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The Department of Liturgical Music of the Orthodox Church in America is offering a course in Basic Conducting Technique for Church Choir Directors, led by Dr. Vladimir Morosan, a noted Orthodox composer, editor, publisher, and choir director. The interactive sessions will be held beginning Monday, September 20 through Friday, December 17 (no classes the week of Thanksgiving). The entire course consists of 12 weekly lessons.
The course is oriented towards beginner conductors or those who are currently conducting a choir but have not completed a formal conducting course. Topics covered include basic posture and visual communication by means of gestures; giving the pitch; preparing, starting and stopping the sound; elementary beat patterns; relationships of beat patterns to word patterns; beginning score analysis.
The basic subject matter is presented by means of 12 instructional videos that can be watched at any time. The material in the videos is reinforced by weekly homework assignments. Each participant will also be required to meet interactively with the instructor via Google Classroom for a 30-minute session each week. These sessions will provide an opportunity for each individual learner to demonstrate his/her mastery of each topic and the ability to perform the conducting exercises correctly. At these interactive meetings, the learner will receive necessary feedback from the instructor together with helpful suggestions for improvement. Such one-on-one real-time sessions will also enable the instructor to provide extra help, if necessary, and answer specific questions.
This course will be most beneficial for those who have some experience singing in a choir and want to acquire the skills necessary to direct the choir at the Divine Services. Familiarity with musical notation and basic music theory is a prerequisite.
Each lesson includes a video lecture, exercises to be practiced on one’s own, score analysis and pitch-giving homework, and a 30-minute one-on-one interactive session with the instructor. Total time requirement: 3-4 hours per week.
The cost is $425 and enrollment is limited to 10 students on a first-come, first-served basis. Priority will be given to those who are actively involved in their parish’s liturgical music ministry. To register, click here. Payment information will be sent to you after your registration has been confirmed. Please direct any questions to Dr. Morosan at vlad.morosan@musicarussica.com. The deadline for registration is September 10 or until the spaces are filled.
