Commission

Inspiring Community and Building Legacy

The highest form of work that Choral Directors can do is inspire community and build legacy.

There are so many things that directors are tasked with, that sometimes it seems as if they will never get around to their musical and artistic goals. It is helpful to remember the reason that you chose music, or rather that music told you that the great sense of community comes from being involved with something greater than yourself.

A traveler came upon three men working. He asked the first man what he was doing, and the man said he was laying bricks. He asked the second man the same question and he said he was putting up a wall. When he got to the third man and asked him what he was doing, he said he was building a cathedral.

They were all doing the same thing. The first man had a job. The second man had a career. The third man had a calling.[i]

Directors have the opportunity to instill in their singers the idea that they are doing far more than showing up at rehearsals and trying their best. They are also sharing the amazing power of music, improving the lives of the community, and learning valuable life skills that are transferable to many other areas.

One of the easiest ways to see this is to observe the impact that a dynamic music program can have on a community. When a group is achieving its best, its members are simultaneously building a legacy in several communities.

First, they are creating a legacy within the community of the choir itself. They are developing a set of principles, behaviors, habits, and actions that they will pass on to those who come after them. Second, the group has an impact on the institution with which they are affiliated. This happens through concerts, community service projects, performing at events, and more. Third, they can have a positive impact on the town or city in which they reside. This is where the power of community ripples out to affect more than just the organization, but the whole town or city.

All of this this can be extended to the state, regional, national, and international levels through touring and collaborations. The impact of each individual community and ensemble comprises the legacy of a particular group.

Issues Facing Music Education

In 2017, professors at Kent University identified some of the top issues facing music education, as follows:

· Justifying the Necessity of Music

· Motivating Students

· Involving Parents

· Addressing Funding Issues

· Adapting Teaching Strategies to Meet Student Needs

· Optimizing New Technology

These issues are very real, and there are amazing educators at every level working hard to use the power of music as a resource to meet these challenges.

Allowing the community to take part in the creation and performance of a new work is a powerful way to highlight the importance of the arts, motivate students, involve parents and the larger community. It allows the community to find creative solutions to address resources, and adapt to meet the needs of a diverse body of students. In addition, it provides ways to use new technology to bring people together from all over the country and around the world.

The good news is that commissioning new music is a wonderful way to highlight the importance of the arts, experience how choral singing improves lives, and illustrate the life changing power of taking part in the creation and performance of new music.

Benefits of Commissioning New Music:

· Highlight the importance of the arts

· Experience how choral singing improves lives

· Illustrate the life changing power of music

[i]Huffington Post 0/18/2016

[ii]https://musicedmasters.kent.edu/top-8-challenges-faced-by-music-teachers-in-2017/

What is involved in the commission of new music?

Four Stage Process

1. Vision
2. Writing
3. Rehearsal
4. Performance

VISION

The commissioner contacts the composer and starts a dialog about what a collaboration could achieve for his or her community. The composer responds and uses an intake form to gather more information about what is most important to the project. The composer provides a proposal with several choices, all of which will effectively distill the essence of the vision into a musical work. The commissioner selects the choice that best meets the needs of the project. An agreement is reached between the commissioner and composer.

WRITING

The composer translates the essence of the commissioner’s vision into musical ideas, researches text, artwork, and historical documents, to inform the thematic elements of the work. The composer revises, edits, and proofs the work in consultation with the commissioner.

REHEARSAL

The conductor and performers prepare with, and work in consultation with the composer.

PERFORMANCE

The community gathers to experience the final product of the commissioner’s vision, the composer’s musical ideas, the conductor’s artistic vision, and the choir’s expressiveness.

A complete listing of what is involved in each step is available in Appendix B.

The amount of time each stage takes varies by project, depending on length and scope, but may fall within the following ranges: Vision (1-3 Months)

WRITING (1-18 MONTHS)

REHEARSAL (1-11 MONTHS)

PERFORMANCE (1-30 DAYS)

TOTAL PROJECT (A FEW MONTHS – SEVERAL YEARS)

Commissioning a new work is an example of the best of what can happen when people work together on a goal that is greater than the sum of its parts. Let’s take a look at these two main parts in more detail.