Calendar

Harmony in the morning?! Yes please! Early birds will delight and late risers will get the blood going as the incredible, award-winning Greater Nassau Chorus teach everyone a few tags! And, for non-barbershoppers, what are tags? They are the best part of the songs, the rich part, the part that sends it over the top. And YOU’LL be the one singing, so pick your part and come out to this hands-on class!

You’ve never tried beatboxing before?! Well here’s your chance! Mark, the award-winning vocal percussionist from FACE vocal band will get you from zero to hero in no time! Bring your boots and cats!

Learn to sing two notes at the same time.

Do you really need more information than that? Ok. Maybe you do!

Overtone Singing is a technique that enables one vocalist to produce and, with a bit of practice, control two notes simultaneously.

Overtone singing can be used in various contexts, from emulating synthesized sounds to full self-polyphony. When multiple voices come together to sing in this style, a relaxing, glowing atmosphere is created. This workshop will explain the theory behind overtone singing and teach the basic techniques of producing them.

West Side 5′s own Dylan Pramuk will teach you to scat! Dylan has pioneered a system to help you hear the changes so you can improvise a part that actually sounds right. It’s not so scary when you know how it works!

Dylan Pramuk, Bass for West Side 5 is a versatile baritone, improviser, arranger and educator, Dylan has performed at many of NYC’s finest jazz venues, including The Jazz Standard, The Blue Note, and Birdland. The New York Times has hailed his “killer scat singing.” With vocalists Amy London, Holli Ross and Pete McGuinness, Dylan is one fourth of the Royal Bopsters, the jazz vocal quartet whose debut album, The Royal Bopsters Project was released to international acclaim on Motema in 2015, featuring jazz vocal heroes Jon Hendricks, Annie Ross, Bob Dorough, Sheila Jordan and the late, great Mark Murphy. In addition to private instruction, Dylan has developed an ongoing course in vocal improvisation entitled Hearing & Singing the Changes and, since January 2014, has been co-director with Amy London of the Jazz House Kids Vocal Academy in Montclair, New Jersey.

Star of Lifetime’s TV show, “PitchSlapped,” Diana Preisler is known as “The ACA-COACH.”

Diana says this: “They see you louder than they hear you.”

The Broadway performer, film actress (Oscar Nominated “Chico and Rita”), singer and manager of Blue Jupiter will show you how to make that message work for you. Groups will hop on stage and have their performance crafted to perfection.

This seminar is one of our most popular! Have your group come ready to perform!

Throat Bass is a vocal technique common to both Tuvan overtone singers and beatboxers. Using this approach, singers can generate a pitch which is one octave lower than a typical bass’s lowest sung notes. Some feel the sound is reminiscent of the Mongolian region while others feel the sound is more akin to electronica and dubstep. Whatever your connotations, this unique style adds a wealth of potential expression and power to any group.

Andrew John Kim is an a cappella producer, recording engineer and award-winning arranger based in New York City. Andrew received his Bachelor of Music in Music Composition from Northwestern University and his Master of Music in Film Scoring from New York University. While at Northwestern, Andrew was a founding member and three year music director of the a cappella group, Extreme Measures. He is a former member of Backtrack. And his current group, Iris Vocal Trio is the winner of the 2018 ACA-OPEN.

One is a master teacher. One, a master of anatomy. One has a litany of professional level students. One has successfully healed thousands of patients through physical therapy. Together they attack vocal technique from the ground up!

What vocal technique is just wishful thinking? What vocal technique will only work for a few years before the voice can’t handle it? What vocal technique has scientific evidence to back it up? It’s time to find out what science says.

Ron Meixsell will discuss and demonstrate vocal registers; how to isolate and re-balance them; helpful hints for staying healthy and managing illness; posture, breathing and much more.

Michael Miller brings medical science and peer-reviewed studies to the table. Get actual data on vocal pathology and technique.

Vocal teachers use analogies to elicit physical changes. It works for some and frustrates others. Learn what’s really happening.

Michael will use the latest scientific research to explore healthy vocal technique, separating the real from the bunk. He’ll present the data, walk you through the physiology and then demonstrate the effect on the voice.

Then it’s your turn to try it out! Sing healthy. Sing high. Sing strong!

Michael Miller is a licensed physical therapist and professional singer/actor/trumpet player with many decades of training and performance. He has performed with professional a cappella group, Blind Man’s Bluff, and extensively in regional musical theatre.

