No. 15 (August, 2013)

Dear Friends of Choral Music,

I am writing to share my enthusiasm for the coming year's choral activities. Mark your calendars for some memorable and entertain-ing choral concerts!

The university will welcome a fabulous male barbershop quartet to our campus for a concert as part of the Annual Young Men’s Choral Festival on Friday, October 18 at 7 pm. Hi-Fidelity is one of the top a cappella show quartets in the country with a locked sound and an extremely unique sense of humor. The group is the current Champion of the Barbershop Harmony Society's Far West-ern District. They were also crowned the Buckeye Invitational Grand Quartet Champion in 2005. In addition, the four men sing with the current International Chorus Champion, Masters of Harmony.

The Festival Chorus, Women's Chorus, Men's Chorus, Mansfieldians, and the Concert Choir will all appear in the Annual Choral Collage on Sunday, October 27. The program presents a variety of musical styles including Folk and Spiritual arrangements by Alice Parker, who will be visiting our campus on November 5 through 7.

Alice Parker is well-known for her collaborative work with Robert Shaw. Hardly a choral concert is presented without an arrange-ment by this famous Shaw/Parker duo! Alice Parker was born in Boston, MA in 1925; yet, at age 88, she is still a force in the cho-ral community! In the past two years alone, she has led sessions at the National Collegiate Choral Convention, the American Choral Directors Association National Convention, and the June convention of Chorus America! We are thrilled to have this esteemed com-poser, conductor, and pedagogue in residence at Mansfield University working with each of our choral ensembles!

The theme for the three annual holiday choral concerts is Holiday Music From Around the World. Music for men's, women's, and mixed choirs from five continents will resound from Steadman Theatre on December 6, 7, & 8 at 7:30 pm. The rousing finale, Be-telehemu, which was brought to the United States by Via Olatunji from Nigeria, will be sung with a massive percussion ensemble and combined choirs surrounding the theatre!

On April 26 & 27, the Festival Chorus will perform Carl Orff’s dynamic cantata, Carmina Burana. Composed by Carl Orff in 1935 and 1936, it is based on 24 poems found in the medieval collection Carmina Burana. The translation of the full Latin title means “Secular songs for singers and choruses to be sung together with instruments and magic images.” The first and last movements are called "Fortuna Imperatrix Mundi" (Fortune, Empress of the World) and start with the very well known O Fortuna. Alissa Rose and Todd Ranney will be featured soloists.

Also during the spring semester, the Concert Choir will prepare for their Seventh European Tour to take place from June 30 to July 14. The tour will take them to Lübeck and Berlin, Germany; Warsaw, Poland; Vilnius, Lithuania; and Riga, Latvia, where they will participate in the eighth World Choir Games! Thousands of singers from around the world will join together in festive competition for Gold Medals and Championships. Our fundraising brochure is included in this issue with information about donating to this wor-thy cause! The Concert Choir’s Home Tour Concert (and thus its last performances in Mansfield before the World Choir Games) is on May 3rd at 7:30 pm!

I hope that many of you can join us in the coming year as we continue to strive for unforgettable musical performances. The calen-

dar of choral and vocal events follows:

Peggy Dettwiler, Director of Choral Activities Jürgen Thym, Editor

Sheryl Monkelien, Layout Design

Choral Calendar of Events for 2013-2014

(The events take place in Steadman Theatre unless indicated otherwise.)

Fri., Sept. 27, 7:30 pm Prism Concert

Sat. Sept. 28, 7:30 pm Prism Concert

Sat. Oct. 5, 7:30 pm Prism Concert

Oct. 18 YMCF with guest barbershop group, Hi Fidelity

Oct. 26, 7:30 pm Mansfieldians & Jazz Ensemble Concert

Sun., Oct. 27, 2:30 pm Choral Collage

Sun., Nov. 17, 2:30 pm Festival Chorus with Wind Ensemble

Nov. 22, 7:30 pm Opera: Pirates of Penzance (Straughn Auditorium)

Nov. 23, 7:30 pm Opera: Pirates of Penzance (Straughn Auditorium)

Nov. 24, 2:30 pm Opera: Pirates of Penzance (Straughn Auditorium)

Dec. 6, 7:30 pm Holiday Choral Concert: Holiday Music From Around the World

Dec. 7, 7:30 pm Holiday Choral Concert (repeat)

Dec. 8, 2:30 pm Holiday Choral Concert (repeat)

Thurs. Dec. 12, 6:30 pm Chamber Singers Dinner Concert at the Wren’s Nest

March 6, 7:30 pm Les Miserables - Musical (Straughn Auditorium)

March 7, 7:30 pm Les Miserables - Musical (Straughn Auditorium)

March 8, 7:30 pm Les Miserables - Musical (Straughn Auditorium)

March 9, 2:30 pm Les Miserables - Musical (Straughn Auditorium)

April 4, 6:30 pm Chamber Singers Dinner Concert at Lambs Creek Food & Spirits

April 26, 7:30 Major Choral Work: Carmina Burana

April 27, 2:30 pm Major Choral Work: Carmina Burana

May 1, All day Vocal Jazz Fest with Vocalogy

May 3, 7:30 pm Concert Choir Home Tour Concert

June 30-July 14 Concert Choir European Tour to the World Choir Games

in Riga, Latvia

ATTENTION CONCERT CHOIR ALUMS!

