Program Notes Winter Solstice, Welcome Winger

Ragazzi Winter Solstice, Welcome Winter

December 1-First Congregational Palo Alto

December 2-Notre Dame de Namus Belmont

December 9-Old First Church San Francisco

Tickets: www.ragazzi.org or 650-342-8785

Program Notes    Sarah Wannamaker

Jesus Christ the Apple Tree is a text from Puritan New England set by 20th-century English composer Elizabeth Poston (1905-1987). Although not overtly seasonal, this carol has been associated with Christmas since the Kings College Choir incorporated the song in its annual Service of Lessons & Carols. The allegorical text references two opposing ideas in the Christian tradition: the tree of life vs. original sin symbolized by an apple.  A simple strophic setting, the five verses are presented as pure, clean harmonies in a musical arch - the full choir in the middle with unison singing to bookend the piece.

Another example of contemporary English choral music, Pie Jesu is one of few classical compositions written by Andrew Lloyd Webber (b. 1948).  The lush harmonies and indulgent melody lines are influenced by Webber’s popular dialect.  In this piece, the chorus essentially serves as a very rich, plush support, accompanying the solo voices. Excerpted from a Requiem Mass for Weber’s father, the piece uses both the traditional Pie Jesu text combined with sections from the Agnus Dei.  

Like the opening number, Little Drummer Boy is a carol set in a strophic manner. It is a song from mid-century America, with possible references to a Czech folk song.  The text tells an archetypal story - a modern character has nothing to offer but a simple, humble gift of oneself  to the divine.  The simple setting is enlivened by the drums - both the actual percussion and the vocal imitation of instrument sounds.

Unending Flame was a commissioned piece written by Paul Carey (b. 1954). The poem and the music are newly written, and do not rely on specific Hebrew melodies or texts.  The composer indicated his care in selecting a text: “[to] capture the history, hope, and family traditions and fun of the holiday.”   The piece evokes the spirit of Hanukkah with the traditional klezmer-style solo clarinet and harmonies to celebrate the Festival of Lights.

Morning Song is written in honor of the Cherokee nation.  The music combines a traditional Teehahnahmah tune, Win-dey yah ho, with a version of, Amazing Grace, known as the Cherokee National Anthem.  Composer James Green (b. 1970) stacks these two melodies in different combinations and textures, allowing space between the vocal parts to feature percussion and vocal sounds to evoke the spirit of Native American life.

The tune of Personent Hodie comes from a 16th century Finnish book of chants.  The Latin text, commonly translated “On this Day, Earth Shall Ring” proclaims Christmas in four stanzas, culminating with the idea that all choristers should sing as if they were the original choir of angels.

A New Year Carol is taken from a collection called “Friday Afternoons” (Op 7) by Benjamin Britten (1913-1976).  The compilation was published when Britten was 23, and it confirms Britten’s continued interest in an English folk song style with simple, repeated harmonies.  The text is from a book of poems, “Tom Tiddler’s Ground,” collected by (not written by) Walter de la Mare.  The text is straddles a vague area between direct and symbolic, making interpretation tauntingly possible, yet elusive.

Randall Thompson (1899-1984) is one of the dominating figures in American composition of the last century.  Solstice is from the collectionFearful Symmetry (itself a gloss on a poem by William Blake).  The quick text, light texture, and momentum shifts convey the excitement of a new season giving us potential for a newness in how we live our lives.

Winter from Four Grassi Lakes Seasons relies on innovative vocal sounds to evoke the spirit of a winter landscape. Both the poem and the musical setting are minimalist, creating an atmosphere using morsels of words and sound. The Grassi Lakes are found in Allan Bell’s (b. 1953) home province of Alberta, Canada.  

Laudate pueri Dominum, based on the Gregorian antiphon “Assumpta Est”, is the middle movement in a set of three religious motets.  Mendelssohn (1809-1947) composed the set for the convent Trinità de Monti in Rome, which he likely visited as part of his Grand Tour of Europe.  The piece was written in 1830, when Mendelssohn was 21 years old.  His mastery of traditional forms, harmony, and musical line are clearly demonstrated in the piece.  Note the way the music alternates between a polyphonic and unison texture for emphasis of the text.  Mendelssohn’s background as both pianist and organist contributed to his writing an organ accompaniment that is just as interesting as the vocal parts.

Laus Deo (Praise be to God) are the words that appear on an aluminum cap high atop the Washington Monument.  No other building in Washington DC  may be taller than this monument.  John Leavitt, a contemporary composer, wrote this song about praising God in the highest, good will toward all mankind and peace on earth.

