Welcome And Guest Introduction

SPEAKER_01 0:04

Welcome to the choir director podcast, the essential resource for choir directors, conductors, and vocal leaders who want to build stronger choirs, run better rehearsals, and create outstanding musical experiences. Welcome back to the choir director podcast with me, Russell Scott. This is episode 25. Wow, 25. We're into the quarter century mark of our first 100 episodes. It's been such a delight to interview so many amazing guests and share with you so many great tips and techniques along the way. Thank you so much for all your messages, as usual. And uh in today's show, I have a very special guest indeed, all the way from British Columbia. Today's guest is Walter Martella, Canadian musician, conductor, and educator based in Powell River, British Columbia. Walter is the musical director of the Powell River Academy of Music, and he's helped shape the choral life of his community through ensembles like the Academy Chamber Choir, Core Musica Men's Choir, and the Powell River Chorus. And in this episode, we talk about what it takes to build sustainable choirs, how to pace rehearsals across a season, and the practical habits that help singers keep improving. Plus, how Walter's background as an improvising musician influences the way he teaches musicianship and expression. Welcome to the show, Walter Martella. A very warm welcome, Walter, to the show. It's such a pleasure having you on all the way from the West Coast of Canada. I mean, you couldn't be much further away from us. It's it's welcome to the show. Thank you so much for joining us.

SPEAKER_00 1:41

Right, thanks. Glad to be here and uh honored to be a part of the part of the podcast. Thank you.

SPEAKER_01 1:47

Thank you. Thank you. And it's lovely to have to have heard from you and all about all the work you're doing and the choir festival that you run and are involved in. And we're going to talk all about those things today. Why don't you start by sort of introducing yourself and telling our listeners all about the great things you do and how this all began and how you got into music?

From Piano To Trumpet To Choir

SPEAKER_00 2:05

Oh wow, that's a yeah. My my first start was, of course, piano lessons, and then we played accordion at home. My family's Italian. They're from my parents came from Italy. Um, went on to trumpet lessons, but I think my the start for choral music came with the boys' choir, the Power River Boys Choir that I joined, I auditioned for, and this was under Don James, who's a choral luminary in Canada, well known, um, that starred also the festival that I'm the artistic director of as well. And so through my life of having piano lessons and playing in uh school band and school choir and um developing a love for playing the trumpet, I love playing the trumpet. It's the instrument that I've uh really congregated to and went on to study and um and still play daily. I still play many, many concerts, piano and according, have an accordion festival. So um, and my life has been just really participating in musical endeavors and um running uh groups and giving concerts and recordings, and um I've like I tell a lot of people, I've had a wonderful life of just around music. So I've never done anything else, in fact. Um and you know, thinking of this this discussion with all the things that I know I've done, I can't remember one of them.

unknown 3:41

You know how it is.

SPEAKER_01 3:43

Well, you've had a life, a life part of this amazing, amazing culture, this amazing thing that we have, these these talents that we have as as musicians. And it's very interesting talking to somebody that's involved in choral music, um, that has that has a talent for a different instrument other than the voice or the or piano, because most choir directors tend to go on to piano or or vocals first. So to have the trumpet as your first instrument is is really quite fascinating.

SPEAKER_00 4:11

I I think so, because the the trumpet is a lyrical instrument. So you from playing the trumpet, you can learn to understand how to make a melodic phrase, an ending, a middle, and or the start, the middle, and the end. And the piano is important to understand that harmonic the way harmony works in uh choral music or any kind of music, but how to understand chord harmony and chord tones and how to maybe even explain the idea across to a group of people that maybe aren't well maybe might not know a lot about chord harmony and um but the trumpet does help with melodic shaping,

When Instruments Improve Vocal Hearing

SPEAKER_00 4:55

I think.

SPEAKER_01 4:56

Yeah, and that's really that's really quite fascinating. Um do you find do you find a a lot of um choral singers that you're aware of, um the the the singers that sing with you, whether they be boys, whether they be men, whether they're in your mail in male choruses or do you do you find a lot of musicians do uh actually play other instruments? Do you find that they are m more interested, you know, interested not in just the voice, um, but actually playing instruments? How do you think that helps their singing? It's an interesting connection between the two.

