Choir Directors' Brag Blog

The Big Tamale! Want You Gone covered By Gifford Children’s Choir June 4, 2019

The Gifford Children’s Choir has done some awesome repertoire this year.  They held an international composition contest and premiered two new works, they sang to a Wisconsin experimental rock band’s actual backing track and a live band and now they have covered the quintessential geeky video game song from Portal 2.  The choir once again put on a light show with colored flashlights while they sang back up for a soloist.  May Kohler returned as a high school senior to lead the choir. May sang the lead role of the choir’s 2010 covers of the song from the original Portal game called “Still Alive.  The effect was sheer geek heaven:

Portal 3? Come on Valve, it’s for the Children May 27, 2019

Children’s Choir of teh Internet covered Cara Mia Addio known as the Turret Opera from the end of Portal 2.  The kids dressed in their regular uniforms which look surprisingly like a Sentry Turret.  With the addition of some lights from FlashingBlinkingLights.com  the Turrets prepared their song and plea to Valve CEO Gabe Newell.   Though the song sounds like a classical aria, it was actually written by composer Mike Morasky and voice of GLaDOS and the turrets herself, Ellen McLain.   It worked very well in the children’s voices, with a little help from GLaDOS at the end!

Children’s Choir Covers Wisconsin Rock Band May 26, 2019

Children’s Choir of teh Internet is the school choir for Gifford Elementary School in Racine, Wi.  At their May 21, 2019 concert the choir hired a professional rock band to help them cover a song by Wisconsin Band Cloud Cult.  Cloud Cult front man Craig Minowa shared the backing track his band uses to play out with the school choir.  This was a new experience for the choir and logistics were not easy.  Director Jack Senzig added a piano track playing the children’s parts to help keep the band and choir together.  It’s pretty awesome that a bunch of children aged 8-11 were able to pull this off!

This is the same choir that same on Cloud Cult’s 2013 Album LOVE on the song “The Show Starts Now.” https://cloudcult.com/albums

Here’s “You’ll Be Bright” from Cloud Cult’s album Light Chasers (2010) covered by Children’s Choir of teh Internet!

Making a Better World Through Choral Composition and Performance March 2, 2019

This was a contest I recently held through a grant from the Gifford K8 PTA.  Three Winners were selected and all three pieces will be performed by choirs of Children’s Choir of the Internet.  The pieces were to use a text on bringing people together or peace.  They were to use multiple languages.

1st Place Jennifer Wagner “We are the Children.” Jen’s piece is for SSA with an SA descant.  She met the language requirement by using a Latin text about peace for the descant and English for the choir.  Her piece will be premiered by the Gifford Children’s Choir (Auditioned choir of Children’s Choir of teh Internet) on May 21, 2019.  We are looking at using it as a combined finale piece with Middle and High School as well.

2nd Place Jonathan Byram “When I Hear You.” Jonathan’s piece is for SA and piano.  He met the language requirement by regularly mixing English and Arabic in his text.   This piece will be premiered on May 21, 2019 by the Gifford Children’s Choir (Auditioned choir of Children’s Choir of teh Internet)

3rd Place Jose Angulo “Together.”  Jose really nailed the language idea for the competition and the purpose of the contest.  His text begins as if Angels are singing to a child who can not sleep for fear caused by the 50 year war in Colombia, the composer’s home country.  The piece ends with a wish for peace sung in English, Spanish, Zulu and French.

Videos of the performances will uploaded to the Joinchoir channel on YouTube and shared here as well.

Thanks

Jack Senzig

Blog Repurposed November 11, 2017

It has been more than two years since I put up an entry on this blog.  The original idea didn’t pan out.  So I am going to take the convenient storage of choir videos separated by voicing and throw out the hope that choir directors would take time to share what they have done with us.  Stay tuned…  I am hopeful.

Kids Choir Covers Cloud Cult’s Transistor Radio May 11, 2015

Here is half of the Gifford Children’s Choir covering Transistor Radio by Cloud Cult.  Using modern instruments to accompany a choir can have a really cool effect.  In this one Jeremy Peters of Solar Plexus plays with the choir on Electric Guitar.

Ave Maria by Efrem Podgaits January 31, 2013

British Military Wives Choir September 1, 2012

There are so many ways that that music can bring a community together.  I found this particularly moving.

Will.i.am and Children’s Choir Sing from Mars August 29, 2012

Black Eyed Peas frontman Will.i.am worked with a S.T.E.M. school and many other musicians to make  a recording to be broadcast from Mars.  He and those children are the first human voices to sing from the surface of another planet.   This is an amazing opportunity for all involved and really highlights the need for music programs to be involved in the community.  The name of the school and choir has been omitted from early press releases about this, but having NASA and Will.i.am as partners certainly gave these kids an educational experience they will never forget.

Here’s the article.  Unfortunately it is currently blocked from embedding.  http://music.yahoo.com/blogs/hip-hop-media-training/am-teams-nasa-premiere-reach-stars-mars-220744171.html