Ron Meixsell’s resume is extensive, but highlights include conducting the Army choruses in Frankfurt Germany, and teaching music at high schools, Five Towns College, Upsala College, and Dowling College. Ron has sung with The New York Grand Opera, Opera on The sound, Opera Options, Manhattan Opera, and The Maine Opera Company.  He has performed at Alice Tully Hall and The Bruno Walter Auditorium, both in Lincoln Center, NY. For twelve years Ron was the designated singer for The Long Island Association where he sang the National Anthem for major dignitaries including former Presidents Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush,  Former Prime Minister Tony Blair, Hilary Clinton, and many other notable American figures in politics and the news industry. Ron was the vocal coach for The Big Apple Chorus from 2003-2009 during which the chorus became regularly invited to The Barbershop Harmony Society International Competitions. Ron also has coached many barbershop quartets to success in their various competitions. Ron has a NY State Permanent teacher certificate in music, is a member of The National Association of Teachers of Singing, and The Music Teachers National Association.

World renown beatboxers display their impressive beatboxing chops and then show you how the magic is made!

Dopplers’s founder and director just happens to hold her Ph.d. in Concert Design. Don’t miss this opportunity to gain valuable insights into your own designs!

In a combined lecture and workshop the participants will be introduced to the concept of Concert Design, which Astrid has developed through her PhD research project. Concert Design begins from reflection on the concert situation as an event, where sensory communication is key. The concept contains a creative approach to working on stage performance, which will be illustrated through a brief theoretical explanation accompanied by exemplary exercises involving the workshop participants. Focus is on collaborative interpretation, physical awareness and coherent expression.

Members of the vocal ensemble Dopplers (www.dopplers.dk) will be present to showcase specific points, staging strategies and tools.

DIY Music Video – BackTrack explains how you can create your own music video (sometimes all you need is an iPhone) and they show their own wildly successful music videos as examples. In DIY Music Video, these viral video mavens will explore the process of music video-making, from initial concept to final product. The class will look at and discuss the 3 main video formats Backtrack uses, and cover everything that goes into creating high quality content on a micro-budget.

World touring a cappella group, FACE walks you through arranging technique in the contemporary style.

Give Your Approach to Arranging a “Face-Lift”
(or “What-we-now-know-but-wish-we-knew-when-we-started-arranging”)

Face is an all-vocal rock band known for their energetic and powerful arrangements achieved with only four voices and a vocal percussionist.  This workshop will focus on how Face’s arrangers Stephen Ross and Ryan Driver tackle different, but equally successful approaches to arranging a song for voices from the ground up, all while putting story and feeling first.  Recommended for singers and arrangers of all levels and abilities.

More info coming soon!

Women of the World are the only group to have won both the ACA-OPEN and the Harmony Sweepstakes Nationals. They’ve spread their message of peace and inclusion at venues like Carnegie Hall and The Blue Note and worked with the UN. Come join this empowering class taught by Women of the World.

Complete Novice Guide to Arranging

You want to arrange! Unfortunately you have no idea what you’re doing!  Don’t worry! Rob Redei, Choral Director has your back!

This class walks beginners through the basic skills, tools and methods you need in order to get started.  After running through a basic checklist of things to work on, we will begin arranging a song together.  You’ll leave with the skills to get your own project off the ground!

West Side 5′s founder and award-winning arranger, Eric Hughes shares his arranging approach, including some tips on how hot, jazz-based chord choices can enhance any arrangement in any style.

Social Media has become an integral part of every group’s existence. Learn from viral sensations, BackTrack! They discuss what’s worth your time and what isn’t and how to create a real buzz over your group.

Nikhil Grover discusses the integration of South Asian sounds/rhythms into contemporary a cappella music.

You know how to make the sounds. You know how to keep the beat. But what do you do when it’s your turn to  solo? When it’s just you and the crowd?

Johnny Buffalo, beatboxer for BackTrack, walks you through the ins and outs of planning and executing a killer beatbox solo.

Whether it’s 4 bars, 16 bars, or longer, the class will look at elements that can help create a structured solo out of thin air. From using buildups, to different rhythmic patterns, to planning the dramatic impact of more advanced sounds, this class will have you rocking and wowing audiences in no time.

World touring a cappella group FACE teaches a class in Whole Body Singing!

WHOLE BODY SINGING: Rock the solo. Rock the audition.

Examining contemporary and outside the box vocal techniques to find what works for vocalists… NOW!!

Feeling stuck with your vocal training?  Still can’t figure out why some of the techniques you’ve learned along the road don’t always work for you?  You’re not alone.

Cody Qualls is internationally renowned performer, award winning songwriter and one of the most sought after voice coaches within the state of Colorado.  Join him for a session of exploring cutting edge and traditional techniques and what to do when the “trick of the trade don’t always work for you.  Establish a deeper connection with your voice and quickly unlock the power of Whole Body Singing.