The clinician will introduce a new genre that bridges vocal jazz and classical choral traditions: Interactive Choral Music. In this hands-on session, participants will explore improvisation in a vocal group setting—not just melodically, but also rhythmically and harmonically. Going far beyond scat singing, this method invites singers to co-create groove, harmony, and melody within a flexible written framework.
Singers will experiment with improvising chord progressions, building grooves, and inserting their own musical ideas into an evolving structure. This approach allows for modulation, variation, and individual creativity—while maintaining the cohesion of a composed piece.
Participants will learn how to guide their ensembles through these techniques, empowering singers to solo, shape inner parts, and collaborate as composers in real time. This is rhythmic, harmonic, and melodic improvisation—supported by the safety net of the chart. Come ready to sing, create, and reimagine what choral music can be!
Target Audience
High School and College Choir (jazz and classical) students and directors
Additional Notes
Clinician Info
Roger Treece
Roger Treece Music
Roger Treece is a five-time Grammy nominee, composer, producer, arranger, and vocalist whose work bridges classical, jazz, pop, and experimental choral music. He has produced artists such as Bobby McFerrin, Josh Groban, Andrew Lloyd Webber, The Manhattan Transfer, and The King’s Singers, and has been commissioned by the Chicago Symphony, Danish Radio Symphony, LA Master Chorale, and others.
Roger’s arrangement of “Baby” (Bobby McFerrin’s VOCAbuLarieS) was the first a cappella piece ever nominated for Best Instrumental Arrangement at the Grammys.
As a clinician and educator, he’s taught at the University of Washington, LA College of Music, and led workshops for ACDA, JEN, Chorus America, and international choral festivals.
He is the author of CircleSongs: A Method for Developing Musical Fluency and Musical Fluency, and has conducted his works worldwide, including at Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Vienna Opera House, and the Oregon Bach Festival.