The biannual ACDA 2019 National Conference starts tonight in Kansas City. Although I won’t be attending this year, I have many friends and colleagues who are, so I’m sharing some previews.
I’ve prepared a cheat sheet of conference offerings that appeal to my particular interests: Vocal Jazz, TTBB Choirs, and Composing/Arranging. I’ll offer separate posts with each area, as well as a general set of don’t-miss sessions.
In this post: Vocal Jazz
Vocal Jazz has its own R&R Position in the ACDA Organization, though it often shares an audience and conference representation with the separate Contemporary/Commercial Area, which includes Show Choir and Contemporary A Cappella.
Tuesday
8:00 PM Heartland Men’s Chorus (Dustin Cates, conductor) The opening Kaleidoscope Concert, featuring local Kansas City performing ensembles, will conclude with the wonderful Heartland Men’s Chorus. I’ve gotten to know their conductor, Dustin Cates, a little via social media, and I think he’s doing really fabulous things. The concert features several pieces re-arranged for TTBB, as well as Tallis’ If Ye Love Me and includes both a composition and an arrangement by local composer Jacob Narverud. This will be a perfect kickoff to the Conference!
Wednesday
8:15 AM Vocal Jazz Reading Session. As always, reading sessions offer an excellent opportunity to get to know new and standard repertoire for vocal jazz ensembles.
9:15 AM Vocal Jazz Forum. Stick around after the reading session for a discussion of issues of particular interest to vocal jazz directors.
Thursday
10:00 AM Publisher Reading Session: Shawnee Press (Greg Gilpin) Shawnee Press has been a stalwart in vocal jazz repertoire, and I’m sure Greg will be presenting some of the best new releases in their catalog.
Friday
10:00 AM & 11:00 AM Building Blocks of Pop A Cappella (Interest Session) Carol Joy Sparkman will take you through an overview of the pop a cappella scene.
5:30 PM /8:30 PM Vocal Jazz/Contemporary A Cappella Concert. Three ensembles will perform at these un-tracked concerts (Both Blue and Gold can attend either concert). The concert features two vocal jazz ensembles (one high school, one college) and one high school pop a cappella group. The repertoire looks solid, and the groups performing are excellent. Additional good news: ACDA has not programmed these concerts late at night! The only downside is if you want to attend the Jubilee Concert, you will only have one option: attend the earlier iteration of this concert. That means, Blue track must miss Concert Session E and Gold track must miss Concert Session F. This gives much of the ACDA population a solid reason to miss the prime Vocal Jazz offerings at the conference, which only reinforces the too-widely held belief that “vocal jazz isn’t for me.”
Saturday
8:00 AM & 9:00 AM Singing with Big Ears: Using Vocal Jazz Exercises to Improve Ear Training Across the Entire Choral Program (Interest Session) Here’s a presenter who really gets it. David von Kampen, a composer, arranger, and conductor, will explain why vocal jazz is of value as an educational tool, and offer exercises that can be used for every ensemble to get some of that vocal jazz boost.
7:00 PM (Gold)/8:45 PM (Blue) Legacy of Excellence Concert. Well, we get to go out with a bang: the marvelous Kansas City Chorale will perform the Duke Ellington Sacred Concerts, in collaboration with the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra. Idiomatic jazz, composed by one of the great musical minds of the 20th Century, and presented by a concert choir in what promises to be a perfect ending to the conference.
If you only attend vocal jazz events at the 2019 ACDA National Conference, you’ll have plenty of free time! The good news is, there’s plenty more to take in, including TTBB Choirs, composing/arranging, and these don’t-miss sessions.!