Start dreaming of singing on one of the great stages in NYC! In

2015, we will mark the 50th Anniversary of the Concert Choir and

my 25th year conducting this wonderful group. I envision a con-

cert focusing on peace with the Alumni Choir performing “Dona

nobis pacem” by Ralph Vaughan Williams with full orchestra!

Join our Concert Choir Alumni facebook page to keep abreast of

the plans and make sure that your address is up-to-date with the

Alumni Association!

THREE NEW CHORAL RECORDINGS to be available by August!

Changed My Name with the Mansfield University Concert Choir Marking the 150th Anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation Peggy Dettwiler, Conductor; Steven Miller, Graduate Student Conductor Holiday Music Down Through the Ages – Holiday Concert DVD Featuring the Women’s Chorus, Men’s Chorus, Chamber Singers, Festival Chorus, & Concert Choir Peggy Dettwiler, Producer & Director

The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace by Karl Jenkins

Festival Chorus and Orchestra Sarah Best, Mezzo-Soprano; Ajaaz Zainul, Muadhin Peggy Dettwiler, Director

Most MU recordings are available through Mark Custom Recordings, Inc., [www.markcustom.com] or by calling MU at 570-662-4721.

Linda Twine, the composer of the cantata that makes up the li-

on’s share of the new CD by the Concert Choir (and whose title be-came the name of the CD) writes:

What a glorious, glorious concert! What an honor you have bestowed on me by naming the CD, Changed My Name in honor of the 150th Emancipation anniversary! You, Madame Peggy, are the master of beautiful choral sound. Mansfield University is so fortunate to have you at the helm. Were the soloists students or guests? Great job! The quality of the soprano's high notes was really gorgeous. All did a fabulous performance.

I cannot thank you enough for selecting Changed My Name as part of

your program. Please tell your students they are fabulous and I am in awe of them.

Thank you again Peggy. I am sincerely humbled.

Lincoln Memorial Performance: MU Concert Choir

An unknown spectator captured a per-formance of the Concert Choir on his camcorder and posted the results on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McpbimKJOsA

Mansfield University Concert Choir and Peggy Dettwiler are BOTH finalists for the 2013 American Prize for Collegiate Choir Performance and the Conducting Choral Division!

The American Prize is a series of new, non-profit national competitions in the performing arts provid-ing cash awards, profes-sional adjudication and regional, national and in-ternational recognition for the best recorded perfor-mances by ensembles and

individuals each year in the United States at the professional, college/university, church, community and secondary school levels. Admin-istered by Hat City Music Theater, Inc., a nonprofit organization based in Danbury, Connecticut, The American Prize was founded in 2009 and is awarded annually. The competitions of The American Prize are open to all U.S. citizens, whether living in this country or abroad, and to others currently living, working and/or studying in the United States of America, its protectorates and territories.

The American Prize is unique. A non-profit organization that focuses on recognizing and rewarding artists solely based on their recorded performances, contestants avoid the hassle and expense of traveling to competitions. Our distinguished panel of nationally recognized judges provides every contestant, from finalist to winner, with unbiased written evaluations. With no age limits and few repertoire re-strictions and separate divisions for professional, college/university, high school and amateur artists, we assist artists in building careers, audiences and visibility.

The American Prize was founded from the belief that a great deal of excellent music being made in this country goes unrecognized and unheralded, not only in our major cities, but all across the country: in schools and churches, in colleges and universities, and by commu-nity and professional musicians. With the performing arts in America marginalized as never before, The American Prize seeks to fill the gap that leaves excellent artists and ensembles struggling for visibility and viability. The American Prize recognizes and rewards the best America produces, without bias against small city versus large, or unknown artist versus well-known. Finalists for The American Prize receive professional adjudication and regional, national and international recognition based on submitted recordings of their performanc-es.

Finalists for the American Prize in Choral Performance—College/University James M. Reddan Linn-Benton Re-Choired Element Chamber Choir Albany, OR Kimberly Dunn Adams Western Michigan University Chorale Kalamazoo, MI Peggy Dettwiler Mansfield University Concert Choir Mansfield, PA David Holdhusen Univ. of South Dakota Chamber Singers Vermillion, SD Richard Nance Pacific Lutheran University Choir of the West Tacoma, WA James Rodde Iowa State Singers Ames, IA Mark Shapiro LIU Post Chamber Singers Brookville, NY Ethan Sperry Portland State Chamber Choir Portland, OR

"Taken as a whole, the college/university division presents perhaps the strongest group of finalists we have had in this category in any year—musical, exciting, passionate..."

Finalists for the American Prize in Conducting—Choral Division are Donald Kendrick Sacramento Choral Society Sacramento, CA Darin Lewis St. Francis Choir Stamford, CT Thomas R. Vozzella Free Will Baptist Choral Union Nashville, TN Ingrid Lestrud Conservatory Choir Chicago, IL Peggy Dettwiler Mansfield University Festival Chorus Mansfield, PA Timothy S. McDonnell Ave Maria University Chamber Choir Ave Maria, FL Richard Nance Pacific Lutheran University Choir of the West Tacoma, WA "Taken as a whole, a very strong field of candidates—exceptionally musical, committed and passionate..."

