The Chorus Effect - Episode 3 - Andrea Ramsey

2020

Dr. Andrea Ramsey enjoys an international presence as a composer, conductor, scholar and music educator. Before leaping into full time composing and guest conducting, Andrea held positions at The Ohio State University and the University of Colorado Boulder, respectively. An award-winning composer with approximately 100 works to date, she believes strongly in the creation of new music. A native of Arkansas, Andrea has experienced in her own life the power of music to provide a sense of community, better understanding of our humanity and rich opportunities for self-discovery.Dr. Andrea Ramsey enjoys an international presence as a composer, conductor, scholar and music educator. Before leaping into full time composing and guest conducting, Andrea held positions at The Ohio State University and the University of Colorado Boulder, respectively. An award-winning composer with a …

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Intro
Intro
0:00

Intro

0:00

Welcome
Welcome
0:20

Welcome

0:20

Composing
Composing
1:32

Composing

1:32

Suffrage Cantata
Suffrage Cantata
2:22

Suffrage Cantata

2:22

Suffrage Consortium
Suffrage Consortium
3:50

Suffrage Consortium

3:50

Suffrage in Canada
Suffrage in Canada
4:27

Suffrage in Canada

4:27

Programming
Programming
4:57

Programming

4:57

Inspiration
Inspiration
8:55

Inspiration

8:55

Amadeus Choir of Greater Toronto

171

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Autogenerated Transcript from YouTube (if available)

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Intro

0:01

hi everybody we are here today with Andrea Ramsey I am so excited to

0:07

introduce you to her she is a composer and conductor and she works all over the

0:12

world she’s also just an amazing and lovely person and I’m so excited to chat

0:17

with her today welcome Andrea hello I’m

Welcome

0:23

happy to be here Soni how are you doing first of all um you know it is a roller

0:31

coaster I think if you’d asked me yesterday we get a different answer than today then too the day before some days

0:37

I feel really fine if I stay in the day I feel like it’s good if you think too far down the road sometimes it can be

0:44

tough but on the whole I feel okay I feel sort of weirdly built for this as

0:49

an introvert that that I can sort of stay in and hang with my cat and write

0:57

music and I’d be just fine so yeah I mean I think I don’t know I woke up this

1:04

morning in a different mood because there’s just a lot going on in the country right now but that we’re

1:10

processing that’s not not great but not that we’re here to talk about that but that’s just been on my brain but but on

1:16

the whole I’m doing good and I’m kind of enjoying this little longest stretch I in a while that I’ve been home so to be

1:23

able to cook and and and take long walks and nest a little is is is kind of nice

1:31

so yeah it’s awesome so you are composing I know that’s like the number one question with compose you oh you

Composing

1:38

must be being incredibly creative I know personally it’s just hard to kind of focus that energy but you’re managing I

1:45

yes but no it’s not the same pace like my creative aqueduct is is sputtering a

1:54

little like sometimes I’ll have really good couple of days and then I’ll have you know a couple days or I just have to

2:00

break and I can’t do anything or things that normally don’t take that long are

2:05

taking longer like I I spent a couple days on a transition I mean it was just

2:11

like maybe sixteen measures of transition and it was two days and at the end of the day I

2:17

thought why is this still I don’t know still not done yet yeah everything’s a

Suffrage Cantata

2:22

little bit harder yeah um I’m really excited about the piece you’re working on right now would you tell us a bit

2:30

about it yeah I’m I’m really excited to and also terrified because I haven’t

2:36

done anything quite like this before so suffrage cantata will be about twelve

2:41

well lick will be about thirty minutes of music potentially I although it’s

2:49

running longer right now so we’ll see I’m done with two movements and I have seventeen minutes of music so I think I

2:56

may have some babies but it’ll be for trouble chorus for string quartet percussion and piano and narration I

3:07

don’t know why I can’t say all those things cleanly at once sorry but but yeah it’ll be those those forces and

3:13

there’s a large consortium of several different choirs that went in to be part

3:19

of this and so it’s really exciting and I’ll tell the sort of the journey it’s seventy-two years worth of history

3:25

you’re trying to pack in snapshots right and I can’t obviously get it all so I’m like what are the most human stories

3:31

what are the most interesting stories what are these amazing women that I wish that I had learned about in my history

3:37

classes but that I didn’t who helped the u.s. women gain the right to vote and so

