SKU: GI.G-9660
Conversations with
Alice Parker.
Composed by Cameron
LaBarr and John Wykoff.
Music Education. 243
pages. GIA Publications
#9660. Published by GIA
Publications (GI.G-9660).
ISBN
9781622773572.
To
learn from Alice is to
come under a peculiar
kind of enchantment . . .
To hear her is to be
spellbound by a melodic
voice. — John
Wykoff, from the Prelude
The Melodic Voice
presents a series of
interviews with
preeminent composer,
conductor, and teacher
Alice Parker that offers
a fuller and more
intimate view of her life
and music than ever
before. The conversations
Cameron LaBarr and John
Wykoff document in these
pages perfectly capture
the essence of
Alice’s core
philosophies on melody,
arranging, singing, music
teaching, conducting, and
many other topics. During
the course of the
interviews, Alice
discusses a wide range of
topics: her childhood,
her time as a student at
Smith College and
Juilliard, the death of
her husband, her work
with Robert Shaw, living
in New York City,
experiences with
teaching, her
compositional process,
the importance of folk
song, advice for students
and teachers, and much
more. In the accompanying
video component, Alice
speaks candidly and
directly about many of
her most popular and
well-loved arrangements,
including Hark, I Hear
the Harps Eternal, Saints
Bound for Heaven, What
Shall We Do With a
Drunken Sailor?, and John
Saw Duh Numbuh, among
others. Too few have had
the privilege of
attending one of
Alice’s workshops
or engaging with her in
long conversations and
round-the-table singing.
But the conversational
nature of this book gives
everyone the chance to
engage with her in a
deeper way. Musicians and
non-musicians alike are
sure to be inspired by
Alice’s words.
Cameron LaBarr is
Director of Choral
Studies at Missouri State
University. His choirs
have performed
extensively both at home
and abroad, and he has
worked as a guest
conductor and clinician
across the United States,
Europe, South Africa, and
Asia. John Wykoff is
Associate Professor of
Music Theory and
Composition at Lee
University. As an active
composer, he writes for
choir, orchestra, and
chamber groups, and his
music has been performed
internationally by
leading ensembles. Check
out this clip below of
Alice Parker discussing
her beloved arrangement
Hark, I Hear the Harps
Eternal. This is just
a small part of the over
three hours of video
interviews included in
the purchase of this
resource.
Sophie Smith
