• Lessons from a rising star: Kiera Duffy takes on The Metropolis Ensemble challenge (Posted 4/7/2008)
• New works spearhead opening sessions of NYC choral music festival (Posted 4/6/2008)
• Cantabile Chamber Chorale--a family of voices celebrates 20th anniversary in concert (Posted 3/30/2008)
• The Stonewall Chorale celebrates John Corigliano at 70 years young (Posted 3/30/2008)
• Seraphic Fire burns brightly at St. Bart's (Posted 3/21/2008)
• The New York City Master Chorale presents American spirituals (Posted 3/15/2008)
• Tapestry of sound: a journey to the music of Azerbaijan and Franghiz Ali-Zadeh (Posted 2/29/2008)
• Arranging singers in rehearsals and performances (Posted 12/22/2007)
• The Singing Revolution opens in New York (Posted 12/9/2007)
• World premiere of talented New York composer Becca Schack by Melodia Women's Choir of NYC opens ears to the world (Posted 11/14/2007)

Archive of old VAN Features

Want to see more coverage of the vocal ensemble community? You can help! See your feature article here. You'll gain valuable exposure as a writer about vocal ensemble music and your group will benefit from the PR. Submit proposals for approval to the editor.

• Get 25% off tickets to G&S Fest 2008, presented by the New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players at City Center. This year's festival runs from June 6 to June 15 and features four great shows: H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance, The Mikado and The Gondoliers. Call CityTix at 212-581-1212 and mention code GSD or visit www.nycitycenter.org and enter code 3686. (2008-4-30)
• Make Music New York (MMNY) is a live, free musical celebration across the city that will take place this year on Saturday, June 21. On this day, the first day of summer, public spaces throughout the five boroughs -- sidewalks, parks, community gardens and more -- will become impromptu music stages, dance floors and social meeting points. Thousands of amateur musicians, in every genre, will play on the sidewalks for the biggest crowds of their lives. Professional musicians will pique the interest of new audiences, who will hear unfamiliar groups and styles of music risk- and cost-free. Last year's MMNY included 560 free concerts with 1,927 musicians, and this year's event will be even bigger. For more information, visit www.makemusicny.org. (2008-4-21)
• Dr. Jonathan Babcock has announced that he is stepping down as artistic director and conductor of the Empire City Men's Chorus. His final performance with the Chorus will be in a joint concert with the Astoria Symphony May 17 and 18. Dr. Babcock has accepted a teaching position at Texas State University near Austin. He has led the Empire City Men's Chorus, formerly the Gay Gotham Chorus, since 2001. (2008-4-20)
• Here are the results from the New York Regional Harmony Sweepstakes, held March 22 at Symphony Space, as provided by producer Colette Thompson. Best original song: "Al Hanissim," written and arranged by Mike Boxer of Six13. Best original arrangement: "Friend in Need," arranged by Red No. 5. Audience favorite: 'Round Midnight. Honorable mentions: Cut Time and DoubleShot! Third place: L5. Second place: 'Round Midnight. First place: Red No. 5. (2008-3-24)
• Kent Tritle has succeeded the late Richard Westenburg as Music Director of Musica Sacra. (2008-3-5)
• Richard Westenburg, 75, founder and conductor of the Musica Sacra Chorus and Orchestra, has died. Read his obituary in The New York Times. (2008-2-21)
• Owen Burdick, organist and music director at Trinity Church in lower Manhattan, resigned on January 7. See the article in The New York Times. (2008-1-12)
• Audition tapes/CDs are currently being accepted from vocal groups interested in participating in the New York Regional competition of The Harmony Sweepstakes, a nationwide a cappella festival, which will take place at Peter Norton Symphony Space on Saturday, March 22, 2008 at 7:00 PM. For details, see the ad in the Info Exchange. (2008-1-2)
• Make Me a Song: The Music of William Finn features the songs from the Tony-Award winning composer's well-known shows in addition to rarely heard selections from Romance in Hard Times, Elegies, and the yet-to-be-produced The Royal Family. Mr. Finn, currently represented on Broadway with The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, is the writer/composer of the Tony Award-winning breakthrough musical Falsettos (written with James Lapine). He has also written and composed In Trousers, March of the Falsettos, Falsettoland, Romance in Hard Times, A New Brain and Elegies: A Song Cycle. Discounted tickets for $39.50 are available for shows through December 23. To take advantage of this offer, visit Broadwayoffers.com and enter the code MSGMD25, call 212-947-8844 and mention code MSGMD25, or bring a printed copy of this page to the box office at the New World Stages, 340 West 50th Street (between 8th and 9th Avenues). Fine print: Each order is limited to 8 tickets. Offer is subject to availability and prior sale; not valid on prior purchases; cannot be combined with other discounts or promotions. Additional blackout dates may apply. No refunds or exchanges. Price includes facility fee; telephone and Internet orders are subject to standard service fees. (2007-12-15)
• Scott Turkington is the new artistic director of Westchester's Charis Chamber Voices. (2007-9-15)

