Keep Calm and Choir On Ryan LaBoy

Join conductor and host, Ryan LaBoy, and his Concert Choir students at North Hennepin Community College for a Special Release Episode of Keep Calm and Choir On, as they celebrate and critique Walt Disney Animation Studio’s The Princess and the Frog. Set against a larger semester study of #BlackMusicMatters, students will share their perspective on the music that makes the movie, the significance of crowning Tiana “The First Black Disney Princess,” and the larger cultural implications of ...

In this Special Release Episode of Keep Calm and Choir On, join students from North Hennepin Community College Concert Choir as they highlight selections from the Justice Choir Songbook— a growing anthology of songs written to reflect contemporary issues of equity and justice and intended for both the concert stage and the streets. Additionally, students will share their insights about the importance of these songs in this moment in history, and freshman alto Jessica will share her perspectiv...

8:46 is a musical meditation on current events following the unjust murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, MN. As our country tailspins in the midst of global pandemic and national riots, join Keep Calm and Choir On's host, Ryan LaBoy, in exploring the vast constellation of human emotions, reclaiming the gift of breath and our call to action, and listening to the voices of the ages to gain wisdom and insight about the world we live in today. This fist episode features Sweet Honey in the Rock'...

Thanks to the success of our first season, we’re back with another six-week installment starting in June to help you cool off and choir on this summer! Keep Calm and Choir On’s Summer Spritzer will feature a series of 30-minute conversations between me and my dear friend and colleague, Natalia Romero Arbeláez, where we share some of our favorite choral music, discuss real world scenarios for preparing and performing each selection, and, finally, pair each piece with a refreshing summer bevera...

“I am horrified everytime I hear people use the word ‘virtual’… we are very real people who are interacting on platforms that may be keeping us physically distanced, but we are still socially connected.” This week, closing out Season 1 of Keep Calm and Carry On, Ryan interviews his classmate, friend, and colleague, G. Phillip Shoultz, III. Laugh along with them as they reminisce about their graduate days at the University of Minnesota and talk about creating the soundtracks of our lives,...

“Here’s an opportunity to be with somebody who I don't have to sit here and spend ten minutes explaining why I chose X, Y, and Z moment when I write… I’ll just say it, and then she goes, “Oh, yea totally!” “What helps is that when we are at home and we practice for these things, we often practice them separately… so that then when we do come together on any project… we are able to still enjoy that.”Keep Calm and Choir On does it’s first double interview featuring the dynamic husband and ...