{"id":13189,"date":"2020-03-31T09:23:17","date_gmt":"2020-03-31T13:23:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/?p=13189"},"modified":"2022-03-21T16:20:31","modified_gmt":"2022-03-21T20:20:31","slug":"virtual-choir","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/virtual-choir\/","title":{"rendered":"Virtual Choir Reprises Notes of Normalcy"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Chris
Chris Ludwa creates video to direct a virtual choir during Kalamazoo College’s spring term of distance learning.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When Kalamazoo College moved to distance learning for the spring term, Assistant Music<\/a> Professor Chris Ludwa<\/a> was initially wary about how his day-to-day teaching could change. As the director of K\u2019s College Singers, Lux Esto Chamber Choir and Kalamazoo Bach Festival, Ludwa has maintained a constant belief in the power of connections formed during rehearsals \u2014 to him, the laughter, jokes and camaraderie students develop there are fundamental to K\u2019s strong singing community. \u201cWithout shared rehearsals, shared time and shared meals in Hicks, people may feel disconnected,\u201d Ludwa recalled thinking, \u201cand in choral singing, a large part of what we do is to connect with one another.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ludwa\u2019s solution demonstrated the flexibility and innovation that defines Kalamazoo College faculty<\/a>. The plan to institute a virtual choir was borne of Ludwa\u2019s admiration for composer Eric Whitacre. (Ludwa calls him \u201ca hero in the choral world.\u201d) \u201cThe difference is that Whitacre never had <\/em>to do a virtual choir \u2014 he chose to do it,\u201d said Ludwa. \u201cBut our goals are the same. We want to connect people from wide-ranging backgrounds and global locations, and keep people singing.\u201d<\/p>\n

To begin, Ludwa is recording himself as he conducts a piece of music. Then, he\u2019ll email the recording to his choir students, each of whom will be tasked with recording their own separate and different parts of the composition. By simply using their laptops, headphones and cell phones, students will record themselves singing their parts and return the audio to Ludwa, who will mix all of his collected student voices down into one final version. The project has given Ludwa a chance to push his own abilities, too. \u201cI\u2019d ordinarily hire a recording engineer to mix this kind of thing,\u201d he admitted. \u201cBut thanks to media services and the technology K provides, I\u2019m able to learn how to do it myself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ludwa also plans to maintain one-on-one connections with his students, as well. He hopes to check in with students four to five times over the term as a group in order to hear their feedback on the process and how things are going in their isolation. These check-ins are part of the course grade, just as submitting recordings is. Consequently, students will essentially be receiving an individual voice coaching, more than they would during traditional, in-person choral rehearsals. \u201cIt\u2019s essentially a private coaching session and they\u2019re getting a different experience than they normally would, tailored to each one of their voices,\u201d said Ludwa.<\/p>\n

Even as the K community transitions to distance learning, it\u2019s clear that the rest of the world is continuing to make its own adjustments. Ludwa is aware of these changes; it\u2019s yet another reason he believes the virtual choir will provide a positive experience for K students. \u201cAny sense of rationality and normalcy is going to be important for well-being,\u201d Ludwa said. \u201cMy hope is that students in virtual choir continue to develop the sense of connection with each other that they may not get otherwise, and are able to approximate the larger community at K. We\u2019ll get through this together in a positive, constructive way, albeit through a different medium.\u201d<\/p>\n

