E WILL BE SPEAKING a lot about Sacred Music Symposium 2025 over the next few weeks. Very soon, we’ll open up registration—and this is thrilling! About a month ago, the preliminary details were released. The best way to learn about this conference is to watch the promotional video and read the testimonials from the last ten years. All that information is available at the official website. However, it dawned on me that people might be wondering why so many participants describe it as “life-changing” and why it’s unlike any other conference out there. In other words, what specifically makes this conference unique?
A Few Random Thoughts • In other conferences, you go sing polyphony under a director (just like we did in college)—and that’s fine. Other conferences showcase a bunch of wares from various publishers—and that’s fine. Other conferences have a cardinal or bishop give a speech—and that’s fine. But Sacred Music Symposium 2025 will offer hands-on experience for choir directors who work in real parishes. Consider a few items you’ll learn at this year’s conference:
(1) The one mistake you must never make during rehearsals.
(2) Why ‘choral vowels’ are absolutely crucial to your ensemble; and how to teach these.
(3) The most common mistake made by first-time directors (which can have catastrophic results).
(4) The crucial concept of “energy on the inner beats.”
(5) How to organize, choose, and plan repertoire for your choirs (in the ORDINARY FORM and in the EXTRAORDINARY FORM).
(6) The only “attendance policy” that works in real life.
(7) Why you should consider using some Solfège during rehearsals, and how this works for a “typical” parish choir.
(8) Detailed advice—which is very specific—on recruiting singers. This can be “make or break” for a parish music director.
We have much more information to release over the next few weeks. Please stay tuned!