Kling Glocken or "Ring, Little Bell," is a German Christmas Carol from the 19th century. The lyrics were written by Karl Enslin (1819–75) to a traditional German folk tune.

Betelehemu is a Nigerian Christmas song sung in the Yoruba dialect.  The song was popularized by African drummer Babtunde Olatunji (b. 1927) who taught this carol while studying in the United States.  Arranged by Whalum, Olatunji’s teacher, this arrangement features a variety of percussion techniques, improvisatory vocal solos, and choral sounds.

The two settings of Ave Maria demonstrate two responses to a traditional text that has inspired for centuries. Biebl’s (1906-2001) version combines the traditional text with excerpts from the Angelus, a devotional book about the Incarnation.  Although the texts are ancient, the musical language is modern: full, lush, modern chords enriched by the presentation of multi-voiced harmonies.  Biebl particularly exploits the texture of the piece by writing for different combinations of voices, presenting a single line of chant, a 4-part chorus, and a two-choir conversation.  Saint-Saëns’ (1835-1921) version was written in 1890 and uses the familiar text with no additions.  The second version includes a flowing keyboard accompaniment to support the surprising key changes typical of a late-Romantic work.

The traditional Christmas carols presented in the last portion give an opportunity for all present to take part in song.  What Child Is This is an old folk tune from the British Isles that is equally known in a secular context with the “Greensleeves” text.  This choral arrangement by Jameson Marvin embraces the lullaby quality of the tune with a challenging a cappella setting.  Hark the Herald is an arrangement of a tune written by Mendelssohn.  Angels We Have Heard on High is a carol of French origin.  This hymn is unusual because of the melismatic (many notes per word) setting of the refrain.  Enjoy singing! The final carol is a popular interpretation of O Come, All Ye Faithful by David Willcocks.  This arrangement is now part of the core repertoire for the King’s College Festival of Lessons and Carols in Cambridge, featuring both an added descant and a new harmonization.  The traditional combined choir, descant and organ accompaniment culminate to remind us how music can transcend the boundaries of time and difference, giving us the tools to find newness, potential, and light in our world. 

An Old-Fashioned Education

An Old-Fashioned Education

And what shall be their education? Music for the mind and gymnastics for the body.

                                                                                Plato, The Republic

There is a revolution happening in the world of education. Schools  are finding that student success  increases when old-fashioned skills are taught. In an article by Peg Tyre titled “The Writing Revolution, “ in October 2012 The Atlantic,  the author looks at changes made at a public school in New York City. A failing institution, in 2009, New Dorp High School began to change the way students were taught. Using standards of Common Core (http://www.corestandards.org/), students were taught to write. According to David Coleman, the architect of Common Core, “…elementary students…will be required to write informative and persuasive essays….These standards are meant to reverse a pedagogical pendulum that has swung too far, favoring self-expression and emotion over lucid communication.” Students need structure, even formulas to organize their thoughts into lucid writing. “50 years ago teachers taught the general rules…”  Then 25 years ago, in an effort to enliven learning, students were encouraged to write about their feelings. Basic formal learning took a back seat to creativity. As a result, many students were not graduating with skills to succeed in the work world. This creative approach was based on the belief that students would “catch” the correct way of writing by simply finding fun ways to express themselves. While a small number of students did well with this method, many fell by the wayside and failed to graduate or graduated with minimal marketable skills. By implementing core standards and instructional fundamentals, students at New Dorp High School made huge strides as shown in graduation rates, performance on tests and college readiness.

What does this have to do with Ragazzi, you may ask? Well, first, let me ask who among us has not endured a performance by poorly trained but sincere musicians seeking to touch our hearts through their deeply felt emotional expressiveness? Remember how painful an experience that can be? Without the basics or the technique, that communication fails. We do not join the performers in their emotional release, but instead sit tensely feeling a combination of discomfort, embarrassment and sympathy for well-meaning kids.

As the pendulum swings back to traditional educational techniques, Ragazzi continues its “old-fashioned” commitment to vocal and choral technique, knowledge of music theory and excellence in performance. Yes, we want and expect our boys and young men to develop and express their emotional lives and we want to develop their emotional intelligence, but in order to succeed they need to be capable of critical thinking, self-evaluation, and be willing to work hard to develop their skills. Ragazzi boys take constant small steps toward excellence, sharing the fruits of their labors with our audiences.

Ragazzi has always stood firm, secure in the knowledge that what we do works, as the world of education now turns around and comes back to meet us.

