Going GREEN Fundraiser Results for Week 4 (October 19, 2009)

Most points earned Week 4– Maddie Buckley

Congratulations Maddie!

Current Contest Standings (in order)
Megan
Chad
Maddie
Sarah
Kate
Eric
Tara
Katherine
Ellie
Brenna
Kaya
Holly
Kaitlyn
Elizabeth
Jenna
Mary Brooke

Maddie took the number 3 spot and Eric took the number 6 spot with just a one-time effort. It’s not too late to get your name on this list to win the APPLE IPOD TOUCH (and more points & $$$$)! For VIP Contest Info, click here!


Looking for info on this fundraiser? Want to donate your items? Click here for info!

Going GREEN Fundraiser Results for Week 4 (October 19, 2009)

Most points earned Week 4– Maddie Buckley

Congratulations Maddie!

Current Contest Standings (in order)
Megan
Chad
Maddie
Sarah
Kate
Eric
Tara
Katherine
Ellie
Brenna
Kaya
Holly
Kaitlyn
Elizabeth
Jenna
Mary Brooke

Maddie took the number 3 spot and Eric took the number 6 spot with just a one-time effort. It’s not too late to get your name on this list to win the APPLE IPOD TOUCH (and more points & $$$$)! For VIP Contest Info, click here!


Looking for info on this fundraiser? Want to donate your items? Click here for info!

Funny Middle Schoolers...

Last night in Middle School Rehearsal, we split baritones into tenor/bass, which we don't typically do in Middle School. But we have some talented and strong singers in the group-- Adam, Ben, Robbie, and Cam -- and last night, we had Dylan and Jeff sitting in on rehearsal (yay!), so we gave it a try.

The basses laid down this wonderful and very low line, and Ellie (one of the altos) looks at the bass on her right and says:

How you do that?

And the bass responds:
Because I'm a man!

:-)

Funny Middle Schoolers...

Last night in Middle School Rehearsal, we split baritones into tenor/bass, which we don't typically do in Middle School. But we have some talented and strong singers in the group-- Adam, Ben, Robbie, and Cam -- and last night, we had Dylan and Jeff sitting in on rehearsal (yay!), so we gave it a try.

The basses laid down this wonderful and very low line, and Ellie (one of the altos) looks at the bass on her right and says:

How you do that?

And the bass responds:
Because I'm a man!

:-)

VIP to sing at the National Christmas Tree

Voices In Praise has been selected to sing at the National Christmas Tree on Saturday, December 19, 2009 at 8pm.  We invite all of our friends and family to come to this special concert event!

Singers and parents, please look for details later this week about our schedule for the day (we'll see Rockapella at 2pm!), what to wear, and what you need to know.

Congratulations, Voices In Praise, on this very special invitation!

VIP to sing at the National Christmas Tree

Voices In Praise has been selected to sing at the National Christmas Tree on Saturday, December 19, 2009 at 8pm.  We invite all of our friends and family to come to this special concert event!

Singers and parents, please look for details later this week about our schedule for the day (we'll see Rockapella at 2pm!), what to wear, and what you need to know.

Congratulations, Voices In Praise, on this very special invitation!

Carol of the Bells

Every year, I teach "Carol of the Bells." We sang it each year at my high school, and I decided to introduce it to VIP during our first year together. We've performed it each year since then, and we always invite any alumni members in the audience to step forward and sing it with us. This is one of my favorite moments in the entire Christmas season!


What's funny to me is that every year, without fail, THIS piece becomes the one that the middle school singers want to sing in rehearsal. When I finally say, "OK, let's pull out Carol of the Bells," a cheer goes up. It's a great piece and certainly cheer-worthy, but what's interesting is that the rookie singers tend to lead this cheer -- and they're the ones who, when we sing the piece for the first time each year, are dumb-founded when we sing through it the first time, at tempo, with most singers not holding music. The piece moves so quickly that they can't keep up. And yet - they love it. And they want to work on it. And they want to be able to deliver the piece with the confidence and joy that their peers do. Sometimes it takes a lot of work, but they come to the task with a lot of gusto… and that's pretty awesome.

