Anna Callahan is an award-winning arranger and a captivating performer. She has played trumpet and sung in various ensembles ranging from small combos and big bands to tight-harmony vocal jazz groups. Hers is a lifelong dedication to jazz: she wrote and arranged her first jazz composition for big band in high school, where she also won state awards for both vocal jazz and classical trumpet playing. While getting her math degree at the University of Michigan, Anna became the leading force in the newly formed vocal group Amazin' Blue. Under her direction, the group began winning national awards for their recordings and for Anna's arrangements.

Anna is the author of "The Collegiate A Cappella Arranging Manual", published by Hal Leonard and considered the standard text on the subject. She was also one of four arrangers in UAAS, an international service providing arrangements for both a cappella and accompanied vocal groups. By the age of twenty-three Anna had established herself as a gifted arranger. Anna taught Vocal Jazz at California State University at Long Beach where she led award-winning ensembles before she left to concentrate on performing. Anna's rich voice conveys the melody of a jazz standard so purely that you think you're hearing it for the first time; then she surprises you with a scat solo strongly reminiscent of Ella Fitzgerald.

Anna's debut CD, My Ideal, was released August 30, 2002. My Ideal is being played on jazz stations around the country and internationally, and Anna has been a featured artist on United Airlines as well as A&R Online, a site that links exceptional artists with record labels. Anna now performs with groups ranging from duets with piano or guitar to septets including other horns. These small combos are ideal for showcasing the many facets of her talent, not least of which is a vivacious personality that radiates playful energy.

Collegiate A Cappella Arranging Manual

Anna Callahan is a vocal instructor from Los Angeles. This book was initially published in 1995, and was very popular until supplies ran out. We are pleased to return it to circulation, as the marketplace is bereft of practical guidance for the developing arranger, particularly in the contemporary genre, and this manual is packed with detail. An overview of basic theory is provided, along with examples of stylistic modifications, using the familiar tune "Greensleeves" as a model (with taped demonstrations). Once the fundamental process of arranging is mastered, Anna shows how to improve on the result, with hints for rehearsing and performing, a discussion of jazz, and an appendix of notation, among other practical chapters. Her style is clear and encouraging, and this book will be helpful to arrangers of all levels ­ though beginners will may need more theory than is offered here to get up to speed.

2233 BOOK & CD $24.95

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