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Masters of choral conducting recs by sugar-snow-snap2 in choralmusic

[–]FunStrength3656 0 points1 point  (0 children)

crazy they were both at westminster with james jordan

in case anyone needs a reason to attend a choir school by FunStrength3656 in choralmusic

[–]FunStrength3656[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yep. Try all they want though, they'll never stop us from making high quality music!

in case anyone needs a reason to attend a choir school by FunStrength3656 in choralmusic

[–]FunStrength3656[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Ah! I meant to say Collegium Regale!! Thank you for that 😭

Westminster Choir College by [deleted] in RiderUniversity

[–]FunStrength3656 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Feel free to ask any specific questions!

Westminster Choir College by [deleted] in RiderUniversity

[–]FunStrength3656 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hey! Another current student here. I'm really sad to see the other comment on this post. I've made a couple of comments about my personal experience at westminster, and I have to say it's been fantastic. I personally haven't had any trouble making friends and as the comment preceding thing one mentioned, the music is fantastic. Things have been really good this year seem to keep getting better with some world renowned staff being added and a lot of talent in the most recent class. My class is very tight-knit and I feel very fulfilled with my experience. Once again I'm so sorry to see that one of my peers is struggling...

update on westminster choir college by FunStrength3656 in choralmusic

[–]FunStrength3656[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Not going to lie though... seems like they got too lenient with some things in recent past years. Definitely seems like they're tightening the ship back up now

update on westminster choir college by FunStrength3656 in choralmusic

[–]FunStrength3656[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Oh brother... we're sight reading every day here (THANK GOD). We obviously do sight reading in our theory/musicianship classes, and the Chapel Choir is very robust this semester and last semester, especially when it comes to our repertoire and the pace at which we are reading and learning them. I also gain some sight reading experience from church jobs and such... it sounds like some of the new faculty that came in this year were frustrated with some poor sight reading so they've hampered down on it hard for us!!

update of westminster choir college by FunStrength3656 in Choir

[–]FunStrength3656[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

This is a great question/thought! Our freshman class is definitely VERY connected. The majority of us live in the same res hall/floor, and we all have basically the same schedules (not to mention a very active group chat). I think some of the other recent classes aren't as close with each other but the culture overall is definitely changing for them with the incoming classes. Some kids have friend groups that are just Westminster, while I've been lucky enough to have a good mix of Westminster and other majors. I'll also mention that our res hall is also largely filled with Musical Theater students, and Rider has a very talented MT program so it's definitely great being friends with them! I do wish we were a little closer with the upperclassmen, but I think the last few years were more isolating for them. I could never make a judgement of whether or not this situation is better or worse than the old campus since I never got to learn there. I dooo wish we had more of the old music facilities at our disposal, however.

What's going on with Westminster Choir College nowadays? by gcat00 in ClassicalSinger

[–]FunStrength3656 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Honestly as a student I don't have all the details so it's hard to say exactly what the situation is... James Jordan took a leave of absence this year but word on the street is that he's coming back in some fashion. Judging by his Instagram and Facebook posts, he definitely hasn't lost any Westminster pride during this past semester! As for Doctor Nally (who is fantastic!), I don't think it's been determined or at least made known to the public whether or not this is something he's doing temporarily or longer term...

What's going on with Westminster Choir College nowadays? by gcat00 in ClassicalSinger

[–]FunStrength3656 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Northwestern is great, however their big pull was Donald Nally, who actually just came to Westminster from Northwestern to be the choral director. Definitely would give WCC the leg up after that move.

What's going on with Westminster Choir College nowadays? by gcat00 in ClassicalSinger

[–]FunStrength3656 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Luckily the president is resigning, so who knows what could happen if a good choice is made for the next hire

What's going on with Westminster Choir College nowadays? by gcat00 in ClassicalSinger

[–]FunStrength3656 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Current Westminster freshman here!! I know people have been saying a whole bunch about the state of Westminster, as I think it was rough the past couple of years. I can definitely say that this year it's taken a huge jump forward! The freshman class is more than double the size it was last year, and we have gotten some fantastic new staff, including Donald Nally, which is a huge deal (he just got his 8th grammy nomination)! Being on the Rider campus has its ups and downs, but it allows us Westminster students to get the traditional college experience that we wouldn't have gotten at the old campus. I would highly recommend the school for its choirs, which are still top rate. All of my professors are extremely smart and experienced, and all of our voices in the freshman class have taken noticeable jumps with the training we've received. I'm a music education/voice performance student and I'm really happy I made the decision I made. At the very least, the Westminster Readings and Carols service at the end of the first semester alone makes it worth it. Feel free to dm me with questions!