Click here to listen to VIP Chamber Choir singing Carol of the Bells (Dec. 2005).

Carol of the Bells

Every year, I teach "Carol of the Bells." We sang it each year at my high school, and I decided to introduce it to VIP during our first year together. We've performed it each year since then, and we always invite any alumni members in the audience to step forward and sing it with us. This is one of my favorite moments in the entire Christmas season!


What's funny to me is that every year, without fail, THIS piece becomes the one that the middle school singers want to sing in rehearsal. When I finally say, "OK, let's pull out Carol of the Bells," a cheer goes up. It's a great piece and certainly cheer-worthy, but what's interesting is that the rookie singers tend to lead this cheer -- and they're the ones who, when we sing the piece for the first time each year, are dumb-founded when we sing through it the first time, at tempo, with most singers not holding music. The piece moves so quickly that they can't keep up. And yet - they love it. And they want to work on it. And they want to be able to deliver the piece with the confidence and joy that their peers do. Sometimes it takes a lot of work, but they come to the task with a lot of gusto… and that's pretty awesome.

Click here to listen to VIP Chamber Choir singing Carol of the Bells (Dec. 2005).

"Singers Can't Count" Or can they?

VIP had a great rehearsal on Monday night! This group is working incredibly hard on some very challenging music -- and even when the going gets tough, this group never gives up. I'm going to give you one example today and one tomorrow! A little weekend reading for all you VIP fans. :-) 

The VIP High School Singers are working on a fantastic and tough a cappella spiritual called "Saints Bound for Heaven" (arranged by Alice Parker and Robert Shaw). A week or so ago, the group kept getting tripped up in one section where the rhythm looks tricky. It's really not but it sure looks that way, and there's a page turn in the worst possible place, which doesn't help matters. You could just feel the frustration oozing from some of the basses as we pounded this page.

As I prepared for the next rehearsal, I remembered a recurring argument that took place at my high school between singers and instrumentalists. "Singers can't count" said the instrumentalists, and we singers valiantly defended ourselves. Except that the instrumentalists were sort of right.

So, how do singers learn to count? Join the band. And that's just what I did in high school, in response to that "Singers can't count" argument. Through hellish band camps, lots of rehearsals, indoor drumline, and some very good (and patient) instructors, I learned to count. (I'm still not as good as some of those band guys, but I'm better than I was!) One of the lessons that I took away from that experience is that your feet help guide you. If you can get your feet to move steadily in tempo, and if you can identify in the music just where your foot comes down, you're a lot closer to getting it right.

We're fortunate to have several band guys in our choir and I wondered if marching would help. And so, on Monday night, entire VIP High School group "stepped off" and wouldn't you know it -- they got it (almost) right. You could see the light bulbs go off as they suddenly connected all the dots and began to understand how the the rhythm operates. We did it again and it was even closer to being right. Next week, I think it will be 100%.

Here's to singers who can count!

"Singers Can't Count" Or can they?

VIP had a great rehearsal on Monday night! This group is working incredibly hard on some very challenging music -- and even when the going gets tough, this group never gives up. I'm going to give you one example today and one tomorrow! A little weekend reading for all you VIP fans. :-) 

The VIP High School Singers are working on a fantastic and tough a cappella spiritual called "Saints Bound for Heaven" (arranged by Alice Parker and Robert Shaw). A week or so ago, the group kept getting tripped up in one section where the rhythm looks tricky. It's really not but it sure looks that way, and there's a page turn in the worst possible place, which doesn't help matters. You could just feel the frustration oozing from some of the basses as we pounded this page.

As I prepared for the next rehearsal, I remembered a recurring argument that took place at my high school between singers and instrumentalists. "Singers can't count" said the instrumentalists, and we singers valiantly defended ourselves. Except that the instrumentalists were sort of right.

So, how do singers learn to count? Join the band. And that's just what I did in high school, in response to that "Singers can't count" argument. Through hellish band camps, lots of rehearsals, indoor drumline, and some very good (and patient) instructors, I learned to count. (I'm still not as good as some of those band guys, but I'm better than I was!) One of the lessons that I took away from that experience is that your feet help guide you. If you can get your feet to move steadily in tempo, and if you can identify in the music just where your foot comes down, you're a lot closer to getting it right.

