Kaleidoscope of Choirs is coming to Texas Tech University this Fall. Dr. Alan Zabriskie, Director of Choral Studies at Texas Tech University’s School of Music talks about this new position at the university and the upcoming season on The Front Row.
You’re new this year. For those of us who don’t know you, tell us about yourself.
I’ve most recently come from the University of Central Missouri, just near Kansas City. I was there for seven years as director of choral activities there where I lead the choral and the vocal programs and supervised undergraduate students and graduate students in choral music. Prior to that I did my studies at Florida State where I got my PhD in conducting and music education.
Prior to that I taught high school music in Las Vegas, Nevada. I grew up in Utah and participated in music my entire life. I’ve been fortunate to be able to continue that for my entire career.
What piqued your interest in the job at Texas Tech?
I think the most important thing is, when I saw the job come up, I wasn’t looking for a job. I was just looking to see who was leaving and where opportunities were for other friends. Then I saw this job come open and it piqued my interest mostly because of the reputation of Texas Tech School of Music and the Choral department in particular. I had heard a couple of the choirs at conventions. I knew and respected members of the faculty.
I also knew of the background that Texas Tech has in music education and preparing students for teaching in the public schools, something that I’m very passionate about. And then the opportunity to work with high caliber doctoral students and masters students—I’ve been acquainted with some of them who have graduated from here. And just the opportunity for a new and exciting adventure for me and my family.
What are your day-to-day responsibilities?
My main responsibility here at the university is serving as the director of the university choir and that’s something that I get to do every day. We rehearse every day, that’s a new thing for me that has a choir that rehearses everyday and I look forward to it every single day to have the opportunity to interact with those great students and to make music and to fail and succeed and do those things. My other responsibility is to direct the choral area. So, to oversee all the choirs—we have five choirs here at Texas Tech—so I oversee them and the work that they do. Also, to advise graduate students.
I work with four doctoral students and two master’s students. I meet with them one-on-one weekly and also in a classroom setting working with conducting gesture and score study and all things choral music.
The Kaleidoscope of Choirs has become a fall tradition here at the school of music, tell us about that concert.
We’ve titled the concert, “Together We Sing,” and it’s really a preview and an opening to our whole choral season that we have for this academic year. We have five choirs and we all give various concerts throughout the year and this concert is to give a preview of the work that we’re going to be doing. So each choir will be doing a couple of numbers and we’ll perform some combined pieces. Listen to the full interview at the top of the article.