To experience one of Eric Whitacre\u2019s virtual choirs, visit his website<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Kalamazoo College moved to distance learning for the spring term, Assistant Music Professor Chris Ludwa was initially wary about how his day-to-day teaching could change. As the director of K\u2019s College Singers, Lux Esto Chamber Choir and Kalamazoo Bach Festival, Ludwa has maintained a constant belief in the power of connections formed during rehearsals […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":230,"featured_media":13200,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[233],"tags":[39,61],"post_formats":[],"class_list":["post-13189","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-faculty-staff","tag-faculty","tag-music"],"yoast_head":"\r\nVirtual Choir Reprises Notes of Normalcy - News and Events<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Assistant Music Professor Chris Ludwa has demonstrated the flexibility and innovation that defines Kalamazoo College faculty by creating a virtual choir.\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\r\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/virtual-choir\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Virtual Choir Reprises Notes of Normalcy - News and Events\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Assistant Music Professor Chris Ludwa has demonstrated the flexibility and innovation that defines Kalamazoo College faculty by creating a virtual choir.\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/virtual-choir\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"News and Events\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/KalamazooCollege\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-03-31T13:23:17+00:00\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-03-21T20:20:31+00:00\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/files\/2020\/03\/Chris-Ludwa-Virtual-Choir_fb.jpg\" \/>\r\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"674\" \/>\r\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1200\" \/>\r\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Lauren Tompkins\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@kcollege\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@kcollege\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Lauren Tompkins\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\r\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/virtual-choir\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/virtual-choir\/\",\"name\":\"Virtual Choir Reprises Notes of Normalcy - 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aria-label=\"archive of category Faculty & Staff\" href=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/category\/faculty-staff\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Faculty & Staff<\/a>","tags_info":"<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/tag\/faculty\/\" rel=\"tag\">faculty<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/tag\/music\/\" rel=\"tag\">music<\/a>","social_share_info":"<a data-share=\"facebook\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/virtual-choir\/\" class=\"pl-facebook-share social-share-default pl-social-share\" target=\"_blank\"><i class=\"fab fa-facebook-f\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/a><a data-share=\"twitter\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/share?url=https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/virtual-choir\/\" class=\"pl-twiiter-share social-share-default pl-social-share\" target=\"_blank\"><i class=\"fab fa-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/a><a data-share=\"linkedin\" href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/shareArticle?url=https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/virtual-choir\/\" class=\"pl-linkedin-share social-share-default pl-social-share\" target=\"_blank\"><i class=\"fab fa-linkedin-in\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/a>","wordExcerpt_info":"<figure id=\"attachment_13195\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-13195\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-13195 size-medium\" src=\"\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/files\/2020\/03\/Chris-Ludwa-Virtual-Choir-300x342.jpg\" alt=\"Chris Ludwa Virtual Choir\" width=\"300\" height=\"342\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-13195\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Chris Ludwa creates video to direct a virtual choir during Kalamazoo College’s spring term of distance learning.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>When Kalamazoo College moved to distance learning for the spring term, Assistant <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/programs\/music\/\">Music<\/a> Professor <a href=\"https:\/\/reason.kzoo.edu\/music\/Faculty\/Chris_Ludwa\/\">Chris Ludwa<\/a> was initially wary about how his day-to-day teaching could change. As the director of K\u2019s College Singers, Lux Esto Chamber Choir and Kalamazoo Bach Festival, Ludwa has maintained a constant belief in the power of connections formed during rehearsals \u2014 to him, the laughter, jokes and camaraderie students develop there are fundamental to K\u2019s strong singing community. \u201cWithout shared rehearsals, shared time and shared meals in Hicks, people may feel disconnected,\u201d Ludwa recalled thinking, \u201cand in choral singing, a large part of what we do is to connect with one another.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ludwa\u2019s solution demonstrated the flexibility and innovation that defines <a href=\"http:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/academic\/faculty\/\">Kalamazoo College faculty<\/a>. The plan to institute a virtual choir was borne of Ludwa\u2019s admiration for composer Eric Whitacre. (Ludwa calls him \u201ca hero in the choral world.\u201d) \u201cThe difference is that Whitacre never <em>had <\/em>to do a virtual choir \u2014 he chose to do it,\u201d said Ludwa. \u201cBut our goals are the same. We want to connect people from wide-ranging backgrounds and global locations, and keep people singing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>To begin, Ludwa is recording himself as he conducts a piece of music. Then, he\u2019ll email the recording to his choir students, each of whom will be tasked with recording their own separate and different parts of the composition. By simply using their laptops, headphones and cell phones, students will record themselves singing their parts and return the audio to Ludwa, who will mix all of his collected student voices down into one final version. The project has given Ludwa a chance to push his own abilities, too. \u201cI\u2019d ordinarily hire a recording engineer to mix this kind of thing,\u201d he admitted. \u201cBut thanks to media services and the technology K provides, I\u2019m able to learn how to do it myself.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ludwa also plans to maintain one-on-one connections with his students, as well. He hopes to check in with students four to five times over the term as a group in order to hear their feedback on the process and how things are going in their isolation. These check-ins are part of the course grade, just as submitting recordings is. Consequently, students will essentially be receiving an individual voice coaching, more than they would during traditional, in-person choral rehearsals. \u201cIt\u2019s essentially a private coaching session and they\u2019re getting a different experience than they normally would, tailored to each one of their voices,\u201d said Ludwa.<\/p>\n<p>Even as the K community transitions to distance learning, it\u2019s clear that the rest of the world is continuing to make its own adjustments. Ludwa is aware of these changes; it\u2019s yet another reason he believes the virtual choir will provide a positive experience for K students. \u201cAny sense of rationality and normalcy is going to be important for well-being,\u201d Ludwa said. \u201cMy hope is that students in virtual choir continue to develop the sense of connection with each other that they may not get otherwise, and are able to approximate the larger community at K. We\u2019ll get through this together in a positive, constructive way, albeit through a different medium.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>To experience one of Eric Whitacre\u2019s virtual choirs, <a href=\"https:\/\/ericwhitacre.com\/the-virtual-choir\/history\/vc3-waternight\">visit his website<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","comment_info":"No Comments","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13189","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/230"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13189"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13189\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13197,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13189\/revisions\/13197"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13200"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13189"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13189"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13189"},{"taxonomy":"post_format","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_formats?post=13189"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}