About Craig Courtney

Internationally known composer, Craig Courtney, is native of Indiana and began playing the piano at the age of 3 and the cello at the age of 11. He received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in piano performance from the University of Cincinnati, studying piano under Raymond Dudley and chamber music under Walter Levin of the LaSalle Quartet. During that time, he was a member of the Pi Kappa Lambda Honorary Music Society.

Following a three-year stay in Milan, Italy, where Courtney studied the piano with Illonka Deckers, performed for the Associazione Musicale “Gustav Mahler,” and worked extensively as a vocal coach, he was invited to join the music faculty of the famed Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria, serving as piano teacher and accompanist for the woodwind and brass department.

It was during this six-year period, while serving in the music ministry of the Salzburg International Baptist Church, that Courtney began directing a church choir and composing sacred choral music, due to the unavailability of English language music. In 1985, his compositions came to the attention of John Ness Beck through the publication of his octavo, Thy Will Be Done, initiating a close working relationship be-tween the two men that continued until Beck’s death in 1987. In making plans for the ongoing of Beckenhorst Press, Beck appointed Craig Courtney to assume his responsibilities as staff composer and editor.

At this point in time, Courtney’s published works include more than 400 choral octavos, nine vocal collections, three piano solo collections and seven extended works for choir and orchestra. His music is performed world-wide and has been translated into multiple foreign languages. He has been a frequent recipient of ASCAP achievement awards and his composition, Peace I Give to You, was awarded first place in the 2003 John Ness Beck Foundation competition. He is also in demand throughout the world as a choral clinician and featured composer.

Warmups are essential. Correct breathing, uniform vowels, perfect intonation and impeccable blend need to be established before rehearsing repertoire. This provides a foundation for beautiful choral tone that can be applied to the repertoire of the day. It can also be useful to locate a difficult passage in the music and turn it into a vocal exercise during the warmup. That way, the choir can manage it with ease once it is placed back into its compositional context.

When teaching a new piece of music, it can be useful to replace lyrics with a neutral vowel, which frees the mind to address pitches and rhythm. Once those are secure, lyrics can be added with ease. Any rhythmically challenging passages can be isolated and spoken rather than sung until the rhythm is secure. I address phrasing and articulation early in the learning process because I have found that introducing these later, after notes and rhythms are secure, results in less stable execution. Also, choirs perform music with the most success when they understand the compositional architecture of each piece of music. I will spend time pulling apart a piece to help the choir understand the purpose of each section and element.

In the beginning of the learning process, my role is large. I am the source of information and direction. As the learning process progresses, my role should diminish and the choir’s role should grow. In other words, each singer must take responsibility for execution instead of expecting me to micromanage. When singing through a piece, I will often ask the choir to identify areas of strength and weakness. This also encourages the members to take ownership and listen objectively to their singing.