3:43

some pretty incredible stories and and hopefully when it’s done we’ll do it justice so amazing it’s so exciting it’s

Suffrage Consortium

3:52

a massive project and it’s for a group in LA right um so Vaux Femina la Iris

3:58

Levine she was the springboard for it she approached it and said let’s let’s

4:03

Commission this and then we joined up with Matt workman at national concerts and formed a broader consortium of

4:10

people who are involved as well so the Dallas women’s chorus like several other there’s a ton of different universities

4:15

and Florida State Michigan State Saint Olaf capital like a bunch of groups now have joined the consortium so that’s

4:22

exciting and and someday it’ll be all right yeah that’s so exciting because

Suffrage in Canada

4:28

the people have a life across the country and I’m sure beyond and it’s it’s an American specific you know

4:35

historical moment but I think it’s relevant all over the world of course so

4:40

prominent in Canada but I know the story

4:46

yeah I think yeah I don’t know the longer I live I think that’s the I think I just really like telling stories and

4:52

music it’s just one vehicle of doing that so anyway yeah so okay switching to

Programming

4:59

your other side of your work you conduct everywhere you do a lot of honor choirs

5:05

and festivals and we got to adjudicate together over a year ago it’s just so

5:11

much fun and how do you go about like programming from a conductors

5:17

perspective and how do you feel your composer brain informs that and maybe vice versa you know I think there’s so

5:24

many people who are much more artful at programming than myself I I think of I

5:31

have friends like Christine McMullen who’s at North Texas who will just put these things to get and I like how do

5:36

you even have that vision it’s incredible because I can be creative in certain ways but programming for me I I

5:42

tend to for some reason think really I don’t want to say formulaic because I

5:48

think that’s the wrong word and it feels too rigid but I tend to think about components you know like I I want I want

5:55

to think about is there gonna be a piece that will stretch beyond Samba is there gonna be a piece that will give us a

6:00

moment to breathe because we’re pushing ourselves on you know if it’s a pretty intense program and they’re going to be

6:07

works that have texts or histories or stories attached to them we’ll sort of open a portal for deeper discussion and

6:15

meaning-making in that process you know are there am I thinking about who’s

6:22

being represented on the program are there other women composers are there composers of color like those kinds of

6:29

things I’m starting to think more and more about – yeah so I’m looking at

6:35

those components and then as to how as to how the two inform each other

6:41

composing in conducting that sum that’s kind of I don’t know it’s it’s funny

6:47

because when I was when I was first teaching and my conducting skills were

6:54

not so great I I didn’t think so much

6:59

about conducting when I was composing and then as they come better at conducting and was relying on that

7:05

skillset more I started to think about it I started to think about a lot more

7:11

and now I very often will put things into my hands and say oh I’m gonna group the beats differently because this feels

7:17

this way or such yeah yeah like that you’re like why did I and so I’ve some early pieces that’s like why did I write

7:24

it that way but but then I think the flip side of that which is probably less

7:30

good is that when you’re composer who also conducts idendity too fast and

7:37

loose with other people’s directions because you you feel like oh well they wrote that but maybe they’re fine with

7:43

you know I mean like I don’t know several of my pieces have the wrong tempo markings I will put it down

7:49

because you feel I don’t know if you’ve experienced this in your composing but you feel certain in the moment you’re

7:54

really close to it and you’re like yeah this feels totally right and then when you actually get with an ensemble sometimes there sometimes there

8:01

sometimes you just have to find that right tempo where things start to fall

8:07

into place and tune and it moves and breathes and it’s throughout this and

8:12

180 yen and like fully know that until you get in a moment and then you want to

8:18

switch it and it’s already in print and oh well great yeah so as a conductor you

8:26

know that the composer may have had bad experience as well and you can take some liberties yeah but I don’t know that I

8:33

should because every composer is so different and there are some composers who are very very adamant that this is

8:39

the way it is so I’m probably yes not I’m probably gonna be in trouble with

8:44

some people I don’t know I don’t think so we had Charles Murphy on last week who just flat out says he changes notes

8:50

so Oh yeah

Inspiration

8:56

what composers inspire you or what what

9:02

kinds of music inspire you or other art forms even what what kind of gets you

9:07

going I I don’t I I this is the hardest

9:14

question to answer because it’s so broad and there are so many things I think I’m most readily inspired by variety or by

