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March 2004 Table of Contents
Youth Choir
Age, Love, and the Big Event
By Dennis Allen
Student choirs are alive and well! Nan and I see them every year at youth choir events around the country, like SONPOWER in Orlando and San Antonio.
However, before I get into the particulars of this one event, let me give you my "State of the Students" address. Not that I'm the President or anything, but Nan and I have been closely connected to student choirs for over a quarter of a century now, ever since our seminary church in 1975. Yes, we still write a lot of youth choir music and drama, but we don't stop with our writing. Just like many of you, we meet every week with students, in rehearsals, in Bible study, in sharing life. Some years it has been with high school age, and this particular year, it's been the college-career age. So, we see first-hand what's going on.
My "State of the Students" address, should I ever officially make one, would include several significant points. The first is, age doesn't matter. I am currently 51, and I have never thought that my relevance with students was declining. The reason is that I love students. The secret to student choirs is loving the students. When you love them, you aren't bound by your own (and sometimes outdated) ways of looking at things. You are flexible and adaptable to whatever works best with your students...sometimes it's choral, sometimes it's visual, sometimes it's dramatic, sometimes it's all of them. Nan and I will celebrate 30 years of marriage in December of 2004, and if I was still doing things as a husband the way I did them 30 years ago, we'd been in trouble. Times change, music changes, communication mediums change...YOU need to change to make ministry significant. Your love will show in your sacrifice of your comfort zone for the success of your ministry. Age is never an excuse for "passing the youth choir to someone else." Students are as willing as ever to come to events planned for them by a leader, who clearly loves them, and is willing to connect with them. The very notion that youth choirs are declining sickens me, because the inference is that ministry to students is not as important as in the past. Maybe our traditional forms need rethinking, but students are more in need of a word from the Lord than ever. Let us continue to use the wonderful mediums of music arts, dramatic arts, and visual arts with our students. How you do it needs to match the times, and your group...but the need to do it is beyond discussion.
The second major point in my "State of the Students" address would be the need for The "Big Event." Two significant writers on working with youth choirs are Randy Edwards ("Revealing Riches and Building Lives," Morningstar Music Publishers) and Ron Cochran ("Basic Training, Vols. 1,2,3 Production Resources) You need to know what these wonderful writers have to say about working with students. I especially remember Ron's writings on "The Big Event." If you want a program to decline, simply rehearse with no objective out in front of you. One of the keys to any music ministry group is an upcoming big event to work towards. It may be a concert at a nursing home, may be a choir tour, may be a trip to an amusement park, may be all three. I have never experienced anything better than the good old-fashioned youth choir trip. You get a busload of kids together for a week or two, and none of you comes back the same. The stories of significant ministry that still come up when I see former choir members almost always center on some trip we took, some concert we sang, some child at a Backyard Bible Club we organized. The "Big Event" can be anything you like, but it is the key to recruiting, to attendance, to motivation, to attitude, to excellence with any age group...especially students.
So, no matter your age, check your love quotient, then start some planning for a great event to challenge your students. There are several mass youth choir events throughout the year that you can discover, however one of the best "Big Events" I know is SONPOWER, sponsored by Lifeway Christian Resources. This July week has been the happening place for student choirs for many years now, and 2004 promises to be the best ever! Nan and I have been a part of SONPOWER for six years now, so let me share some of the details.
The date for SONPOWER ORLANDO event is July 5-9, 2004 and for SONPOWER SAN ANTONIO the dates are July 19-23, 2004. At both locations, students are provided a wide variety of opportunities. The schedule for each day involves a combination of music rehearsals with over 1000 students, Bible studies with some of best teachers/pastors, drama workshops led by Nan Allen, mission opportunities of every kind, the very best Christian artist in concert, and more. The week ends on Friday with a live recording of the students singing a new student music collection, followed by a celebration concert that night.
Some new features for 2004 include an open mic/Karaoke event, Talent Night, and student-led worship opportunities. The main speaker for Orlando is Ben Pilgreen: founder and president of Worldwide Encounters. In San Antonio, the main speaker is Pete Wilson: church planter, currently Senior Pastor, Cross Point Church, Nashville, TN.
One of the features at both locations this summer is Casting Crowns, live in concert. Casting Crowns is one of the most exciting, up-and- coming Christian artist groups in America. Included in the music collection are three of their newest hit songs, arranged for student choir.
Speaking of the music collection, each year, included in the registration fee, all SONPOWER participants receive a copy of a brand new student music collection. Also, each church receives a copy of the CD accompaniment track for rehearsal. Each church works individually on the songs ahead of the event, and then gather at SONPOWER for combined rehearsals each day, leading to the live recording on Friday. Over 1000 students together, singing these exciting songs...wow, what a thrill!
The mission opportunities for each week are an optional part of each afternoon, but many of the churches discover meaningful experiences for their students through these mission events. A local sponsor will provide all needed information and coordination for your mission location. Your experience could combine backyard Bible study, music, drama...whatever you like.
Also, most student groups take advantage of the exciting entertainment venues available in both Orlando and San Antonio. Nowhere else in America can you find two cities with more fun!
So, get out your 2004 summer calendar right now, and pick your destination. Your students will be thrilled you did! We'll look forward to meeting your students there!
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