Every Voice Choirs Annual Report 2015-2016 Nicole Becker, Executive Director Every Voice Choirs Board of Directors 2015-2016 Nancy Woodruff Ment, Board President Jeanne Goffi-Fynn, Secretary Daniel Fishbane, Treasurer Suzanne Murphy, Director Every Voice Choirs P.O. Box 250646 New York, NY 10031 www.everyvoicechoirs.org info@everyvoicechoirs.org Table of Contents Message from the Executive Director... 3 Core Programs: Kids Choir and Youth Choir... 4 Audition Prep and Young Men's Vocal Workshops... 5 Concert Choir and Hunter Singers... 6 Performances in NYC... 7 Financial Statement... 8 Supporters... 9 Looking Ahead... 10
Discovering Voices and Sharing Them with Pride 2
Message From the Executive Director This year Every Voice Choirs was recognized by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs for the cultural services it provides to the people of New York City. EVC is proud to take its place among cultural institutions supported by, and contributing to, our city. We have expanded beyond the walls of Teachers College into New York s finest concert halls and started our first school satellite choir. EVC s core programs, the Kids Choir and Youth Choir, continued to demonstrate the excellence that can be achieved in un-auditioned choirs when kids, valued for the diverse abilities and interests they bring to choir, are fully engaged and invested in their work. Our newest program at Teachers College, The Young Men s Vocal Ensemble, has widened the scope of our work of discovering voices. The Concert Choir has continued to perform in exciting collaborations with artists and ensembles in New York, and members of the Audition Prep Workshop were accepted to New York s finest specialized performing arts high schools, including LaGuardia High School of Music and Art. While our programs have grown, the fraction of operating costs covered by EVC s program revenue has remained less than one half. Grants cover a small portion of the remainder, but our largest source of funding remains donations by individual supporters. I am so grateful to the families of EVC singers and to the members of our board of directors who generously donate to support the unique work EVC does to serve young people in New York City. It is with utmost appreciation that I share with you images of the work that your support has made possible this year. Singing in the Rain outside Teachers College Ready to perform at Merkin Hall Sincerely, Nicole Becker Executive Director and Artistic Director Every Voice Choirs The Young Men s Vocal Workshop 3
Every Voice Kids and Youth Choir Singing Their Own Words EVC s distinctive approach comes from valuing the diverse gifts that young people bring to our work. We provide opportunities for children to share their voices in myriad ways throughout our rehearsal process. In Kids Choir, rehearsals begin with our hello song in which kids take turns leading the group in improvisations. We often write new words to our songs together, and kids choreograph gestures and dance moves. The Kids Choir s performance in our winter concert of Yonder Come Day included the children s original ideas about the kind of days they look forward to an exciting day getting a new pet, a friendly day with a play date, and a happy day when people treat each other well. Singing games in Kids Choir Choreographing Let It Grow In Youth Choir, rehearsals include weekly sound circles in which singers layer improvised patterns of singing and body percussion, building on a theme and then reflecting together on the musical outcomes. We then build upon this work with a more structured composition project. Led by Carlton Taylor, the Youth Choir debuted its second original song this spring. We Can Start Today built on the kids responses to prompts about what they love in nature, what we can do to preserve the earth, and why it matters. The song closed with a vamp in which Youth Choir singers improvised individually in performance! For a video of the performance, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ps4djogcs_m Soloists improvising in We Can Start Today in performance at Manhattan School of Music 4