The Concert Choir WON the American Prize in 2011 in the collegiate performance category and Peggy Dettwiler placed second for the 2011 Choral Conducting prize. Each year the contest expands and more musicians across the country are being considered for these awards.

Watch for announcements of the 2013 winners!! http://theamericanprize.blogspot.com/. The latest information is that the juries will decide sometime in August.

Highlights of Spring 2013: A Collage of Images

Guys and Dolls! Conner Crone as Nathan Detroit with the Crapshooters

Carly Bechdel as Sarah Brown and Matthew Levine as Sky Masterson Ray Rosenbayger as Adelaide

Jarrod Miller as Nicely-Nicely in Sit Down, You’re

Rockin’ the Boat!

Echoes from the Armed Man Performance

Few concerts in the Steadman Theatre have stunned performers and audiences as much as last spring’s perfor-mances of The Armed Man by Karl Jenkins. Nearly 30 seconds of silence followed the Festival Chorus’s rendi-tion, a cappella and pianissimo, of the concluding number after its last note had sounded. But then the applause broke. Hear the Voices revisits the event with four letters to the conductor, one from a singer, the other three from audience members, as well as this issue’s centerfold story.

I have already come back to China now. I played the DVD about this semester festival choral concert to my par-ents and they want me to send an e-mail to show our thanks for you. My parents said that it was an amazing and wonderful performance! And I am so glad that I took part in it.

Yours, Yiyang Chen

Your performance of “The Armed Man” was beautiful. I attended the Sunday concert, and if I had gone on Sat-urday night, I would have seen it again. Especially in the light of the Boston Marathon, the work you do in music here and all over the world becomes doubly important. It would have been wonderful to sing in “The Armed Man!” Next year perhaps… I’ll give it a try..

As ever, Ellen [Blais]

After each of your concerts I tell myself I am going to sit right down and write you a fan letter. Tonight, however, I am doing it. The concert today was simply gorgeous as well as heart-rending and uplifting. Your unfailing work with our students is a complete inspiration

Fondly, Bonnie [Kyofski]

I must say I have had an epiphany of love for a work. Your Armed Man per-formance was absolutely, completely over the top. I heard it on Sunday and I went home to order the darn thing! … I have just had this piece on repeat the entire selection since Sunday evening! Thank you and EVERYONE! Every element of the presentation was just wonderful. The final note just lingered in my soul and I was sorry that you had to lower your arms to invite the audience to show its appreciation.

All the best to you, Charlie Jacobson

ACDA National Conference in Dallas, Texas

The Mansfieldians on stage at the Majestic Theatre

The Mansfieldians in front of the Majestic Theatre after a wonderful performance!

Many Religions, One Peace:

An exegesis of Karl Jenkins’ The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace

The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace contains excerpts from the sacred writings of three major world reli-gions: Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism. This technique is commonly used by Jenkins (cf. Gloria, Tedeum, Stel-la Natalis). Through careful selection and juxtaposition of these texts, the composer invites his listeners to con-sider the stated subject – peace – in a fuller, richer context. Religion can provide a healthy way of observing, understanding, and engaging the world. Focusing on internal human qualities, it provides a moral framework that encourages an individual and his/her community to live in harmony. It provides basic rules for what it self-defines as a just society, but more importantly it grounds that society in its own spiritual identity. That sacred narrative allows both the individual and the community to have a specific location. Who am I? and Why am I here? are questions that can be answered by religion. When religion is used only as a means to provide easy answers, however, then the worst qualities of hu-manity can come out. Life is extremely complex. Life offers difficult situations. Life demands tough choices. Simply saying, “My religion teaches this, so therefore I don’t have to think about it” can lead to a great deal of trouble – and misery. Sadly, it seems that the one historical experience we have in common, across religions, is war. Whether it’s a war of words or of concepts – or even war in the military sense, the one thing we all seem to do when we disagree is fight. The irony is, each of the world’s major religions claims to be a vehicle of peace. This is where The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace is eye-opening. Jenkins is able to take us on a journey

inside our own hearts and minds. He invites us to critique ourselves. He invites us to use the different sacred texts he quotes as tools to sharpen our understanding of peace – and of what it truly means to be human. The danger of this kind of syncretic conflation is that the end result could become meaningless. Taking a bit of this religion here and that religion there and putting them together almost always ends up producing a phil-osophical mess. It is ethically disingenuous to rip apart a comprehensive worldview in order to create something that has no real identity, no real context beyond itself. Each sacred component functions well within its original context. But when concepts are removed from their original context and thrown together with other decontextual-ized concepts), there is no real function of the new entirety. In The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace, Jenkins uses

religious elements that share context – even across the lines of language and practice. He deliberately juxtapos-es one religion’s sacred text against that of another religion. After stating the musical and textual theme in the first movement – through the 15th century French song L’homme armé – Jenkins surprises us. In a Christian Mass, the Act of Penitence would be recited next. In fact, there is a recitation, but it is the Muslim Adhaan – the Call to Prayer: “God is the greatest.” Note the subtle change in approach. Rather than beginning from a point of human weakness, as asserts the Act of Penitence, Jenkins’ intentional placement of the Adhaan asserts to us that the ultimate strength is not found in our feeble