     

Faith and Patience

Faith and Patience

At a small Ragazzi concert last Friday night I was thrilled to hear several boys sing solos. They and the chorus did a beautiful job presenting their program.  It made me think about how
success comes from the slow and steady persistence of a goal. This group has worked slowly and steadily over the years and the solo boys have studied voice for a long time, honing their skills and practicing diligently. Sometimes a singer thinks, “I’ll just take a few lessons and then I’ll be ready to sing a solo.” Or I’ll just miss a few rehearsals; I know my music, I can catch up. “Faith and persistence” are the watchwords of legendary UCLA coach John Wooden.  Rehearsals involve the slow learning of notes, rhythms, languages. Then we add the dynamics along with effects that bring the music to life.  It takes careful and consistent study to sing solos or in an outstanding choir, just like it takes practice to play the piano. Ragazzi is fortunate to have some outstanding voice teachers available to interested boys who wish to pursue this line of study. It’s the patience and persistence that yield the results whether for our groups or for our soloists.

Read what performance psychologist Noa Kageyama says in his blog.

From the blog of 'The Bulletproof Musician' by Dr. Noa Kageyama, a performance psychologist

Subject: Are You Winning or Succeeding?

Date: September 29, 2012 8:00:13 AM PDT

“Winning is not everything. It’s the only thing.”

This is one of the better known quotes in sports, often attributed to coaching legend Vince Lombardi of the NFL’s Green Bay Packers. It’s possible, if not likely, that he was misquoted, but it remains a common philosophy that permeates our culture.

Contrast that with this favorite poem of coaching legend John Wooden of the UCLA men’s basketball program.

Beyond the winning and the goal, beyond the glory and the flame,
He feels the flame within his soul, born of the spirit of the game,
And where the barriers may wait, built up by the opposing Gods,
He finds a thrill in bucking fate and riding down the endless odds.
Where others lag behind or tire and break beneath the handicap,
He finds a new and deeper thrill to take him on the uphill spin.
Because the test is greater still, and something he can revel in.
~Grantland Rice, “The Great Competitor”

Let the words sink in a bit. Deep down, which one resonates more strongly?

During his tenure at UCLA, John Wooden established a track record as one of history’s most successful coaches. At one point, his teams won 88 consecutive games, not to mention 7 NCAA national championships in a row (and 10 NCAA championships in 12 years).

Despite the enviable success he and his teams enjoyed, winning was something he rarely spoke of. Many players have remarked upon how he de-emphasized winning, and steered their attention more to doing their best and performing in such a way that they could walk off the court with their heads held high.

As former player Walt Hazzard said, “Before a game, the thing that always impressed me, that could take a lot of pressure off me as a player, was that he never challenged us to win the game. He always challenged us to do the best we could do. To walk into the locker room when the game was over, look in the mirror, and say to myself, Walt Hazzard, I did the best that I could do tonight.”

Winning as a side effect

Unbelievably, Wooden never once scouted an opposing team, but instead devoted his time and meticulous attention to making sure his players were prepared to do their best, rather than worrying about or trying to be better than another team. For instance, at the beginning of every year, he would show the freshmen in exacting detail how he wanted them to put on their socks (so as to prevent blisters).

Did he care about winning? Most certainly he did, but not at the expense of the broader life lessons and philosophies he wanted his players to learn. For Wooden, winning, awards, respect, fame, and all the rest were regarded more as side effects of successful personal growth and development than the primary aim and objective.

Controlling the controllables

Sport psychologists often talk about focusing on process variables, or those ingredients of performance and success that we have control over. This seems to be what Wooden was doing in the way he approached competition and prepared his players.

It’s just that this is a difficult adjustment to make when we’ve been conditioned to focus more on what others think and objective external measures of success like awards, advancing in auditions, glowing reviews in the NY Times, and so on. But all of that comes and goes, and isn’t something we can control even if we wanted to.

As Walt Hazzard suggests above, letting go of our attachment to wins and losses, great feedback and poor reviews, great performances and disappointing ones, and focusing only on that which we control instead is extremely liberating. It frees you up to enjoy the entire experience of performing and auditioning so much more. And while it may not happen overnight, it is one of the most valuable lessons I’ve taken from sport psychology, and is most definitely worth working towards.

Reread that poem above, and see if it starts to resonate more with each reading…

Take action

Time for a bit of self-reflection and evaluation. Consider the habitual thoughts and objectives that drive your actions on a day to day basis. Are they directed more towards winning? Towards gaining the esteem of others? Meeting another’s expectations of us? Beating or outperforming someone else?

Or developing your own personal criteria of success and excellence? Getting a step closer to whom you would love to be in the future? Finding a way to make steady progress towards your personal objectives and goals? In a word, succeeding?

Consider Wooden’s own definition of success (emphasis mine): “Success is peace of mind which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best to become the best you are capable of becoming.”

