Choral Conducting: A Life of Building is a handbook for aspiring choral conductors at any stage of their career. Dale Warland, for a sixty-year career, was one of America’s most lauded choral conductors, and this book articulates his best-practice advice. Divided into three sections, it first endorses building the leadership of the conductor, with an emphasis on listening as the conductor’s most critically important asset. Second, Warland focuses on building a choir as a unique kind of instrument, with focused intentionality and care. Finally, he stresses the importance of repertoire and programming as the most important aspect of the choral art. He closes with core personal values that every conductor may do well to consider in their own life of building within choral music.
Click to PurchaseReviews:
“Dale is a one-of-a-kind Maestro, a titan who changed the face of American choral music forever. His deep influence on me and generations of composers and choral musicians is immeasurable. How beautiful and essential it is to see his life’s work so
lovingly recounted here.”—Eric Whitacre, composer/conductor
“This book is a must-must-must-have resource for choral conductors of all levels and at all stages of their careers. Chock full of practical wisdom presented in succinct, very readable chapters, its comprehensive approach makes it invaluable as a conducting course supplement, a compass for emerging conductors, or a refresher for seasoned conductors. You are guided up-close by the clear voice, vast experience and profound humanity of this choral giant, and come away inspired and equipped to “rejoice in beauty and work.” —Pearl Shangkuan, DMA, National Vice President, American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), professor emerita, Calvin University
“What makes a choral performance transcendent? Dale Warland knows. In six decades of music-making, he discovered that beauty and meticulous work are inseparable. This book shares those discoveries with characteristic humility and precision—from the
mysteries of artful phrasing to the practical realities of callback auditions. His emphasis on listening as the conductor’s primary skill, and his passionate advocacy for new music offer a roadmap for creating the kind of transformative performances that stay with singers and audiences forever. This is a book I will return to again and again.” —Craig Hella Johnson, Conspirare, Artistic Director, Texas State University, Artist in Residence
“I wish Choral Conduction: A Life of Building had been written when I was beginning my career as a conductor.” —Anton E. Armstrong
Recent Comments