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The Voice

Chorus America's award-winning quarterly magazine, The Voice, highlights chorus news, artistic initiatives in the choral world, and advice and commentary on the business of running a successful chorus. The Voice is distributed to nearly 2,000 choral leaders throughout North America. It is published in Spring, Summer, and Fall/Winter; ISSN 1074-0805. Browse articles and past issues in the tabs below. Editor, Liza W. Beth

Voice Magazine, Issue 46.2 - Spring 2023

The digital edition of our Spring 2023 issue of the Voice is here! Read more for a letter from the president & CEO Catherine Dehoney on the step-by-step process behind Chorus America's news FY 2023-2025 strategic plan, news from our members, insights from six choral leaders on audience-building efforts, reflections on Brubeck's The Gates of Justice from performers of a festival hosted by the Lowell Milken Center for Music of American Jewish Experience, and a look into the social and emotional challenges young singers are facing following the lockdowns brought on by COVID-19 and how choral leaders and organizations are offering support.

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Young Singers Recovering from Life after Lockdown

Young singers returning to choruses face new social and emotional challenges. In response, choral leaders and their organizations are making changes to programs to offer more support.

Audience Development for Choruses: What’s Working Now?

As 2022 came to an end, audiences that had been gradually returning to the concert hall began to pick up the pace. In December, many choral organizations experienced remarkable ticket sales for their holiday concerts, and reduced concerns about COVID may not be the only reasons for their success. We spoke with leaders of six choruses about their audience-building efforts and what is working well for them right now.

The Power of a Strategic Planning Process

Sharing the step-by-step process and key approaches behind the creation of Chorus America’s new FY 2023-2025 Strategic Plan.

Justice Resounding: Dave Brubeck and Contemporary Responses to The Gates of Justice

A revival of The Gates of Justice anchors a three-day festival that the Lowell Milken Center for Music of American Jewish Experience will present on February 26-28 in Los Angeles. Leading up to the performance, artists, and scholars involved with the festival reflected on the significance of Brubeck’s trailblazing cantata and how music and choral singing continue to be vehicles for probing issues of race and social justice.

Voice Magazine, Issue 46.1 - Fall/Winter 2022

The digital edition of our Fall/Winter 2022 issue of the Voice is here! Read more for a letter from the president & CEO Catherine Dehoney on opportunities guiding the choral field toward being more inclusive, news from our members, insight from choruses on making a first administrative hire, and an interview with Arreon Harley-Emerson about his career trajectory and changing the choral landscape for emerging leaders of color.

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Filling Gaps and Fulfilling Dreams: Making Your First Administrative Hire

Hiring an administrator is one of the most significant steps volunteer-run choruses can take to support their organization’s growth and development. During the height of the pandemic, most organizations were too busy staying afloat to make that kind of move, but recently a number of choruses have decided they are ready for the plunge. The five organizations represented in this story are facing today's hiring challenges by relying on strategies that evidence an increasing willingness to think big.

Changing the Trajectory : An Interview with Arreon Harley - Emerson

Conductor, administrative leader, and scholar Arreon Harley Emerson’s personal and professional development weaves together many different strands into a singular story. As an equity coach and nonprofit strategist, he consults with arts and cultural organizations to center diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in their work. As the former director of music and operations at the Choir School of Delaware, Harley-Emerson led an organization with a legacy of serving Wilmington’s youth and families that dates back to 1883.

Voice Magazine, Issue 45.3 - Summer 2022

The digital edition of our Summer 2022 issue of the Voice is here! Read more for a letter from the president & CEO Catherine Dehoney reflecting on the 2022 Chorus America Conference,  news from our members, the 2022 Chorus Operations Survey Report, and Singing All of Us: A New Article Series.  

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Singing All of Us: Restoring Relationships in Choral Communities

We know the potential of ensemble and choral singing to bring us together. When group singing builds trust, honors authentic relationships, and restores community connections, that potential is fully realized. Singing All of Us: Restoring Relationships in Choral Communities shares the first two articles in a four-article series focused on organizations and people using ensemble singing and choral music to address racism and repair racial harm. 

Practicing Partnership: A Music Education Collaboration

The story of a program developed by the Tucson Girls Chorus and the Native American Advancement Foundation to serve students in the GuVo District of the Tohono O’odham Nation shares lessons about centering relationship-building and community-centered collaboration.  

Golden Dream: The Salt Lake Chinese Choir Builds Ties across America with Songs of the Chinese Diaspora

The story of the Salt Lake Chinese Choir, under the leadership of Yu-Feng Huang and board president Fan Kwan, offers a model of a community working together with a talented conductor to build a restorative space through choral music and a shared dedication to artistry and cultural pride.

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