Watch this video of John Wooden, where he shares more of his perspective on the difference between winning and succeeding. Here he expresses the belief that it takes “faith and persistence” to succeed.

Ragazzi's attendance policy, why we need YOU

On Singing Saturday the parents took part in a mini-choir where we learned a song and then had some people drop out as we tried to sing it. We learned how much we rely on each other, and therefore how crucial regular attendance is to group success. Below, I have made some changes to how Ragazzi’s rehearsal attendance policies are phrased, hoping to make them clearer. You can find the originals in the Handbook under the heading: Weekly Rehearsals (section 5.4).

We recognize the need to be flexible and to that end we do allow boys to miss up to three (3) planned absences. These are absences for athletic events, family trips and other activities that conflict with rehearsals.

When boys are ill, of course they are excused, but we do want you to know that excessive absences for any reason can make it nearly impossible for your son to be ready to perform. This is not to be punitive but it’s because rehearsals are crucial to the group’s preparation.  Please help us set up for success at performances—regular attendance makes your boy a reliable and valuable colleague in the eyes of his fellow singers.

Unexcused absences are any that the director has not been told about in advance.

The last two weeks before major concerts are where we make last minute musical and logistical decisions and they are crucial. This is why we do not excuse absences during this time.

Attendance at major concerts is mandatory.

Keep in mind that rehearsal attendance is always part of the mix when directors consider a boy’s readiness for promotion.

Here is the Handbook rehearsal attendance policy as revised:

• Absences for sudden illness may only be excused by phoning the appropriate Music Director, at least one hour prior to rehearsal.
• No more than three (3) planned absences are permitted per semester and may not be scheduled within two (2) weeks prior to a concert or performance.  A boy who is absent from rehearsal within two (2) weeks of a concert or performance may be deemed ineligible to sing some or all pieces at that event.   Some examples of planned absences include family trips, school trips, school plays and musicals and sports events.
• Ragazzi will send a note home after a chorister has missed two (2) rehearsals, so that he and his parents may plan accordingly and avoid any problems.
• Conflicts must be cleared with Music Directors at the beginning of the season or as soon as the conflict is discovered.
• When a director is not notified in advance of a chorister’s planned absence, this will count as an unexcused absence. More than two unexcused absences may be grounds for suspension.
• Excessive absences for any reason will negatively impact a boy’s status in the chorus and eligibility to perform.  A boy who has missed more than 3 rehearsals, even if he “knows the music,” may be ineligible to perform in all or part of the next concert, based on director’s assessment of his focus, behavior and memorization of music and words.  Singing in a chorus is a team effort and is more than simply “knowing the music.”
• Regardless of the reason for an absence, it is the chorister’s responsibility to contact his Director (or Mentor in CGA & CG or section leader in YME) to find out what he missed.  Less important at the Primary level, it is more important for Premiere, and is vitally important for members of CGA, CG and YME.

While extra rehearsals are scheduled at the beginning of the year and appear in the calendar, additional rehearsals may be scheduled by the Music Director, as necessary.  Notice of extra rehearsals will appear in Ragazzi Times, our email newsletter. Singing Saturdays (once-per-semester, full chorus rehearsals and parent meetings) are required for all boys and parents.

25 years of touching lives

Here is a letter from a recent Ragazzi graduate. He is currently a student at Yale and is hoping to bring his a cappella group to Ragazzi this January.
Dear Joyce

Watching my little brother's mini choir concert and seeing you there reminded me of my long, enriching experience at Ragazzi. I didn't really begin to comprehend the true benefits of Ragazzi until more recently. I realize now that while I was in the choir, I took for granted the tremendous music and camaraderie we all experienced under your leadership.

            I grew up in Ragazzi. When I joined in first grade, I immediately began to learn the music theory, musicianship, and focus that so defines the choir. By the time I began taking piano lessons in second grade and then learning trombone in fourth grade, Ragazzi had provided me with a solid foundation of music theory and many other essential skills a musician must have. This gave  me a huge jump-start in learning how to play my instruments. Today, as my high schools musician friends still sometimes struggle with theory, I think back to Ms. Panofsky and the whole Ragazzi staff and how thankful I am to you for getting me started on it early!

             From participating in Ragazzi, I soon learned that I genuinely loved singing in a group; no matter what problems I had when I walked into rehearsal, eventually they would fizzle out of my conscience and I could immerse myself in the challenge and beauty of the music we were making together. This is the beautiful thing about Ragazzi. When everyone is locked in to each other and to the music, there are no limits to what can be created.  Ragazzi is an intense team. Everyone has to put in individual work, bring it to rehearsal, and then work and compromise with others to make the final product. I am lucky to have been in this rich environment at an early age; the leadership skills and focus I acquired  have helped me more and more as I interact with my peers today.  