SPEAKER_00 5:28

Yeah, that's a good point. I think like um if I'm thinking of the people in my choirs, I teach a lot of choir. I there's a a men's choir, um, a chamber choir that's auditioned, a community choir that has about a hundred people in it, and a children's mixed children's choir. So in the week, that's my like so those are the groups that I work with, and they're all so much they're so different. And I would think um in the chamber choir, more of the adults play another instrument. Um, with a children's choir, most of them take piano lessons or violin, or they're learning, or even in singing lessons. Um and I think that does help a lot. They learn to read, they're able to follow uh what they're looking at. Um so in that way it does help. Um yeah.

SPEAKER_01 6:33

Yeah, I think and I think um I think whatever connection you have with music, whether whatever instrument is, it's gonna help you on something else to do with music, you know.

SPEAKER_00 6:45

Yeah, yeah, I think so, yeah. Uh like for instance, I can think of one fellow who sings bass in the chamber choir and he plays the tuba. So now this is a really great correlate the the two together. Then imagine if he had somebody that sang bass in the choir but actually played the flute.

SPEAKER_01 7:06

Yeah. It's the perfect synergy.

SPEAKER_00 7:11

I think a a bass singer that plays the trombone euphonium or the bass actually has a probably a really great understanding of how these low notes work, how to read them, and probably where they fit in your hearing and in your body, uh like understanding this low note or a flute player singing soprano actually makes quite a bit of sense because you can understand Burr to hear these pitches when you're singing them. So in that way, yeah, I agree. They um that does help a lot.

SPEAKER_01 7:54

Yeah, and there is a correlation, and I've never really thought about it actually, because I I mean I'm I'm a bass myself. I play I play piano, I don't play uh a trombone or or um tuba or anything like that at all. I've always had I've always been on keyboards and and vocals, but um, it is interesting as as a bass singer, I can relate to bass clef particularly uh and those instruments that that play. And obviously there are, you know, there are many instruments in the orchestra that have you know transposing instruments, they're in different clefs, uh, it gets all very complicated. But it does that, you know, that it is an interesting thing. I've I've I've not thought a great deal about, and I certainly hadn't prepared to talk talk with you about it today. So this is this is really interesting on the fly to suddenly have this conversation about how we correlate instruments of the orchestra to the the human voice and and how that may help or actually have the opposite effect of confusing people uh when it comes to uh to the voice.

SPEAKER_00 8:51

Yeah, yeah, that's an interesting point. I think the an instrument that you're using a trumpet or a flute or a bass, I think definitely you're not to say singing into it, because we're creating an embouchure or you know, blowing air and having the embouchure begin that sound, but really we're singing through that instrument. So the more um identity you have with that range, I think probably works better, like the opposite being playing the flute and being a bass singer.

SPEAKER_01 9:27

Yeah, exactly.

unknown 9:29

Exactly.

Using Jazz Harmony To Teach Flow

SPEAKER_01 9:30

I'll tell you what something else I'm very interested in is the fact that you've you've studied jazz music and yet you work you work a great deal in classical music as well. How do you find that crossover and and the again the synergy between what you do as a jazz musician to what you do as a classical musician?

SPEAKER_00 9:49

Well, I you know that's a good point because I think what works really well for me is that um when it comes to a piece of music, I'll understand the harmony uh quickly. So from learning all those chord progressions or understanding how chord movement works. When I teach a piece of music, I was thinking that's Abent Lead, this really beautiful piece of music. And there's a part where it goes where it goes This part. So it's at the bottom of the first page. Uh, I don't know if you know that piece of music there, yeah. And so um when I teach that music, the melody doesn't do that, doesn't go da da da da da da da. So that's the chord harmony B flat da da da da F da da da da C minor da da da da then G minor then to D, da da da da, and then it's the top of the next page of where this kind of resolves. So what I do with the choir, because I hear this like that, that what I do is when a piece of music does change like that, I I ask the choir to sing that exact melody. It's not what's written on there because the sopranos go da da da and then the next voice da da da and they're holding that note. So, what I get them to do is they sing that melody with me. So, like I've taken this, the three notes, da da da da. And so in your register, I'll go, okay. Now everybody just sing this with me like this. You go, B da, da da da. And so this harmonic development, which is what's happening in there, um, they'll learn to hear it the way I'm hearing it, with you know, uh in that kind of melodic way. And then when they hear, oh yeah, the da da da, here I come, da da da, and then they begin to understand the harmonic flow a little bit more like I would understand it. I might sit down and actually play kind of a pop version of that, you know, P flat, and improvise on it a little bit. So to I think that's what playing jazz music has brought into the classical side is uh understanding harmony, but also maybe even like to actually improvise over it, to play over it. So I can give the example of so that part is written of the pieces in six parts, I think. And I can now that I know the chord harmony for it, I can actually kind of make a neat little tune out of it so they can hear the direction of it. So when they go to to sing it or to um they'll have a better understanding, I hope, about the movement of that.

