What to look forward to

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• About Choral Conducting Workshop: Revisiting Gesture

  Date:  Monday, January 20, 2025 | 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

  Location: University of Houston, Moores School of Music
  3333 Cullen Blvd, Houston, TX 77204  

  Cost: $40 for conductors (limited to ten); $20 for non-conducting participants. 
  (Parking available for an additional $10)  

  Who: Choral conductors who want to re-visit their gesture and enjoy a bit of camaraderie before the spring semester gets up to speed.

  Register Here

  Participants are eligible for 5 Continuing Professional Education (CPE) clock hours.

• Schedule

  9:30 - 10:00 a.m.	Check in
  10:00 a.m.	Welcome  Score-marking/warn up activity
  10:30 a.m.	Conducting masterclass #1
  12:00 p.m.	Lunch (included)
  12:30 p.m.	Conducting masterclass #2
  3:00 p.m.	Adjourn

• Registration, Tuition, What to Bring

  Register Here

  What to Bring:
  

  • Conductors must bring 20 copies of the piece of music they wish to work on. This music will be returned at the end of the workshop.
  • Conductors should also bring markers (yellow, pink, orange, and blue) if using hard copies, and a stylus for marking if using digital music.

  Tuition and Fees: $40 for conductors (limited to ten); $20 for non-conducting participants. 
  (Dinner is provided. Parking is available for an additional $10)  

  (Once your registration is processed, all participants will be emailed a payment link and any additional information needed.) 

  Conducting spots are available on a first-come, first-served basis and are limited to the first 10 conductors who register. All remaining registrants will be placed on a wait list and/or automatically enrolled as auditors. 

  Moores School of Music will accept priority registrations until January 13, 2025.

• About Our Faculty

  Dr. Kaitlin DeSpain enjoys a varied career as an educator, conductor, performer, and clinician. As an Educator, Kaitlin has held the position of Choral Director at various middle and high schools across West Virginia, Kentucky, and Texas where she directed concert choirs and pop choirs and taught courses in music history, music theory, and piano.

  As a Conductor, Kaitlin has collaborated with a wide range of ensembles, including those at the University of Houston and the University of Kentucky. She has also worked with prestigious groups such as the Houston Symphony Chorus and the Symphony of Southeast Texas Chorus, among others.

  As a Performer, Kaitlin has experience with diverse ensembles, including collegiate, community, church, and symphony choirs. She has sung with numerous collegiate ensembles, as well as the Renaissance Singers, The Lexington Singers, the West Virginia Symphony Chorus, the Symphony of Southeast Texas Chorus, the Houston Symphony Chorus, and the Houston Chamber Choir.

  Kaitlin earned her Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) from the University of Houston, studying under Dr. Betsy Cook Weber and Dr. Jeb Mueller. She holds a Master of Music in Choral Conducting from the University of Kentucky, where she studied under Dr. Jefferson Johnson and Dr. Lori Hetzel, and a Bachelor of Music Education degree from Marshall University.

   

  Alex Koppel, a native of the central coast of California, is the Visiting Professor of Choral Music at the University of Houston’s Moores School of Music. Alex holds a Master of Music in Choral Conducting from San Jose State University and has completed coursework towards the Doctor of Music in Choral Conducting at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music. Alex’s undergraduate studies were completed at California State University Fullerton in Music Education with a vocal emphasis.

  Known for his inclusive pedagogy and community-oriented process, Alex has been a part of numerous award-winning programs. His ensembles have received national acclaim, regularly receiving unanimous superiors at national adjudications and festivals. Recent conducting engagements include Beethoven’s Mass in C, Haydn’s Missa brevis Sancti Joannis de Deo, Faure’s Requiem, and concertizing the program To the Stars – a collaboration with the IU Five Friends artist Dr. Lynne Morrow. As an Associate Conductor for the Jacobs School of Music, Alex prepared works including Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, Poulenc’s Gloria, and the world premiere of Shulamit Ran’s opera Anne Frank. Alex is also an accomplished high school educator, previously serving as the Director of Music at Kirby Preparatory School, being on staff at the renowned Arrowbear Music Camp in Southern California, and being an in-demand adjudicator and festival conductor. 

  Alex is passionate about creating collaborative and supportive experiences in his choirs, and his graduate research has centered around applying these concepts. He has prepared presentations on these topics for regional choral education conferences. His dissertation (forthcoming) focuses on contextualizing Beethoven’s Mass in C in in the lineage of the choral orchestral canon, as well as a conductor's guide and analysis.

  Alex has studied conducting, piano, and music pedagogy with greats including Betsy Burleigh, Dominick DiOrio, Walter Huff, Cheryl Anderson, Chris Peterson, and Robert Istad. He has performed under the baton of artists such as Eric Whitacre, Thomas Wilkins, Arthur Fagen, John Williams, Michael Tilson Thomas, Carl StClaire, and Gustavo Dudamel, as well as performing on stage with Josh Groban, Deborah Voigt, and Andrea Bocelli.