01/10/2022
Dearest Singers,
I hope the new year has treated you well so far.
I’ve been scheming and meditating and button-pushing to plan for this coming semester at Cuyamaca College, and I’m very excited about what’s in store for the choir! The theme for the semester is "fresh sounds," and our focus will be 20th and 21st Century choral works and arrangements that challenge our expectations of the ensemble. Opportunities for composing, songwriting, and premiering original works are also underway.
In case you are reluctant to join at this time given the uncertainties we all face during this omicron surge, rest assured, everyone’s safety is just as important to us as providing rewarding educational experiences is. We are prepared with many stimulating alternatives to the traditional choir class if remote instruction or a hybrid option proves necessary. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out! ([email protected])
CUYAMACA COLLEGE CHOIR DETAILS
Course Titles:
• MUS 158-159; 258-259 Chorus
• MUS-058 Choir for the Adult Learner (available for those who’ve already completed 4 semesters of choir at Cuyamaca)
• visit https://bit.ly/CuyamacaMusic for more course offerings!
Semester Dates: Jan. 31, 2022 - Jun. 6, 2022
Location:
• Cuyamaca Community College (900 Rancho San Diego Pkwy, El Cajon, CA 92109)
• Building B, Room 207
Rehearsal Time: Tuesdays 3:30-6:30pm
***NOTE: If interested but unavailable for the complete duration of rehearsal, please reach out to me! You are still welcome to participate.
Course Description:
Dedicated to the study and performance of diverse choral musics, the Cuyamaca College Choir provides a space for the public and for students of the college to develop their knowledge of the genre. We celebrate the diversity of our members; no matter your age or background, whether you are new to singing or a seasoned professional, you belong in this choir! Together, we’ll discover the many flavors that reside in your voice, explore diverse forms of musical expression and build life-long friendships.
~ ~ ~
For some highlights from last semester’s concerts, and student testimonials from my groups both at Cuyamaca College and UC San Diego, check out the snippets below. :)
Student Testimonials
"Jasper is an absolutely wonderful professor. She's very passionate and knowledgeable when it comes to music and she succeeded in establishing an extremely welcoming class that promoted musical collaboration among its students.”
"It seems impossible to have a fun concert class in a virtual setting, right? Not so fast, here comes Jasper Sussman, to show that it can be done!!
I'm getting excited writing about the instructor, but in all seriousness, this class, largely thanks to Jasper, was amazing. Instead of trying to do the closest thing possible to an in-person concert choir online, Jasper Sussman took the class in a totally different directions, coming up with creative assignments that taught us basic music production, that encouraged us to try composing, and that let us be super creative, inventive, and exploratory with creating our own music. To me, concert choir was more than a 2 unit class, it was a creative community, and that collaborative environment was fostered by Jasper. Another quick note: Jasper was super accessible outside of class. She had long office hours on Fridays, and we could come to just hang out, or to work on our singing, or to work on our compositions, or to run ideas past her. She also would constantly be helping us with our projects late on weeknights, and random times throughout the day, clearly going way above and beyond whatever the required teaching duties are. It felt liked she really cared about us all and put her all into the class."
"I feel that choir has made me grow as a performer in many ways- it has helped me work with a collective of people and collaborate on a bigger project."
"Professor Sussman AKA Jasper AKA music extraordinaire is an amazing instructor, simply put."
https://youtu.be/cS9qYCOiFqk
https://youtu.be/nFjFiC8p6ZM
https://youtu.be/Tr2lPYkDSTs
I sincerely look forward to making music with everyone soon; please let me know if you’re planning to enroll, and if you need any help at all with your registration.
With love,
~Jasper
_________________________________________________
Jasper Sussman, artist-scholar
Director of Choirs - Cuyamaca Community College
Rehearsal Director - Voices of Our City Choir
Education Director, Core Member - SACRA/PROFANA
Instructor - UC San Diego, Chamber Singers & Concert Choir
PhD Candidate - UCSD Music Department: Ethnomusicology
M.M. Music Composition - U. of Michigan-Ann Arbor
Grateful Heart (2020) - Hussein Janmohamed(excerpt)Cuyamaca College Choir presents - One World: in Spirit, Ritual, and Song (Live Stream)The Cuyamaca College...