Switching Between Four Choir Types

SPEAKER_01 13:20

And you you mentioned that you work with four different choirs and every week, and that's that's quite something because that's four different kinds of voices that you're working with. How do you how do you find that? And how do you do the the sort of cultural shift, I suppose, between the four different types of voices that you're working with and their styles, one being you know, auditioned, chamber choir, young voices, male voices. Um that's quite a lot to get your head round. And you are you know clearly an amazing musician. That goes without saying, but but you you must need to you know move your your mindset as you shift from one to the next to the next, working on different rep, presumably.

SPEAKER_00 14:06

Yeah, for sure. Yeah, every choir just has a different degree of how far I know I can push at a at a given time. So, or not to push, but even to know when to kind of like to go on to the next level of of um working on a piece of music. For instance, core music is a men's choir. It was um originally originally the mill choir. So there was a paper mill here. They created this choir to help uh boost morale in the commute in the uh in the workforce. And so that was generally a group of men that most of them did not read music, and most of them uh probably had never sung choral music before. And so with that group, I do way different. Um uh, for instance, when we do a learn a new piece, um, try to make sure that we start with the melody. Okay, so we get the melody like um the I believe, I believe above the, you know, that nice little melody there, as opposed to the chamber choir, that when we start a piece of music, I'll tend to find a spot where we all do the same rhythm. Like uh, you know, the piece human heart. Uh, this is Jacob Collier and Coplay. This yadun dun da da dun de dun dun dun da da da da da da da da da da da de da dun dun. So because it has a lot of sixteenth notes in it, to practice getting the tick-a-t-ka-tink-a-t-ka-t-ka-t-ka-tin-ka-da--dun da t-da-de-da-de- dun da t-da to feel that. Um, and so I tend to start in that one spot there so we can begin to feel how the 16th notes work together. And because we're all singing the same rhythm, it's a great place to start. With something like the men's choir, I'll make sure that the piece has a really clear melody for them to start with. I hope I'm making some sense or because it is changing quite um it they are four different groupings of people, for sure. I think um I tend to find a place where everybody has something that's common in it. And that's where I tend to start. So it may not be at the beginning, it may be like at the at the chorus of the piece, I'll start in there uh to give an idea how the piece works. I can get from it if the choir will enjoy to do it too, and get a lot of information from that first trial of the pieces. Do you feel like they're excited about it? And so I work on it that way with something like the power of recorse or corocantiamo, in fact, that um uh you know this this piece by Eric Essenwald, it's called My Song, Eric's Eric's Essenwald, and it goes Ya Dee Da D Da Da D. So it has this really beautiful solo melody, and it is a solo melody, but I get everybody to learn to sing that melody so they identify it. Ah, this is the song, even though um they may not all sing it. I hope that makes sense. I feel like I'm all over the map here because they are so different. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 18:07

I should have got I should have got you to do a concert of your own on this on the show today. We've had a lot of singing, more more so than normal.

SPEAKER_00 18:14

Well, that's the only way I can think of describing anything. And so I try to find something in each piece to start with that first of all gives a great idea of um of the song to them, to the choir, to the singers, with a hope that I can get from it, I'll be able to tell if they're somewhat interested in it. Uh, because the feedback you get pretty quickly. Um, not people going, oh, I don't like this, but you can hear how engaged they might be with the the piece of music. So I think a lot of um with core musica, for instance, this is the men's choir, that I do a lot of singing to them. Um because a lot of the men don't read. And so I'll always demonstrate uh the line apart. Um, I do it without the piano too. So although we have an fabulous accompanist that when I sing, I do it completely a cappella, and I can always know the notes, so it's not like the pianist has to go, okay, here's an D flat. Um and I can sing that and they sing it back to me, I sing it to them. And I find not only do they take my timbre too, which is quite I have no vibrato, my voice is very plain. Um, but as uh as you know, to try to be super accurate with my change of of um pitches, uh, and so they sing that back to me. And I think they learn a lot that way. They can follow.