We're fortunate to have several band guys in our choir and I wondered if marching would help. And so, on Monday night, entire VIP High School group "stepped off" and wouldn't you know it -- they got it (almost) right. You could see the light bulbs go off as they suddenly connected all the dots and began to understand how the the rhythm operates. We did it again and it was even closer to being right. Next week, I think it will be 100%.

Here's to singers who can count!

Going GREEN Fundraiser Results for Week 3

Going GREEN Fundraiser Results for Week 3 (October 12, 2009)

Most points earned Week 2– MEGAN! Congratulations MEGAN!

Current Contest Standings (in order):
Megan
Chad
Kate
Tara
Katherine
Ellie
Brenna
Holly
Kaya
Kaitlyn
Elizabeth
Jenna
Mary Brooke

The list is growing…It’s not too late to get your name on this list to win the APPLE IPOD TOUCH (and more points & $$$$)! For VIP Contest Info, click here!

Looking for info on this fundraiser? Want to donate your items? Click here for info!

Going GREEN Fundraiser Results for Week 3

Going GREEN Fundraiser Results for Week 3 (October 12, 2009)

Most points earned Week 2– MEGAN! Congratulations MEGAN!

Current Contest Standings (in order):
Megan
Chad
Kate
Tara
Katherine
Ellie
Brenna
Holly
Kaya
Kaitlyn
Elizabeth
Jenna
Mary Brooke

The list is growing…It’s not too late to get your name on this list to win the APPLE IPOD TOUCH (and more points & $$$$)! For VIP Contest Info, click here!

Looking for info on this fundraiser? Want to donate your items? Click here for info!

Worship Debut!

On Sunday, the 2009-2010 choir made its debut in worship! And they did an awesome job. Everyone made it to church, in the right uniform, and (mostly) on time. Hooray! And then there was some wonderful singing...

We opened with "Come and Be Joyful" (Vivaldi, arr. Hopson) - a fun Baroque piece that dances its way into your head  (it has been stuck in MY head all week!) and hopefully into the hearts of people in worship. I chose this piece because Mary Brooke called for more classical pieces in our repertoire! And, I liked its canon-form and the message:

Come and be joyful.
Come and praise the Lord.
Sing with gladness

We paired this classical number with a modern arrangement of the traditional spiritual, "Ev'ry Time I Feel the Spirit," which has a fun mamba-esque rhythm and an uber-cool part for the tenors and basses.

While our two pieces were stylistically-different, I think they're both wonderful reminders of some of the elements God would like to see in our lives: joy, praise, music, gratitude, and prayer.

Further along in the service, Robbie and Dylan did their duet and they were just AWESOME. (I wonder if anyone recorded it?) They wore these semi-goofy plaid 1930s hats and began their piece by adjusting each other's hats. Very funny but so typical of these two. If you missed my blog post about their rehearsal, check it out. Their duet was called "One More River" and it was this happy, sea-chanty-like song. I held my breath in a few spots where the music demands that they sing at the top part of their ranges, but the guys nailed it. They were dy-no-mite!

Worship Debut!

On Sunday, the 2009-2010 choir made its debut in worship! And they did an awesome job. Everyone made it to church, in the right uniform, and (mostly) on time. Hooray! And then there was some wonderful singing...

We opened with "Come and Be Joyful" (Vivaldi, arr. Hopson) - a fun Baroque piece that dances its way into your head  (it has been stuck in MY head all week!) and hopefully into the hearts of people in worship. I chose this piece because Mary Brooke called for more classical pieces in our repertoire! And, I liked its canon-form and the message:

Come and be joyful.
Come and praise the Lord.
Sing with gladness

We paired this classical number with a modern arrangement of the traditional spiritual, "Ev'ry Time I Feel the Spirit," which has a fun mamba-esque rhythm and an uber-cool part for the tenors and basses.

While our two pieces were stylistically-different, I think they're both wonderful reminders of some of the elements God would like to see in our lives: joy, praise, music, gratitude, and prayer.