attempts at fixing our own brokenness, even through war, but that the ultimate strength is found in God alone. Surprisingly, there is no segment of the Christian liturgy that states this as succinctly and directly as does the Muslim Adhaan. Only a few minutes into the work, Jenkins has challenged us with thinking about our ap-

proach to war. And in that same short time, and through his selection of text, he has given us a sneak peek at the ending: God will win the ultimate battle against death and dying. The work continues to build, mixing religious and secular texts with evermore passionate music. The words and music seem to convey a fevered excitement that war is approaching; that war is inevitable. This inevi-tability of war is mirrored by the predictability provided by the liturgy of the Mass. As surely as one section of the Mass follows another, so similarly and steadily people are drawn to war. This in no way implies that Christian liturgy encourages war. Rather, the innate spiritual rhythm which is reflected in the Mass can be co-opted by ma-nipulative warmongers. Jenkins reveals this truth to us through, of all things, satire. With the Sanctus – the praising of God with the sound and precision of a marching battalion, we leave religious text altogether, an extremely daring move for a “religious” work. It is a clever satire showing that some-times people will use religion to support their own position – rather than allowing their position to be shaped by their religion. And as soon as their point is made, they often discard the religion, lest that religion start to pose the kinds of questions which would then challenge the individual. An impassioned plea for God to help “our side” in the battle follows, but we (both singers and audience) are never told what it is we are fighting about! The assumption is that everyone is so caught up in the fervor that no one dares to ask why exactly we are fighting. But no time for questions. Then comes the climax of the piece, philosophically – and perhaps musically. In the movement entitled, “Charge,” the trumpets lead the way into battle. The choir, at full volume, seemingly picks up arms and rushes

into the fray. The women’s voices – at the highest note sung in the entire work – sing “How blest is he who for his country dies” by Jonathan Swift. Swift, a clergyman in the Church of Ireland, was one of the world’s greatest satirists. He was the Mark Twain or Stephen Colbert of his day. Much of what he wrote was not meant to be taken literally. Had Jenkins quoted Machiavelli or Napoleon saying something similar to “How blest is he who for his country dies,” it would have been understood as martyrdom for those who die in battle. Instead, Jenkins quotes a line of satire, reveal-

ing to all of us how he sees war. Even the flutes “laugh” as the sopranos and altos sing this line! But before the choir – the army – can recognize that they have allowed themselves to be strung along, the shots are heard, the bombs are away, and we are left with death and destruction brought about by human pride. Torches soon follows, with text taken from the Mahabharata, the sacred ancient Indian epic. This text,

codified around the same time as the New Testament of the Bible, is rooted in the Vedic tradition of Hinduism. Going back thousands of years before any known form of writing, the Vedic tradition sought to provide a societal framework for the short, difficult lives of ancient Hindus. One concept highlighted in the Mahabharata that contin-ues in Hinduism today is reincarnation, the regeneration of all life after death. Torches sounds to our Western ears like a disgusting reminder of the horrors of war visited on the inno-cent people and animals which were never part of the struggle to begin with. It is that, but more. By using a Hin-du text, Jenkins again takes us beyond our own Western understanding and challenges us with a new way of looking at this horrific situation. For those of one of the Abrahamic faiths, there is the promise of a spiritual life after death. For those of the Hindu faith, there is the promise of another earthly life after death – reincarnation. Jenkins is setting up our minds to think beyond the temporal destruction and into a deeper reality. On one level, he is saying that ultimately there is hope for the future; but on another level, he is saying that war, like reincarna-tion, is cyclical. One life leads to another life. One war leads to another war. Western minds simply can’t under-stand this as effectively by staying only within Judeo-Christian sacred texts. The Agnus Dei returns to the traditional text of the Mass. Jenkins poignantly follows Torches, a piece

about the needless slaughter of people and animals, with a reminder that according to Christian belief, there was one perfect lamb that was slaughtered long ago so that no other blood would ever have to be shed. Jenkins stuns us by turning the truth of Christianity back onto Christians. He is stating that even after this metaphorical war as portrayed in the music is over, it was unnecessary in the first place. The work ends with text from the New Testament, but given that Jenkins has already used sacred texts from different religions, we can no longer interpret this distinctly Christian text in a distinctly Christian way. The final truth is that one day there will no longer be any death, any loss, any pain. Hindus, Muslims, and Christians believe this very same thing, but there are differences in understanding how this will happen. By using authentic understandings of different sacred texts, Jenkins has proven to us that there is a way to reconcile religious differ-ences. But it takes work; not with violence, but with open hearts and minds. Recall the Muslim Call to Prayer at the beginning of the piece. Jenkins sought to move our thinking down separate paths: looking at war as a horrific blight on humanity and self-critiquing the urgency of war. At the end of the piece, he ties everything together. Hinduism is still Hinduism. Islam is still Islam. Christianity is still Chris-tianity. But we are changed. By stepping inside each other’s hearts and minds and texts for a moment, together we come to see that war is never the answer. Together we come to see that in the end, we are all one global family. It is that sense of assurance which gives us the resolve to look through the illusion of war, and the subtle but predictable precursors to war, and see true peace. We strengthen ourselves not to fight one another, but to support one another – as we work to build peace inside of us, and to bring peace to a world that continues in the cycle of conflict. “The Lord lives in the heart of every creature. Take refuge utterly in Him. By His grace you will find supreme peace, and the state which is beyond all change.” Bhagavad Gita 18:61-62 (Hinduism) “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.” Matthew 5:9 (Christianity) “If anyone kills a person… it would be as if he killed everyone. And if anyone saves a life, it would be as if he saved everyone’s life.” Qur’an 5:32 (Islam) The Rev. Dr. Jonathan West (Mansfield University ’96) teaches Ethics, Biblical Studies, and World Religions at Elmira College and is pastor of the First United Methodist Church of Mansfield. He leads interfaith training work-shops across the country and currently chairs the Ecumenical and Interreligious Network for the United Methodist denomination.

