Tag: Harvard Westlake
Choir wisdom
This recent photo of me, now featured on my personal Facebook profile, says a lot: I’m about to embark on an overnight choir retreat in the San Bernardino mountains with 35 high school students. I’m already tired. It’s 2pm – the very worst time to leave due to rush-hour traffic. What should’ve been a 2-hour drive lasts for 4 hours. I’m uncomfortable, as this bus was obviously designed for elementary-aged kids, not grown folks. The bus is noisy. The two young men who end up sitting next to me manage to talk excitedly for the whole four-hour ride about gaming, coding, and computer science stuff. Aren’t their mouths dry? But it’s good that they are bonding, I guess.
I love my job. I love these kids. I know this retreat is worth it. But in this moment, I am just trying to get by.
In the end, the retreat was a great success. My students were delightful, warm-hearted, and perfectly nerdy! They inspired me by sharing a few fun “choir truisms” with me during our trip. In honor of my students, here are a few personal favorites I’ve collected over the years from various books, journals, choir bulletin boards, conference handouts, and websites like Brainyquote.com, Pinterest, and Enkiquotes.com.
With songs of sadness and of mirth
That they might touch the hearts of men
And bring them back to heaven again.
Hooray for the start of the new school year!
One of my friends at Harvard-Westlake is a new Spanish instructor from Belize. I told her of my struggle to become a fluent Spanish speaker. She optimistically told me to download an app called “Duolingo.” I’ve been having so much fun practicing not only Spanish, but also French! Apparently, I’m 27% fluent in Spanish and 17% fluent in French. I actually think I’m further along than that, but I can only complete so many exercises in a day. In any case, I’m definitely on my way. This is doable, folks!
Resigning from SGVCC with Love
Dear Friends,
Effective June 30th of this year, I will resign from my position as Artistic Director of the San Gabriel Valley Choral Company. This decision is one that I have struggled with, as SGVCC has meant so much to me over these last 5 years. The time seems right for this transition, as I have accepted a full-time position as choral instructor at Harvard-Westlake School in Studio City.
With SGVCC, I have been nurtured and supported, and I have grown exponentially as a conductor. My vision as an artistic director was realized and validated through my work with SGVCC – for this I am deeply grateful. We served children and the elderly in our community, collaborated with other arts and civic organizations, performed major works, sang a wide variety of styles, honored each other, and had so much fun! I have learned so much about non-profit arts management, board succession, fundraising, and staff management. Most of all, I have made beautiful music with a group of the most beautiful people on the planet. Our community is so special, and we should never ever take that for granted.
I have no doubt that under the leadership of the brilliant Dr. Alexandra Grabarchuk, SGVCC will continue to thrive and grow. As my work with the Samuel Coleridge-Taylor Project, Street Symphony, and the National Association of Negro Musicians continues, I look forward to remaining connected to SGVCC.
My final concert with SGVCC is this Saturday, June 24 at 7pm. Our concert entitled ”Route 66- Music and the All-American Highway” features jazz and blues, folk tunes, and rock ‘n’ roll songs that explore our relationship with this historic highway. It’s a choral celebration of America’s love affair with the open road and the stories we tell on the journey of life. Our children’s choir “Kids in Concert” will also be featured. Tickets are now available at the cost of $5 for children, $15 for students and seniors, and $20 for the general public. The concert will be held in the beautiful acoustical space of The Parish of Saint Luke, 122 S. California Avenue in Monrovia. More information can be found at www.choralcompany.org or by calling 818-802- 9620.
Yours truly,
Zanaida Robles