SPEAKER_01 19:51

Um Yeah, I think a lot of a lot of choirs will sing by rote and will sing by memory and we'll sing by copy. Um do you have do you have perfect pitch?

SPEAKER_00 20:33

Well, for the most part, yes. I think sometimes I get mixed up because I play the trumpet and the trumpet's transposed. So if I hear a note and I'll put a certain fingering for the trumpet, but I should be playing the C trumpet, I think. But yeah, so like as soon as I can see a piece of music, like I'm able to sing the parts, and I have quite a high voice and quite a low voice, so um, I can demonstrate to a certain point alto and second soprano part and bass part also, maybe soprano, top soprano, no, but um so I always sing to the choirs. I talk very little in the rehearsal. Uh so like although we're having this conversation, it might seem like I talk a lot, but in the practice I don't talk very much at all. Uh, I'm

Rote Learning With Clear Direction

SPEAKER_00 21:23

really trying to be clear with the instructions, uh, getting people in the choir used to the language. For instance, I'll say, let's do the pickup to bar 32 or find letter B in your music, and let's start on the third beat of the bar at letter B. So, and I'm as best as I can, super directive. So I won't usually go at the end of the thing. Um, uh let's see here. Um while we're going through, I usually really keep track of, oh, okay, we'll go back there, mental note, and then go back to page four, uh, the third bar top system. Like, oh, try to be really direct with that.

SPEAKER_01 22:11

Um, and I think that's important though. I think that's also important to help people learn and get faster at reading, even if they don't read music. Because I have this all the time. I work with singers who don't read music, and I always say to new tasters who might come to a choir saying, you know, about 80% of the choir have learned to read music from being in the choir. And that's as a result of just. Exactly as you say, you know, you refer to different aspects of the music, different terminology. You know, you you talk about bar numbers and staves and systems and you know key signatures and time signatures, and you explain things as you're going along, and people do pick this up, even if they can't recognize, oh, that's a B flat, or oh, that's you know, a double flat. What is that? They they understand the geography of the music, and it helps enormously in in learning music and uh and to pick the music up quickly, doesn't it?

SPEAKER_00 22:58

I I I agree, yeah. It doesn't have to get super technical, but Italian terms like what is legato or staccato or mezzo forte and then forte, pianissimo, um just learning how to identify these different levels of volume or length of note, counting. This is a fermata, this is an accent. Um, so calling, I do my best to make sure I use that language, uh legato, or make this pianissimo. Um, so you might in the beginning say, oh, pianissimo is as very soft, and then uh forte is louder, and so you may begin by explaining it just in general terms and then begin to call it oh, this is pianissimo, make it so you know, make it soft or legato. Or so I try to do my best with um uh slowing, saying slowing down and then calling it retardando. Uh this is the retard, so we begin to slow down. Um, so I try to incorporate the language um as many things where you're where you are in the music uh and the approach of the dynamics or articulation or so I try to use that language all the time.

SPEAKER_01 24:20

I love I love the way that there's a slight Italian dialect coming into the way that you pronounce those beautiful terms. Have you have you lived in Canada your whole life or have you did you did you move there?

SPEAKER_00 24:32

Yeah, we I was born here in the actually in the town that we are um I'm videoing from, and my parents did come from Italy, just south of Rome. Uh and our first language was Italian uh growing up until we went to school. And the funny thing was when we went when we went to Italy that we developed our own Italian language.

SPEAKER_01 24:59

So it's a beautiful, you know, beautiful country. Italy's just stunning in every in every possible way, including the food, for which I I you know adore. Um into so talk tell me a little bit about uh about the where you're located in the world. Because you're you know you're you're right on the west coast, um, and you're you're you know you're you're in a very kind of remote, but you are you know very connected as well. Tell us a little bit about where you are and and the sort of um the sort of culture there is.

