The Mt. Hood Community College music department is in its 40th year of developing world class musicians. Mt. Hood music students have gone on to perform with such greats has Maynard Ferguson, Woody Herman, Stan Kenton, Buddy Rich, Mel Tormé, Herbie Hancock, Diana Ross, Frank Sinatra, George Shearing, Liza Minelli, Harry Connick Jr., Diana Krall, Wynton Marsalis, the best Las Vegas show rooms, the best cruise ships and over 25 of the world’s major symphony orchestras- not to mention the scores of students that have gone on to become the finest music teachers this country has to offer.

The Mt. Hood Community   College vocal jazz ensemble, GENESIS, is in its 39h year of outstanding jazz performance. Being the original pioneer in vocal jazz education, they have accepted invitations to be the featured group at many jazz festivals and conventions from coast to coast  and have won many awards and over the years, including prestigious “db” Awards from Downbeat Magazine and the college sweepstakes at the Lionel Hampton and Gene Harris Jazz Festivals. The group has many CDs available, including their current 2005 CD “Don’t Think It’s Easy”.

In 2005 Genesis performed at both the IAJE and ACDA national conventions.

Dave Barduhn is in his 18th year of teaching at Mt. Hood Community College. As a performer Dave has played piano with Mark Murphy, Diane Shuur, Diane Reeves, Ernie Andrews and several StanKenton Alumni Bands.

He is better known for his jazz arranging for Stan Kenton, Bud Shank, Bobby Shew, Richie Cole, The Four Freshman, and especially Hal Leonard, Warner Brothers,  SMP, and Jenson Publications. His groups have performed at many IAJE and ACDA national conventions, MENC , and ACDA regional conventions. As director of the pioneering vocal jazz group Genesis, Dave and his students have won many awards from Downbeat magazine, the IAJE Journal, and most of the more prestigious jazz festivals in the West.

Dave is now on parole after serving a 20 year sentence with the Frank DeMeiro jazz camp and is now a founding staff member of the new Soundsation Jazz camp. He is currently serving as department chaiman for both the theater and music departments at MHCC. In March of 2006, Dave will perform the role of Tevye in the MHCC production of “Fiddler On The Roof”. When he has the time, Dave is also considered a master brewer of wheat ales and French/Alsatian ales, don’cha know.

The Willamette Singers is a 15-member ensemble, which explores music particularly suitable to small groups of highly skilled and flexible vocalists. 

Willamette University is one of the few four-year universities in Oregon that offers experience in vocal jazz. 

The Willamette Singers participate in a yearly tour and in recent years have been invited to perform for many regional, national and international conventions of ACDA, OMEA, MENC and IAJE. 

Singers’ ninth CD “One Touch of Heaven” was released in the fall of 2005.

Director of Choral Activities at Willamette University since 1983, Dr. Long received his Master and Doctorate degrees in choral conducting from the University of Arizona at Tucson.  Since coming to Willamette University, the Chamber Choir and Willamette Singers (vocal jazz ensemble), both under his direction, have performed at numerous State, Regional, National, and International conferences.

A frequent vocal/choral adjudicator, clinician and guest conductor, he is an active supporter of public school music in the Northwest.  He has conducted numerous honor choirs throughout the Northwest.  He conducted the Kansas All-State Choir in 1993.  Dr. Long is the creator of the Choral Leadership Workshop, a workshop that focuses on developing student leaders within the choral ensemble so that students partner with teachers in fostering choral excellence.
         
Long sings professionally with Male Ensemble Northwest(MEN). He has recorded three compact discs with MEN and in 1997 performed at the Kennedy Center and Constitution Hall for the ACDA National Convention in Washington, D.C.  In the Spring of 2001, Dr. Long and Male Ensemble Northwest again performed for the ACDA National Convention which was held in San Antonio, Texas.  In 1993, he became a member of the Festival Singers of the Robert Shaw Choral Institute, performing at Carnegie Hall in January 1994.  That summer, he traveled to Souillac, France, to record two compact discs of contemporary choral literature for Shaw.  In 1996, he joined Shaw’s Festival Singers for performances of the Verdi Requiem in Carnegie, and the Rachmaninoff Vespers in the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City.  In May of 2006, Dr. Long will conduct the Haydn’ Mass in the Time of War in Carnegie Hall.
         
Dr. Long is a past president of the Oregon ACDA and is a member of the Oregon Music Educators Association, the National Association of Teachers of Singing and the International Association of Jazz Educators.

Groove For Thought is a group of six singers who share a love of contemporary vocal music. GFT sings an assortment of jazz, gospel, rhythm & blues, and pop music both a cappella and with a live band.  The members of GFT all have extensive backgrounds in vocal jazz and bring something fun, exciting, and unique to the idiom. GFT originated in 1998 and is made up of singers Jeff Horenstein, Peter Jones, Kelly Kunz, Kevin Kunz, James Niles, and Randy Taylor. They regularly perform at schools, jazz festivals, and community events throughout the Pacific Northwest and beyond. GFT won the 2005 National Harmony Sweepstakes Competition including the award for Best Original Song. GFT is also proud to announce the release of their self-titled debut CD. Check them out on the web at www.grooveforthought.com.

