by ·Kommentare deaktiviert für Local Blog #1: Made in Denmark

Many people associate Denmark with smørrebrød, LEGO or H.C. Andersen. In the last 20 years Denmark also developed its own a cappella brand. “Made in Denmark” is a sign for extraordinary musical quality, innovation und sincere expression. Names like Jens Johansen, Vocal Line, Ørehænger and Postyr became inspiring figures of the international choir scene.

All these names have their origin in the city of Aarhus – a city of about 260.000 inhabitants, a city that is often called “the European centre of modern vocal music”. How can a comparatively small city like Aarhus have such a vibrant music scene? Which factors are necessary to shape such an environment? In the next months I will try to give some answers in my “Local Blog”. The title might remind you of Florian Städtler’s “Vocal Blog”. It was in fact Florian Städtler who asked me to report my time in Aarhus.

About me:
My name is Christian Ronsfeld, I am German and at the moment I am in the middle of my master studies in pop/jazz choir leading, singing and arranging at the Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus. Besides that I am working as an arranger and as a choir leader for the two Danish pop choirs Naura and Sing it!. Four years ago, I experienced the quality brand “Made in Denmark” for the first time, when I went to my first concert with Vocal Line. I was so touched by their music that I felt compelled to follow all Danish workshops available at that time. My passion was enflamed, the idea was born to move to Aarhus to become a part of this unique musical centre. My journey had of course many more steps that I won’t present here in detail.

Instead, I would like to invite you on a journey to Denmark with the eyes of an insider. I want to report about the everyday life and special events in the Danish a cappella scene. My blogs will cover my studies at the Royal Academy of Music, my work on the board of the youth choir organization SYNG, artist portraits as well as the Aarhus Vocal Festival 2015.

The first “Local Blog” gives an answer to the question what you could experience in your holidays in Demark besides camping and hot dog shops. SING, SING, SING, SING – ALL YOU GOT TO DO IS SING! Every year the Danish choir organizations SYNG and KOR 72 organize a huge choir week in the Southern part of Denmark with about 400 singers from all over the country. Whole families can share their passion for singing in four different choirs: classical choir, children’s musical, pop choirs for young and more experienced participants with well-known instructors like Line Groth and Morten Kjær.

After the performance of the children’s musical, I was totally overwhelmed by the musical level. The concept makes sense: While the kids are preparing for their show, grandma has time to party with 150 singers and a huge band. Year after year family clans are meeting at this event. The Danes are calling such an occasion ”hygge”.

After one week of choir heaven in the South the guys from Postyr took over the scene with their first summer camp in Aarhus. 47 singing geeks from 10 different countries (including India and Taiwan!!!) came to Aarhus to learn from the innovative and highly educated vocal group. ”Postyr” is an old Danish word and means ”to stir something up” – well, I can conclude that they succeeded. I rarely experienced a ”do-it-yourself workshop” that was so organized, structured and had such a broad content.

The participants could choose between two tracks (singer/choir leader) in order to improve in their own field. The topics were vocal technique and interpretation, arrangement and choir leading, as well as rhythm & groove and technical issues. In the big choir the participants came together to sing a brand new song of Postyr and performed it in the final concert.

Besides the musical excellence of the group, I want to emphasize how warm-hearted Postyr interacted with the participants. Who would prepare a welcome bag with a lot of useful tourist info, discounts for a tour in the city and bottles with your personal name tag. Chapeau, Postyr!! This summer camp was a win and if I interpret the birds outside my kitchen window right, there will be a summer camp reloaded.

by ·Kommentare deaktiviert für My thoughts on EVA Membership

I remember very well the „EVA Initiation Meeting“ we had in Aarhus 2011. So many brilliant ideas about Contemporary a Cappella gaining mainstream acceptance and being part of school’s curricula across the European borders. The big brains behind it …Volker Bauer, Florian Städtler, Jim Daus Hjernoe and Peder Karlsson to mention a few have  slowly but surely been working on strategies, drawing talented musicians and music educators into the boat and networking across the whole of Europe. It is more than time for the people who this will most benefit to also jump on board and set sail.

