In this house, for which I am so grateful, Sometimes I feel like we’re in a cocoon. I don’t feel trapped. I think I see us changing, growing, blooming, awakening. I hope.
There are many painful and awkward days. There is uncertainty and risk and failure ahead. Often, change feels like loss. And there is deep grief and pain. But something is holy here,
Here in this holy cocoon from which we cannot yet emerge; Where we are stuck and in pain. Are we stuck and in pain because our legs have fallen off? Is that what has changed? Is that why we can’t move? Will we never walk again?
We had better be growing wings, then.
COMPOSITION
Yay! I finished movements 2 and 3 of my Nocturnes for Piano. Now to crunch out the 1st movement. I’ve got a good start on it, but I’m struggling with the development.
CONDUCTING
I shot a video of my conducting practice the other day. Ugh. So much work to do. I’m working on preparing the Duruflé “Sanctus,” which I’ll need to record for real soon for an upcoming virtual choir project.
SINGING
I had fun using GarageBand to create a multitrack recording of my setting of “Veni Sancte Spiritus” today. Singing alto, tenor, and bass is fun for this reluctant soprano.
I’m playing “Zelda: Breath of the Wild” on Nintendo Switch. It is a masterpiece of a video game! The landscapes are vast and beautiful, the animation is exceptional, and the story is classic. Best of all, the music is wonderful! It’s like they use chamber music textures to give the game a more intimate feel. It’s a great way to escape from the troubles of this world for a little while.
Trailer for Nintendo Switch: “Zelda: Breath of the Wild”
The need for self love and self care is crucial, and working to help uplift and show care toward other Black people is a vital part of this work. As a member of the national board for the National Association of Negro Musicians (NANM), here is a statement I have crafted about our work:
“With gratitude and reverence for the pioneers who have come before and for those who are with us now; with sober focus and determination to carry on the work of honoring and advancing our legacy; in the face of all manner of trials and tribulations in our midst: the National Association of Negro Musicians is firmly committed to its mission of promoting, preserving, and supporting all genres of music created or performed by African Americans.”
Core Messsage Concepts:
To all creators, performers, and educators who identify as Black, African American, Negro, or Colored;
To all those who seek to promote, preserve, and support all genres of music created or performed by African Americans:
WE CARE FOR EACH OTHER – Here’s what NANM provides…
scholarship money;
a platform for cultural engagement and celebration;
educational/historical/cultural resources;
a space for those who identify as members of the African diaspora to be seen and to process shared experience.
WE SEE EACH OTHER – Here’s who NANM honors for already doing the work…
WE APPRECIATE EACH OTHER – Here’s who honors and supports NANM’s work…
Our donors and members
WE NEED EACH OTHER – Here’s who we need to help continue NANMs legacy…
solicitation of scholarship applicants;
calls for scholarly papers and articles;
calls for presenters and performers at national convention.
I’m working on building the infrastructure that enable us to more effectively fulfill our organizational mission, thereby strengthening and uplifting ourselves so that we may be sustained in the fight against racism alongside our non-Black siblings.
Composition
I’ve had so much inspiration to work on new projects that I can hardly figure out where to begin. I’ve also had numerous requests for scores from my catalogue of completed works. If you would like to peruse a score or purchase a license for one or more of my works, please use the contact form on my website at zanaidarobles.com. Sometimes it takes me a couple days, but I’ll respond as soon as I possibly can. I’m excited to share my music with you!
In the meantime, here’s a recent recording I made of my work “Umoja” for treble voices. I added a few things to spice it up!
Umoja , arranged and sung by Zanaida Robles
Conducting
As I prepare to go back to the “virtual” choir room this fall, I’m working on shoring up my conducting skills. Conducting is such a magical art form to me, and I grieve the loss of the ability to practice my art due to COVID-19. However, I’ve decided to commit to continuing to work on my craft and to use my skills in the service of my ensembles through video. Some works I’m hoping to video record myself conducting this fall include “Sanctus” from Requiem by Maurice Duruflé, “Hehlehlooyuh” by James Furman, and my very own composition “Kyrie.”
As I prepare for this fall, I have been reviewing texts and notes from my doctoral studies at USC. I’ve also been reading choral music publications and paying attention to the current work of my colleagues in the field of choral music education. One of the most delightful things I’ve found was my friend Dr. Christopher Gravis’s video introduction to instrumental conducting. His video was absolutely inspirational to me, reminding me how amazingly complex our art form can be and how we have a responsibility to put in the work to thoroughly study and fully comprehend the music we conduct, regardless of whether it’s instrumental or choral. Here’s the video:
Instrumental Conducting: Introduction to the Orchestra, the Score, and Transposition — by Christopher Gravis, posted June 2020.
Singing
When I’m not recording vocals for various professional projects, I’ve been singing through my 24 Italian Art Songs and Arias, trying to work on my legato phrasing and vowel alignment. (I enjoy playing them on my flute, too!)
I’m also playing around with GarageBand to create new music. Here’s a recording I did not too long ago of “Karitas Habundat” by 12th century composer and mystic Hildegard von Bingen.
Karitas Habundat by Hildegard von Bingen, sung by Zanaida Robles
For Fun
My daughter is really into K-Pop right now. I love watching her dance to this music because she moves with such effortless style and confidence. I’m in awe of how easily she picks up these dance steps; she’s such a natural dancer (complete opposite of me!). She tried to teach me the dance steps to a couple of songs. Laughter ensued, and then I gave up. But it’s fun to try! Start here:
BLACKPINK – ‘Kill This Love’ DANCE PRACTICE VIDEO (MOVING VER.)
This post originally appeared in Zanaida’s monthly newsletter. Are you on the list? Subscribe here
“SONGS OF THE SLAVE” by Kirke Mechem will highlight the Spring Concert of The First United Methodist Church of Santa Monica on Sunday, May 6, at 7:30 p.m. The Chancel Choir, with guest singers from The Long Beach Chorale, the Los Angeles Concert Orchestra under the direction of Dr. James E. Smith, and organist Ty Woodward, will reprise their world premiere performance of this work from 1994. Originally commissioned by the Santa Monica church, it has since been performed over 100 times, world wide, including a recent performance in Carnegie Hall. Featured soloists will be Wayne Shepperd, bass-baritone, in the role of Frederick Douglass, and Zanaida Robles, soprano.
Kirke Mechem, composer, is often called “the dean of American choral composers.” Frederick Douglass is the central figure in this suite, based on material from Mechem’s opera, John Brown. Douglass, an escaped slave, became the greatest African-American leader of the nineteenth century; he was Brown’s friend for many years.
Also on the program will be the beautiful Requiem by Maurice Duruflé, with Alexandra Grabarchuk, mezzo-soprano.