Cleveland High School is located in inner southeast Portland, OR, and is one of nine public high schools within the Portland Public Schools, the largest school district in the state. 

Choral music has been an integral part at Cleveland for over 50 years, and “A” Choir has been a regular participant in the annual Oregon State Choir Championships for the past 17 years.

“A” Choir has toured up and down the west coast with appearances in Choral Festivals in Vancouver, BC, Seattle, WA, San Francisco, CA & San Diego, CA.  In addition to numerous appearances in the Portland Metro Area, Cleveland’s “A” Choir has performed at the 1996 OMEA State Conference in Eugene, and at two NW MENC Conferences (1995 in Spokane, WA, and 2003 in Portland).  This is “A” Choir’s first appearance at an ACDA Regional Conference. 

Steve received his Bachelor of Music Education degree from Morningside College, Sioux City, Iowa, in 1975 and his Master of Music Education from Wichita State University in 1982.  While there he had opportunities to work with both René Clausen (Concordia University, Moorhead, MN) and Ron Staheli (BYU in Salt Lake City, UT). 

Since moving to the Pacific Northwest in 1984, he has taught in the Reynolds School District (Troutdale, OR) and for the past 18 years at Cleveland High School in Portland, OR.

Steve still sings, conducts and adjudicates in the Portland area.  Most recently, he is serving as the Assistant Director of Portland’s Oregon Repertory Singers as the Cantor at St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church in NE Portland.  He also is a regular studio singer (and occasional conductor) for Oregon Catholic Press.

In the mid-90’s, Steve served as Oregon’s ACDA High School R&S Chair, and from 2002-2004 as the NW ACDA High School R&S Chair.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The Northwest Boychoir is one of the leading children’s choirs in the United States, combining professional performance experience with outstanding musical training. Officially designated the “Singing Ambassadors” of Washington State by Governor Christine Gregoire, the Northwest Boychoir has performed throughout the United States and around the world.

In addition to its own recordings, the Northwest Boychoir has recorded with the Seattle Symphony, and is regularly contracted by major film studios to record professional movie sound tracks. In 2004, the Boychoir recorded soundtracks for Millions by English director Danny Boyle, and most recently First Daughter. The Choir is featured prominently on soundtracks for several major video games.

Mr. Crnko is in his 21st year as Music Director of the Northwest Boychoir. During his tenure, The Northwest Boychoir has earned a national reputation for artistic excellence.  The choir maintains an annual schedule of more than 40 concerts, a biannual international tour program, and a schedule of professional studio recording engagements, and it appears regularly with the Seattle Symphony.

In addition to his work with the Northwest Boychoir, Mr. Crnko regularly conducts orchestral and choral recording sessions for movie and video game soundtracks. Most recently, Mr. Crnko conducted soundtracks for The Ringer and the Celestine Prophecy, both set for release this year. Mr. Crnko lives in Seattle with his wife, Wendee and their two children, Katharine and Nick.

The Montana State University Chorale is the select concert choir in the music department. Though made up of a core of vocal/choral majors, its membership includes students from diverse curricula on campus. The ensemble’s repertoire includes representative works from all historical periods and styles with emphasis on music from the 20th century. In addition to regularly scheduled campus concerts, other significant campus events include the annual Madrigal Dinner, now in its 40th year and the Choral Invitational, which brings area high school students to the campus for a festive choral experience. The Chorale presents programs in Montana schools and tours abroad as part of an extensive experience abroad program in the MSU Department of Music. A “Berlin to Budapest” itinerary is scheduled for June, 2006. Past tours have taken the choir to China, the Philippines, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Italy.

Lowell Hickman is a graduate of Minor State College and the University of Iowa. He is professor of music at Montana State University-Bozeman where he conducts the Montana State University Chorale and Montanans, teaches studio voice, choral conducting, choral methods and choral literature. Prior to his appointment to the MSU music faculty he taught in the Glendive, Montana and Bozeman, Montana public schools. He was conductor of the Bozeman Symphonic Choir from 1968-1998 and has served as conductor for the Intermountain Opera Company, the Bozeman Symphony and the Bozeman Municipal Band. As an active baritone soloist he has most recently performed in Bach’s Magnificat, Orff’s Carmina Burana, and Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem. He is an active member of ACDA, MENC, NATS and is an honorary member of Kappa Kappa Psi, band honorary.

Convention Sing: Melissa Roth, Conductor, Oregon R&S Chair, Treble Choirs

President's Welcome

The Concert Choir is one of five performing choral ensembles involving over 300 students at Sprague High School. In 2005, the choir placed first at the OSAA/ACDA State Choir Championship for the third consecutive year, and also won the “Best in the Northwest” choral festival at the University of Portland for the ninth straight year. The Sprague Concert choir has performed for the Oregon Music Educators conference and the Northwest MENC Division conference. It has toured the northwest, Canada, California, and has performed at Carnegie Hall in New York City. In 2000, the Sprague Music Department was chosen as the “National GRAMMY Signature School” by the GRAMMY Foundation.