Vocal Workshops Audition Prep singers with adjudicators after mock auditions The Audition Prep Workshop, led by EVC s Voice Specialist Dr. Jeanne Goffi-Fynn, provides individualized vocal training, with a focus specifically on preparing its singers for auditions for New York City s specialized performing arts high schools. This fall six young women participated in the workshop, four of whom auditioned this year. In preparation for their auditions, singers participated in mock auditions adjudicated by voice professionals in New York. The work paid off: two EVC graduates will attend LaGuardia High School for Performing Arts and one will attend Talent Unlimited! Congratulations to all! Audition Prep Workshop performing Glory at Merkin Concert Hall Responding to the need expressed by the families of several Youth Choir alumni, EVC s Voice Specialist, Dr. Jeanne Goffi- Fynn started a new program this year: the Young Men's Vocal Workshop. It is designed to help male singers ages 12-16 build confidence and vocal technique as they navigate the voice change. Students sing in the range that is comfortable for them in the company of peers and supported by graduate interns who model healthy (and happy) male singing. In addition to performing in EVC s two major concerts, The Young Men s Vocal Workshop presented its own concert, The Transformers at Milbank Chapel at Teachers College in May. Blue Skies 5
The Every Voice Concert Choir The Concert Choir, EVC s auditioned ensemble, was a small group this year, but they had a big impact in their collaborations with artists in New York City. The group appeared as guest performers with The Teachers College Community Choir in its concert, A Winter s Night at Milbank Chapel at Columbia University Teachers College. Then, in a step in a new direction, The Concert Choir performed the debut of the song Guardian Angel with pop singer Meredith O Connor at a benefit for the Carol Galvin Foundation for Women s Cancer. It was a great evening - Concert Choir on the red carpet! In addition to its special collaborations, the Concert Choir performed challenging repertoire in EVC s main concerts. Next year holds more excitement for The Concert Choir; The Cecilia Chorus of New York has commissioned Syrian composer Zaid Jabri to write a piece for adult choir, children s choir, and orchestra for a performance at Carnegie Hall, and they have chosen EVC s Concert Choir, once again, to join them on the great stage. Mr. Jabri visited us in the spring and was very inspired by meeting the children and seeing them in action. We can t wait to see what he writes for our voices. The Carol Galvin Foundation benefit A Winter s Night with the Teachers College Choir The Hunter Singers It has long been part of EVC s vision to create local choirs through schools or other communities. This year we launched our first school satellite program at Hunter College Elementary School. In addition to performing at EVC s main concerts, the Hunter singers performed at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Manhattan Borough President Gail Brewer and leadership from Hunter College, as well as in several performances for friends and peers at school. We were thrilled that several Hunter students joined EVC s choirs at TC as well. Hunter Singers performing Sesere Eeye at Merkin Hall 6
Performing in NYC s Finest Concert Halls Every Voice Choirs made its debut at Merkin Concert Hall at the Kaufman Music Center for its winter concert, Peace Seekers IV: Lift Every Voice in January. We are proud to bring our annual program that focuses on social justice to larger audiences, and it was a thrill to perform in the fabulous space. Our spring concert, at Manhattan School of Music s Borden Hall, was also a great success. EVC s Combined Choirs performing at Merkin Concert Hall at the Kaufman Music Center in Peace Seekers IV: Lift Every Voice 7
Financial Report for 2015-2016 BEGINNING CASH BALANCE 4,542 REVENUE: EXPENSES: PUBLIC SUPPORT PROGRAM Grants 10,000 Music Directors (28,225) Private Donations 10,546 Programs Manager (4,628) Fundraisers 1,105 Payroll Tax (MD & CM) (2,738) TOTAL 21,651 Teaching Assistant (1,800) Rehearsal Accompanists (155) Concert Production: Musicians (1,650) PROGRAM REVENUE Tuition (see right for detail) 33,652 Concert Production: Venue (6,447) Concert Seat Revenue 7,285 Concert Production: Other (1,685) Contract Services HCES 9,028 Scholarships (3,900) TOTAL 49,965 Sheet Music & Materials (1,162) TOTAL (52,391) TOTAL REVENUE: 71,615 OPERATING AND ADMIN Executive Director (5,999) Business Manager (6,935) Payroll Tax (ED & BM) (1,064) Accountant (1,313) Financial Services Fees (1,697) Filing Fees (50) Insurance (2,133) Online Presence (497) Postage (191) Marketing (488) Meals & Entertainment (34) Office Supplies & Software (719) TOTAL (21,121) FUNDRAISING Development Consultants (1,065) TOTAL (1,065) TOTAL EXPENSES (74,576) CASH FLOW CURRENT PERIOD (2,961) BALANCE END OF PERIOD 1,581 8
