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MARK PUCHALA – 2009-10 Recipient Mark Puchala holds a Bachelor of Music Education degree in Choral Music from Central Michigan University and a Master of Music in Voice from the University of Michigan. He is the chair of the Music Department, Director of Choirs, and an instructor of Applied Voice and Music Appreciation for Northwestern…
ACDA is… a professional organization for professional choral directors. Other organizations serve singers/institutions. Our role is to serve CONDUCTORS! The ACDA-MI Convention is a State Level convention with National Clinicians! The following is adapted from the ACDA National website: How does membership benefit you? Explore Conductor Exchange Programs ACDA Choral Archives and Museums Commissioning new…
“Why not take choir? It’s an easy A!” As choral educators we cringe when we hear those words, not only because we don’t like the stigma of our ensemble being an “easy A,” but also because we know how much work it takes for our students (and us) to put together a quality performance. And…
Singing in the brain Neuroscience takes mental note of our affinity for music. “Humans use music, collectively and individually, in ways that we are just now beginning to scientifically understand.” http://legacy.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20071115/news_lz1c15brain.html Note: If this link doesn’t work, please copy the above address and paste it into your web browser.
One of the best activities I have built into my advanced choir’s schedule is our Fall Retreat. It has proven enormously beneficial to the choir on many levels, most of which are extra-musical. The retreat gives the students a chance to get to know one another, develop section and ensemble identities, and discover the leaders…
Some of us may laud Benjamin Franklin for inventing the “double spectacles” because they allow us to read up close and see far away with one pair of glasses. Some of us may curse bifocals as we strain our necks to focus through a tiny square in our glasses and onto the music on our…
Today’s technology offers a wide variety of options to incorporate the use of digital recording in our classrooms and also to efficiently distribute these recordings to our students. Whether or not you have a recording setup in your classroom currently or if you teach in different classrooms or buildings there is a solution that can…
At a recent ACDA state meeting, our president, Richard Ingram, had us break into small groups and discuss the future of our state chapter and some visions we have. When it came around to me, I shared with the group how ACDA had impacted me in the last 20 years since I first became part…
RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION In my experience, two of the most difficult aspects of running and maintaining a professional organization are recruitment and retention. It can take tremendous effort to inform prospective members on campus that your organization exists. Getting your name out there by using a student listserv, flyers, sidewalk chalk, or word of mouth…
New Web Address: ACDA.ORG In its surge of technology renovations, the American Choral Directors Association has adopted a new domain name: acda.org. The domain name was formerly owned by the Antique and Collectibles Dealers Association. ACDA obtained the name through a timely inquiry and recent ownership change of the antique association. The negotiation took place…