            When it was time to apply to college this fall, I wrote a lot about my musical pursuits and experiences. The more I wrote about my more recent high school experiences playing trombone and piano, the more I realized just how much of a presence Ragazzi has in my musical life. Even though I left after my freshman year, I didn't know that Ragazzi would stay with me so firmly. I take for granted all the skills you taught me, ranging from how to breath properly to shaping a musical phrase to how to conduct. Many of them come more naturally to me now, because I used them so consistently from the age of seven to fifteen. Thanks to Ragazzi, I learned how to express myself and get closer to my friends through music, but also to find solace in it. Even the general level of discipline that I maintain in any endeavour developed completely during my stay at Ragazzi and I thank you for that!

            But beyond the music and the focus, I also formed profound friendships in Ragazzi and had the opportunity to travel to several new places and open my mind. I always look forward to attending Ragazzi concerts and seeing how my friends have grown musically; for me, Ragazzi was as much about my friends as it was about the music. Singing together in a choir creates an incredible bond that is hard to come by in other activities.

            As I look forward to attending college, I know Ragazzi has had a significant role in defining who I am today, and I am grateful for that! I hope you have a great time in Cuba (wow!), and I wish you all the luck in the future!

                                                                                    Sincerely,

                                                                                    Mark Fedronic

Music in community, human connections and transcendence

Choral music, or music created in community, gives us a unique means for personal discovery, and provides empathetic connection across groups and through time.  I’d like to share some everyday examples and some published explorations of music’s varied effects on human emotions and interactions.

Ragazzi boys are interested in more than their own personal experiences.  They often talk of their joy in being able to move audience members with their music.  They seek meaning through (and for) the work they do.  Like all of us, the boys look to connect experiences with emotional truth, thus transcending the everyday.  I hear so often how even rehearsals provide an escape from the worries of the world.  There is power in music - in community - to change lives.

In the August 27, 2012 New Yorker, biologist and neurologist Oliver Sacks recalls experiences from his youth.  Known for his brilliant work on the brain and most recently for his book Musicophilia, Sacks describes how he became interested in this subject.  In his early experimental years, he indulged in some questionable drug use as he searched to transcend the everyday. But then, drug free, he attended a concert at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City where he was transported by music.  He heard…”a glorious river of music, hundreds of years long, flowing from Monteverdi’s mind into my own.”  He achieved this transcendence through music.

As Sacks continued to explore the brain, he was fascinated by how there can be a disconnect between perceptions and feelings.  When this occurs one can correctly identify an event or situation, yet fail to connect it with the appropriate feelings.  As Sacks himself continued to search for a combination of intellectual excitement and emotional engagement, he discovered joy in his life’s work, much of which explores the effects of music on human neurology. Sacks realized he had a talent to share, discovered personal meaning, and was able to transcend the mundane world.

Sacks’ experiences show how we long to find beauty and meaning in the world.  David Byrne, of the Talking Heads, writes in Smithsonian about the mirror neurons that have been discovered in our brains. Mirror neurons can be seen to fire in response to other people’s emotions and so when someone feels an emotion, people around them experience the same feelings in parallel. Empathy is built into our neurophysiology.

When music is created in community, there is a combined intellectual and emotional shared experience among the musicians that then projects into the audience. As we hear from Oliver Sacks, listening to great music can lead one to sense a power and a freedom, totally beyond the ordinary.

Since we have the capacity to influence each other with our feelings, we want to create beauty and to give our audiences a transcendent experience. To do that requires that we keep working to explore our own perceptions, discovering the layers of emotional truth that reside in our work.  There’s a story circulating around the internet that tells of a woman who complained about her neighbor’s dirty wash hanging on the line outside her window.  She continued to complain but one day said to her husband, “Something’s happened. The wash is properly clean today.” The husband said, “I washed our windows.”  Ragazzi works together to create meaning and transcendence in all our lives and to share it with others.  We seek to be clean windows and allow others to see the beauty in the world that we see when we perform.  

Keep singing with boys during the voice change!

From The Republic, Columbus Indiana, September 30, 2012  http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/3fb396cd79e6403dad81cdc93ff17cb3/OH--Cracking-Choir-Voices

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Adolescence can be nerve-jarring for any youngster, and maybe more so for the middle school boy singing in the choir and having his voice crack.

"The middle school male changing voice is tricky," said Jeff Rone, director of choirs at Westland High School, who works with Norton Middle School boys twice a week.

"You have to show that the tough-guy macho voice is one you don't necessarily use in choir."

One singer, Davionn Johnson, turned down invitations for weeks from friends and Norton's music teacher to join choir.