Further along in the service, Robbie and Dylan did their duet and they were just AWESOME. (I wonder if anyone recorded it?) They wore these semi-goofy plaid 1930s hats and began their piece by adjusting each other's hats. Very funny but so typical of these two. If you missed my blog post about their rehearsal, check it out. Their duet was called "One More River" and it was this happy, sea-chanty-like song. I held my breath in a few spots where the music demands that they sing at the top part of their ranges, but the guys nailed it. They were dy-no-mite!

The Making of the Alumni Video

The Stewardship Committee approached me and asked if I'd speak about VIP. Of course, I have a million wonderful things to say about our ministry but I thought that the message might be better coming from someone else. So, I emailed the VIP Alumni and asked them to reflect on a bunch of questions like:

What surprised you most when you joined VIP?
What are VIP's greatest strengths?
What VIP memory do you carry closest to your heart and why?
How has VIP impacted your relationship with God?
How does VIP exemplify stewardship?

Instead of writing their responses, I asked the alumni to submit them via audio, video, or even voice mail. It was fun, enlightening, surprising, and really, really moving to get their responses. The alumni spoke from their hearts and it was -- just amazing to hear how the VIP ministry has impacted each of them. I compiled the presentations, edited them, and put together into one presentation with some existing material on Effective Stewardship. Click here for the post with video link.

Funny stuff - I emailed Pastor Byron yesterday and asked him to introduce the video. I described this process and asked him to tell the congregation about it. Here is part of my email to him:

"I didn't script anything out or tell them what to say. You just know that some smart alec is going to insinuate that I wrote this (the video) -- and quite honestly, Byron -- the material is so amazing, so heartfelt, and so... completely real that I couldn't have scripted it if I tried. I took this project on because I thought it was the best way to communicate the VIP message to the congregation. What I didn't see coming was the depth, the great love, and the appreciation that these young adults have -- and just how they'd communicate with ME. "

Today in the service, Byron didn't say anything prior to the video showing and though, "Hmmm, well maybe he'll speak at the end." But then he didn't. And it dawned on me -- Byron never read my email. Ugh! Totally my fault. I assume people check email at the same (semi-ridiculous pace) as me, and that was a really dumb assumption.

So where's the funny part? Well, during joys and concerns, I express my thanks for the the VIP Alumni. And Byron says something like, "Yeah, they did a great job with the script" or something like that! Ahhhh! Leave it to Byron to BE my smart alec. He was totally serious. He hadn't read my email and being the good, everyman that he is - he hit the nail on the head.

I'll give him credit - he set me up so that I got to say, "Actually, there was no script." There's the silver lining, and proof that if you really want someone to do something, you should not leave it to just an email. :-)

And that's the background on the making of this video!

The Making of the Alumni Video

The Stewardship Committee approached me and asked if I'd speak about VIP. Of course, I have a million wonderful things to say about our ministry but I thought that the message might be better coming from someone else. So, I emailed the VIP Alumni and asked them to reflect on a bunch of questions like:

What surprised you most when you joined VIP?
What are VIP's greatest strengths?
What VIP memory do you carry closest to your heart and why?
How has VIP impacted your relationship with God?
How does VIP exemplify stewardship?

Instead of writing their responses, I asked the alumni to submit them via audio, video, or even voice mail. It was fun, enlightening, surprising, and really, really moving to get their responses. The alumni spoke from their hearts and it was -- just amazing to hear how the VIP ministry has impacted each of them. I compiled the presentations, edited them, and put together into one presentation with some existing material on Effective Stewardship. Click here for the post with video link.

Funny stuff - I emailed Pastor Byron yesterday and asked him to introduce the video. I described this process and asked him to tell the congregation about it. Here is part of my email to him:

"I didn't script anything out or tell them what to say. You just know that some smart alec is going to insinuate that I wrote this (the video) -- and quite honestly, Byron -- the material is so amazing, so heartfelt, and so... completely real that I couldn't have scripted it if I tried. I took this project on because I thought it was the best way to communicate the VIP message to the congregation. What I didn't see coming was the depth, the great love, and the appreciation that these young adults have -- and just how they'd communicate with ME. "

Today in the service, Byron didn't say anything prior to the video showing and though, "Hmmm, well maybe he'll speak at the end." But then he didn't. And it dawned on me -- Byron never read my email. Ugh! Totally my fault. I assume people check email at the same (semi-ridiculous pace) as me, and that was a really dumb assumption.