SPEAKER_00 25:28

Yeah, well, we are in an well, I wouldn't say

Teaching Musical Terms Without Fear

SPEAKER_00 25:33

super isolated, but it does take a bit of doing to get here. So out of Vancouver, you're gonna travel north. It does take about five hours, but those five hours include uh two ferries waiting at a ferry terminal. So the actual drive is only about maybe a hundred kilometers, which wouldn't take that long. But the waiting, being being on time to catch a ferry, um, and the ferry sailing itself and getting here. Um, but I from the early days, having

Building A Music Culture In Powell River

SPEAKER_00 26:06

done just a bit of um research, the town was built around the mill uh back in the early 1900s. And around attracting people to come to this community, uh, they created something called a garden community. Garden city, a garden city is the term. And it was isolated, but what they did is they tried to attract people that would come and work here that were musicians, uh, and that in that way creating also a cultural aspect to the community. Um you know, f the um uh the this kind of cultural community was started in those early days, and I was even surprised at how many um musical things they had: opera society, concert band, immense singing groups, a small orchestra. They had uh a lot of really um things to enlighten the community and keep them here. Uh, there's a beautiful Dwight Hall that was built at about that time, and they had, you know, for that time very well-known musicians that came to perform. Uh, they came by steamship up to the mill. Um, and then following that came an influx of um teachers that came to teach in the school that had really strong musical background, um and created this lineage of of great music. And the the school district here really supported um choral music and band, concert band and jazz band. Um how large how large is the community there? It's not that big. Um I think at its most, or probably about 15,000 people living here. And it spread across about maybe 50 kilometers along the coast from Lund, which is this sister of Lund in Sweden. So the first people to come to Lund were from Sweden. And so there's Lund in Sweden. This is the where they came from, a really interesting story, all the way down to Saltry Bay. So it's about 50 kilometers along the coast.

SPEAKER_01 28:39

Wow. Amazing. I I'm I'm fascinated by this because it's you know it's a very small community and you have so much music going on, and that is that's so wonderful. And it's so wonderful to be thinking that, you know, here I am in in London, which is one of the you know largest areas for music in the world, and then I'm talking with someone who has a uh a community, a much, much smaller, tiny, tiny community with so much music, rich culture of music, which is truly magnificent, and talking to a uh a clearly a very talented and passionate musician as as yourself. What I what I was also very interested to to understand and to find out about uh the work you do is your involvement in this uh International Choral Festival. Because as as someone who runs a choral festival, I will I I run the World Voices Festival, um, it's it's wonderful to hear of different types of festivals that are going on all over the world and how they attract people from all walks of life in all different cultures and in all different countries. So tell me a little bit more about uh about your your festival. It sounds like a wonderful, wonderful thing.

SPEAKER_00 29:44

Yeah, it's really an amazing event. Um it's called uh International

Inside An International Choral Festival

SPEAKER_00 29:49

Coral Kataimyu. Uh and what can I say about it? Well, um it started in 1984, and aside of just during COVID time, we skipped one festival, so every second year, and then it was always on even, and during post-COVID, we went to odd years. And what can I say about what attracts it? I just don't know. Um we have aside of that post-COVID time, it's always been international. Post-COVID was all North American, you know, but it was an amazing festival. Uh really um still such high standard of of choral music. Really amazing.

SPEAKER_01 30:42

So you get choirs from choirs from all over North America and and internationally coming to take part in the festival.

SPEAKER_00 30:49

Yeah, the last time, if I can remember, we had a group from the uh we had M-A-L-E ensemble from the Philippines, as six guys, really amazing entertainers, a group from Taiwan, um, New Zealand, Costa Rica, and of course from United States, from Canada. Um, and I hope I'm not missing anybody out. Uh, and this next uh iteration of the Fest 127, we already have interests from Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, uh, China, Africa, and of course, um North America, America, uh, the United States, and Canada. So this year we've already seen a real interest in the festival for 2027. Uh, we don't usually see it that early, but we're seeing a lot of uh positive interest for next festival. It'd be great to see you come here. That would be wonderful. That would be wonderful.

SPEAKER_01 31:57

Yeah, and what um what what type of of groups does it does it tend to attract, and what sort of music do do they perform?