Remembering Doug Crowder Douglas M. Crowder, Associate Professor of Voice at Mansfield University from 1998 to 2008, passed away in a hospital in Baltimore, Maryland on June 15, 2013 at the age of 55 years. The reason given was stomach cancer. An obituary appeared in a local newspaper in Virginia Beach, Virginia. It also can be accessed by going to www.smithandwilliamsnorfolk.com, the website of the funeral home that han-dled the arrangements; the guestbook contains quite a number of moving testimonials and reminis-cences by Mansfield students and faculty.

Doug Crowder and I had little in common, but perhaps enough converg-ing interests to bring us together, at least once in a while, and thus we became friends.

There was his first recital at Mansfield University, shortly after he had become a faculty member in the music department; it featured, among other gems, Schumann’s Eichendorff Liederkreis, Opus 39. His voice

was not big or assured at the time, but he used it intelligently to provide the audience with a memorable interpretation of that wonderful song cy-cle—full of poignant memories, premonitions of death and exuberant an-ticipations of future happiness—an emotional roller coaster that is a challenge to seasoned artists. When I congratulated him on his perfor-mance and mentioned that I had written my dissertation exactly on that work, his face paled; an air of awkwardness intruded on our encounter, only to be dissolved by my moving on in the line of congratulants and well-wishers and uttering some pleasantries to the accompanist. Doug Crowder was blessed by the gods with one of their unkindest gifts: lack of confidence.

And yet, his artistry, love of music, and enthusiasm for lending his voice to a wide variety of repertories were undeniable and astonishing. I remember quite a number of occasions, on the stage of Steadman Theatre, when he donned an Argentine outfit, picked up a guitar to accompany himself, and sang songs about life in the pampas and the tribulations of being a gaucho. These performances were as artistic and sincere, as those of German Lieder had been earlier, full of nuances and with an air of authenticity underscored by the costume. Doug Crowder had spent two years in Argentina (I think it had been in the Mendoza region, the wine growing area, of that large country, close to the Andes mountains), and that time had been a life-changing experience for him. In many ways, he was not a provincial, but a citizen of the world—his cosmopolitan streak and openness to other cultures, I assume, must have made him sometimes, or perhaps always, feel like an outsider in the endless mountains of Appalachia.

When I confessed to him my love of Argentine tango, especially of Astor Piazzolla’s expansion of that musical idiom, his eyes lit up. We arranged several meetings during which we could indulge our Tangueros fantasies in Tioga County. He came prepared with handouts and recordings to back up his knowledge, and he provided me with a concise thumbnail sketch of the history of Argentine tango from its beginnings in the brothels in the San Telmo area of Buenos Aires to the highly revered Carlos Gardel (who, sadly, died in a plane crash in the 1930s) to the Nuevo Tango of Piazzolla. I could not have had a better guide in my quest to expand my musical horizon.

Several allergies and health problems more than not interfered with Douglas Crowder’s concert sched-ule, and I remember a couple of occasions where he had to cancel a recital or back out of a commitment he had made. But two performances stand out in my memory as extraordinary: Brahms’s German Req-uiem (in English) in April 2001 and Vaughan Williams’s Dona Nobis Pacem in April 2003. He lent his voice to the baritone solos in both major works, sung by Mansfield University’s Festival Chorus and con-ducted by Peggy Dettwiler. He was surprisingly self-assured, and it was not an “act” (even though the role of “acting” is a necessity for performing artists): he was sincere in his confidence. That newly found positive outlook could perhaps be attributed to the teachings of a Russian vocal pedagogue who was a visiting professor at Mansfield University for a semester or even a year around the turn of the millenni-um. (Mansfield, at the time, had an exchange program with Volgograd State University that involved “trading” students as well as faculty.) Svetlana Nesterenko became something like a cult figure during

Peggy Dettwiler and students with Alice Parker at the ACDA National Conference in Dallas, Texas. Alice Parker will be visiting Mansfield Uni-

versity on November 5-7, 2013.

her time on the shores of the Tioga River; she not only taught students, but also more advanced folks, and she fixed whatever vocal problems the singers, who flocked to her, had or imagined to have. “It is all in his head,” was Svetlana’s astute diagnosis, and Douglas Crowder benefited tremendously from her vocal therapy. (After returning to Russia, she advanced to a position at the Moscow Conservatory—at least, that’s what I vaguely re-member; her tremendous pedagogical skills were, at last, recognized in her own country). Some of the fruits of her lessons can be heard on CDs with the Mansfield University Festival Chorus: The Brahms German Requiem disk is available through Mansfield University’s Music Department: 570-662-4721; the CD with the Vaughan Wil-liams piece (called “Of War, Peace, and the Power of Music”) can be purchased through MU or Mark Recordings #4851-MCD (www.markcustom.com). Hearing or rehearing those performances may give friends of Douglas Crowder a sense of his artistry.