9:23

something that causes me to think or something that is different than anything I’ve heard before but not

9:29

always sometimes you just want a gorgeous melody that tears your heart out sometimes we don’t have to always be

9:35

pushing the envelope we just want something beautiful that speaks and so I mean I think back to

9:43

when I was in undergrad and I don’t know about you but I feel like those those listening years when I was an

9:49

undergraduate student were really formative in a way that what I listen to now I may learn things or grab things

9:57

but it’s not the site does that make sense do you agree with that or thing to say yeah no totally you can’t it depends

10:04

on so many factors and but yeah no I completely agree so you know when I was

10:09

an undergrad I was listening to a lot of Stephen Sondheim a lot of Z Randall’s

10:14

troupe Renee Clawson Lauridsen like these were the voices that were in my ears and in the choirs I were I was a

10:21

part of and and in the musicals and and those kinds of things so so those were

10:27

the voices that were with me in that formative time but now it’s really rare

10:33

that I listen to choral music I don’t know if I should say that but like I I love making choral music and I love

10:39

writing choral music and I do listen to it sometimes but it’s usually when a friend sends me something or there’s a

10:46

project I’m interested in I just when I’m cooking I’m I would rather put on Dolly Parton or I would rather listen to

10:53

some Laura and Voula who’s from the UK and doing some really neat things or like other artists like finding genres

11:00

that are different that maybe have elements that that I might want to try and pull into my music or just

11:06

to give my ears something new I’m actually so relieved to hear you say that because I’ve always been too afraid

CBC choral concert

11:11

to say that but but I completely agree there’s a really fantastic that with the

11:17

exception of there’s a fantastic CBC show on our national radio in Canada

11:23

called choral concert every Sunday morning it’s like going to church but she just has the most creative programming Katherine Duncan on CBC and

11:30

it and a real range of like new work actually last week they did a world premiere on radio because and it was all

11:38

digitally recorded and sort of isolation and stuff so I do try to tune into that when I can

11:43

but if I’m cooking and relaxing it’s all folk music or Appalachian stuff or a new

11:49

flying staff or or who have a Evanescence as a guilty pleasure so ya

11:55

know it’s it’s good luck elite singers from my home state like sing with with friends or is her choir director yeah

12:04

that’s really funny yeah that and then yeah music I would be great I need to

12:11

listen to some of that around the house thank you Sam all message you later for some groups yeah absolutely yeah there’s some great

New work

12:17

great new stuff it’s like traditional but but keeping tradition alive which i think is what we try to do in choral

12:22

music – it has these like deep deep roots for centuries yet we’re recreating

12:27

it every week in our rehearsals and when you’re creating new work and so I find

12:33

that inspiring ya know a Newfoundland in general is inspiring to me I just it’s a singing culture a proud cult I don’t

12:40

know I just had the best time when I was there I hope something I can work but yeah I hope so too I yeah it’s it’s an amazing place well

12:47

we’ll have you over for sure mm-hmm do you have a dream Commission oh I have

12:54

to find a new one because I’m working on it right now like my dreams fell longest was I want to write an extended work for

12:59

treble courses because there’s so many trouble courses in the US I don’t know if it’s the same in Canada but I would

13:05

say there are probably more trouble treble choirs then mixed choirs in the US if you factor in children women

13:11

community university components and how many treble voices are singing in the schools so and you know what do we have

13:18

we have the Britten ceremony of care we have the whole things there’s just not a huge opportunity there in terms of

13:25

lengthier works and so that’s been a long dream after I finish it I I don’t

13:30

know I have to find a new one lucky you that’s wonderful oh yeah so I’m gonna be

13:37

pondering that all week actually probably like what what’s my new and who have been your favorite commissions in

Favorite commissions

13:44

the past or people to work with or conductors or ensembles that have stood out to you as as just wonderful

13:51

collaborators yeah one of the coolest commissions came from the Allegra choirs of Kansas City oddly enough now that I

13:57

live here all the time but Christy was a friend and I was teaching in Arkansas at the time and she said where she was

14:03

struggling to find they wanted unaccompanied you know when you when you go to Europe for a tour and you’re like are we gonna use this thing of the piano

14:09

are you hauling a keyboard into these cathedrals rather and I want to say so she said if you’ll write us you know a

14:14

set of two little Psalms short things you know we’ll take you for free with us to Europe would you be interested in