So where's the funny part? Well, during joys and concerns, I express my thanks for the the VIP Alumni. And Byron says something like, "Yeah, they did a great job with the script" or something like that! Ahhhh! Leave it to Byron to BE my smart alec. He was totally serious. He hadn't read my email and being the good, everyman that he is - he hit the nail on the head.

I'll give him credit - he set me up so that I got to say, "Actually, there was no script." There's the silver lining, and proof that if you really want someone to do something, you should not leave it to just an email. :-)

And that's the background on the making of this video!

Alumni Video - updated with YouTube link

Today, the Alumni Stewardship Video made its premier in church! I'm posting the video below and will post a follow-up note about how it was created. Click here for the You Tube version, which can be played in full-screen!

Thank you, Carrie, Caitlin, Jill, Dean, Denis, Kristie, Caity, and Molly. You're aweseome and it was a wonderful experience to make this video with you.

Alumni Video - updated with YouTube link

Today, the Alumni Stewardship Video made its premier in church! I'm posting the video below and will post a follow-up note about how it was created. Click here for the You Tube version, which can be played in full-screen!

Thank you, Carrie, Caitlin, Jill, Dean, Denis, Kristie, Caity, and Molly. You're aweseome and it was a wonderful experience to make this video with you.

Be Like a Swan...

Life as the VIP Director is a lot like being a swan... you (try to) appear graceful and smooth as you glide through the water, but you're paddling like mad beneath the surface!

This has been a strange week of looking back and looking ahead at the same time - with a whole lot of paddling going on.

Looking back - I'm working on a video for stewardship that relies heavily on content from VIP alumni. Special *snaps* to alumnae Carrie Beall ('08), Caitlin Fowler ('08), and Jill Chaney ('07) for being the first ones to send in their contributions. It has been fun to remember the stories that make up our collective memory, and to hear about the role that VIP played in the lives of these fabulous women. I'm expecting more videos to come pouring in! (hint, hint, nudge, nudge)

Looking ahead - I'm on the verge of jumping into the deep end of Choir Tour planning. Thanks to my fellow directors who are part of YouthCue, I have received many suggestions about places to sing and ways to minister in Chicago. I am grateful for the valuable advice from these wonderful people who have led their own choirs down a similar path! Having other directors to connect with, learn from, and lean on is a huge blessing to me.

Looking at today -VIP makes its debut in worship on Sunday, followed by a parent meeting. Lots to do to prepare, so I better keep paddling.

Be Like a Swan...

Life as the VIP Director is a lot like being a swan... you (try to) appear graceful and smooth as you glide through the water, but you're paddling like mad beneath the surface!

This has been a strange week of looking back and looking ahead at the same time - with a whole lot of paddling going on.

Looking back - I'm working on a video for stewardship that relies heavily on content from VIP alumni. Special *snaps* to alumnae Carrie Beall ('08), Caitlin Fowler ('08), and Jill Chaney ('07) for being the first ones to send in their contributions. It has been fun to remember the stories that make up our collective memory, and to hear about the role that VIP played in the lives of these fabulous women. I'm expecting more videos to come pouring in! (hint, hint, nudge, nudge)

Looking ahead - I'm on the verge of jumping into the deep end of Choir Tour planning. Thanks to my fellow directors who are part of YouthCue, I have received many suggestions about places to sing and ways to minister in Chicago. I am grateful for the valuable advice from these wonderful people who have led their own choirs down a similar path! Having other directors to connect with, learn from, and lean on is a huge blessing to me.

Looking at today -VIP makes its debut in worship on Sunday, followed by a parent meeting. Lots to do to prepare, so I better keep paddling.

Alumni Video - September 2009

Alumni Video - September 2009