SPEAKER_00 32:06

It is everything. Um we have uh certainly the contemporary music categories, that is the newest music that's being written, the uh traditional choral music, um, and the folk and cultural uh categories. So those are the three main categories that people come to compete with. Um last time we had a barbershop group that came, and they could participate in certain categories, and they were a real hit. They were excellent, actually. And that gave us an idea that we might like to open the festival to a couple of different and new categories, being barbershop and vocal jazz and gospel music. A lot of choirs are doing this repertoire, and it is the new repertoire of the time, so we can't discount that uh as being new new music and what's being written now.

SPEAKER_01 33:10

It's fascinating because uh because the gospel particularly has has grown so much over the last over the last 10 years.

SPEAKER_00 33:17

It's so popular. Uh uh a couple of our we've had Zimfira Pelos here, who's a very well-known conductor, uh, and Elizabeth Nunes from New York, uh, the Young People's Chorus. Now, both of those choirs at some point actually won the choral festival here, and then we I've had them back. Uh coming this year is Fred Schoberg from uh Sweden and um Maria Maria, oh I've forgotten her name, uh, from Greece. Sorry, Maria.

SPEAKER_01 33:56

We'll say Maria.

SPEAKER_00 33:57

She's listening to the from Greece. She knows who she is.

SPEAKER_01 34:01

She's coming. Sure, a lot of other people know too. Everyone knows Maria from Greece.

SPEAKER_00 34:06

They do, of course. Yeah. And Scott Leathead from Canada will be returning. Uh, and Larry Nickel from Canada will be returning as well. Um, and I do my best to get an international panel of people that are adjudicating so a choir can get a really uh great cross-section of feedback.

SPEAKER_01 34:28

Uh it's vital. It's it's so, you know, that it's it's it's one of the great things about festivals. And my my choir festival isn't is non-competitive, uh, it's about performing and learning together. Um, but all of our uh amazing practitioners, our educators, they they adjudicate the the choir's performing. Um but we give them constructive feedback on paper, so there's no competition involved, they just get some constructive feedback at the end. And it's invaluable. I mean that that that you know the the response and the you know the opinion from experts and little things can make such a massive difference to choirs. And I think it's it's it's so important.

SPEAKER_00 35:08

Yeah, that is important. I think and I think the w world of crit criticism has changed a lot. Where I think, even from the way I teach and give criticism, that it's done in a more polite manner, a way that's a lot more caring of how people will receive that. I think that's important because the times are different. And I think gone are the times of the conductor that scares everybody into, you know. And so I think the giving of criticism, maybe the way the way I know I do

Feedback That Builds Confidence

SPEAKER_00 35:48

it, with um still a critic not a criticism, but a helpful hand with a a kinder approach. Well, it needs to be constructive.

SPEAKER_01 35:57

I think I think that's the point. It doesn't, it shouldn't be about the person giving the feedback. It shouldn't be you know led by ego. It should be it should be to to help and to support and to to help people get better, which is ultimately why those choirs have asked for the feedback or have been responsible, you know, responsive to it.

SPEAKER_00 36:15

Yeah, that's important. I I think the times are different, and I think um treating people with care is maybe more uh that's what I've learned, in fact, treating people, whether it's children or adults, people that can read music or not read music, to teach them and to guide them without uh without making people feel bad, without pe singling people out, or using terms like that's wrong. In fact, I I'll always demonstrate this is uh let's do it like this. I'll find a a better, gentler way to teach that um is a bit more uh careful, I think, and maybe that that it seems the people I'm around that seems to be the way it's going, uh in my opinion.

SPEAKER_01 37:07

And what's uh what's next for you? What are your next sort of challenges? What's your what's your vision for the future?

SPEAKER_00 37:13

Well, you must have been reading my mind because I thought, you know what, how can I s get in this great idea? Anyway, for the summertime, um I have this unity project that I'm working on and putting unity in the community. So in the community here, I I'm really kind of somebody that does engage the community, try to involve as many people. So we're working on the unity project. So through the summer, we're having rehearsals,