14:20

that and I’m like yes I mean I was fresh out of college at that point this is brilliant so uh so I wrote these two

14:26

Psalms settings and we went to Austria in the Czech Republic and that was really memorable just to go and hear your music song by these really great

14:32

artists and that collaboration has been lovely they’ve commissioned lots of work over the years and I’ve been able to pop

14:38

in and we kind of reshape things as we hear it and I think those kinds of collaborations are really special and

14:44

and I felt that way with other conductors Jeff Benson at San Jose State has commissioned a couple of things and

14:50

with a piece called stomp on the fire that we did he was super III loved it

14:57

because he would come back to me and say what do you think about this or this build would we add a desk can’t hear

15:03

could we go and and and it was great and it never overstepped and it challenged me and at the end we had a stronger

15:09

piece so that’s kind of fun yeah real collaboration that’s yeah and

15:15

he never asked I mean it was never too big a task it always made sense but it was it was fun to have a conductor who

15:21

would sort of go back and forth with you on that Wow really neat it’s so exciting to hear you

The trouble world

15:30

talk about this because your music has become so iconic I think it’s in the trouble world I mean every

15:35

children’s choir anywhere has sung your music and it’s so lyrical it’s so it’s

15:43

always has that melody that you said earlier it inspires you and I’ve done it

15:48

with my choirs in Vancouver and it’s just so much fun oh it’s so painful yeah

15:57

I think I’ll go ahead you’re gonna say no no go ahead no I feel like you were moving us on but I was just gonna say

16:03

it’s interesting that a lot of trouble quartz Commission and I actually when I switched to full-time composing and left

16:09

academia I had to start to be careful because I wrote you realize the Commission’s control your output and then if all I took were if I were just

16:16

saying yes then I would end up sometimes with you know nine trouble pieces in a row and go oh I I have to say no to some

16:23

of these so that I don’t just put out only trouble and so right yeah yeah I would ask you about that as well like

Making the leap

16:30

that’s a huge leap to to leave from what I understand a full-time academic tenure

16:37

track position but you were getting work as a composer and and as a guest

16:43

conductor all over how did you decide to make that leap and are you and how do

16:50

you keep that balanced like how do you it’s just you’re managing everything in your life you’re your own man people who

16:58

help everything I’m not a I have a great accountant and a bookkeeper who helped me keep up with that piece of thing

17:04

awesome which is wonderful and you know actually was Jake Brenna said and Jake

17:10

weren’t Jacob we talked about I mean I think he knows I which I’ve told him several times but we overlapped at an

17:17

event in Iowa and had a drink and were chatting and he said you know and I just

17:24

said tell me how you’re doing this you know cuz he’s younger than I am and it was full-time composing and he just sort

17:30

of looked confused and said would you want to do this and I said I don’t know maybe and he said what are you scared of

17:36

and I said well what if you know people quit commissioning me or there’s you

17:41

know and I and he said do you have savings and I said yeah he goes if they got low could you get another job and

17:46

said probably and what else are you scared of and you kept shooting down all

17:51

my fears and saying if you wanted to do this you totally cut it I love teaching and I knew that that was a piece I could never give up so I knew that the guess

17:58

work was gonna be really important and I’m sort of learning right now what it’s like not to have that teaching component

18:04

because I’m you know I’m home and it’s very isolating but I you know I went

18:12

home and I crunched the numbers and I thought you know I could do this and it was tough to leave those students particularly the grad students that was

18:19

a really brutal decision but I knew it was the right call in order to have more

18:24

space for a life because between academia the travel and the composing it just sort of a hamster wheel so it was a

18:31

good call and I’m doing all the freelance stuff anyway like that rock of right and so you know so now it’s it’s

18:39

it’s it’s pretty great but I am really glad that I saved before I left where a you know serving the

18:46

great unknown at the moment yeah we’re all gonna have a pandemic account oh my

Looking forward to

18:54

goodness um what are you most looking forward to when this is all done you

19:00

know I gosh I mean I think I think we are all craving that feeling of being in

19:06

the room like singing next to someone having those vibrations in your ear like the overtones the experience of being in

19:13

proximity again and making music I think that’s the thing we’re probably most

19:19

hungry for but you know what I’m also excited about is and this sounds like my

19:24

me naive an optimist talking but she she often speaks yeah in times like like you

19:30

know in down times but I really think like already first of all you and I are having this conversation online that we

19:36

would not be having if this were not true things happening we would both be busy in our own worlds and you’ve done

19:42

that with bruffey and with Carrington and you and like I have friends at universities who are planning

19:49

collaborations where their graduate students can work with their undergraduate conductors online where they can do their building the and so I

19:56

look forward to seeing how this time that’s forcing us to go to all these real places that we probably wouldn’t

20:02

choose to go to how when we come out on the other side and we can be in person again how those new connections inform

20:09

our artistry and I think it’s gonna be I on it’s gonna be more than it was before

20:16

you know I mean I think part the hard part is the interim right and and processing that but yeah

New connections

20:24

figuring out how exactly how we’re gonna get back to seeing together but that is so optimistic I love that I’m gonna keep

20:30

that the taking all of the creativity that’s come out of this because people have been like you say going outside the

20:36

box and thinking okay if we can’t do kind of the core exact thing which

20:41

defines choral music which is singing in the same room then what else can we do

20:47

and and like you say hope those those inform and make us more creative okay

20:52

it was socially socially like I connected over zoom with people who live so far away that I haven’t in you know

20:59

forever I’m like let’s get together because we’re all just home so anyway yeah yeah and what advice do you have

Advice for young musicians

21:06

for conductors and composers and young choral musicians who I don’t know maybe

21:12

are graduating high school right now we’re graduating they’re undergraduates and this is sort of the new world what

21:19

can you what can you tell them about your struggles and successes and what

21:26

would you leave with them you know I wish I have answers I feel I feel like

21:34

anything I say is gonna be naive because I’m not graduating at this moment where

21:41

it’s so crazy right now and I know that there is a lot of that has to be discouraging so I think the challenge

21:48

for all of us right now whether it’s music or just in life in general is to focus on what we can do rather than the

21:54

things that aren’t allowed to us at this moment or that we’re missing and so we

22:01

can broaden our skill sets and that’s something that’s always I mean you know

22:06

maybe you can’t I oh I would just watched a beautiful conversation Joyce DiDonato was having with some students

22:14

she was supposed to have a master class with and you know one of the things she said to them what you know you okay so

22:19

you can’t sing over an orchestra right now but you can work on your language

22:25

you can work on how how do you how well do you disappear into the Aria when

22:30

you’re performing that character like you can work and so I thought this is this is so true so we can sharpen our

22:36

musicianship and we can broaden our skill sets and so if you’re thinking you want to be a composer I mean that would be my advice anyway from the beginning

22:42

is what other things you have because you want as many tools as possible because I don’t think I could have just

22:48

left into full-time composing I needed to be a teacher and a conductor and all of those things inform how I compose but that doesn’t have to

22:55

be your path maybe you sing opera on the side maybe you play piano maybe you have

23:02

a band that you work with in town or a jazz group or something like that but but what are these musical skills that

23:09

you have that you can sharpen that are alongside this so that you have multiple avenues and multiple revenue streams to

23:16

support yourself while you’re honing your compositional craft as well and then personally I would say to take care

23:23

and that balance matters and that’s something that I wonder if we’ve all like even in this situation where I’m

23:31

staying home a lot more I’m still realizing that just because I’m busy

23:36

doesn’t mean that that’s why I struggle with balance but balance is a struggle always and that I’m obsessing about why

23:43

can’t I finish this transition and I’m still working on it when I’ll be a lot better off if I go for an hour-long walk

23:49

and then come back hmm so taking care of our bodies giving ourselves time and not

23:55

just obsessing really about the music I think and then the final thing I’m going

24:00

to quit rambling is I think I say that to a lot of them I’ve done a lot of

24:06

zooms with different groups and they the composers have questions about you know this kind of thing and so I say there’s

24:12

a lot more to middle school and high schoolers but I think it’s apt for college students and really for conductors of any age is to be taught to

24:20

take care to guard your dreams and so what these things are that we that we

24:26

love that we feel passionate up we need those those few close friends in

24:31

our corner who will speak truth to us but we’ll do it in a loving way and we’ll help we’ll do it in a way that

24:36

makes us better not in a way that crushes dreams and I have dear friends that I love then I don’t share my my

24:45

deepest most creative ideas with because they just operate in a different realm of this this this and the way they

24:51

approach feedback with me I know sort of becomes soul-crushing even though they don’t intend it and so I think taking