He sang to his friends in the cafeteria or at track meets, but doing it for school wasn't for him. Then he was called to the auditorium where the entire 60-member choir gathered for one last push.

"They all said, 'Davionn, please join choir next year'," teacher Coventry Pompili told The Columbus Dispatch (bit.ly/SpjhJa). "And I wouldn't let him go back to study hall until he said yes."

Choir directors often have to make the hard sell to attract middle-school boys, recruiting, creating boys-only choirs and bringing in male teachers to work with them.

It's a big challenge, said Scott Dorsey, spokesman for the American Choral Directors Association in Oklahoma City.

"At that point in a young person's life, who are the major idols?" he said. "They are going to be sports figures. That's seen as a manly, masculine activity. Singing is not."

Educators say boys worry about belting tunes in front of peers and looking awkward in front of girls, particularly when their voices crack.

But studies have found that boys who sing before and during voice changes tend to have stronger vocal muscles and a greater voice range than those who don't.

Some schools have divided middle-school choir programs by gender to provide a comfortable setting where boys can sing without fear.

Heather Chute, choir director at the suburban Hamilton Local district's middle and high schools, found that, by dividing the middle-school choir by gender, girls developed their voices quicker and boys picked up lessons faster.

Chute said fellowship boosted the boys' confidence levels, and as a result, they were more willing to try songs outside of their comfort level.

"It's a safe place for them," said Mark Yoder, director of the choir programs at Lakeview Junior High School in Pickerington.

Davionn was touched by the choir's invitation and discovered that the class wasn't what he expected. He's enjoyed singing and isn't worried anyone will laugh if his voice cracks.

Does he feel nervous singing in front of girls? "They're nervous singing in front of us," he said

___

Music and math and Ragazzi

Did you think Ragazzi was just about music? Guess again. Music study trains all kinds of skills and the benefits are many. Plato knew the benefit of music as an academic discipline when he advised in the Republic, "Study gymnastics for the body and music for the mind."  Here is an example:

Scientist Sophie Bushwick published this comment on her blog:

Stuck on a tricky math problem? Start clapping. Grade school kids who learned about fractions through a rhythm-and-music-based curriculum outperformed their peers in traditional math classes. The work is in Educational Studies in Mathematics. [Susan Joan Courey et al., "Academic music: music instruction to engage third-grade students in learning basic fraction concepts"]

Fractions let you divide up a measure of music into notes of varying length. For example, one four-beat measure could contain a single whole note held for all four beats, two half notes of two beats apiece, four quarter notes of a beat each, and so on. In the Academic Music program, based on the Kodaly method of musical education, students clap, drum and chant to memorize the lengths of musical notes—then solve problems in which fractional notes must add up to a full measure of music.

Sixty-seven students participated in the study. Half did math problems using the Academic Music system. And after six weeks, the students in the music program averaged 50 percent higher on tests than did the kids in regular math class. Fractions create a solid foundation for further math education—so mastering them is music to educators’ ears.

Ragazzi's theory program is essential to music literacy and our boys, when they complete the program, have learned college level theory. Music is fun, it connects the two sides of our brains integrating our emotions and intuition with our analytical and critical skills. Good for you for choosing Ragazzi.

What is so special about a boy singer in a boys chorus?

                                                                                                                                                                          

Over the years, as Ragazzi has developed its reputation nationally and even internationally, we have endeavored to be the best boys chorus we can be.  As a result of our striving for excellence (there it is again!), we train our singers in the classical boy choir sound found in England, Vienna, South Africa (Drakensberg) and Germany. Consequently, we are often asked to provide soloists or choirs for other classical musical groups, including professional orchestras and opera companies.  In addition, our directors and boys give workshops for other choral conductors, demonstrating our teaching methods.

A young boy’s voice is a unique and beautiful thing; haunting, ephemeral.  Once the voice lowers as boys mature, that unique and wonderful boychoir soprano sound disappears.  (There are some wonderful adult male sopranos, for example in Chanticleer, but they use techniques for changed male voices – the sound is also beautiful, but unmistakably different.)  So, this brief stage is the time to treasure your boy’s voice and help him develop its full potential.

In the past week, Ragazzi was contacted by two professional organizations in need of a boy soprano soloist.  While all of our boys are valuable singers, generally only those who have studied as soloists would be considered for roles such as Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms or Menotti’s fabulous opera Amahl and the Night Visitors.

Last year a Ragazzi boy was the soloist in the San Francisco Opera’s world premiere production of Heart of a Soldier.  Four years ago a Ragazzi boy starred in San Francisco Opera’s The Little Prince.

