Artistic Council and Education Outreach Reports
| artistic_council___education_outreach_reports.pdf |
Communications – Paul Scholtz
Cantus Activities Week by Week
HSR Festival Day!
Communication Highlights
Operations/Production – Zac Colby
We nearly have all the venues booked for 2018-2019 and are just finalizing the details of a few contracts. We are doing some amazing education outreach work on tour with some expanded lecture/demonstration work that is more informational and interactive. We are busy rehearsing for our spring program , “For the Beauty of the Earth” and putting together the final details of our access grant with StreetSong. More information to come soon! Also please consider joining us and getting to know the new space at Westminster with a concert on March 2 at 7:30. We are thrilled with the space and can’t wait to show it off!
Programming – Chris Foss
The company has continued the process for planning the 25th anniversary season. We have brainstormed a number of exciting ideas, and each has been assigned to individuals or teams for further research into details, costs, and viability. We will collect all this information together later this spring, and make decisions about each item's ultimate inclusion in the season. Hopefully, we'll be able to offer a truly spectacular year!
I recently spoke with Gabriel Kahane (composer for Coffee with Borges commission) on the phone, and he loved the recording of his piece. He also offered a few minor adjustments to the piece that we've been working in over the past few runs. Depending on his schedule, he drive to make one of our shows on our impending tour of NY and MA in a few weeks.
With more than one booking involving orchestral programming next Xmas season, I've started the process of selecting repertoire with our presenters. Hopefully we'll be able to finish in hot next few months, so that we can plan our rehearsal schedule accordingly.
We've been in recent conversation with Judd Greenstein, a composer, presenter, and record-label head out of NYC. He is interested in both writing for Cantus and presenting us in collaboration with another artist.
We are currently in the rehearsal phase of For the Beauty of the Earth. We will continue to familiarize ourselves with the repertoire and flow of the show, and we hope to finalize the order and speaking moments mid-March.
I met with Libby Larsen in January to solidify plans for her commission for next season's touring show (as a part of our project with Music in Accord). She is currently in the process of searching and selecting texts, and our goal is to have the piece in hand in July, for rehearsals beginning in August.
Covers 2018 repertoire has been selected, and arrangers have been assigned. Our arrangements are due back in early April for rehearsals beginning in late April/early May.
The major agenda items and goals have been set for programming meetings over the next few months. We've scheduled our goals through June for ultimate delivery to AAM by our traditional late July deadlines.
Two one-off upcoming shows (Westminster and Mahtomedi) have been programmed. After some initial conversations, all parties have agreed that our touring show (Discovery of Sight) is the best option for both performances.
Education Outreach – Sam Green
High School Residency
Festival Day was a huge success on Feb 10! The artists of Cantus led 4 unique breakout sessions including topics such as giving/receiving constructive feedback, leading without a conductor, emotional engagement while singing, and arts advocacy in non-profits. The choir directors each had 40 minutes of rehearsal divided between morning and afternoon to work with the mass choir on the pieces they will perform next month at the culminating concert March 20 at Normandale Lutheran. We look forward to our final masterclass with the students on March 6.
National Outreach
On our February tour, we participated in a 2-day residency at Marylhurst University in Oregon. In addition to masterclasses with 3 college choirs and a combined piece on the evening concert, we led 2 new lectures, focusing on our narrative programming model and vocal technique. These new offerings were an immediate success, so we reprised them later in the week during out time at the Washington Music Educators Association Conference.
Shattuck St. Mary’s Boy Choir
Joe Heitz and I met with Peter Schlief of Shattuck St. Mary’s this week. Through a mutual friend and donor, Steve Coleman, Peter reached out to tie together some type of collaboration with his boychoir this summer. 8 students of the American Boychoir School were relocated to SSM last year after their school closed down. Peter is a Cantus fan, and we hope to arrange some type of collaboration with their summer camp this June.
Spread the word that Cantus offers a variety of educational outreach opportunities locally and around the country each year. If you know educators/organizations interested in working with us, refer them to education@cantussings.org, or contact Sam at sgreen@cantussings.org.
Cantus Activities Week by Week
- November 26 - Christmas with Cantus Tour (Lawrence, KS; Longview, WA; Detroit, MI)
- December 3 - CwC Tour (Dallas, TX; NYC; Washington, DC; Burlington, VT)
- December 10 - CwC Tour (Rockford, MA); Christmas with Cantus Home Shows (St. Barts, Wayzata; MacPhail, Minneapolis; Trinity, Stillwater; Fridley HS, Fridley)
- December 17 - CwC Home Shows (Hamline UMC, St. Paul; Shepherd of the Valley, Apple Valley; Colonial, Edina; St. Thomas, St. Paul; Ordway, St. Paul)
- December 24 - Break
- December 31 - Break
- January 7 - Break; Discovery of Sight Tour (Gallatin Gateway, MT)
- January 14 - Break; High School Residency Outreach
- January 21 - DOS Tour (St. Cloud, MN; Kingsville, TX; San Antonio, TX)
- January 28 - For the Beauty of the Earth Rehearsal; DOS Tour (Nashville, TN)
HSR Festival Day!
