History

                The Cincinnati Children’s Choir is a non-profit organization enjoying its eleventh season and serving young singers from Southwestern Ohio, Northern Kentucky and Southeastern Indiana.  Children in grades two through twelve benefit from this educational venue focusing on performance as a result of the children’s education. 

                The Cincinnati Children’s Choir became Ensemble-in-Residence at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) in August 2001.  CCM has given the program a home with support from one the world’s finest music schools.  In return, the choir collaborates with the CCM Music Education Division and the CCM Division of Ensembles and Conducting on performances and conducting opportunities for CCM students.

                The children’s choir began in the fall of 1993 when the founder, Robyn Lana, brought to life a vision. The program involves 200 children in 5 levels of choirs.  Placement is based on musicianship skills, vocal quality, and age.  An additional 150 participate in the Cincinnati Children’s Choir Festival held annually in July/August.

                CCC has performed with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra (CSO), the Cincinnati Pops, the Vocal Arts Ensemble, Kentucky Symphony Orchestra, the Cincinnati Choral Society, with the City of Dusseldorf Concert Choir, and regularly perform in Cincinnati’s May Festival.   CCC has recorded with the Pops for a nationally released compact disc. Additional recordings include United Through Song (1998) and Highlights (2003). 

With the residency at CCM, CCC also welcomed members of the former CCM Children’s Choir, founded in 1983 by Dr. Karen Wolff.  The CCM Children’s Choir also had a rich history of performances and recordings with CSO and CCM and provided CCC founder, Robyn Lana, with her initial training in children’s choral conducting.

Performance invitations earned through audition include the Ohio Music Educators Association (OMEA), Music Educator’s National Conference (MENC) Regional Convention, and the American Orff Schulwerk Association (AOSA) National Convention.  In addition, choir members have auditioned for and represented the choir in American Choral Director’s Association (ACDA) Regional and National Honor Choirs.  Each choir also performs at community events and in special outreach concerts.

CCC has toured England, Canada, and the United States performing alone, with outstanding children’s choirs, and in international festivals. CCC also maintains its own concert series performing from September through June often hosting guest artists and choirs. Additionally, the choir regularly collaborates with children’s choirs from Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Indiana and Canada.

Worldsong:  children in harmony, CCC’s crowning moment, was the culmination of community, collaboration, cultural exchange, musicianship, education, and outreach.  In June 2000, CCC founded and fully hosted the international event for children’s choirs, proudly representing Cincinnati and the United States.  This unique event provided the children and the community with an outstanding experience while promoting the arts in Southwestern Ohio. Worldsong 2000 was extremely successful in bringing children from different cultures together with music as a common language.  The Worldsong choirs performed independently throughout the city, in a gala concert of 300 children at the Aronoff Center for the Performing Arts, and with the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra under the direction of Maestro Erich Kunzel reaching over 24,500 people in performances alone.  Guest choirs represented Taipei-Hsien, Taiwan; Gifu, Japan; and San Cristobal, Venezuela.  Worldsong, a collaborative effort between the Cincinnati Children’s Choir and the Sister Cities Association of Greater Cincinnati, not only united the choirs, it achieved artistic excellence and received support from major media sponsors (Community Press and WKRC Channel 12), corporate sponsors, foundations, grants, and donations (monetary and in-kind). Future events are being planned.

CCC is proud to initiate a new division of the program in Beavercreek, Ohio.  Under the volunteer direction of past CCC Conductor and present CCC Board member Alejandro Rivas, the Beavercreek Children’s Choir will begin development in 2003 with the guidance of the CCC staff and Board of Directors.  CCC will welcome Beavercreek children to the May 2004 concert on the University of Cincinnati campus.

CCC recognizes and values opportunities for its members to sing under the direction of world renowned educators and conductors.  CCC choirs have performed under the batons of Henry Leck, Shirley McRae, Kenneth Phillips, David Flood, Jean Ashworth Bartle, Erich Kunzel, James Conlon, Earl Rivers, and Mark Gibson.

CCC offers the opportunity to work directly with composers and on commissions for performance.  Commissions include the work of Shirley McRae, Malcolm Dalglish, Jason Webb, Allan Naplan, and David Kisor.  In 1999, the choir was honored to receive the dedication of Shirley McRae’s published arrangement of “Goin’ to Boston.”

 

 

The Program

                The Cincinnati Children’s Choir is an educationally based choir program.  Using the philosophies and techniques of Carl Orff, Zoltan Kodaly, Jacques Dalcroze, and Jerome Brunner, participants learn strong vocal technique, sight-reading, performance excellence, music history, and music theory.  The learning environment is creative, explorative, and fun as the children form lasting relationships with children outside of their community and develop a lifelong involvement with music.

 

Bel Canto Choir, CCC’s most advanced and primary touring choir, is for young singers in grades 5 through 12 with good vocal technique, good reading skills.  The choir rehearses twice a week due to their prestigious performance and touring schedule.

 

                Tuesdays and Thursdays                       7:00 - 8:15 p.m.      Mrs. Lana, Director

                                                                                                                Miss Maguire, Asst. Director

University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music     Dieterle Vocal Arts Center 100

 

Cincinnati Girl Choir, CCC's ensemble for 10^th through 12^th grade girls, performs advanced repertoire, and is designed for those with excellent vocal technique and reading skills.   Cincinnati Girl Choir regularly performs with professional ensembles, choirs from around the United States, and participates in festivals.

