Tuesday, September 26, 2023
Vocalists from Milwaukee School for the Arts' Jazz Ensemble brought the audience for 2023's State of Education Address to their feet in standing ovation. The DPI's Chris Gleason, Consultant for Arts and Creativity in the Division of Teaching and Learning, wanted to know more about the group and their director, Raymond Roberts. What follows is their conversation, edited for this format.
Gleason: How did your experiences with music growing up lead you to music education, and MHSA?
Raymond Roberts: I am grateful that my parents made some sacrifices to afford music lessons for me and my siblings. I started piano lessons early and I enjoyed it so much that I was often told to stop practicing and go outside and play! I was so connected to making music in school and the way it shaped every aspect of my life as a student that I simply felt compelled to seek out opportunities to connect students to those same life-changing experiences I had with music as the central component of my school experience.
I was a student teacher at Milwaukee High School of the Arts in 1991. Sadly, at the end of that school year, my cooperating teacher, Ms. Kathryn Berthold, passed away unexpectedly. I was then brought in to complete the school year and have been in this position since then.
Gleason: Tell us more about the group that performed at the State of Education Address.
Raymond Roberts:The Milwaukee HS of the Arts Vocal Jazz Ensemble is an award winning group, comprised of the most advanced singers from the vocal music program. Dedicated to the study and perpetuation of America’s music- jazz, the curricular focus is centered on improvisation, utilizing both solo and ensemble repertoire as the vehicle for spontaneous musical creation.
This ensemble has performed at numerous conferences and festivals, including the Wisconsin Choral Directors Association State Conference (2013), North Central American Choral Directors Association Conference (2014), the ACDA National Conference in Salt Lake City (2015) and the Midwest American Choral Directors Association Conference in Milwaukee (2020). The group has received 9 Downbeat Magazine Student Music Awards since 2014. They have also performed with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra and have recently been featured prominently in two documentaries on Wisconsin Public Television.
Individual students from this ensemble have received recognition from several national competitions, including the Grammy Foundation All Star Vocal Jazz Ensemble, the YoungArts scholarship competition, and the NAACP ACT-SO competition.
Gleason: What did this performance at the State of Education Address mean to you and your students?
Raymond Roberts:This performance meant a great deal to both me and the members of the Vocal Jazz Ensemble. We, collectively, are so proud of the work we do and the levels of artistic excellence that we strive to achieve. An invitation to perform and share that work with such an esteemed group of leaders that, quite literally, shape the landscape that impacts the entire state of Wisconsin is an extraordinary privilege.
We were honored to represent MHSA, Milwaukee Public Schools, and the city of Milwaukee!
Gleason: The capitol rotunda is indeed beautiful but can present challenges to music ensembles performing within its walls. What work did you do with the group to prepare them to perform in this unique space?
Raymond Roberts: We prepared for this unique challenge by singing in some of the spaces in our own building that would help the students hear a great deal of reverberation while they sing, like stairwells and enclosed spaces with hard surfaces off of which the sound waves would bounce. Obviously, this occurred on a much smaller scale than the vast dimensions of the capitol building, but it still proved helpful in preparing for the reward of the reverberation and the length of the decay.
Gleason: What is something that folks might not know about you, your classroom, this ensemble, or your school that you would like to share?
Raymond Roberts: I am very proud of the fact that there are multiple generations that have been part of the Milwaukee HS of the Arts Vocal Music program during my 33 years teaching here. I am approaching the pretty significant landmark of having taught 100 children of former students! The gift of song that students cultivate and refine during their musical studies at MHSA continues to resonate throughout the city, state, nation, and around the world through the voices singing in their church choirs, in the local music scene, in their own music classrooms, as professional performers, and for their own enjoyment. And, they still feel deeply connected to the program and support it in myriad ways. MHSA will always be a beautiful singing community.
Gleason: How can we stay up to date with performances and what you are doing in your classroom?
Raymond Roberts: All are invited to follow the school on social media platforms and the performance calendar: