I spent an hour or so on the phone this morning with Constant Contact —specialists in online communications. I asked, “Can I turn my blog into an email blast?” Our rep said yes, then, just to prove his point, he opened my blog and created a blast layout while I waited. It took only five minutes—complete with graphics.
It is a good thing.
Our CD replicator told us that his company is discontinuing CDs. The market is dwindling. They are retooling for t-shirts.
Costs have gone crazy too! Processing for our current mailing, printing the catalog, paying singers, pianist, studio, and making the CDs, brings the total to over $40,000.
So, expect to hear our audio demonstration online next year.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2012
We attended the Hale Center Theater matinee South Pacific in Orem. Rex Kocherhans, our vocal contracter played the leading role of Emile de Becque. He is absolutely terrific in that role; French accent and all!
Rex directs recordings in the Jackman Recording Studios for our Thematic Catalog/Demo project.
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2012
We have published twenty-nine Christmas pieces this year. I am pleased to share the list with you. You can hear the samples at www.jackmanmusic.com.
New Christmas releases
#00774 A Virgin Most Pure - SATB - Arr. Richard William-Smith
#00968 And the Son Is Born - SATB - Arr. Jackie Frost Halversen
#00566 Born Is the King of Israel - SATB - Arr. David Len Allen
#01594 Canticle of the Nativity - SATB - Arr. Rob Millett
#00379 Carol Encores - Adv. Piano Solos - Arr. Amy Baugh Hansen
#00769 Carols of Spain - SATB - Arr. Brent Jorgensen
#01112 Christmas Festival - Int. Piano Solos - Arr. by David R. Naylor
#00041 Come All Ye Shepherds - SATB pno, 4 hands - Arr. Catherine Tibbitts
#00010 Come See the Lamb - SATB - Pearson & Jorgensen
#00790 Essential Ward Choir, Vol. 3 - SATB - Arr. Brent Jorgensen
#00553 Hark, the Herald Angels Sing - TTBB - Arr. Derek Furch
#00105 Mary Had a Pretty Little Baby - SA - Arr. Betsy Bailey
#00105 Mary, Can I Hold Your Baby? - Rod Bruner
#09168 O Holy Night - 2 Flutes, Oboe, Piano - Arr. Robert Peterson
#00981 O Little Town/It Came Upon a Midnight - SATB - Arr. Jackie Halversen
#00760 On a Starlit Night - SAB - Hush and Pearce
#00841 One Night, One Star, One Child - SATB - Cydney Olson Van Duker
#00954 One Small Babe - SSA - Lynn S. Lund
#00017 Silent Night - Adv. Flute Solo - Larry Gee
#00864 The Dayspring Is Born - SATB - T. Chemain Evans
#01107 The Holy City - SAB - Arr. Mike Carson
#00851 The Moment of His Birth - SATB - Martin & Ryan
#01106 The Savior Is Born This Night - SATB - Holyoak & Croxall
#00017 The Virgin Mary Had a Baby Boy - SSA - Arr. T. Chemain Evans
#01216 The Wexford Carol - SATB - Arr. Richard William-Smith
#00733 Three Children’s Carols - SAB - Arr. Kimberly Marsden
#00398 Ward Choir Christmas Program - SATB - Carolyn Stevens
#00023 What Child Is This? - TTBB - Arr. Derek Furch
#01108 When Jesus Was a Carpenter - SATB - Voros & Tibbitts
Our Ward Choir rehearsal was at 1:00 p.m. at the seminary building. We are scheduled to sing David Naylor's If You Could Hie to Heaven next Sunday. It will be the first choir appearance since I was called as Music Chairman. They are scheduled twice a month after this.
Much of what Sis. Adams is preparing for Christmas seems to be segments; movements of larger works. I want to be supportive of whatever she wants to do. She has an excellent sense of propriety, and because of her long experience, she also has a good grasp of sacred choral music tradition.
There are three bass section singers in the choir. The highest voice belongs to Scott Bergesen. He takes the baritone divisi parts. He reads very well. I sit next to Sammy Adams. He's a high school kid—son of the director. He has a fun sense of humor and a very low singing range. He is a doublebass player like I am. We have quite a lot of other things in common too. We challenge each other to sing various segments “in the cellar” (down an octave.) I have heard him sing a good low D flat.
I am watching for the choir to gain in strength over the next few weeks as we continue preparing for Christmas.
