We Toast the Days by Linda Kachelmeier

Winter seems to be a natural time for reflection and celebration. In the cold winter months, we can’t help but look back on the good and bad of the year before us, and anticipate the year to come. We Toast the Days by Linda Kachelmeier illuminates the mixed feelings we often have at the turn of the New Year.

With a folksy, Irish lilt-y feel, relatable lyrics, and catchy melody, this piece appeals to a wide range of choir singers and audience members. Read on to dive into the following aspects of Linda Kachelmeier’s We Toast the Days:

Composer Feature: Linda Kachelmeier
Lumina Women’s Ensemble
A New Auld Lang Syne?
Toasting the Days Discussions
We Toast the Days Teacher Resources

For more context as you read, take a listen to Lumina Women’s Ensemble’s performance of We Toast the Days.

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To Old Friends and the New

My treble ensemble loves a good contemporary folk piece. Last year, Never One Thing arranged by Corie Brown was a collective favorite, and this fall, many in the group favored I Am Leaving by Miriam Sonstenes. So when I came across We Toast the Days by Linda Kachelmeier, I immediately thought of Scarlet Voices. With two-, three-, and four-part harmonies and extended alto ranges, this piece has a nice balance of quick success and challenge, highlighting the treble voices brilliantly.

All About Linda Kachelmeier

Linda Kachelmeier is a composer, professional singer, and conductor based in St. Paul, Minnesota. Influenced by everything from folk and gospel to chant and medieval polyphony, Kachelmeier composes with great interest in melodic line, harmonic texture, and musical layers. Inspired by poetry, art, dance, and the artistry of those surrounding her, she has composed over 50 works for choirs and solo voice since 2006.

In a recent article, Kachelmeier described her artistic philosophy as “rooted in the melding of text and music, articulation, and expression: the words must express the music, and the music expresses the words for my work to be complete.” It is easy to see this melding in We Toast the Days as the melody and harmonies, articulation, expression, and text all work together to portray the mixed emotions surrounding New Years.

Kachelmeier has spoken up about the importance of female composer role models. Because she had no examples throughout her education, she did not realize that she herself could write vocal music. Through her work, Kachelmeier provides the example she did not have, posting frequently on her Facebook page and website about new compositional endeavors, presentations, and guest speaking and conducting.

Loving the Kachelmeier compositional vibe? Check out these pieces as well!

Aer Enim for SSA and percussion is based on a chant by Hildegard von Bingen. Rhythmic and percussive, this piece is an impressive show of the treble voice.
Each of Us for SATB or SSAA with piano uses text by Walt Whitman to share an optimistic message of inclusiveness, shared humanity and rights, and the power of inclusiveness.
Peace Begins with a Smile for unison or two part choir with piano and optional ukulele is the sweetest piece for beginning groups, with the hopeful and upbeat lyrics based on a quote from Mother Theresa.

Choir Feature: Lumina Women’s Ensemble

In addition to her work as a composer, Kachelmeier is the founder and artistic director of the professional women’s ensemble, Lumina. The professional ensemble is comprised of four singers: Linda Kachelmeier, Angela Grundstad, Clara Osowski, and Kim Sueoka. They dedicate their work to “the mystery, beauty, and hope inherent in music,” performing music from a variety of musical traditions, created by living and local composers.

Education and participation are two goals of the group, collaborating with local communities, schools, and choral organizations to present concerts, church services, and educational programs. If you are in the Twin Cities area, check out their educational programs that include school visits, choral workshops, and coachings.

The pieces below demonstrate the versatility and musicality of Lumina:

Lumen by Abbie Betinis is a chant and three part canon that shows off the range of the ensemble. So pretty.
This video shows a video of the ensemble rehearsing J. David Moore’s arrangement of “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” with bluegrass and gospel stylings.
Elizabeth Alexander has collaborated with the group a few times: check out their performance of Alexander’s arrangements of the English folk blessing “Before the Bread” and the traditional carol “Infant Holy, Infant Lowly.”

A New Auld Lang Syne?

According to the composer’s description of We Toast the Days, this piece was originally written for her friends and family to sing on New Year’s Eve as a new version of the classic Auld Lang Syne.

The Scots-language text was written in 1788 by Robert Burns. It was then set to the traditional Scottish folk song tune in 1799. The words “Auld Lang Syne” translate literally to “old long since,” meaning something like “days gone by” or “times long past.”

