Villa-lobos Choros no. 10

Another group of videos to get you in the mood as we prepare for the CPO Virtuosity Festival!

Mahler's 3rd Symphony 5th movement

Here is great performance of Mahler's 3rd Symphony with Claudio Abbado conducting the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, the Arnold Schoenberg Choir Vienna, Tolzer Knabenchor and Anna Larson, mezzo-soprano:

Enjoy CPC ladies!

A fun way to learn your solfege

Through the magic of Facebook I discovered that friends from across the continent had started to share a video made by David Newman, a colleague and friend from the Carmel Bach Festival. David teaches at James Madison University and is a fantastic singer! He clearly has a bit of time on his hands despite having two young girls and has put his time to good use to create many fun and educational videos on basic elements of ear training and harmonic progressions. Here are a few of my favorites. Thanks David!  you are going viral!

Our memories given a voice through music

Thank you to all CPC members for a wonderful start to our season. I can't think of a better way to be in solidarity with our neighbours, friends, family and colleagues around the world than through music. As I read news articles, editorials and watched documentaries this past week about the 10th anniversary of September 11, 2001 I was reminded how music provides us with a voice to express our raw thoughts and emotions. I don't know about you but I long for an opportunity to respond to the daily barrage of news with a more complex and, perhaps elevated, form of expression in music.

I hope you felt as civically engaged as I did last week. As the anxiety of the news ramped up, we focused more and more on the fine details of a piece of art that provides us with so many ways to remember. Coupled with Beethoven's "redoubtable" 9th Symphony, this was a program to remember with a finale for all time.

I also hope that you understood the wonderful announcement from the stage that the CPO now has a formal funding program that supports the development and performance of new works for orchestra & chorus. Yes, you and I will be directly involved in creating and shaping the music of today and tomorrow! Be proud of this. As we all discovered last Thursday and Friday, out community and world wants to be musically engaged with music from the past and the future. Let's continue to engage through our voices and our music!

Carmina Burana Translation

Here is a link to a fairly reliable translation of Carl Orff's "Carmina Burana".

http://www.northshorechoral.org/seasons/05-06/CarminaBuranaTextandTranslation.pdf

CPO Mahler's 2nd an inspiration!

I have very few words to describe both the excitement and euphoria our CPO's performance of Mahler's 2nd Symphony in the Jack Singer Concert Hall this past Friday and Saturday evening. Mahler's music jumped off the page and into the hearts and minds of all in attendance. You, the chorus, played such a huge role in the performance even if only for the final 15 minutes! I can't begin to thank you enough for your musical commitment, vocal prowess, memorization and overall professionalism! You inspired so many, including audience, orchestra, fellow singers and myself. I hope you know how much impact you had on this performance because I don't think I will stop hearing about it for some time!

Yours in song,
TIM

Kodaly and Curwen's hand signs

Here are a couple of resources for those of you interested in studying up on your hand signs for the solfege system. Below is a link to the hand signs. Enjoy
http://www.classicsforkids.com/teachers/training/handsigns.asp

How to sing a Major and Relative Natural Minor Scale on Solfege with Han...

Here is a nice little lesson in singing a major and a minor scale with solfege and Curwen hand signs

Porgy & Bess videos

These videos will take you through the medley, mostly in order. Enjoy!

Prometheus pictures

Prometheus stealing fire and living his eternal struggle