This book should help conductors adjust expectations and methods to suit the condition and abilities of older singers. Maintaining one’s vocal skill in later years is the goal, since getting better may not be possible. Knowing that every choral conductor hopes a choir will improve from season to season, a new paradigm for the aging choir must be established. Once involved, the conductor of older singers is certain to reap the benefits of making music with people whose appreciation of the text, the music and the act of singing is deeper than in any younger ensemble.

368 pages, Illustrated (B/W), Softcover, 6 x 9" N/A
ISBN10: 1-59756-438-9
ISBN13: 978-1-59756-438-0
Plural Publishing


Brenda Smith, D.M.A.

Dr. Brenda Smith teaches studio voice, diction and vocal pedagogy at the University of Florida in Gainesville. She has been widely recognized for her contributions to the concept of lifelong singing through proper voice care. Dr. Smith is a lyric soprano with special interests in the recital and concert repertoire. In addition, Dr. Smith was translator, collaborator, and assistant to Dr. Wilhelm Ehmann and Dr. Frauke Haasemann, the pedagogues whose work in Germany and the United States developed the concept known as “voice building for choirs”. Dr. Smith works regularly as consultant, clinician, and conductor with amateur and professional choirs. She has been associated with the choirs of St. Ignatius Loyola, the Central City Chorus, and the Dessoff Choirs in New York City, the Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia, the Cathedral Choral Society of the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., as well as the choirs of the Epiphany Cathedral in Venice, Florida. As an active member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing and the American Choral Directors Association, Dr. Smith speaks as a resource for solo singers, voice teachers, and choral conductors.

Robert Sataloff, M.D.

Robert T. Sataloff, M.D., D.M.A., F.A.C.S., is a Professor and Chairman, Department of Otolaryngology- Head and Neck Surgery and Senior Dean for Clinical Academic Specialties, Drexel University College of Medicine. He is also Adjunct Professor in the departments of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery at Thomas Jefferson University, the University of Pennsylvania and Temple University, and on the faculty of the Academy of Vocal Arts.