More updates for June & July

This month’s newsletter starts with the previous composition feature, “From the Stone Age“, which is already available on the blog here. But we have more to share! View the whole newsletter here, and make sure you’re on the mailing list!

Upcoming Events

Registration now open

Calling all singers — The ZSR Singers Summer Choral Intensive is back!

(Reserve your spot ASAP!)

Join us July 13–18, 2026 at Church of the Good Shepherd in Arcadia for a week of harmonies, community, and just the right amount of musical mischief. Open to singers 15 and up, this intergenerational choral adventure will sharpen your skills, deepen your connections, and feed your soul with music by Zanaida Robles and Shawn Kirchner. All for $150 — because as one alum said, “It’s like summer music camp for grown-ups!” Registration is open now, so grab your sheet music (and maybe a water bottle) and get ready to sing your heart out.

Sign up now

For Fun

Here’s a photo of me with composer Hyowon Woo, whose work “SUM” was premiered on May 31 by the LA Master Chorale at Walt Disney Concert Hall. She’s one of my composer heroes – I LOVE her music and was completely star struck!

On Saturday May 30, I sang at the Greek Theater with the LACHSA Gospel Choir for LACHSAPalooza! – a gala fundraiser celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts. As a member of the class of 1997 and as a music teacher there for 9 years, I will always cherish LACHSA with deep gratitude and joy.

And here’s a cat for good measure. (Hello, Archie!)

Happy summer! Hope you can join us in July!

Not Zanaida's real signature. (What are we, nuts?)

0

Happy Black History and Futures Month!

Part of my celebration this month included buying myself a coloring book written by my friend Shelly Edwards.

Get yours on Amazon

Conducting

Reporting from Redlands

I conducted my piece “The Summit is Nigh” along with “Bogoroditse Devo” by Rachmaninoff and “Pal-So-Song” by Hyo-Won Woo at the University of Redlands High School Choir festival on Friday February 20. I’m so proud of my students!

A huge thank-you to Dr. Nicholle Andrews for hosting and to Dr. Hyejung Jun for being our clinician. Many thanks to my friend and collegue (and chaperone extraordinaire) Ms. Bladen for the pic.

And in Arizona…

The legendary Jazz Madrigal Festival in Flagstaff, AZ was pure magic! I was exhausted after adjudicating and doing clinics with 26 choirs over 2 days, but it was some of the most rewarding work I’ve ever done as an educator. Plus I met some of the most amazing educators in the country and even saw a live performance by the New York Voices that blew my mind! Thank you Dr. Ryan Holder, Dr. Tim Westerhaus, and the wonderful students of Northern Arizona University for inviting me and making me feel welcomed. I hope to do more of this kind of work in the future.

Will I see you in San Jose in March?

Learn about the conference

Oh yeah… a little save the date…

Singing

On Tuesday January 26, I got to sing with a bunch of incredble artists, including fellow LACHSA alumnus Prez Blackmon during the Education Through Music-LA Awards Gala honoring legendary song writer Diane Warren.

For Fun

*I borrowed my daughter’s shoes for the ETM-LA gala. They were fabulous!*

*New Favorite Spot in Arroyo Seco Park, Pasadena.*

Honoring history, listening forward.

0

Abundance with Grace

We’re all surviving to the best of our ability. But our abilities and resources differ depending on our circumstance, our history, or our environment. Sometimes a person’s burden is not so obvious, especially in festive settings. So in the midst of both abundance and scarcity, may we strive to pay attention and speak and act graciously with each other this Thanksgiving.

NUUC Christmas Concert – December 19

Enjoy selections from Magnificat by J.S. Bach, plus traditional sing-along favorites you won’t want to miss. Guaranteed to make you smile!

Compositions

Five performances in Colorado, Dec 6-21

Internationally acclaimed guitar virtuoso, composer, and Colorado native Aaron Larget-Caplan joins Kantorei in holiday performances featuring seasonal selections written for Guitar and Choir, including the world premiere of his own Cider Meditations. We will also feature works by composer and guitarist Jeffrey Van, whose compositions gained widespread recognition through his collaborations with the renowned Dale Warland Singers. Adding to the excitement of new musical discoveries, the concert will present the world premiere of a new work by composer Zanaida Robles, commissioned by Kantorei’s own Scott Horowitz and his wife, Leah Weinberg.

Join us as we combine traditional holiday spirit with contemporary compositions, offering audiences both seasonal favorites and the excitement of hearing new works performed for the first time.

Learn More

LA River Scenes – world premiere!

December 16 in Downtown LA

LA River Scenes blends melodies I made up in my childhood and young adult years with impressions from my recent experiences with the LA River Kayak Safari tour company. The LA River Kayak Safari journey begins with a bike ride along the LA river’s edge followed by an fascinating history lesson about the Elysian River Valley and finally an exciting kayak trip down the luscious river with baby rapids and deep pools of up to 10 feet. My piece reflects the love and pride I feel for my hometown and my excitement over discovering I can go kayaking near Dodger Stadium in summer.

Photo of Aron Kallay by Elisa Ferrari

Event Details

For Fun

HALLOWEEN MEMORIES
I decided to go ahead and carve my pumpkin even though it was several days after Halloween had passed. WORTH IT!!