FRIDAY, 19 OCTOBER 2012
Brad Yahashi, from Tucson is mounting performances from the Tabernacle Choir's album, Noel: An International Christmas Celebration. The instrumental parts I was working on last week were for him. We sent final guitar and celesta parts to him yesterday by email. He responded today saying he loved the work we had done. The score that the Salt Lake Tabernacle Choir had provided us comes in tabloid size, single-sided sheets. Brad scanned it all with OCR software made especially to interpret music, hoping to create a version of the score that didn't require so many page turns. The new scanning software renders pages as Music XML files. The XML data can be processed in note-setting software, such as Finale or Sibelius and laid out in pages. From the resulting product, individual parts can be extracted. I told him I would love to learn more about this technology. He is willing to share.
San Francisco defeated St. Louis tonight for the National League Championship.
MONDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2012
I created a contract for Sally DeFord, which included royalties for Mabel Jones Gabbott's Estate, Patricia Kelsey Graham, Janice Kapp Perry, and Michael F. Moody. This document transfers license to Jackman Music for print rights connected with the medley which was commissioned by the Church for the recent Women's Conference—“I Want to Be Like Jesus” with “He Sent His Son.” DeFord s also very nice—and a serious talent.
I play in a ten piece, straight-ahead swing band. At 64 years old, I am the youngest player. You might call it a Geezer Garage Band. Every player is a retired professional jazz musician. Every rehearsal is recorded for reference. Our director, Lemoyne Taylor retired from his career in the Disneyland Band to serve a mission with his wife Isabell in Nauvoo. He became the director and wrote arrangements for the Nauvoo Brass Band. They had concerts every night on the banks of the Mississippi River. When the Taylors were released, the band reorganized in central Utah under the name Mississippi Mood. My buddy, the drummer Phil Goodrich saw me outside the temple one afternoon and asked if I would be interested in playing bass. That was five years ago. I am still playing every week.
10:15 a.m. this morning was time to leave for the Mississippi Mood rehearsal at Goodrich‘s. Lemoyne Taylor brought in a new “chart”—The Boy Next Door—a nice waltz. Lemoyne is the only arranger I know who sets waltzes with a walking 3/4 bass line instead of the single, one pizz. per bar. We are getting ready for our next gig, on November 2nd. The rehearsal impacted most of my day.
The rest of the afternoon at the office was focused on creating Royalty Schedules for the Essential Ward Choir Series. Each volume contains eleven to fourteen songs, each of which requires an individual accounting— research into copyright status and history of the originators. I enjoy this type of work.
Mitt Romney debated Barrack Obama again tonight—on foreign policy. The president has had four years of experience, but Romney has a clear vision of what needs to be done. The democrats are claiming victory for the debate. We'll see.
I thought that Mitt held himself rather presidentially. So did more than half of the US.
Fall has begun. We had our long-awaited meatloaf and baked potatoes for dinner tonight. Fabulous!
The San Francisco Giants won a fourth game in the National League Championship Series against St. Louis. They are going to the World Series against the Detroit Tigers.
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 23, 2012
At the office, from early until 2:30 p.m., I revised the Royalty Schedules for Books 2 and 3 of the Essential Ward Choir Series, then wrote the associate contracts. These books are complicated. Each contributor is researched individually. We want to make certain that composers receive the proper royalties.
I was honored to receive four manuscript submissions from Janice Kapp Perry this afternoon—three simple chorals and an intermediate piano solo medley for four of her most popular children's songs. I called her immediately and accepted them. It is a privilege to have this new work from such an important composer. Here is the list from today:
#01479 Like Jesus - SATB, the closing number from Janice’s firesides.
#01481 Primary Song Medley - Piano Solo
#01482 We Are Daughters in God's Kingdom - SSA
#01483 With a Voice of Thanksgiving - 2 part
I suggested that the piano solo medley be part of a series—four or five new pieces over the next year. I will issue each medley in full-size commercial sheet music editions.
A contract was prepared for Sister Perry before I left tonight, addressing all four these pieces at once. The first release from this group will be in January.
This afternoon today, we received the first response from our new Catalog/Compact Disc mailing. It is now arriving in our customer’s mailboxes in the United States.
We refer to the catalog as our “Thematic”, though there is no longer any music shown, Each of the featured pieces provide information about performing, and have an illustration of the cover. The compact disc, which matches the catalog, is about 70 minutes long.
