Hope for a Better

Tomorrow…
Presented by the Storrs Middle School Choir
Directed By Margaret Fagan

December 15th, 2016

7pm
Dear parent/guardian,

I am very happy that your wonderful child has decided to be a part of the Storrs
Middle School Choir this year! Being a member of this choir has been such a large
commitment and I happy to say that your child has achieved at every task given to
him/her. This year was especially great because I was able to work with my students on
coming up with a program theme for this concert and they got to choose the songs in
which they thought we should include! With very little guidance from myself, I would
like to present you with the music your child adores to sing. Enjoy “Hope for a Better
Tomorrow”!

Each piece chosen for this concert has to do with the idea that Hope is a healing
force that can bring about positive change in all aspects of life. In many the facets of the
word, hope is used to comfort those who are sad by providing reasons to never let a bad
situation overcome the pursuit of happiness, success, and peace. Hope promotes people to
create achievable goals that can put one on the pathway to achievement for themselves
and those around them. Through this idea of hope, I want this concert to reflect on the
amazing talents of each one of my students and remind them that with hope, no matter
what is going on in their lives or the world, they play a role in molding the future for the
better.

I would also like to take this time to thank the families of all of the students
involved in this program because it would be nothing without you and your support!

Program:

Who Can Sail Without the Wind? – arr. Dan Forrest

Hand in Hand – Rollo Dilworth
Inscription of Hope – Z. Randall Stroope – STAB
Amani – Audrey Snyder
Imagine – Arr. Marc Huff
Give Us Hope – Jim Papoulis

Why I chose each specific piece:

Who Can Sail Without the Wind? – arr. Dan Forrest

While originally from Sweden, this folksong became popular among
Swedish immigrants in the American upper Midwest. It would have had particular
meaning for early Scandinavian immigrants singing about leaving their homeland,
although the theme of the text is broadly applicable to other “partings” as well.
The contours of the piano accompaniment should suggest waves against a boat,
while the haunting vocal melody floats above it. -Dan Forrest

I decided on this piece because it is about leaving a familiar place and

finding a new home in a realm of uncertainty. Without an idea of hope, the
immigrants would never have had the determination or motivation to continue
their lives. It is also a diverse piece because it deals with issues in which my
students may not have ever heard of before in history or social studies, so it
allows us to talk about what it may have been like to be one of those immigrants,
and we can connect certain feelings back to their lives to make it more personal.

Hand in Hand – Rollo Dilworth

“Walk with me, sing with me, work with me” – this song encourages
understanding and unity with a steady and rhythmic energy that just builds and
builds!

I chose this piece because it is a gospel work that has an inspirational

message of harmony and being able to talk to work with others. I think that it
would be a wonderful piece to start a conversation about events in society that my
students believe can be solved if people took time to understand one another. This
ties back to the idea of hope because I want my students to be able to work with
other people without hesitation and despite differences in culture, race, ethnicity,
gender, etc. and encourage others to do the same.

Inscription of Hope – Z. Randall Stroope – STAB

I chose this piece because of its very unique background and history. Its
text was written on a cellar wall during the rise of Nazi Germany, and when
joined with original music it creates an emotional expression of hope in which
anyone can appreciate. It also includes a brief narration and the echo of a Russian
folk melody. It can easily be ties back to students world history lessons and then
brought out to talk about treating people like equals no matter their cultural
backgrounds. It can also be used to talk about how even in very tough times, the
idea of hope can help one pull through.
Amani – Audrey Snyder
This work is a beautiful piece written in Swahili text with traditional
African text. It was written in an African style, who learned all of their congs by
rote, so I would want to follow this tradition and teach this song to my kids by
rote to keep the authentic style. Amani translated means peace and this song
sounds incredibly joyful. I chose this work because I believe that it would be
incredibly fun to learn and sing and it includes many solos, humming, stomping,
percussion, and clapping, making it very interactive.

Imagine – Arr. Mac Huff

I chose this work because my students will hopefully already know
it very well already, so they can easily connect to it. It also has an incredibly
hopeful message, as it encourages the listener and performers to imagine a world
at peace without the barriers of borders or divisions of religion and nationality,
and to consider the possibility that the focus of humanity should be living a life
unattached to material possessions. I think it is incredibly important to choose
songs from a pop genre because my students will be comfortable singing and
making it their own.

Give Us Hope – Jim Papoulis

Give Us Hope is a powerful song that expresses a message for hope for the
future, hope for love, and hope to be heard. With my students, I want to talk about
the backstory of this piece because children going through hard times song wrote
it for their voices to be heard. I can use this message to talk to my students about
what they might be going through inside and outside of school and the feeling of
not having a voice. Through engaging in this song, I want my students to feel
empowered to bring the message of the piece to their families and community.
Presented by the Storrs Middle School Choir
Directed by Margaret Fagan

Join us for a night filled with joy, celebration,

music, optimism, and most importantly:
HOPE