EVC s Supporters Every Voice Choirs, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that depends on donations from its supporters to carry out its mission of helping young people discover their voices and share them with pride. We are extremely grateful to our donors for making our work possible. If you would like to support Every Voice Choirs, please consider making a tax-deductible contribution. You may donate through our website, www.everyvoicechoirs.org, or send your donation to: Every Voice Choirs P.O. Box 2506 New York, NY 10025 We gratefully acknowledge the generous support of our donors from July 1, 2015-June 30, 2016: Up to $99 Rosalind Black & Michael Nelson John & Jennifer Bradley Christina Chuliver Erin Dusch & Derek Utter Nadia Elrokshy & Conor Gaffney Aniek Etuk Gautam Guliani Kim Kefgen & Richard Hodge Marit Larson & Adam Soel Robin & Kheil McIntyre Miri Navasky Mandira Sen Simona Suh Melissa Welsh & Kevin Daly Ellen Yeoh $100-$249 David Beach & Russell Granet Meredith & Joshua Davis Carol Giffen & Nick Montano David & Liz Kramer David & Ellen Malterre Alex & Colleen Manzo The Moufflet Family Vanessa Howe-Jones & Sam Johnson $250-$499 Oksana & John Foy Leslie Inunza Heather & Michael Hall $500-$999 Smita Biswas & Raja Sundaram Suzanne M. Murphy & Jeff Barker $1000-$4999 Nicole Becker & Andrew Ment Jonathan & Arika Couchman Daniel Fishbane The Fynn Family David & Nancy Woodruff Ment $5000 and up The HILO Foundation The NYC Department of Cultural Affairs 9
Looking Forward and Back: Goals for the Organization Every Voice Choirs has grown steadily since its founding in 2012. With only a single choir at our outset, we have expanded our offerings each year: in 2013 we added the Kids Choir; in 2014 the Concert Choir and Audition Prep Workshop; and in 2015 The Young Men s Vocal Workshop and our first satellite school program at Hunter Elementary School. EVC s operating budgets have also grown steadily, increasing by approximately $20,000 every year. This year we received our first governmental grant. We have been on a steady trajectory of serving increasing numbers of young people and establishing ourselves as a significant cultural resource in New York City. This growth has been possible largely because of the significant donations of time of our musical and administrative leadership. Acknowledging that the current level of volunteerism is not sustainable, we have decided to put a hold on program growth until we catch up with capacity building and program funding. We have focused significant energy on applying for additional governmental grants for the coming year, hopeful that as we continue to establish ourselves in the city we will achieve recognition and support at the state and national levels as well. In the coming year, we will continue to prioritize development of fundraising strategy, including pursuing corporate funding and identifying private foundations that might support our work. As we expand the membership of our board of directors, we hope to welcome members that can lead these efforts. With full funding of our programs achieved, we will return to our dreams for new programs; the list itself has not stopped growing, fueled by the needs of our current members and families. At the top of the list are the Every Voice Intergenerational Choir and the Music Theater Workshop. In addition, we would like to expand our school satellite program in order to serve more students that may otherwise not have access to programs like ours. This will require grant funds so that we can offer the program at a lower cost (or no cost) to the schools themselves (Hunter funded its EVC choir.) Last, there are many eager younger siblings of choir members who are still clamoring for Every Voice Little Kids, and we have hated to keep them waiting. Hopefully in this message next year, we can share the good news about funding that will allow these dreams to come true. Board of Directors Nancy Ment, President P.O. Box 250646 New York, NY 10025 Jeanne Goffi-Fynn, Secretary Lecturer in Music and Music Education Teachers College Columbia University P.O. Box 250646 New York, NY 10025 Daniel Fishbane P.O. Box 250646 New York, NY 10025 Suzanne Murphy Vice President for External Affairs, Teachers College Columbia University P.O. Box 250646 New York, NY 10025 If you would be interested in serving on the Board of Directors for Every Voice Choirs, please contact Nancy Ment, President of the Board at nancymentny@gmail.com. 10
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