Archive of old "News" items

• May 7, 2008: New Choir Directory listing for The Brick Presbyterian Church Professional Choir on the Upper East Side.
• April 30, 2008: New Choir Directory listing and Choir Auditions ad for The Pitchpipers, a four-part women's group in Trumbull, CT.
• April 14, 2008: New Choir Directory listing and Choir Auditions ad for The Jubilee Chorus, now forming in Manhattan.
• March 29, 2008: New Choir Directory listing for the First Presbyterian Church Choir in Rockaway, NJ.
• March 24, 2008: New Choir Directory listing and Choir Auditions ad for the Bank Street Community Chorus, a small group based on the Upper West Side.
• February 22, 2008: New link for Choral Music Magazine, "the premiere eZine for quality articles and reviews about the choral community". The Choir Auditions pages now sport the new page design we rolled out for the Info Exchange a few months ago.
• February 21, 2008: New Choir Directory listing for Christ Episcopal Church Choir in Bloomfield/Glen Ridge, NJ.
• February 17, 2008: New URL for The New Yiddish Chorale.
• February 10, 2008: New Choir Directory listing and Choir Auditions ad for the Westfair Singers, a women's ensemble in Greenwich, CT.
• January 12, 2008: New Choir Directory listing and Choir Auditions ad for the Mystic River Chorale, an auditioned community choir in Mystic, CT. New Choir Directory listing and Choir Auditions ad for the Jersey Harmony Chorus, the Princeton-area chapter of Sweet Adelines.
• January 6, 2008: The New York City Ambassador Chorus is now known as The Gay Men's Chorus of Manhattan.
• December 16, 2007: New Choir Directory listing and Choir Auditions ad for Immanuel Church Choir, now directed by Gwendolyn Toth.
• December 9, 2007: New URL for Music Divine.
• December 5, 2007: New Choir Directory listing and Choir Auditions ad for The Cornell Alumni Singers.
• December 3, 2007: New link for Half Cadence, a New York web design firm focusing on musicians and artists. By the way, we've restored our Links Collection file which seemed to have been accidentally overwritten.

Archive of old "New on VAN" items

• Need some exquisite beaded jewelry to complement your concert attire? Or perhaps a distinctive gift for that special singer in your life? Or maybe you'd like to host a jewelry show to benefit your favorite non-profit organization? Try Carnelian Knoll, where you'll find necklaces, bracelets and earrings of vintage beads and silver handcrafted by Julie Siegmund.
• Looking for rehearsal space or performance venues? Try NYC Music Places, New York City's free database of available rehearsal and performance spaces for instrumental and vocal musicians. You'll find places to rent, from studios to large venues, for classical, jazz, rock--whatever you need to rehearse or perform in NYC. NYC Music Places is a service of Exploring the Metropolis, the only nonprofit organization that focuses solely on resolving performing artists' needs for work space.
• Looking for an outstanding vocal ensemble coach? Mark Johnson, possessor of an amazing ear and terrific interpretive insights in a variety of styles, is available to coach your group. To arrange for Mark's services, e-mail Colette Thompson.
• Liz Fleischer's Sight-Singing Program is offered each season at the Kaufman Center (129 West 67th Street). Classes include ear-training, rhythm and pitch reading, music theory, basic notation and terminology, with emphasis on learning to hold a part with confidence. For more info, visit www.kaufman-center.org/lucyadults_mus_sight.htm, e-mail fleischerliz@aol.com or adultdivision@kaufman-center.org or call (212) 501-3362. The sight-singing program is just one of the classes offered by the Kaufman Center's Lucy Moses School.
• Candy Ear Studios in Soho offers digital recording to ADAT, DAT or CD. Owner David Strahl does very nice work with voices. Mention Vocal Area Network and get a 10% discount on six hours or more of recording and editing time. Visit Candy Ear on the web or call (212) 965-0927.