Online upskilling for choral leaders

3 August 2022

Choral directors and leaders of children’s singing can now hone their skills from the comfort of their own home in Zoom sessions with an ACD advisor.

Continuing our successful series of Zoom sessions, Andrew Withington will deliver further online Giving Direction workshops for directors of adult and secondary school choirs, and Megan Flint will run online Singing Matters workshops for conductors working in primary and intermediate schools.

The workshops are tailored to the needs of those taking part and consist of two 1-hour Zoom sessions. In the first session, the presenter works with a maximum of 5 choir leaders on a range of topics such as score preparation, rehearsal management, voice matching, blend etc. The second 1-hour Zoom is a personalised 1:1 session in which the participant can work on their gesture and/or other aspects of rehearsal technique.

Dates and times of these online workshops will be arranged according to the availability of the registrants and will most likely take place over two evenings (a week or two apart) or at weekends. Those taking part will be offered a menu of topics and will be asked to choose the areas they would most like to work on. For the second session, participants will have the opportunity to submit a video of their conducting in advance, or to conduct ‘live’ in the Zoom session so that they can receive feedback on their gesture – though this aspect is by no means compulsory (participants may choose to address other areas of choral direction in their personalised one-to-one session).

Fees (covering both sessions):
$60 (ACD Members)
$70 (NZCF Personal Members)
$80 (non-members)
$40 (students)

Andrew Withington has a PhD in Choral Pedagogy and a Masters in Choral Conducting Performance with First Class Honours. He has recently returned from the United States where he was Assistant Professor of Music, Director of Choral Activities and Voice Area Head at Westminster College. For 10 years, Andrew was Artistic Director of the New Zealand Secondary Students’ Choir. He is currently freelancing as a conductor, choral consultant, educator and mentor for beginning teachers.

Megan Flint has a background in education and music, as both a primary school teacher and music specialist. Megan completed her Masters degree in Choral Conducting through The University of Auckland with Dr Karen Grylls. She is a practitioner of Kodály-inspired music education and is the face behind Kodály Aotearoa. As well as making music with students, Megan mentors teachers and facilitates professional development opportunities for educators around the country. Megan is the co-author of Hear Our Voices, a handbook for leaders of children’s choirs.

“Through the Singing Matters workshop with Megan, I got a clearer understanding of the children’s chorus teaching methods and the difference with the adult vocal teaching, as well as the importance of fun and joy to children’s choir rehearsals, which are very helpful for me.”

Email emma.billings@nzcf.org.nz to register your interest in an online Giving Direction or Singing Matters workshop. Our NZCF Events Manager Emma Billings will be in touch to arrange dates and times with one of our ACD Advisors.

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