24:57

care of like here are the things that I want to achieve and that I’m excited about and then finding those people who

25:03

will who will cheer lead you but in an honest way I think is really important Wow and you have those two yeah I mean I

Trusting friends

25:11

do I have a few close friends they know who they are like I joke with him like

25:17

and so I and some of them I trust for different things like I will talk through text choices like right now

25:22

suffrage cantata is crazy because I’m basically it feels like a musical in that I’m assembling narration and I’m

25:28

trying to build story arcs and so I have friends that will talk through that with I’ve added her friends that I will send

25:33

things to and say help you know Kurt connect who lives here in Kansas City mm-hmm we share ideas back and forth and

25:39

he’s so brilliant and I anyway I’ll send him movements and he’ll send me back

25:45

thoughts and and it always makes the piece stronger so oh that’s amazing wow what an amazing advice I know I know

25:53

if it’s amazing advice it just helped me because maybe I’m just over I am overly sensitive like I have to be careful

25:59

about who I let speak what it to me because I am I don’t know what not in

Consider the source

26:06

because if there’s a public review that’s scathing that’s not necessarily the advice you should be listening to

26:12

but if you have people that you trust then you can sort of open the gateway for those yeah my dad would always say

26:18

consider the source my railroad her father her mark and saw but he’s they consider the source Andrea you know and

26:25

I think there’s a lot of truth to that so oh that’s such great advice well Andrea this has been such a pleasure

Audience questions

26:31

we’re gonna go to some audience questions I can’t believe we’ve already talked for this long this is I know oh

26:37

we could go on forever No we have a couple of a Matthias choir

26:42

members here oh and I wanted to add when you say like use this time to build your skills I think that applies we no matter

26:48

where you are in your career absolutely like new graduates I know the Ahmadiyya Squires planning a bunch of skills

26:54

building stuff just for our own adult members and then back together like

27:00

these new skills that we will have acquired closely we can all be like when

Compositions

27:05

in whatever area you know if you’re a level two in sight singing and a level three and vocal technique and like

27:11

everyone can just level up over the course of these however many months it’s

27:16

gonna be okay we have a question from Jane Gorman who is an MD square singer

27:23

how much I’ll get to her question in a

27:29

second Jean says how much has the pandemic influenced your compositions um

27:36

well actually I started to say it hasn’t because I’ve had suffered chicken powder on my plate and that’s still on my plate

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but that’s not true I actually took a commission there have been a couple of commissions that are showed up which is

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surprising and one I took very less minute but I thought I can do this and it’ll be but for Interlaken for their

27:52

Arts Academy their conductors doing cannons with them what she felt was really clever and he commissioned a

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cannon so I wrote this little four part cannon on a Sara Teasdale text and it’s

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on music spoke now but I just so that was kind of neat and I wonder if I and

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I’m kind of brainstorming things like that you know for wind suffrage cantata is done like are there gonna be they’re

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gonna be a greater need for cannons partner songs or for aleatory type things where the tempo is not so

28:20

important interesting yeah Les Paul s’mores a soundscape kind of stuff you

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never know negate latency that way exactly yeah

28:32

exactly cool Wow cannons are hard to write um good on you oh yeah I thought it was

28:38

gonna be easier than it was that’s like a safe and exercise yeah can’t wait we

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have a question from Jean Ashworth Bridal know so excited yeah I’m just

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trying to find and what are the different challenges you have discovered in writing a

Writing a cappella music

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cappella music as opposed to a choral work accompanied by orchestra well I

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think on for me acapella music well this

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is bad to say when I first started writing I did everything by hand and at the piano and it made me a better musician and I really still do that but

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time doesn’t time dictates that I need to be in finale and I need to move these things along quicker and so that’s where

29:25

I am now but the exception is when I’m working on acapella piece I will always get to a piano because I want to hear

29:32

the overtones and I feel like it’s just it’s just different and probably probably that’s wise advice for any

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piece but I think especially for unaccompanied things and I also think

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about the role that the piano the piano can play such a pivotal role if you’re

29:48

sustaining something the piano can give the subdivided energy that you need to make that move

29:54

or it can stagnate as well with the voices you have that sort of ability to

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keep things moving and so with an unaccompanied piece I think more about that I think like do I want to try and

30:06

build in ways to give it this sense of movement you know in some passing tones or some things in the other voice parts