- February 11 - DOS Tour (Marylhurst, OR; Edmonds, WA; Yakima, WA)
- February 18 - Minneapolis Audition Day!
Communication Highlights
- Working with Joe and the ensemble to secure our next artistic collaboration partner
Operations/Production – Zac Colby
We nearly have all the venues booked for 2018-2019 and are just finalizing the details of a few contracts. We are doing some amazing education outreach work on tour with some expanded lecture/demonstration work that is more informational and interactive. We are busy rehearsing for our spring program , “For the Beauty of the Earth” and putting together the final details of our access grant with StreetSong. More information to come soon! Also please consider joining us and getting to know the new space at Westminster with a concert on March 2 at 7:30. We are thrilled with the space and can’t wait to show it off!
Programming – Chris Foss
The company has continued the process for planning the 25th anniversary season. We have brainstormed a number of exciting ideas, and each has been assigned to individuals or teams for further research into details, costs, and viability. We will collect all this information together later this spring, and make decisions about each item's ultimate inclusion in the season. Hopefully, we'll be able to offer a truly spectacular year!
I recently spoke with Gabriel Kahane (composer for Coffee with Borges commission) on the phone, and he loved the recording of his piece. He also offered a few minor adjustments to the piece that we've been working in over the past few runs. Depending on his schedule, he drive to make one of our shows on our impending tour of NY and MA in a few weeks.
With more than one booking involving orchestral programming next Xmas season, I've started the process of selecting repertoire with our presenters. Hopefully we'll be able to finish in hot next few months, so that we can plan our rehearsal schedule accordingly.
We've been in recent conversation with Judd Greenstein, a composer, presenter, and record-label head out of NYC. He is interested in both writing for Cantus and presenting us in collaboration with another artist.
We are currently in the rehearsal phase of For the Beauty of the Earth. We will continue to familiarize ourselves with the repertoire and flow of the show, and we hope to finalize the order and speaking moments mid-March.
I met with Libby Larsen in January to solidify plans for her commission for next season's touring show (as a part of our project with Music in Accord). She is currently in the process of searching and selecting texts, and our goal is to have the piece in hand in July, for rehearsals beginning in August.
Covers 2018 repertoire has been selected, and arrangers have been assigned. Our arrangements are due back in early April for rehearsals beginning in late April/early May.
The major agenda items and goals have been set for programming meetings over the next few months. We've scheduled our goals through June for ultimate delivery to AAM by our traditional late July deadlines.
Two one-off upcoming shows (Westminster and Mahtomedi) have been programmed. After some initial conversations, all parties have agreed that our touring show (Discovery of Sight) is the best option for both performances.
Education Outreach – Sam Green
High School Residency
Festival Day was a huge success on Feb 10! The artists of Cantus led 4 unique breakout sessions including topics such as giving/receiving constructive feedback, leading without a conductor, emotional engagement while singing, and arts advocacy in non-profits. The choir directors each had 40 minutes of rehearsal divided between morning and afternoon to work with the mass choir on the pieces they will perform next month at the culminating concert March 20 at Normandale Lutheran. We look forward to our final masterclass with the students on March 6.
National Outreach
On our February tour, we participated in a 2-day residency at Marylhurst University in Oregon. In addition to masterclasses with 3 college choirs and a combined piece on the evening concert, we led 2 new lectures, focusing on our narrative programming model and vocal technique. These new offerings were an immediate success, so we reprised them later in the week during out time at the Washington Music Educators Association Conference.
Shattuck St. Mary’s Boy Choir
Joe Heitz and I met with Peter Schlief of Shattuck St. Mary’s this week. Through a mutual friend and donor, Steve Coleman, Peter reached out to tie together some type of collaboration with his boychoir this summer. 8 students of the American Boychoir School were relocated to SSM last year after their school closed down. Peter is a Cantus fan, and we hope to arrange some type of collaboration with their summer camp this June.
Spread the word that Cantus offers a variety of educational outreach opportunities locally and around the country each year. If you know educators/organizations interested in working with us, refer them to education@cantussings.org, or contact Sam at sgreen@cantussings.org.