During the month of October, University of Minnesota Choirs welcomed national and international guest artists as part of the University Singers Global Voices Unit. The choir typically meets three times a week (M/W/F). During this unprecedented Fall semester, Wednesday afternoon workshops provide a weekly forum to hear from guest lecturers and learn new music. Due to uncertainty as to whether in-person singing could safely take place at any distance, all University Choirs have been meeting online this semester.
In University Singers, led by Professors Kathy Romey and Matthew Mehaffey, the course is organized into study units on How the Voice Works, American Voices, Global Voices, and COVID-Related Music and Art. The semester concludes with final Creative Projects presentations by the students. An online concert will be shared with friends and family on December 13, which is World Choral Day.
The last two Global Voices guests were Venezuelan conductor Maria Guinand and South African composer Bongani Magatyana in partnership with Village Harmony, an umbrella organization for a diverse range of choral, world music, and harmony singing activities. Both sessions involved opportunities for students and presenters to sing together online. This involved the guest artist singing and playing on a keyboard as everyone else muted their audio to sing along. Emotion could be seen on the faces of faculty and students as they adapted and found a new way to join in vocal musical expression together.
