On January 15, 2011, the Davenport Chordbusters will host their first ever Youth In Harmony workshop, ACAPPELLOOZA . The workshop will have experienced music clinicians run a day-long workshop with the assistance of chapter members. Our Youth in Harmony chairman, along with the President of the Chordbusters, has been in contact with the music educators from several area schools who have shown an interest in promoting and attending this workshop with students from their schools.

The ACAPPELLOOZA workshop will run from 8:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, January 15, 2011, at St. Ambrose University, with the main clinicians being Dr. Keith Haan, Director of Choral Activities at St. Ambrose University; and Stephanie Batten, Director of the Port City Pearls Chorus of Muscatine, Iowa. They will be assisted by two teaching quartets, A Touch of Fun and Mini Pearls. The workshop will be attended by students from Davenport Assumption, United Township, Sherrard, and Kewanee Wethersfield high schools.

The activities for the day include : vocal warm-up exercises, separate sectional rehearsals for males and females in which the registrants will practice their respective vocal part (tenor, lead, baritone and bass) on five songs. One of these songs will performed by a combined male and female chorus. The workshop will be followed by a general session in which the combined number will be rehearsed together, along with an explanation of the evening event. ACAPPELLOOZA participants will gain increased vocal production and stage presence skills.

Each participant will be given a souvenir t-shirt to wear during the evening show at the Galvin Fine Arts Center, where they will perform on stage with the Chordbusters, the Port City Pearls Chorus and chapter quartets. The show starts at 7 p.m. and admission is only $5.00.

It is our hope that, through this workshop and evening show, these high school participants and teachers can experience the joy that singing this style of music can bring. It is our heartfelt goal to Keep the Whole World Singing one student at a time.

Funding for this workshop has been provided by Quad City Arts, The Barbershop Harmony Society and The Chordbusters.

The Chordbusters, aka SPEBSQSA A-008 Davenport, Iowa Chapter, is a non-profit singing organization, affiliated with the Barbershop Harmony Society. Over the past few years, our Society has encouraged each chapter to appoint a Youth in Harmony chairman whose job would be to increase exposure of this particular style of singing and our organization to area youth. It is the hope of the Chordbuster Chorus that this increase in exposure will lead to an infusion of young male and female singers in the high school choirs singing a cappella, barbershop style music.

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For more information on the Chordbusters you can find us at www.thechordbusters.com .

Tracks: The Railroad in Photographs from the George Eastman House Collection makes its way to the Figge Art Museum, Davenport, on January 15th, 2011. Organized by the George Eastman House, Tracks covers 160 years of railroad history in photography. Both the railway and photography developed concurrently at the beginning of the 19th century and shared similar impressions on people's view of previously unseen landscapes. These inventions permitted, for the first time, a person's ability to be transported, both visually and physically, to worlds they had only previously imagined. Both forever changed the way the world was perceived.

Tracks offers the opportunity to learn about the history of the railroad and to visualize its impact on our country's development. The exhibition contains some of the earliest photographs of trains and railway scenes up through the end of the 20th century. In this survey of railroad images from around the world, trains appear as potent emblems of the modern industrial age and as crucial role players in transformation of the social and physical landscape. Included is the work of legendary photographers: Bisson Frères, Aaron Siskind, Henri Cartier-Bresson, and William Henry Jackson.

Tracks will be accompanied by a companion exhibition of photographic prints in a separate gallery that will explore the history and significance of the railway in the Quad Cities area. Crossing the Mississippi: The Quad Cities, the Railroad and Art includes works on loan from the Rock Island Arsenal Museum, the Richardson-Sloane Special Collections Center of the Davenport Public Library and the Putnam Museum.

Both exhibitions are sure to please a variety of audiences; including history buffs, lovers of the American West, but especially photography and rail enthusiasts.

Guided group tours are available for the exhibition as well as full museum tours to enhance your visit. Contact the Figge Art Museum at 563.326.7804 or visit online at figgeart.org for more information.

Tracks is funded, in part, by the Riverboat Development Authority and the Iowa Arts Council.

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In the groundbreaking documentary "Race to Nowhere," concerned mother turned filmmaker Vicki Abeles embarks on an inquiry into the insanely hectic lives of America's overstressed, overscheduled, overcompetitive students.  Students rushing from class to sports practice and from volunteer work to homework, increasingly relying on stimulants and sleep deprivation, are facing consequences ranging from depression to eating disorders to suicide.  The film points to the silent epidemic in our schools: cheating becoming commonplace, students becoming disengaged, and young people arriving at college and the workplace unprepared and uninspired.  "Race to Nowhere" is changing the dialogue on education, with nationwide coverage including the Today Show and Oprah.

How do we foster healthy development while maintaining rigorous, high-quality curriculum?  Experts agree that increasing student voice in the classroom increases engagement and encourages real learning instead of memorization.  Research shows that students who believe teachers listen to them and want to get to know them are more engaged in learning, less likely to cheat, and show fewer signs of stress.  In addition, experts recommend giving students quality time off and productive ways to cope with stress.

At Rivermont Collegiate, small classes and a continued relationship with a faculty advisor encourage in-depth student-teacher interaction and provide focused attention and support.  Students are encouraged to customize their education and design their own "Rivermont experience."  Rivermont features a nurturing, balanced environment where character counts as much as grades do.  Final exams followed by holiday, winter, and spring breaks offer quality time off and designated "no homework" nights allow students to enjoy extracurriculars without the added stress of homework.  Students are encouraged to participate in numerous stress-relieving activities, from video game parties at the end of finals week to yoga and knitting during "mini period."

What are you waiting for?  Explore the Rivermont approach to learning!  Join us for Open Tours the first Tuesday of every month.  The next Open Tour will be held Tuesday, January 4th from 8:30-10:00 a.m.  No appointment necessary!  Drop in to explore our philosophy and curriculum, take a tour of campus, and see our teachers in action.  Rivermont Collegiate is the Quad Cities' only PS-12th private, independent, nonsectarian college prep school, located at 1821 Sunset Drive, directly off 18th Street behind K&K Hardware in Bettendorf.

In a grassroots sensation, theaters and schools nationwide are hosting community screenings of "Race to Nowhere."  The film will play in Des Moines, IA at Fleur Cinema & Café on January 25th at 7:30 p.m., as well as several locations in Illinois throughout January and February.

For additional information, including screening locations, visit http://www.racetonowhere.com

For additional information on Rivermont Collegiate or Tuesday's Open Tours, contact Cindy Murray at (563) 359-1366 ext. 302 or murray@rvmt.org

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