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so that it I don’t run that risk and or maybe they want they need to work for it

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in this moment and it’s okay but but just think I think a little bit more about that that balance

30:26

I guess if that makes sense mmm beautiful are you pianist no I I could

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manage a rehearsal in two parts but and I can play myself really slow with as

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much rubato as I want but no as a joy my life would be so much easier I think oh

30:47

no you have enough outlets I think you’ve enough on the go um Allison our

Popular music and classical music

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managing director is just behind the scenes here sent me message and she says do you think that popular music can

31:02

inform classical music oh well I was gonna say I misunderstood it

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first can popular music inform classical music yeah why not I mean can I mean I

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think for us to assume classical is the be-all end-all is there’s a certain

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arrogance in that and and and I think I was I’ve been taken by a few

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arrangements that I’ve done so I did an arrangement of a Laura Mvula work called she and it’s really a powerful piece and

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and there’s this repeated course if she don’t stop she don’t stop and this idea of just like moving toward this goal and

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sitting down to try and transcribe her rhythms I was like anyone who mocks pop

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music has not tried to transcribe this rhythm and then I would listen to her to perform it live and she would do a

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different melody and a different rhythm that night it would still fit but she could just switch it and so I was having to make decisions between live recorded

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this live version and you know which one do I want to settle on and you know when

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the piece came out I think that there’s definitely there’s a side to it that feels you know somewhat pop but I don’t

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think any choral person would be like you know this is like doing some cheesy

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arrangement you know I don’t know how to explain it like I feel like there’s there there there can be really

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beautiful artful tasteful interplay between the two worlds I think the challenge is when you don’t honor the

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roots of each mm-hmm I don’t know if I’m if I’m making sense because I’m really

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just talking but I think I think when you have a situation where the classical

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world takes on a pop piece without really understanding it or that really going to the source and trying to honor

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the root of it then some that’s when you get weird stuff and then I think it works well I

32:57

don’t know if it works the other yeah maybe it does work the other way like we’ve heard bad pop renditions of classical things too so great yeah

33:04

alright do you think it’s possible or how do you think that choirs can capture

Pop music

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some of that like the thing about pop music like you said it’s not the same every time it’s performed necessarily

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although every time it is probably highly flex if you were to actually write down like rhythms like you’re saying how do

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you get that sense of spontaneity if you’re in a rehearsal say with a youth choir doing this kind of piece where

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they’ve learned the rhythms so specifically how do you how do you try

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to open that up yeah we’re talking about like a clinic situation I don’t know how

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much you can it depends on how open they are right like sometimes if it’s hit a wall and sometimes they’re really as responsive to change in the day to day I

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think I think is it composure we do it by by giving giving conductors permission so you write something the

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score and say even law like I did in that one score I put Laura even Laura varies the rhythm varies the melody so

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if your soloists choose to do that let’s totally fine as long as they stay in tempo you know and there’s a

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representation of some sort and so I think I think we as conductors sort of have to give ourselves permission sometimes to to move with our groups in

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that direction and to know that that’s sort of the spirit of it rather than to be that you know the team must be on the

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end of three in this moment because this is what the note is on the pavement right as long as you doing it together

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it’s yeah we come collaboratively to a decision for me anyway but maybe I might

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be miss speaking I’m not expert on pop music demonstrate a lot like in a clinic

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situation would you sing it and have them sing it back Oh model all the time yeah yeah so I would I yeah absolutely

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shape that phrase where if you if you’re a conductor does it feel comfortable if you’ve got a student who can model the

34:53

style that you’re looking for really well you should use the local models in your classroom – cool yeah

Comment of the week

34:59

Andrea this is so fun thank you so much we’re getting just lovely comments here

35:04

Jeanne says the favorite out of the week oh well I’m so inspired by her I

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remember the Blue Book the titles leaving me but

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you know which I knew was like a lifeline for anyway I just remember one of her books is very helpful to me when

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I was starting my early teaching and so I mean grateful for this although I feel

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a little bit cheated in that you’ve been asking all the questions so maybe you and I will just have to zoom that

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sometime but don’t have a glass and catch up where I can hear whistle event in your world – that would be lovely would be

35:38

really lovely thank you so much Andrea stay in touch and stay well your – good

35:44

luck with your writing that’s amazing you too all right take Erica clean thank you

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