Once your boy has mastered the basics of pitch and head voice (which we teach), as he advances to Concert Group and beyond, if he aspires to more, he should consider voice lessons (also called private study or solo coaching).  Our Handbook has recommendations of teachers who have proven success with boy sopranos.

Then, when opportunity comes knocking, he’ll be ready to open the door!

Here are Ragazzi’s recommended teachers as found in our Handbook:

3.1     Vocal Coaching and Private Music Lessons

The following voice teachers are recommended for boys who wish to pursue solo studies.  All boys in the Concert Group are encouraged to receive private vocal coaching.

                Please check with the Ragazzi office – availabilities and recommendations may change.

Jon Ellis

    jon.ellis.tenor@gmail.com

650-515-5975

    Peninsula

·   Norman DeVol

singernorm@aol.com

650-922-7751

Peninsula

·   Dr. Lee Strawn  
lees@sfsings.com

415-378-8556

Notre Dame Univ. Belmont

·   Wendy Hillhouse   (changed voices, only)
wendyhillhouse@gmail.com

    650-366-3559 (c)

    Peninsula

In addition members of Ragazzi faculty offer private music training in many forms such as musicianship, theory, sight reading, vocal remediation for problems, and are an excellent source of information about vocal therapists.The following faculty members offer private coaching for a fee.  Their contact information is in Section 1.2 and on our website and in the e-RosIter.  Please note that Ragazzi choristers may not study voice privately with their own current chorus director.

Kathy Morey                        Jesse Buddington                 Ross Morey                                         

Kent Jue                                                Craig Morey

Carol Panofsky can recommend coaches for boys who wish to gain extra skills in music theory.

Excellence is for Everyone

Ragazzi is COMMITTED to EXCELLENCE!  But… what does this mean? How do we measure ourselves against such a potentially forbidding standard?

Aristotle said that “Excellence is what we repeatedly do. Therefore excellence is not an act but a habit.” I love that. We are working every day to create excellent music, excellent relationships, excellent boys.

In Carol Dweck’s book, Mindset (Ballantine, 2006), she addresses what she calls “growth mindset.” People with growth mindset react to perceived failures, challenges, even tragedies with an attitude of curiosity. What happened? What can I learn from this experience? How can I create success?

Coaches, teachers, parents, directors with a fixed mindset will send the message that the student has certain traits and that they are being judged, positively or negatively. With a growth mindset, the message is sent that the student is a developing person and the coach is interested in his development.

What surprised me and may surprise you is her finding that praising a child for who he IS is less comforting than praising the child for the work he has done. It can even backfire. If a student has been told all his life that he is “smart”, he might steer away from challenges that cause him to accomplish something more slowly. He might even, after being told he performs brilliantly, get an overinflated sense of himself and be shattered when something he attempts is not successful. He might not have the resilience to persist and pursue a goal.

Praise is good, but we need to give and receive praise for work done rather than praise that judges talent or intelligence. Ragazzi singers judge themselves in performance. After a concert, they can be very self-critical and if they hear that they were “just great” but know that they weren’t at their best, they don’t feel good.  They are judging and labeling themselves.  If we ask them, “What did you learn from this?” they have the opportunity to make decisions to improve and to create excellence whether with more preparation or more focus or more engagement or with whatever they see is needed.

Dweck tells a story of a teacher at Julliard who believed that talent could be developed. She was in conflict with the ethos of the school where talent was seen to be innate and most of the faculty had no interest in those who didn’t seem to have “it.”   This teacher believed that anything is possible. After being told that one of her students had “no ear,” (the musicians’ term for “getting” musical nuances), but she continued to exert effort to help this student.  A fellow teacher even tried to have her fired for wasting time and resources.  This teacher viewed talent as a fixed trait, not something that could be nurtured and developed.  One such denigrated student – one of her “projects” – was Itzhak Perlman, one of the most respected violinists in the last 50 years.

The successful teachers with a growth mindset create both high standards and a nurturing environment.  In short: they challenge students and foster the intellectual and social outlook – the tools – to meet that challenge.  High standards are part of a growth mindset; we can work hard and improve and achieve excellence.  When students understand that the hard work asked of them is for them and not for any teacher, they will engage. Quoting from Mindset, “[students] …are our responsibility and our legacy. We now know that the growth mindset has a key role to play in helping us fulfill our mission and in helping them fulfill their potential.”

A Founder’s Vision

As a high school teacher, I found that boys – young men – were reluctant to sing.  I heard the same refrain from my colleagues directing school and adult choirs.  At the same time, as assistant conductor for San Francisco Boys Chorus, part of my duties included recruiting elementary school boys by visiting schools and leading singing games.  Contrary to my expectations, I was amazed to see the eagerness of young boys to join in.  I began to wonder what happened to boys between the ages of 10 and 15. Capturing and nurturing that eagerness was central to founding Ragazzi.

