The
International
Schools
Choral
Music
Society
(ISCMS)
was
set
up
in
2007
to
address
the
dire
need
to
bring
Western
Choral music to
International students in this region. For our music students to
develop and grow it is necessary to offer them the same opportunities
they would receive if they studied in their home countries. The
founder, Shane O'Shea, contacted the Professor of Music at Trinity
College Dublin and discussed the setting up of such a group. With his
help and encouragement, ISCMS was formed. Apart from offering our
students a chance to study and perform Western Choral music, we offer
them a unique chance to study under the world’s top practitioners in
areas that are related to the IB set works, and the IB course in
general. Dr. Martin Adams is one of the world’s premier scholars in the
music of Henry Purcell. As part of our commitment to education Dr.
Adams offers a symposium on Purcell and his music, with a special
emphasis on Dido and Aeneas, the current IB set work.
We started with four key member schools. They were
Xiamen International School, British School Jakarta, South Island
School Hong Kong and Dulwich College Beijing. These schools still form
the core of the group and continue to drive the operation forward.
The first Festival, February 2008, was held in Dulwich College
Beijing, a performance of the Faure Requiem. The second Festival,
February 2009, was held in South Island School Hong Kong, a performance
of Vivaldi’s Gloria.
Present
The
International Schools Choral Music Society (ISCMS) has
expanded to
include schools from Taiwan, Japan, Thailand, the Philippines, the
United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. We continue to push the boundaries of
expectation and desire in all we do, as we strive to stretch our
students’ minds and musicianship. We have evolved to include
practitioners from Northwestern University, Lock Haven University and
our valued and trusted friends from Trinity College Dublin. The
IB set works have changed, so too have we. We offer symposiums in the
new set works, Mozart’s Symphony 41 and Copland’s El Salon Mexico, and
have included them in the program to be performed in the Gala Concert.
This expansion also includes the venues we use. We have the honor of
performing in China’s number one auditorium, The Forbidden City Concert
Hall. All this
combines to show the remarkable progress made in just over two
years to make ISCMS the number one choral music society of its kind in
this region.
Future
The International Schools Choral Music Society (ISCMS)
will continue to
develop and grow over the next 3 years. It is envisaged that membership
will be limited to 20 International schools from around the world.
These 20 schools will form the core of the group and direct its future
path. The philosophy of music and education will remain and continue to
be at the centre of all we do. We will develop more links with music
colleges, universities and conservatoires. We will invite more
practitioners from these areas to our Festivals and set up
opportunities for our students to gain entry into top class university
or conservatoire music courses around the world.
We will design, develop and implement a constitution
and elect members onto a board every year during our annual
Professional Development weekend for music teachers from member
schools. We will set up an annual Choral Competition whilst continuing
to share music resources throughout the network. We will set up host
schools for the annual Festival for the next 5 years. These areas
combine to form the foundation of what is already the most
professional, progressive and innovative music network in this region.