Alas, professional happiness at Mansfield University eluded Douglas Crowder, and I will never quite understand the reasons why he left a tenured position and severed contacts with colleagues and friends. I tried to engage him several times during the years leading up to his resignation, invited him to join me at the Jessie Kneisel Lied-er Competition at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY (I had been asked to be a judge, his voice teacher at Greensboro, NC was now the chair of the voice department there)—in other words, several compelling reasons suggested an affirmative response to the invitation. Unfortunately, his withdrawal from the region could not be reversed. Even though he lived in the area for a while longer, connecting with him was difficult.

There was a national search to replace Douglas Crowder as a voice professor at Mansfield University. Moving into the office, the successor discovered some Tylenol pills in or on the desk. A note revealing Doug’s sardonic humor was attached: “You may need these here.” That was his last “official” communication.

Jürgen Thym

PS. Songwriter Joe Miller, a former Mansfield student, composed a song in memory of his former teacher. You can listen to the song by clicking on either of the two links: http://joemiller.bandcamp.com/album/procrastination-single or https://soundcloud.com/joemillermusic/procrastination

Faculty Notes: On the Road this summer! And on the Road that Lies Ahead!

PEGGY DETTWILER has been selected to serve as a Lecturer to present two seminars at the Tenth World Cho-ral Symposium in Seoul, Korea, in August of 2014! The World Choral Symposium is a one-week event orga-nized every three years at a prominent and attractive city somewhere in the world. Lecturers are selected “from the standpoint of what will benefit choral scholars at the highest level covering a broad base of advanced topics.” Peggy is thrilled as she considers this invitation to be the most prestigious in her professional career. The ses-sion is entitled “Overtone Singing as a Choral Art” and will be given collaboratively with overtone singer and com-poser Stuart Hinds of Lubbock, Texas. Hinds has visited Mansfield University to work with the choirs on overtone singing, and the Concert Choir has performed three of his compositions. The session has also been accepted for presentation at the Eastern Division Convention of the American Choral Directors Association next February in Baltimore, Maryland.

During the summer 2013, Peggy conducted a one-week seminar for graduate students at Gordon College in Bos-ton. She worked with twenty-eight students on the topic “Jump-Start Your Choral Repertoire Skills.” Peggy has produced two DVDs on choral repertoire techniques: “Developing a Choral Color Palette” and “Sing in Style.” YOUNGSUCK KIM traveled in Europe during the summer, taking in museums, cultural sites and events in Ger-many, Belgium, the Netherlands, Great Britain, and Austria. Of particular signif-icance for him was the Ostrenko Performing Arts Workshop he attended in Leibnitz, Austria (close to the Slovenian border) early in July. The workshop was established with the purpose of exploring the bridge between world theatre traditions and contemporary performing arts. It also aims to develop interna-tional programs, promote multicultural dialogue, and support the freedom of cre-ative expression and tolerance by acquainting people with the diversity of world traditions. Sergej Ostrenko, the artist spearheading the workshop, is a Russian director and teacher who has worked in professional theatre for more than thirty years. Kim writes: “I felt that I gained a huge insight into areas of drama, dance, and other performing arts. ... The workshop opened my mind to different possibilities and caused me to brainstorm ways that I could apply to shape my teaching in the future. This was an eye-opening experience. I brought a lot of

knowledge back to Mansfield.”

SHERYL MONKELIEN spent the summer adjudicating choirs for Music in the Parks in Hershey, PA; teaching a graduate course in History and Philosophy of Music Education; traveled to Iowa and Texas to visit family; took a trip to Scotland to visit friends, attend the Glasgow Jazz Festival and to make arrangements for a possible sab-batical in the 2014-15 school year. Directing the MU Summer Youth Music Camp and completing kitchen renova-

tions at home were the tasks when returning to Pennsylvania.

TODD RANNEY just returned to the US from five weeks of traveling in New Zealand and Australia visiting and discovering new peoples, places and things. While being down under, he and his wife Catherine Robinson at-tended the NATS (National Association of Teachers of Singing) International Conference in Brisbane, Australia which featured many notable names and performers. Workshops and master classes have offered him many new insights and ideas to bring back to Mansfield. About his culinary experiences he writes: “Along the way I experi-enced many new food offerings including Emu, Camel, Kangaroo and Crocodile, all of which I found quite appe-tizing.” He also visited Ayers Rock in the center of the continent and had the opportunity to experience aboriginal music both in singing and instrument (didgeridoo) of which I also purchased an example to bring back.”