I have been a member of CASA for the past 2 years and have seen what this brilliant organization is doing for Contemporary a Cappella in the US and worldwide. Of course it’s main focus is on the development of collegiate and high school a Cappella… this is their tradition. The TV series Glee, the Sing Off and the film Pitch Perfect served as a rush of oxygen for the new „in“ trend contemporary A Cappella.

Having visited SoJam, the largest a Cappella festival in the USA last November I appreciated even more what our European festivals have to offer and realized that not only our festival culture but the very essence of European folklore, sounds and music awareness and the growing enthusiasm of the youth for contemporary acappella needs structure and representation.

The CARAs – Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards – have shown that over the past few years the sheer diversity and development of European a Cappella and it’s influence even on American a Cappella cannot be ignored. Of course I can now shamelessly plug my choir’s own nomination for this year’s CARA in the category Best Folk/ World Song. The Bonner Jazzchor is an amateur choir with 35 members influenced by singer/ songwriters from Scandinavia  to North America and with a taste for unique interpretations of German folk songs. Mostly acoustic, hardly any vocal percussion and we were still nominated with “ Kein Schöner Land“ alongside professional ensembles like the Swingles, Amarcord  and Br6. This goes to show that „Diversity“ is the name of the game and Europe has plenty to offer!

It is time to extend an invitation to the Pop and Jazz choirs, advertise EVA at all festivals and competitions. For example in Germany get the „Chorverbände“ on board. EVA must become a household word among Contemporary Aca nerds so it’s time to wave the flag and get the singers and existing institutions interested. If not, EVA might remain an intellectual baby and that would be a crying shame.

by ·Kommentare deaktiviert für ItAcA – Italian A-cappella Project

Italian a-cappella community ready to rumble with ItAcA!

The project is going to turn the lights on in few days, after over a year of planning and discussing and singing! Dozens of singers, hundreds of audio tracks, an inedited composition and a mix of smartness, innovation and cheek!

October 2012. After eleven years of experience in a-cappella world, tens of gigs, journeys and some tours, I decided to open a Facebook group, as I saw there were already some around the social network concerning a-cappella fans and singers (Japan A Cappella Society, CASA and others). It was born “Italian A-cappella Society”, specifically addressed to open a real exchange of “know-how”, competences and opinions in a virtual community.

The group was the “place” where I met Lorenzo Subrizi. Chatting a bit, divided by 1400 km, we found out there was something missing in our community: awareness of Us and will of sharing. We have so many vocal groups around the Country, young and less young, internationally experienced or just locally, but – to our eyes – there was not a feeling of what was/is going on around Us. It seemed like the grass was always greener on the other side, but shorter and drier at the same time. Envy and spurn together!

ItAcA – Italian A-cappella Project is born to allow everybody to really share and to benefit  competences grown up in Italian A-cappella overview in last 25 years. Here’s the outline:

  • rigging up a virtual choir composed by all Italian vocal groups that decided to be part of the project
  • to involve individual singers too, essentially everyone who wanted to support our idea
  • to sing an inedited music, composed just for Us (ItAcA and each single fellow who wants to share and to learn from this experience!) by Erik Bosio, on lyrics written by Sara Boero
  • using our local frameworks and structures for recording sessions
  • making a music video
  • bringing out our local peculiarities – in a national perspective – during the video sessions

It could sound quite familiar to someone – as idea – thinking about Whitacre’s VC, but with two essential differences:

  1. a higher audio quality
  2. a different point of view, less centripetal, due to a choral idea of the project itself.

These don’t want to absolutely be critics to Whitacre and his projects, that remain innovative and gorgeous, like his music. It’s just a clarification.

The project wants to be a start up for something bigger. A prelude to a concrete, national and cooperative idea of education and sharing, with the purpose of creating a deep awareness of what is “doing a-cappella”, knowing that the most important thing in a-cappella is joy to feel the others, learning a new way to know, feel and get in touch with the others, both singers and audience.

Here some links:
https://www.facebook.com/italianacappellaproject
http://www.itacaproject.it/

ItAcA – Italian A-cappella Project is under the patronage of Cultural Association “The Slash of Unashamed Singers”, and it is completely self-financed.