Author Archives: jody7711

The Choral Commons Conversation

Dr. Emilie Amrein (University of San Diego) and Dr. Andre DeQuadros (Boston University) hosted an hour-long session with Jody Kerchner (OMAG Choir founder/director) and Jerome Thompson (OMAG Choir founding member & restored citizen) on March 10, 2021 as a part of The Choral Commons Prison Arts series on Facebook. In this conversation, we discuss howContinue reading “The Choral Commons Conversation”

“Oberlin Stage Left” Highlights Oberlin Prison Music Facilitators

LINK: <https://www.oberlin.edu/conservatory/stage-left&gt; Arts Bar None When Oberlin Professor of Music Education Jody Kerchner started a choir, from scratch, at Grafton Correctional Institution, it was not something she’d had on her bucket list. Now, five years and many rehearsals later, Kerchner joins former OMAG student choir assistants and Oberlin Strings facilitators for a chat about how their communityContinue reading ““Oberlin Stage Left” Highlights Oberlin Prison Music Facilitators”

Choir in the Age of Coronavirus

It’s Friday afternoon. At this very moment, my choir assistant and I would be in the midst of an OMAG rehearsal. But not for the past two weeks and not for the foreseeable future. Volunteering and visitation have been suspended at the prison until further notice. There’s so much uncertainty in this age of coronavirus.Continue reading “Choir in the Age of Coronavirus”

Art, Family, Community: Pt. 2

“Beauty before me. Beauty behind me. Beauty above and below and all around.” These are the words of a song that the OMAG Choir singers “signed” and performed during the first GCI Arts Gala. In preparation of the Arts Gala, I sought volunteers to introduce each song the Choir was to perform. The men wroteContinue reading “Art, Family, Community: Pt. 2”

Arts, Family, Community: Part 1

To celebrate creative endeavors at the prison, the GCI deputy warden and director of recreational activities collaborated with arts facilitators volunteering within the prison to host the first ever “Arts Gala.” The groups—OMAG Choir, OStrings, Poetry, and Visual Arts— presented a two-day event, the first performance date for the residents’ families/friends and the second forContinue reading “Arts, Family, Community: Part 1”

College Student Choir Assistants

One of the joys I’ve experienced as a prison choir facilitator is volunteering alongside of students in my college classes and in choir assistantship capacities. Most semesters since the inception of the OMAG Choir I have selected one or two undergraduate students who serve as OMAG Choir Assistants. These students typically have bass/tenor voices andContinue reading “College Student Choir Assistants”

An Existential Crisis

When I reflect on my time facilitating group-singing with the Grafton OMAG v.1 and v.2 Choirs, I find myself grateful that these music-making experiences have become a life “passion point.” You know, those experiences that bring great joy, satisfaction, occasional heartbreak and frustration, and connection to others. I’ve learned so much about myself, my values,Continue reading “An Existential Crisis”

Endings & Beginnings

It was the Spring of 2018. The OMAG members and I were told that there would be a “de-population” at the minimum-security, reintegration prison in which we rehearsed. What did that mean? The prison administration said that the reintegration center would be undergoing significant construction (primarily roofing), so they needed to place the residents inContinue reading “Endings & Beginnings”

Conducting Research Within the Prison System

In 2017, I was asked to write a research chapter on group-singing in prison. This chapter would ultimately be included in a multi-volume work entitled, The Routledge Companion to Interdisciplinary Studies in Singing, Vol. 3, “Wellbeing” (Annabel Cohen, Series Editor). I was uncertain whether or not the OMAG singers would wish to participate, and IContinue reading “Conducting Research Within the Prison System”