In August he will be singing the roles of Gianni Schicchi in Puccini’s eponymous opera and Tonio in Leoncaval-lo’s Pagliacci in a production of the East Stroudsburg Opera Company. If you happen to be in the area, the dates are August 16 and 18. In addition to singing in Gianni Schicchi, he will also direct the production. The cast will

include MU graduate Derrek Stark in the role of Rinuccio. ALISSA ROSE traveled with her mother and husband, John, to Germany and France to celebrate the 50th anni-versary of her mother's first trip to Germany as an exchange student. After a stop in Basel, Switzerland to see a former college roommate who is now a Baroque violinist, they spent a week in Provence, sightseeing Roman ru-ins and hiking around medieval castles, even attended bull games and swam in the Pont du Gard, an ancient aq-ueduct bridge. Music was not absent in Alissa’s sojourns. “On the way back to Germany,” she writes, “we hap-pened upon a concert ending a master class given by Ruggero Raimondi, so we got to hear some good singing

along with 10,000 others in the main square of Nancy, France.”

Letters and other Communications from Alumni and Friends FELICIA BARBER (MM 1999) is the new Director of Choral Activities at Westfield State University in Westfield, MA, where she conducts the Festival Chorus, Chamber Choir, and teaches courses in conducting and choral methods. A passionate educator, Dr. Barber taught choral music and music theory for eight years at Centennial High School for the Williamson County Schools system in Franklin, TN. The Centennial High School choral pro-gram recorded an album entitled, Visions in Sound in 2007; also the ensembles were featured on 3 tours across the United States, including a festival performance at Carnegie Hall. Continuing with her work in the field of Mu-sic Theory, since 2006, Dr. Barber has also served as an AP Music Theory Reader for College Board. -- Dr. Bar-ber’s research interests included teaching strategies in the choral classroom, community partnerships, as well as the performance practice of African American Spirituals. Her research has lead to presentations at regional and state conferences across the southeast, as well as a recent presentation at the Phenomenon of Singing, an In-ternational Conference held in Newfoundland. -- Dr. Barber holds a B.M. in Vocal Performance from Oral Rob-erts University, an M.M. in Music Education from Mansfield University, and a Ph.D. in Choral Music Education and Choral Conducting from The Florida State University.

SYDNEY BLADE (BM 2012) writes: “I just wanted to share …some exciting news! As of last night's school board meeting, I will be starting in the fall as the new PreK-12 Vocal Music Teacher at Edmeston Central School in Ed-meston, NY! I have a feeling I'm in for a crazy, crazy year, but I can't wait to get started!”

ROCHELLE CARLISLE (BM 2013) and JUSTIN COLLIS (BM 2013) got married on July 13. Congratulations!

JILL DAVIS (BM 2005) wrote in March to her teachers Dettwiler in Mansfield and Weinert at Eastman: “My Se-lect Choir students and I will be traveling to the UK in 2 weeks for a concert tour. We are quite excited! Every time we travel as a group, I fondly remember the tour experiences at both Mansfield and Eastman – thank you for giving me those opportunities! I am hoping that I can pay it forward to my students. In addition, my mother is going with us this time – she has never traveled out of the US, so we are thrilled that she can have that chance as well. I have a blog where you can follow the progress of our tour and see pictures, if you are interested. It is here: http://uktour2013.wordpress.com. Engagements include several performances: Easter Sunday during wor-ship at St. George’s of Bloomsbury in London, a full concert at the Bath Abbey, informal singing at Warwick Cas-tle, a full concert at St. Giles in Edinburgh, and an exchange concert on our last evening with a local Scottish Choir. Of course, there will be LOTS of sightseeing built in as well. I have 27 students attending (many of which have not been on a plane before!). Our Booster Club raised enough money to pay for ½ of each student’s trip. I am so proud of all of them. -- Thanks again for giving me great and unforgettable experiences. I think of you of-ten and hope that you are well.”

HILARY GODARD (long-time member of the Festival Chorus and a great supporter of Mansfield’s choral pro-gram, who, together with his wife Martha, settled in Duluth, MN after retiring from Corning) was able to attend last year’s Holiday Concert and reminisces in a letter sent in March as follows: “We are glad that the vocal music program enjoys continuing success. We were so happy it worked out that we could attend the holiday concert. I will find it difficult to replace the fun, the reward for hard work, and the educational experience of being in the Festival Chorus. For me, even the rehearsals were the most joyful of noises. The Unitarian Universalist choris-ters [in Duluth] mostly look at me funny when I shape vowels with my hands or toss my arm out during warm-ups (it may actually have only a little to do with my warm-up habits). -- We have found a lot of music [in the Duluth area]. I passed my audition for symphony chorus (not that it says much but it was the most substantial audition I've ever done). We did a flash mob at the NYE pops concert & are doing Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis in May.

The Chorus Master is Matt Faerber from Wisconsin-Superior. … He had not heard of Mansfield; I told him that, if he hadn't yet, he will. There are all sorts of performances between the university, college, churches & organists (40 functional pipe organs in the area), symphony, & formal & informal chorales. Duluth has also a vibrant local popular music scene. The arena gets some good national acts. Any place we go for food &/or drink will have live music, which is usually pretty good. -- The Mansfield Music sweatshirt gets worn a lot and always proudly. Please keep us on the HTV distribution list.”

CARRIE HOOPER (BM 1997) was in touch recently. She is still teaching German and Italian at Elmira College, has quite a number of private piano and voice students, and has struck several friendships with folks who are blind like her in Huntsville, Alabama. She sings a lot, added the Albanian language to her polyglot persona and, as a result of her interest in anything Albanian, has learned to play a two-stringed traditional instrument and per-forms in an Albanian folk ensemble based in New York City.

