV)

Thusly, your pastor is telling you what and how to do a task, virtually eliminating any sense of independence or accomplishment. Micro managing does not allow you to use your own creativity and talents for the advantage of the body. In retrospect, so-called delegation can often be seen as micro managing as it simply offends the employees acumen, and creates a sense of fear and lack of independence. With this in mind, if you think that you are being micro managed, talk with your pastor and ask him/her to consider talking through the following questions with you:

What is your leadership style? If you are unsure, would you be willing to discuss it?

Do you keep vital information from me?

Do you have difficulty sharing this vital information with me?

If you did share this with me, would you feel powerless?

If your pastor answer yes to any or all of these questions? It is a telltale sign that you are serving with a classic micro-manager.  A leader is only as good as the people around them, and how they do or do not empower people is a reflection of their trust or lack thereof.

This can be corrected by working together to create a way to assess you and your pastors’ leadership style. Many online assessment tools can help with this.  A few of these tools are listed at the end of this article. If you approach this as a way to discover how you relate to each other, greater success for the kingdom will result. This assessment should be an exercise so that you can evaluate each other and the environment in which you serve. This assessment will allow you to determine how your personalities relate or do not to each other.  This then, will allow each of you to be more effective in your respective roles and with each other.

The easiest way to begin to assist your pastor to break away from the micro-manager style, if in fact your pastor is a micro-manager, is for you and your pastor to start asking questions of each other opposed you just answering your pastors’ questions. This will empower both of you, and allow you to openly communicate rather than follow through with your pastors directives.

Start by finding projects or tasks that you could do without directions from your pastor and form ways in which you can help your pastor empower you, which will allow your pastor to focus on the big picture. Empower, empower, empower, will allow you to solve and create ways to do area related jobs and tasks yourself. Unless the roof is caving in, your pastor can give you some space to do what you were hired to do.  Your pastor will be pleasantly surprised by the results.

It is also very important for them to let you fail, “pick yourself up and start all over again.” Unless life and limb, or thousands of dollars is at risk, this should not be a problem for your pastor. You will succeed because your pastor will WANT you to do your best for God and the church. Results will vary; but if you get the job done, all concerned have succeeded and may have discovered a new way of doing things. If the job is being done, the results your pastor desire are being achieved, your pastor will most likely let you know that you have done a great job. Possibly you pastor will concede that their way of doing things may not have been the only way to do something. However, don’t count on it. The freedom alone should be reward enough.   

Micro managing in reality does NOT put anyone in control, but rather creates disharmony through undue stress, it ties your hands, and may affect your overall effectiveness as a leader within the body.  There will be no winner or loser, but rather an unhealthy working relationship.  Whereas, being allowed to fly on your own creates and produces successes that you both can celebrate.

They will build houses and dwell in them; they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.  No longer will they build houses and others live in them, or plant and others eat. For as the days of a tree, so will be the days of my people; my chosen ones will long enjoy the works of their hands.  They will not toil in vain or bear children doomed to misfortune; for they will be a people blessed by the Lord...  (Isaiah 65:21-23a, NIV)

Assessment resources: These resources are only offered for reference (some serious, some fun), but does not constitute an endorsement of these sites.

http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes2.asp
http://cupped-expressions.net/cheese/quiz
http://www.personalitypathways.com
http://www.od-online.com