Being a part of something special . . .

An upcoming TV show about show choir and I think it's got legs -- watch the video and see if you don't agree. After all . . . being a part of something special makes you special, doesn't it? Here's how they describe it:

. . . . a one-hour musical comedy that follows an optimistic high school teacher as he tries to transform the Glee Club and inspire a group of ragtag performers to make it to the biggest competition of all: Nationals.

Will Schuester, a young optimistic teacher, has offered to take on the Herculean task of restoring McKinley's Glee Club to its former glory. Everyone around him thinks he's nuts. He's out to prove them all wrong.

YouTube:

More here.

sometimes it's about the HOW rather than the WHAT

I like this presentation . . . how it is done. Thought of Harry, who also likes to see these things. Anyway, take a look - best viewed full screen.

Current TV Live Brainstorm Recap

View more presentations from brandonmurphy.

pic

Seen this?

I'm guessing you've seen this already . . . watch it if you haven't.

Help needed

Nora the music secretary needs help with programs tomorrow morning.

If you have absences to make up, this is a great way for you to do it.

Let me know. And let Nora know: nwhitten@uab.edu

Group text messaging by Tatango.

Meredith shares sad news

Meredith shares this sad news with the choir. Note the last sentence.

HILL, FATHER TED, 75, a priest of the Diocese of Birmingham in Alabama died on April 18, 2009 in Cork, Ireland. Fr. Hill was ordained to the priesthood on May 31, 1959 at St. Kieran's Seminary, Kilkenny, Ireland, for the diocese of Mobile-Birmingham. He served as a priest in Alabama for forty years until his retirement on July 1, 1999. In his retirement he lived as a priest in Cork, Ireland. Fr. Hill served at St. Ann Church in Decatur, Holy Spirit Church in Huntsville, St. Stanislaus Church in Wylam. He also served as Catholic Campus Minister at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa and the University of Alabama in Birmingham. He also served as Chaplain and Counselor at John Carroll High School in Birmingham. He is survived by two brothers, Alex and Finbar Hill and one sister, Mary Kavanagh. Fr. Hill was a life-long sports enthusiast and was a familiar sight in earlier years on the sidelines at Alabama football games when he served as a team chaplain at the invitation of Coach Bear Bryant. A memorial Mass for Fr. Hill will be held at the Cathedral of St. Paul at a date to be announced.

Perhaps, if there are enough people available, our choir can sing at the memorial Mass - I think he would have appreciated that (and he was so kind to us in Cork).

More thanks

This from a member of Bluff Park:

I just wanted to communicate to you and the choir how much we enjoyed the music this past Sunday. I did not know that ya’ll use the sanctuary for your recordings. I’m glad that we are a friendly community church and this is an example of what is given is returned ten fold. Please let your students know we appreciate their getting up early and giving up that extra sleep time.

Thanks for Bluff Park Methodist

I thought we sang very well yesterday.

Here's a message to us from the pastor, Reid Crotty:

Thank you very much for coming to Bluff Park yesterday. I have heard so many comments about how much people enjoyed hearing the UAB Choir. It was a real treat for us. The music was outstanding, and you chose a very nice collection of pieces. Please convey our appreciation to the choir members. They certainly represented UAB well.

It’s encouraging to know that your program is preparing another generation of gifted musicians and people who appreciate great music for our community. You are always welcome here.

Thanks,

Reid Crotty

UAB in the news

Looks like we are consolidating before we restructure:

The University of Alabama at Birmingham plans to restructure two of its schools, dropping one department in each, officials said today.

The proposal will help with efficiency and collaboration, said UAB Provost Eli Capilouto, who presented it to the academic affairs committee of the UA System Board of Trustees in Huntsville. The committee approved the plans and the full board will vote Friday.

Under the proposal, the school of business will go from four departments to three: Accounting and Finance; Management, Information Systems and Quantitative Methods; and Marketing, Industrial Distribution and Economics.

The school of social and behavioral sciences will drop from six departments to five. Anthropology will join the history department, and what is now the department of anthropology and social work will become the department of sociology and social work.

And this interesting tidbit is in the comments - is it true?

UA Football is not funded by the general revenues of the UA System. UA Football and the entire UA Athletic Dept is self sufficient. UA Athletics actually contributes at least $1 million annually back to UA academics.

Your statement would be correct if you change it to:

How about UAB academic programs not having to support UAB athletics.