CHARLIE JACOBSON (Class of 1968), Band Director for decades at Wellsboro High, Conductor of the Wellsbo-ro Men’s Chorus, Section Leader of the MU Festival Chorus, Trombonist in the Wellsboro “Almost World Fa-mous” Town Band, Soloist with St. James Brass, and who knows what else) has been a key player in the musi-cal scene of Tioga County (look at all those unofficial titles in parenthesis). He is relocating to Hebron, Kentucky near Cincinnati, Ohio, taking in the cultural opportunities of a major American city and shares his “good news” with HTV: “I auditioned last Tuesday evening for the big chorus which sings with the Pops and Symphony. I re-ceived my acceptance letter today. I am on cloud 9! It is an ambitious season which includes the Verdi Requiem and a performance with the Cincinnati Symphony at Carnegie Hall in May of 2014. This is a great opportunity for me. You can check out the website at www.mayfestival.com.”

It is an understatement to say that Charlie Jacobson will be dearly missed. We thank him for his presence among us, the inspiration he provided, the good-natured rehearsals he ran to spur us on, and the great music he made in our area. We hope for many happy returns with his wife Barbara to the Endless Mountains of Pennsyl-vania!

LIZ KENNEDY and NICK WEBB (both class of 2011) tied the knot on May 24. Readers who have followed the news may recall that they were a couple (Count and Countess) in a production of Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro a

few years ago—a clear case where life imitates art. Congratulations, Liz and Nick!

CHRIS PICKERING (BM 2004) is the new choral director at Westmont Hilltop High School in Johnstown, PA

KENNY SEABOLDT (Class of 2004) is a flight attendant for Spirit Airlines, a carrier with a major hub in Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas. His devotion to Mansfield University and the teachers who shaped him was shown recently in a one-day visit to the area (he flew into Elmira for free—benefits of his new position as a steward) to see the campus and friends.

MATT WESTGATE (Class of 2012) writes: “I just wanted to start by saying I deeply miss Concert Choir and wish almost every day I could rejoin, but I love getting to inspire a new generation of choral singers and soloists. I just took 15 students to UIL Solo and Ensemble here in Texas and I am proud to say I have 5 soloists (3 freshman, 1 sophomore, and a senior :) and a women's quartet going to the State level in Austin come May. I am thrilled and love my job a lot! Thank you for your careful direction and encouragement of me in this, I am forever grateful.” Matt is choral director at West Orange-Stark High School in Texas.

NICOLE YEAGLEY (BM 2012) and BRAD KAFFERLIN (BM 2010) got married on July 13. Congratulations are in order!

Semiannual Honors List

The following choir members were honored at the end of the academic for their participation in various choral and vocal ensembles: the Mansfield University Concert Choir (CC), the Mansfield University Festival Chorus (FC), the Mansfieldians (MF) and the Chamber Singers (CS):

Lindsay K. Brown (CC, FC, MF, CS)—2009-13 Nichole Eshleman (FC)—2010-13 Tabitha Gallagher (CC, FC, MF)—2009-13 David Glasbrenner (FC)—2010-13 Stephen Jackson (FC, CC)—2011-13 Rebecca Martz (CC, MF, CS)—2009-13 Catherine Masland (FC)—2010-13 Jarrod Miller (CC, MF, CS)—2009-13 Steven Scott Miller (CC, FC, CS, MF—Graduate Choral Assistant)—2012-13 Holden Moyer (CC, FC, CS)—2009-13 Alexander Norman (FC)—2008-13

And a special thanks to Marian Miller, who served as the rehearsal accompanist for the Mansfield University Festival Chorus for many years and stepped down from those duties. Her musicianship, attentiveness to detail, and good humor will be dearly missed.

Dr. Peggy Dettwiler Butler 105, 18 Campus View Drive Mansfield University Mansfield, PA 16933

The Trophy Cases

Visitors to the hallowed halls of Steadman may notice several new trophy cases across from the office of Mad-ame Conductor. The cases house the paraphernalia that inevitably come with winning choral competitions or

receiving invitations to important (juried) choral events, and the choral ensembles at Mansfield University have, over the years and decades, garnered dozens of such awards: medals to be hung around one’s neck, plaques to fill the usual void on office walls, letters of recognition signed by the powers that are (or were), etc. Even though winning gold medals is not, and should not be, the ultimate goal of music-making (the editor of HTV is in complete agreement with an opinion voiced in a most recent issue of Cadenza, the semiannual newsletter of Mans-

field’s Music Department), winning such trophies, if they have been bestowed on the university’s music ensembles (or ath-letes, for that matter), should not be hidden but showcased as a matter of record, as semi-modest exhibits of the pride our community takes in these achievements, and as inspiration for those who come after us. So that’s what the trophy cases are

about: the beginnings of a Hall of Fame flaunting Mansfield University’s fine accomplishments in the choral/vocal area. (If the University of Southern California can have an entire spacious building devoted to the tro-phies of its football team, the Trojans, it is only fair that Mansfield University dedicates a rather modest display case to the musical excellence residing on campus.)

Attentive viewers may even notice that there is still considerable empty space in the case on the right for more trinkets to be added in the years ahead by future generations of music students.