The Power of LaBamba!

I went to see my first Symphony on the Prairie concert this week. (I am somewhat embarrassed that as Marketing Director for the Indianapolis Children's Choir I had never been!)

The show was Buddy Holly & Friends. This was a tribute show to Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens & the Big Bopper. In the spirit of full disclosure, I had see these guys perform before - and knew they were fantastic.

I had not, however, seen them perform outdoors. I was pleasantly surprised by the fantastic acoustics provided by the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and Connor Prairie. What really was the icing on the cake for me was how the thousands of people responded to the music. Folks were up dancing, singing - and the energy was palpable. When Ray Anthony - who performed as Ritchie Valens - teased the audience with the first few bars of LaBamba - I thought the prairie was going to explode with anticipation.

Music, and few other things, can do this. It can wow a crowd, and make you cry, and send you back to a long ago memory, and is one of the things that gives those intangible moments in life a chance at being defined.

So go enjoy some music this weekend!

Nine concerts. Six venues. One historic season.

It's been 25 years in the making: the silver anniversary concert season of one of the world's premier children's choirs.

Season tickets go on sale today! By far the best value in town for season tickets, you'll experience choral music at its finest and enjoy some of Indy's most beautiful venues. Choose as few as three concerts, all nine or anything in between to receive the discounted season ticket price.

Henry Leck, Founder and Artistic Director, recently reflected on the choir's beginnings. "You know it’s there is an old adage that says the secret to success is find a need and fill it and I think that’s what happened in this case. When I started the Indianapolis Children’s Choir there were probably only about 10 children's choirs in United States. It was in the mid 80s that children's choirs started springing up all over the place. I think the timing was right and the need was there."

The timing WAS right, the need WAS there - and so was the support of thousands of parents, singers, sponsors, volunteers and donors throughout the years. Thanks to all.

To buy tickets and check out concert dates and venues, visit "TICKETS" on the ICC website. See you at the show!

Common Denominator

In an effort to come up with some new print advertising for the 25th anniversary season, I scheduled a photo shoot with some ICC singers. Due to the fact that the concept was developed pretty close to some advertising deadlines, the shoot was put together quickly. With such little notice, I was not really attentive to which choirs the singers were in - I was just thrilled their parents could get them to it!

It was interesting though, because four different choirs wound up being represented. I entered the room where I had told parents to meet, and the singers were all just sitting there, quietly. So I said, "Do any of you know each other?" Aside from the brother and sister team from Cantantes Angeli, the reply was, "No."

So we went through introductions. We talked about how the CA kids were moving up to the Indianapolis Youth Chorale, and which choir everyone had been in last year. Within minutes the kids were all chatting, and acted like young professionals during the shoot. Considering the amount of experience I have as an art director is zero, they all took direction really well. They were polite, articulate and fun to work with. I was most impressed with how fast they went from being strangers to team players in a group project.

They all had different things going on in their life that day. That evening though, their common denominator was the Indianapolis Children's Choir.

Thanks, Pixar

I have to hand it to Pixar. I was reminded of how good they are at making movies tonight after seeing Toy Story 3. Since 1995 when Toy Story came into our theaters and introdced us to just how real animation can look, the story has followed Andy and the adventures with his memorable cast of toys.

Free family tickets are a perk of having two sons who work at a movie theater, and it was with them I settled in tonight for Toy Story 3. They are taller than me now, but back when Toy Story first premiered, they were 3 and 4. Just like Andy, they will be starting college in the fall. I hadn't expected this film to move us, but it did. By the end of the movie they were talking about their own Woody and Buzz toys, and regaling me with memories of adventures that - until tonight - I hadn't known made such an impact. I was surprised to hear how memorable it was for them to visit the ocean, nurse a turtle back to health and set off fire crackers in their fort built out of snow.

Some things, like the Indianapolis Children's Choir, we know make an impression on our children. The ICC impacts lives every day by offering a top-notch choral education, lessons in teamwork and a chance to see the world. Each young singer also gets something unique out of this program, and like the stories that came bubbling up out of my own boys tonight, we may not know what that is for years. But we work hard every day to make sure the impact is a good one.

Day Five - Choral Festival!

This morning, a parent who has two children in the Bel Canto choir, (Mr. Pedde's choir) asked me, "Which is the best children's choir in the world?"

I must have looked at her with a quizzical expression, because she continued, "Well, the directors are always saying that the Indianapolis Children's Choir is one of the best children's choirs. I think we ARE the best!"

She had just come from the combined rehearsal for tomorrow's concert. Hearing both the morning and afternoon groups sing together moved anyone who was listening. It was an amazing sound.

During this week, a concurrent program has been going on called Creating Artistry. This is a week-long intensive workshop for conductors, led by the ICC Founder and Artistic Director Henry Leck. We have conductors from around the world studying under Mr. Leck, and our own ICC directors are required to complete this same training as well. Rest assured - your children are learning from the best of the best!

Day Four - Choral Festival!

The bar has been set pretty high for the Choral Festival campers this week, but they are proving they are up to the task! They are doing so well learning their assigned music for Saturday's concert, that they even had time to learn a new folk song today. It is exciting and inspiring to be around children when they are so excited themselves about learning!

By the end of both the morning and afternoon rehearsals, the groups had demonstrated that they almost knew every piece of music by memory! Next time you watch a choir perform, take notice if they are using the printed music - many adult choirs do. It is really a tribute to the talent of the directors of the Indianapolis Children's Choir, and the campers themselves, that the music has been memorized so fast.

You're in for a treat on Saturday!

Day Three - Choral Festival!

Today the campers arrived in their sunny yellow shirts, and they really are becoming a group that is working as one. Many of the singers took Mr. Pedde's request to heart and have memorized a few of the songs. They understand the warm-up process, are singing with exuberance and more and more are auditioning every day.

One of the highlights of the day was getting to meet the ICC Founder and Artistic Director, Henry Leck. The kids were able to ask him a myriad of questions about the choir.

Also today, the campers were able to see an established Indianapolis Children's Choir group perform. When asked by Mrs. Dwyer to raise their hands if they had themselves been through Choral Festival, nearly every hand was raised!

ICC really is a journey - from Choral Festival participant to becoming a member of one of the best children's choirs in the world!