Check out the UAB budgets and you will find that UAB Athletics receives millions of dollars (at least $7 million in some recent years) from UAB general funds. I am sure the Provost can provide you with the exact amounts that UAB Athletics has drained from UAB Academics.

Meet a real facebook stalker

In today's Alabama News:

Court records show Vance gained control of his victims' Yahoo, Hotmail, Facebook and MySpace accounts using several means. In interviews with the FBI, Vance said he would contact his victims through instant messaging and pretend to be a friend or a relative. He convinced some victims to give him their login and password information, saying he was locked out of his own Facebook, MySpace or e-mail account.

He also pretended to be a secret admirer and got his victims to answer intimate questions about their bodies and sexual experiences by promising to reveal his identity after they provided the answers. He then threatened to publicize the information if the victim didn't provide password information.

In more complicated instances, Vance hacked into his victims' e-mail accounts using information from public Facebook pages, which included information such as birth dates, the names of the victims' schools and their hometowns. Password protection on the e-mail accounts would use standard questions such as ZIP code, date of birth or school mascot. Once Vance had control of an e-mail account, he would go to Facebook, pretend he forgot the password and have Facebook send a link to the victims' compromised e-mail account. Vance changed the passwords, locking the victims out of their accounts.

Vance threatened to expose embarrassing details he learned if he didn't get nude photos. He also promised some victims he would relinquish control of the accounts in exchange for nude photos. Most did not meet his demands, but at least two minors and one adult did.

ACDA Download Video

Downloading MP3's from ACDA National Website from philip copeland on Vimeo.

Jauchzet for Chamber Choir

Here it is!

Other holy mp3 magic.

PFC Reid, Christopher G

Everyone,

Chris Reid sent me a hand-written letter from Fort Sill, Oklahoma a couple of weeks ago and I forgot to post it on the blog.

I give it to you now and encourage you to write him:

Dr. Copeland,

I hope all is well with the choir. Being here in Basic Training with no access to music of any kind is killing me. I miss hearing quality music. Hell, I'd even settle for crappy music. I have my address finally. Please pass it on to Dr. Kris and any member of the choir that might wish to have it (and faculty members too).

PFC Reid, Christopher G.
E. Battery, 1/19 FA, 3rd Platoon
402 N.E. South Boundary Road
Fort Sill, OK 73503-8014

Make sure they know not to send anything but letters or pictures (nothing obscene).

I miss everyone at UAB and hope the music program continues its successful path.

Sincerely,

Chris Reid
PFC, US Army

Chris is a great guy . . . please write him and tell him how proud you are of him.

Check out 1:00

Sunday at Bluff Park

Reminder . . we sing Sunday at Bluff Park.  Arrive:  8:00.  Service at 8:45 and 11:00.  Breakfast in between.

Introit:

Glory be to God
Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943)

Offertory:
1.  Os Justi
(Anton Bruckner)

Text:

Os justi meditabitur sapientiam,

et lingua ejus loquetur judicium.

Lex Dei ejus in corde ipsius:

et non supplantabuntur gressus ejus. Alleluia.

Translation:

The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,

and his tongue speaks what is just.

The law of his God is in his heart;

and his feet do not falter. Alleluia

2.  Alleluia

József Karai (b. 1927)
Kiyoshi Scissum, tenor

Anthem:

Beautiful River
William Hawley (b. 1950)

Coffee People are Good People

Read about the good coffee drinkers here in Birmingham - paying it forward:

Sharon Dierking was at a Starbucks on U.S. 280, placing an order for a mocha frappucino. When she pulled up to the window, the barista told her the driver in the car ahead of her had paid for her order.

"I was completely dumbfounded," Dierking said, "but I was thrilled."

Dierking wanted to return the kindness to another, but her car was last in line. A few days later, she was able to pay it forward at a Starbucks in Inverness.

"It makes you feel good and it brightens your day," she said.

Random acts of kindness are popping up at Birmingham area coffee shops, as customers are anonymously picking up others' tabs.

Stacie Elm, a barista at an Alabaster Starbucks, said a line of five cars recently paid it forward. Customers are in a bit of disbelief when they discover their order has been paid for, she said. "Most are like, 'You're kidding.'"

But the shock gives way to generosity as people are compelled to pass along the kind gesture.

Baristas at Starbucks shops in eastern Birmingham, Hoover and Vestavia Hills also reported episodes of paying it forward -- actually, backward, since the person in the front car paid for the person's order in line behind him.

new version of vimeo - choralnet daily

Introducing ChoralNet Daily from philip copeland on Vimeo.

great oxford photo