Traditionally, Auld Lang Syne is sung at the conclusion of New Year celebrations in Scotland and many other countries. As the text reflects on endings and new beginnings, the pieces is also sung at funerals, memorials, farewells, and at the end of special events. In Scotland, it is often sung at the end of a dance and at weddings and in England, and is played at the end of some political meetings and at the end of the last night of the Proms (a summer season of daily orchestral concerts and musical events).

We Toast the Days similarly reflects on the past, appreciating the people and moments of the past year. However, the lyrics go a step further than Auld Lang Syne as they look to the future: “As we stand on the edge of another bright new year, I take your hand in mine, with assurance of the courage we will find and the hope that leads us on.”

For information on other New Years Traditions and Celebrations from around the world, check out my post on Feliz Navidad next week!

Toast and Reflect: Discussions

When I asked my singers to read through the text, consider the message, and identify the emotion behind We Toast the Days, their answers were all over the place. Some students felt it was happy and celebratory, while others found it to be melancholy and moody.

Through her lyrics, Kachelmeier plays with the dichotomous feelings that one may have at the new year: Are we happy that we made it to a new year? Proud of our accomplishments of the past year? Sad about the friends and family we lost? Angry about certain changes we have seen in the world? We can feel all of these things at the same time! And that can be difficult to process for sure.

SEL-INSPIRED CONVERSATIONS

When diving in to discussions with singers of all ages, I like to frame our conversations with the Social Emotional Learning Competencies. (I talked a bit about SEL here.) Below are a few SEL-influenced discussion starters for We Toast the Days.

SEL Competency:	Discussion Prompts:
Self-Awareness	When the clock strikes twelve at midnight this year, what emotions do you anticipate feeling? Why? How do the good and bad days you have had tinted your view of the new year? What events have affected the way you reflect on the good and bad of the past year?
Self-Management	As you reflect on the past year, how have you coped with stress and adversity in your life? In your musicianship? What strategies have you used to express your emotions in productive ways? Is there a time you didn’t manage so well? How might you approach a similar situation now?
Decision Making	As you sing We Toast the Days what musical decisions can you make to share with your audience the emotions associated with each of the elements? What decisions can you make now to help you approach “the fear of days unknown”?
Social Awareness	Are you aware of a friend or choral colleague who has mixed emotions about the start of a new year? What signs might they display to indicate these mixed emotions?
Relationship Skills	How might you support a friend or colleague who is less than hopeful about the new year? What actions or conversations might you have to encourage them along their way? How can you productively offer assurance while also validating their feelings?

If you want to know more about Social Emotional Learning, I encourage you to check out the books linked below. These are some of my favorites!

Complimentary Pieces

Want to listen to other pieces like We Toast the Days? Or planning a concert and need some programming ideas? Here are a few complementary pieces!

Enjoying the New Year vibes?

There are so many arrangements of Auld Lang Syne. Two of my current favorites are Desmond Earley’s Scottish arrangement and Tedd Firth’s vocal jazz arrangement, both for advanced ensembles.
A nice option for middle school groups with changing and developing voices, Ringing in the New Year by Phyllis Wolfe White is written for three-part mixed or two-part with piano and handbells.
Celebrate the Chinese New Year with Lily lung Grant’s unison/two-part arrangement of Chen Ge Xin’s Gong Xi Gong Xi, a popular song to celebrate Chinese New Year. Does anyone know of any Chinese New Year choral pieces for more advanced choral groups?

Other pieces I’ve programmed with We Toast the Days this winter season:

I’d Love to Hear from You!

Have you sung or conducted We Toast the Days with your choir? What other Kachelmeier pieces must we program? How does this piece compete with Auld Lang Syne in your books? What feelings or emotions do the lyrics evoke for you? Let me know in the comments below!

We Toast the Days Teacher Resources!

FREE We Toast the Days Reading Comprehension Worksheet

Reading Comprehension Worksheets pull five key points from the blog post above and ask singers to consider the musical decisions they can make with the info from this post. Fill in the form below and get a link to a folder including the Winter 2022 Post Worksheets immediately!

We Toast the Days Lesson Plan Bundle

Check out the Inspired Choir Shop for the We Toast the Days Lesson Plan Bundle. This bundle includes the following five minute lesson plans, all with connections to National Standards and SEL Competencies:

We Toast the Days Lyrics Bell Ringer
Mixed Media Connections Project
Toasting the Days Class Discussion Prompts
Composer Listening Assignment
New Years Traditions Reflections Journals

Sing In the New Year with We Toast The Days by Linda Kachelmeier