Ember Education and Outreach
From its inception, the mission of Ember Choral Arts has held education at its core.
At no point has the work been about ‘pretty sounds today;’ rather, it is about bringing music into lives in ways that are meaningful and fulfilling, through skill development and inspiring experiences.
Ember’s Boards of Trustees embraces a vision that is long-range and broad-scale—a vision that means bringing many along on the journey. That means education and outreach today, just as strongly as it did in the beginning!
Ember Choral Arts was founded on the belief that music plays a vital role in every life. This philosophy informs all activities and is nowhere more evident than in the various education programs. Read on to discover where you might fit in!
Ember’s IGNITE is a five-singer professional ensemble that performs light, entertaining music for educational and school engagements, concerts, and business events. Repertoire includes solos and duets, as well as full ensemble selections, and can be flexible to the needs of each school, business or concert interest.
Educational bookings can include varying elements of performance and student interaction. Each IGNITE artist is experienced in coaching, which can be included as part of an educational offering, if desired. Each event is structured in collaboration with the hiring institution.
Event and concert bookings can be of varied length and content, according to the nature and interests of the event.
Ignite includes:
Billy Shaw ❋ James Cottone ❋ James Edward Splond III
Barbee Monk ❋ Deborah King
Ember ABLAZE Composer Lab
Consistent with Ember’s longstanding commitment to new choral music, and to nurturing young composers, the Ember ABLAZE Composer Lab was founded in 2023. Each fall, young composers are invited to submit an application and selections from their portfolio. From those, two are selected as winners. Each of the winners is commissioned to write a new composition that will ultimately be premiered within a year’s time on one of Ember’s concerts. Winners are mentored throughout the process by Ember’s Composer in Residence, and are given opportunity to workshop their composition with Ember Artists directly.
Ember Associate Program
Ember’s Conducting Associate Program provides active rehearsal and concert podium time, along with a modest stipend, for a rising conductor with a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree in Music. In addition to hands-on artistic opportunity, the Associate receives collaborative mentorship with a focus on rehearsal technique development. The position offers meaningful experience working with a seasoned ensemble of choral singers fluent in modern and contemporary vocal techniques. A selected Associate Conductor typically engages in selected areas of programmatic development and administrative leadership that align with their individual professional goals.