LA Master Chorale Presents free High School Choir Festival 4/15

Twenty-two years ago, long before television shows about choirs became all the rage and Walt Disney Concert Hall was merely a sketch on a napkin, one celebrated local institution, the Los Angeles Master Chorale (LAMC), made a commitment to mentor and train hundreds of young singers and their choir directors each year through the Los Angeles Master Chorale High School Choir Festival. This yearlong mentoring program, now a model for other choirs and one of the largest choral festivals in the nation, culminates with a free public concert that has also become a leading showcase for the next generation of singers. The 22nd Annual Los Angeles Master Chorale High School Choir Festival continues this storied tradition with a free concert on Friday, April 15, 2011, at 1:00 p.m., at Walt Disney Concert Hall. The remarkable talents of 900 students from 24 Southland high schools will be showcased in a massed choir. There will also be a special performance by the 80-voice Festival Honor Choir, comprised of students from all 24 participating schools. Grant Gershon, music director of the LA Master Chorale, conducts both choirs.

The 900-voice massed choir performs Alexandra Pascanu's Chindia, Sure on this Shining Night by Samuel Barber, and Alma Llanera composed by Pedro Gutierrez and arranged by Angel Sauce. Also on the program are Ola Gjeilo's Ubi caritas, William L. Dawson's Ain' -a That Good News, and Hallelujah from Handel's Messiah.

The 80-voice Festival Honor Choir joins forces with the LAMC's professional Chamber Singers to sing Laudamus te from Francis Poulenc's Gloria, David Dickau's Stars I Shall Find, and the traditional Swahili spiritual Wana Baraka arranged by Shawn Kirchner. Students participating in the Honor Choir were nominated for the prestigious group by their choir directors. To prepare for the performance, they attended separate rehearsals with Mr. Gershon.

"The High School Choir Festival is one of the highlights of the Chorale's season," said Gershon. "These students and their choir directors work so hard to prepare for the festival and they are amazingly talented."

Participating choirs include Arroyo High School, Chamber Singers (El Monte), Jennifer Stanley, director; Bassett High School, Chamber Choir (La Puente), Nona Watson, director; Central Los Angeles High School #9, Concert Choir (Los Angeles), Desiree Fowler, director; Culver City High School, AVPA Chamber Singers (Culver City), Dr. Tony Spano, director; El Monte High School, A Cappella Choir (El Monte), Joel Whisler, director; Glendale High School, Chamber Choir (Glendale) Grace Sheldon-Williams, director; Glendora High School, Royal Stewarts (Glendora) Dr. Brian Trevor, director; Granada Hills Charter High School, Highlander Honor Choir (Granada Hills), Craig Gruenberg, director; Knight High School, Travel Ensemble (Palmdale) John Crocker, Jr., director; Lakewood High School, Madrigal Singers (Lakewood) Ralph Siemsen, director; Loyola High School, Choir (Los Angeles), Steven Speciale, director; Mark Keppel High School, Aztec Singers (Alhambra), Tony Azeltine, director.

Also participating are: Marymount High School, Marymount Singers, (Los Angeles) Rebecca Florido, director; Montebello High School, Golden Keys (Montebello), Nancy Schwartz, director; Narbonne High School, Vocal Ensemble/Honor Choir (Harbor City), Carol J. Levin, director; Palos Verdes Peninsula High School, Varsity Voices (Palos Verdes Estates), Daniel Doctor, director; Pioneer High School, Titan Tones (Whittier), Evan Mooney, director; Rosemead High School, A Cappella Choir (Rosemead), Ruth Gray, director; South High School, Southland Singers (Torrance), Elizabeth Turner, director; Susan Miller Dorsey High School, Dorsey Dons Choir (Los Angeles), Crystal Nichols, director; Sylmar High School, Spartan Chorale (Sylmar), Greg Broadous, director; Venice High School, Allegros (Los Angeles), Wendy Kornbeck, director; Wilson Classical High School, Chamber Singers (Long Beach), Curtis Heard, director; and Woodrow Wilson High School, Choir (Los Angeles) Daniel Safford, director.

The Los Angeles Master Chorale High School Choir Festival is one of the largest high school choir gatherings in the nation. The yearlong in-school program presented by the Chorale has five components. Several months prior to the festival, all participating Choral Directors meet with Mr. Gershon to review the repertoire, selected by Mr. Gershon. Directors then work in the classroom with their choirs on the music. During the spring, members from the LA Master Chorale Chamber Singers, the Chorale's outreach ensemble, visit participating choirs and leads the students and directors in masterclasses. A month before the festival, each school attends one of two joint rehearsals conducted by Mr. Gershon, who works with the singers on their musicianship, musical interpretation and tone balance. The joint rehearsals also provide an opportunity for the students to sing as part of a much larger choir in preparation for the festival, which is the final component of the outreach program. On the day of the festival, all of the schools join together for the first time and Mr. Gershon conducts a final dress rehearsal and concert.

Event sponsors include the City of Los Angeles, Department of Cultural Affairs; the Los Angeles County Arts Commission; Metropolitan Associates; the Kenneth T. and Eileen L. Norris Foundation; the Lon V. Smith Foundation; the John and Beverly Stauffer Foundation; the Charitable Foundation, Agent Community Outreach of Prudential California Realty; and the Weingart Foundation. The Los Angeles Master Chorale High School Choir Festival was founded in 1989 by the Los Angeles Master Chorale Associates, under the leadership of Phyllis Rothrock.

The Los Angeles Master Chorale's High School Choir Festival is FREE and seating is first come, first served. The Walt Disney Concert Hall is located at 111 South Grand Avenue at First Street in Los Angeles. For information and to order free tickets for the concert, please call (213) 972-7282 or visit www.lamc.org/HSCF.

Photo Credit: Craig Schwartz

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