Unity Project And Concert On Beach

SPEAKER_00 37:46

and at the end of these rehearsals, we're gonna have this concert at the beach. And hopefully I'm going to say it right, but we're it's to we have a lot of new people in the community that have moved from all different parts of the world, and they may be somewhat invisible in the community, working in jobs and places where they're invisible. And um, I know from my parents having come here from Canada that people that come here maybe without family or friends, it's not easy to get um to be part of the community. So this is a project where the three songs put a little love in your heart, we are the world, heal the world. And um, and so we had a rehearsal with these three songs, and it seems to have worked out really well in the first rehearsal. There were 60 participants, um, and I'm hoping by the end of it that there'll be at least a hundred uh doing these songs. And now I've given them the lyric sheet, uh, and but because I can help teach some harmony and some places, okay. Here's the chord. Can you grab one of these notes when you're singing it? And we'll do the ooze behind the bridge, something. And so I thought it worked out really quite well. And there were some very new faces in the group, although I had um sent it to the people that I know do quite a bit of singing, so I would have a base of choir to uh to help make make it go. But there were a lot of new faces which I was thrilled about, and so um we're putting the word out one more degree uh to get more people in on it. But so that's the summer project, and then at some point I'll start working on the it takes about a week to prepare the music for the year for the those four groups, and then there's the coral katamu that needs quite a bit of attention because there are common songs, and and I want my choirs to have a different program for those events and the opening night and the closing night, and um uh and so there's a lot of probably you know, one week of just really full-on uh planning and picking and buying and uh getting the repertoire together.

SPEAKER_01 40:13

What an exciting time and uh what an amazing idea for a project as well to have a concert on the beach. I absolutely love that. I I need to I need to be there. Uh Walter, it's been such a pleasure talking with you today. Thank you so much for coming on the show. It's it's such a joy to talk to someone in in in such a different way and doing so so many great things. Uh, I'm truly inspired by what by by what you're doing right now. So thank you so much.

SPEAKER_00 40:38

Yeah, thanks. And what a pleasure. And what is the name of your festival?

SPEAKER_01 40:42

The World Voices Festival.

SPEAKER_00 40:45

I'm gonna write that down. World Voices. And how often do you have it?

SPEAKER_01 40:49

We do this every year. And um our listeners, some of our listeners. Yeah, some of our listeners will know we we uh we tend to do it every October in uh the city of St. Albans here in uh here in the UK. Um but the choir festival's uh been going for 10 years this year, and uh we're very excited. Um we we did the um had uh our com our um festival hosted at the Berlin Philharmonic last year, and next year uh we head to the Vienna Concert House to be hosted there, which will be really exciting. Um so it's uh you know it's a it's a great community we we work in together. And uh to have all these choral festivals and opportunities all over the world is is a really wonderful thing.

SPEAKER_00 41:29

Well, yeah, you know what, before I sign we end, but I the um if I could just say one more thing about people in choral music, and I think really truly the people that sing in choirs are ones that um they I think because we sing songs about peace, hope, light and well-being and acceptance, I think, that people that sing choral music are truly activists of peace. Um, because we do sing songs about light, peace, hope.

Choirs As Activists Of Peace

SPEAKER_00 42:07

Um, if that makes any sense. I and people in in the choral world, they truly are activists of peace. I probably just said that, but I can't find any other words to say that. But it's truly, I think, uh uh, you know, uh special people singing choirs, I th I believe.

SPEAKER_01 42:28

I agree with that. I think that's I think that's a lovely, a lovely way to end this uh this this session today. Thank you. Thank you so much, and I wish you all the very best of luck with everything you're doing.

SPEAKER_00 42:37

Oh great, and same to you. Hope to see you one day in person.

SPEAKER_01 42:40

That would be absolutely amazing. Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 42:43

Awesome.

SPEAKER_01 42:46

Thank you so much for listening to the choir director podcast. It's been wonderful having you here today. And if you found today's conversation valuable, please take a moment to leave us a rating and review. It genuinely helps us reach more choir directors and grow this community together. And don't forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode. And if you know a fellow director who'd benefit from today's conversation or any of the amazing guests we've had on the show, please share it with them. It means the world to us and it could make a huge difference to them. To stay connected between episodes so you never miss a thing and receive exclusive content. Do join our mailing list. The link is in the show notes. And if you

Ratings Reviews And Staying Connected

SPEAKER_01 43:24

have a question about today's topic or any of the topics that we're covering, perhaps a question to our guest or something you'd love us to explore on a future episode, you can email the studio or leave us a voicemail. Both links are waiting for you in the show notes. Well, thanks again for being part of the Choir Director Podcast. I'm Russell Scott, and until next time, goodbye.