 

                Thursdays                                                6:00 - 7:30 p.m.      Mrs. Lana, Director

University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music     Dieterle Vocal Arts Center 100

 

Lyric Choir is for young singers in grades 5 through 8. Choir members are comfortable using their voices and singing in parts.  Children learn healthy vocal technique, sight-reading skills, and musicianship skills. Lyric Choir often hosts/visits children’s choirs from around the United States and participates in mini-tours.

 

                Tuesdays                                                                7:00 – 8:15 p.m.      Mrs. Holland, Director

University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music     Corbett Center 1340

 

Jubilate Choir, is for children in grades 3 through 6 that have demonstrated the ability to match pitch and that have had some vocal or choral experience.  The children are introduced to note reading, sight singing, unison to 3 part music, and healthy vocal technique.

 

                Tuesdays                                                 5:45 – 6:45 p.m.      Miss Maguire, Director

University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music     Dieterle Vocal Arts Center 100

 

Preparatory Choir children, grades 2 through 4, have demonstrated an ability to match pitch.  They are introduced to basic note reading, solfege, good vocal technique, and elemental two-part music.

 

                Tuesdays                                                                6:00 - 6:50 p.m.      Mrs. Holland, Director

University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music     Corbett Center 1340

 

 

Educational Philosophies

The Cincinnati Children’s Choir is an educational venue for children with its focus on performance as a result of the children’s education.  The program adopts several teaching and learning philosophies.  The use of Orff-Schulwerk philosophy is demonstrated in the directors’ belief that every child can succeed when they are encouraged to be creative and explore the music they are experiencing.  Jerome Brunner’s belief that a child can learn anything when it is presented at the child’s level of learning is seen in the choirs challenging and multi-cultural repertoire and the success with which the children perform.  Techniques of Zoltan Kodaly are also employed as the children are taught sight-singing and musicianship using solfege and folk music.  Finally, as seen in the children exploration of music theory through movement, the choir adopts the techniques of Jacques Dalcroze.  The implementation of all of these philosophies and the instruction of healthy vocal technique results in outstanding performance and sets the Cincinnati Children’s Choir apart from other choirs in the Cincinnati area and nationally.

The Children’s Choir strives to include children of all backgrounds and abilities and expose them to the shared and personal rewards experienced in choral music performance.  Striving toward this goal, the choir established the Greater Cincinnati Children’s Choir Festival in June 1996.  Each summer, 200 young musicians join in song on the campus of Xavier University. The festival accepts and trains any area child that is teacher recommended and has brought in internationally renown guest conductors Henry Leck, Dr. Kenneth Phillips, and Shirley McRae.  June 18-23, 2001, the choir looks forward to working with Cincinnati composer/clinician David Kisor as the children create a choral composition and witness their vision come to life.             

As part of the community outreach goals, artistic exposure, and artistic excellence offered to the children, CCC has performed with the finest professional and amateur ensembles.  In addition, choir members have been selected to participate in American Choral Director’s Association (ACDA) Regional and National Honor Choirs.  CCC also maintains its own concert series and consistently performs for community events, and nursing homes.

 

Cincinnati Children’s Choir Historical Timeline Highlights

1983            CCM Children’s Choir founded, Dr. Karen Wolff

1984            CCM Mini-Singers founded, Shirley Raut

1987            Shirley Raut becomes Conductor of the CCM Children’s Choir program

1989        Laurin Plant becomes Conductor of the CCM Children’s Choir program

1990          Anne Marie Koukios becomes Conductor of CCM Children’s Choir program

  Robyn Lana serves as Conductor of CCM Mini-Singers

1993           Cincinnati Children’s Choir founded, Robyn Lana. 

                CCC begins a partnership with Musical Arts Center.

1994           Preparatory Choir founded, Laura Holland. 

                CCC begins the annual summer festival at. Xavier University.

1995             CCC outgrows MAC and moves rehearsals to Pleasant Ridge Presbyterian Church.                                

1997      CCC becomes a non-profit organization.

1998             Christa Joy Chase serves as assistant for the CCM Children’s Choir

1999            Christa Joy Chase conducts CCM Mini-Singers

2000           Thomas Juneau becomes conductor of the CCM Children’s Choir

                CCC hosts the WORLDSONG at Xavier University

2001      CCC becomes Ensemble-in-Residence at CCM

2002        Summer Festival moves to CCM facilities

2003        CCC Celebrates Tenth Anniversary and recognizes the founding of CCM Children’s Choir’s

                Twentieth Anniversary

 

 

Commissioned Works

·          2003                David Kisor            All In a Day                            2003 Festival Choir

East and West

Within

Up and Down

·          2002                Shirley MacRae      Black Sheep, Black Sheep       CCC Combined Choirs

David Kisor            Questions                                2002 Festival Choir

·          2001                David Kisor            My Part                                  2001 Festival Choir

·          2000                Malcolm Dalglish    Not It                                      Worldsong

Jason Webb             Turtle Dove                            Ohio Composers Festival

·          1999                Allan Naplan           Yismechu Hashamayim          MENC Regional Convention

Jason Webb             The Water is Wide                  MENC Regional Convention

·          1998                Allan Naplan           Hatikva                                   Cincinnati celebration of Israel’s 50^th Anniversary

Jason Webb             While the Skies Are Weeping

·          1997                Jason Webb             O Come, Emmanuel

·          1996                Jason Webb             Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

·          1995                David Kisor            A Miracle Waiting                  International Women’s Convention