CHOCOLATE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT DAY

I helped organize this year’s HW Professional Development Interdisciplinary Session “Chocolate Day!” From holding the huge alien fruit pods to tasting the difference between the bitter, slimy-yet-crunchy fresh fruit and the powdery, complex-flavored bean once the fruit was fermented and roasted; to exploring the intersections of history, art, science, and economics and finally tasting and packaging our work: making chocolate with the help of brilliant friends is fun!

I also did some research and found these two songs about chocolate that I’d never heard before:

Chocolate Sundae on a Saturday Night by Doris Day

Chocolate by Soul Patrol

Ollie and Archie, warming our hearts as they warm each other

Happy Thanksgiving!

0

News From Zanaida: October 2025 Newsletter

Still celebrating Frances Ellen Watkins Harper

My good friend and colleague at Harvard-Westlake Jen Bladen wrote an amazing blog entry about my high school treble choir’s visit to Neighborhood UU Church Pasadena for our Francis Elken Watkins Harper bicentennial celebration last month. Check it out here

Celebrating the ZSR Singers

The success of the ZSR Singers Summer Choral Intensive inspired the official formation of a new non-profit organization. With help from our wonderfully supportive new board of directors and council of advisors, the ZSR Singers strives to create intergenerational artistic experiences, inspiring and cultivating cultural, intellectual, and spiritual engagement through choral music. This mission guides us to seek new and meaningful ways to deepen our engagement with the community. And as we continue to grow, we invite you to stay tuned—there’s some exciting news on the horizon!

Just announced!

I am pleased to have accepted a position as an composition instructor with the International Choral Composers Institute for summer 2026. Learn more about this amazing program by clicking this button:

ICCI Website

Conductions & Composition

I’m conducting Neighborhood UU Chorus in a performance of my arrangement of Sage Bond’s Truth in early November! Additionally, on that day, I’m conducting There Will Be Stars by Frank Ticheli and Hold On by Jester Hairston

Sunday, November 9, 10am
Neighborhood UU Church, Pasadena
Map & Directions

For Fun

Fall trip to see my bestie Debby in Cleveland and Akron, OH. (Also, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame!)

October selfies: hooray for new clothes!

Huge, creepy dragon fly outside my front door

Seasonal decor – the spiders are back!

Archie on my pillow, surprised and dismayed I returned from Ohio

What are you celebrating?

0

(Very) Big Tree

Last week I had to get up early for a routine medical check-up in Glendora, not far from my home. Across the street from the medical office is a small park called Big Tree Bicentennial Park. It may be one of the smallest parks around, but it is home to one of the most enormous trees in the whole country!

Majestic old tree with sprawling roots at Big Tree Bicentennial Park, featuring a commemorative plaque on a stone.

According to the City of Glendora’s website, “The ‘Big Tree’ was planted in the late 1880’s by Mr. Edgar J. Owens, one of Glendora’s early residents. The tree’s botanical name “Ficus Mactophylla” is commonly called Moreton Bay Fig and is named after the Moreton Bay Region of Australia where the species grows naturally. The tree is known for its large buttress roots, helping it reach approximately 99 feet tall and 47 feet in diameter.”

Perplexity AI sources also say the tree’s extensive roots reportedly reach over 1,200 feet across the 15,000-square-foot park.

Big Tree Park in Glendora, California, with the historic tree and entrance sign visible in the foreground.

Historic plaque describing the Big Tree in Glendora, a Moreton Bay Fig planted in the late 1880s by Edgar J. Owens.

Several years ago, when I first drove by it, I had to stop the car and back up because I couldn’t believe my eyes. So this time, instead of just driving by, and since I had some extra time before work, I decided to park my car, get out, and touch its massive roots. It was so healing and spiritual, majestic and beautiful. If you’ve never seen it, I hope you get a chance to look up Big Tree Park in Glendora and check out this magnificent tree.

Conducting

On Sunday September 21, I had the enormous pleasure of conducting Bel Canto, my high school treble choir from Harvard-Westlake, as the featured guest artists at the Neighborhood UU Church Pasadena 10am service celebrating the bicentennial of the birth of Francis Ellen Watkins Harper: an early Unitarian Universalist Black American writer, abolitionist, suffragist, poet, and teacher. Bel Canto sang The Crocuses by Joanna Mills and Songs for the People by Rosephanye Powell – two works featuring texts by Harper, who was born on November 24, 1825. I also conducted the Neighborhood Chorus on I Thank Thee by Demetrius Robinson with lyrics adapted from a letter Harper wrote to Harriet Beecher Stowe in appreciation of Stowe’s ground-breaking novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin. The entire service was an extraordinary blend of education, deep spirituality, transformative social justice work, and beautiful artistic expression. Here’s the service, which was live-streamed on Youtube:

Composition

Zanaida holding sheet music titled The Song of Significance by Zanaida Stewart Robles with text by Seth Godin, published by Hinshaw Music

The Song of Significance, the piece I wrote for the LA Master Chorale, is finally here! I jumped for joy when my printed copies arrived in the mail this week.