After establishing Ragazzi, I also began to explore issues of males’ relationships to each other and to the arts.  I discovered that when they worked together, males supported each other and were able to enjoy artistic expression.  I also discovered that, due to what can only be described as distorted thinking, singing has often been perceived by boys as a “girl” activity.  But in fact, there is a universal, world-wide tradition of male singing and so we decided to educate our Ragazzi boys about that and give them the opportunity to support each other as they explored this side of themselves.

In the early days, boys dropped out after they reached the age of 11.  But as we added more opportunities for changing voices, older boys began to take on the role leaders and mentors.  They felt free to express themselves and they began to see singing as something that belonged to them.  They continued to sing.

I have also discovered that boys really like to sing songs that are beautiful and expressive.  Time and time again, I’m still surprised to hear a boy say that his favorite song is the piece by Palestrina, or a lullaby by Britten, or a piece by Brahms.  Very rarely do loud, rhythmic pop songs hold our boys’ sustained interest.

Now that Ragazzi has grown to over 170 boys, there is a strong line of male leadership from our Young Men’s Ensemble to our alumni who come back as camp counselors and tour chaperones.  They articulate the standards to each other and the younger boys, serve as inspiration and model the chorister and personal standards that Ragazzi expects of its members.  And how they love to sing!

We have been told time and again by older boys and alumni (and their parents) that Ragazzi has been the single most important influence in developing their social and leadership skills.  So, Ragazzi has turned out to be a place where boys feel safe expressing themselves, artistically, and learn ways to work together as a team.  These are the skills that one needs to succeed in life, so the benefits of Ragazzi have extended far beyond the original vision of providing a safe place for boys to sing together.  Ragazzi is building strong citizens who are confident and cooperative and creative - a powerful bequest to society.

Joyce Keil

Artistic Director

Ragazzi Boys Chorus

Street Symphonies

 

                                          Ragazzi presents

                                       Street Symphonies, 

a concert in collaboration with Destiny Arts Center, a hip hop group from Oakland      dedicated to serving youth through the arts.

 

Saturday June 2 2012

7 p.m.

Trinity Church

Brittan and Alameda de las Pulgas

San Carlos, California

For tickets contact Ragazzi: 650-342-8785 or www.ragazzi.org

 

How did this collaboration come to be?  A year ago when on a plane, I happened upon a movie called "Street Dancing".  It was not a great movie, but the story intrigued me.  It was about a competition in New York City among hip hop dance groups.  The protagonists were desperate to win the contest, but suddenly lost their best dancer to a competing troupe.  Not only that, they were suddenly thrown out on the street with no rehearsal space.

 

In their wanderings, they came upon a beautiful, old building where a very traditional classical ballet school rehearsed.  As they asked to be given rehearsal space, the ballet director got a gleam in her eye. She offered to give them space if they would teach the ballet dancers to dance in the hip hop style.

 

As the story unfolds, the two groups are not compatible and they resist each other.  The hip hop dancers don't have the lean ballet lines and the ballet dancers can't loosen up enough.  They are not really able to dance in these new styles and in fact begin to clash in their interactions with each other.  Finally, they both agree to do what they do best and put on a show where their groups do their own dances and interact in new and creative ways.  The result is a brilliant and magical dance program that is colorful, graceful and exhilarating.

 

Inspired by the story, I went to Destiny Arts Center last fall and met their Artistic Director Sarah Crowell.  I wanted to stretch the expectations of Ragazzi's audiences so that they could see some unity in these different styles.  I also wanted to show that classical music does not have to be "stuffy."  As we talked about ways that we could bring my classical music group together with her dancers from the East Bay, we both began to be excited about the possibilities.  Sarah showed me a Youtube video of Yo Yo Ma playing a cello solo of Saint-Saen's "The Swan."  As the music builds, the great hip hop dancer L'il Buck slowly bends and moves to interpret this classic art-song.  Here was exactly what I was looking for, a blending of artistic styles to show how music can bring us together as it did the two dance troupes in the film "Street Dance."

 

The dancing on the street and the music in the concert hall come together in this concert.  We will be singing Bach and Schubert but also Native American and African dance songs along with Michael Jackson medleys.  The texts we sing are greetings and welcoming songs, from Yanaway to Sorida to The Lord Bless you.  Barriers will come down as we meld these styles into an artistic whole.  For a new concert experience, please join us and enjoy these talented young people! 

--
Joyce Keil

Artistic Director

Ragazzi Boys Chorus