Russell Christensen is in his 13th year as choral director at Sprague. Mr. Christensen holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music Education from the University of Oregon, and a Master of Arts in Music Education from Western Oregon University.

He taught for 12 years at Central High School and Talmadge Middle School in Monmouth/Independence, Oregon where in 1990 he was elected “Teacher of the Year.”

In 2004, the Oregon Symphony Association in Salem recognized him as “Music Educator of the Year.” He was also the first recipient of the Western Oregon University Alumni Excellence Award in Music.

Mr. Christensen is a certified choral adjudicator in Oregon and is an assistant conductor of the Oregon Ambassadors of Music Choir.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The Choir of the West, the premiere choral ensemble of PLU, celebrated its 75th Anniversary Year in 2001-2002.  This choir was founded by Joseph Edwards, and was subsequently conducted by Gunnar Malmin, Maurice Skones, Richard Sparks, and currently Kathryn Lehmann. 

The Choir has a long history of excellence having toured all over the United States and the world, as well as appearances at regional and national conventions of both ACDA and MENC. Most recently, The Choir of the West performed at the 2005 National ACDA Convention in Los Angleles, California under Lehmann’s direction. 

The choir has also performed major works with the Northwest Chamber Orchestra and the Seattle Symphony, and performs annually with the PLU Symphony Orchestra.

The Choir has been very active recording in recent years, with CD recordings of Rachmaninoff’s Vespers, the newest Christmas CD, Peace, Love and Hope, and a Scandinavian concert tour recording entitled A Mighty Fortress.

Kathryn Lehmann is the Director of Choral Activities and conducts the Choir of the West and Mens Chorus at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Washington.

 Recently, the renowned Choir of the West performed at the 2005 National Convention of the ACDA in Los Angeles.  Prior to her position at PLU, Ms.

Lehmann was the Director of Vocal and Choral Activities at Oregon State University and served as President of the Oregon Chapter of ACDA.  Lehmann was also an associate professor on the faculty of the University of Oregon for two years, where she directed the U of O Chamber Choir and taught music education classes.  While in Eugene, she was a performer and lecturer for the Oregon Bach Festival studying choral conducting with Helmuth Rilling. 

She has studied choral conducting with Joan Catoni Conlon and Lawrence Kaptein during her doctoral studies in choral conducting at the University of Colorado, with Joseph Flummerfelt during her MM in Vocal Performance work at Westminster Choir College, and with Maurice Skones as an undergraduate in Choral Music Education at PLU.

While in Princeton, she was the vocal coach for the American Boychoir School and taught voice at the Westminster Conservatory of Music.

Lisa Billingham

Giselle Wyers

Sarah Graham

Trey Jacobs

Scott Davis

1. Performance Practices: African American Spritituals and Gospel - Albert McNeil, Peter Wordelman, R&S Chair for Ethnic/Multicultural Choirs, Presider

The Pacific Lutheran University Chorale is one of seven choral ensembles in the department of music.  The Chorale is an auditioned ensemble, with a membership that represents a wide variety of majors and includes many first-year students.  The choir carries a large performance load each year, including a shared concerts with other choirs from the university, the annual series of Christmas Concerts with the Choir of the West and University Symphony Orchestra, a tour every three out of four years, and campus ministry and celebratory events.  The Chorale meets four days per week for rehearsal and experiences a wide range of repertoire from various stylistic periods and master composers.  This will be the Chorale’s second appearance at a Northwestern Division Convention, the first coming in 1996.

Richard Nance has been the Associate Director of Choral Activities at Pacific Lutheran University since 1992, where he directs the University Chorale, University Singers and Choral Union, and teaches music education courses.  He holds bachelors and masters degrees from West Texas State University (now West Texas A&M) and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Arizona State University.  Dr. Nance has studied conducting with Hugh Sanders, Douglas McEwen and David Stocker, and studied composition with Joseph Nelson and Randall Shinn. 

He has been an active member of the American Choral Directors Association for over 25 years.  He served for a number of years on the state board in Washington, as the state president for Washington, as the Northwestern division chair for colleges and universities, and as the Choral Review Editor for the Choral Journal.  All three of his choirs at Pacific Lutheran University have appeared at Northwestern division conventions, and in 2001 he conducted the PLU Choral Union at the ACDA National Convention in San Antonio, Texas.  Dr. Nance also serves as director of music at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church of Lakewood, Washington, and is active as a clinician and adjudicator.  Prior to coming to Washington, he taught for seven years at Amarillo College in Amarillo, Texas.

Dr. Nance has written a number of compositions for the choirs of Pacific Lutheran University, Arizona State University, high school choirs and church choirs.  His works are published by Hinshaw Music, Walton Music and Colla Voce Music, and are performed widely throughout the United States.  He was selected by the American Choral Directors Association to write the Raymond W. Brock memorial composition for 2002 and was also commissioned by the Washington Music Educators Association to compose a piece for the Washington All-State Choir.   

The Seattle Girls’ Choir School celebrates its twenty-fourth season in 2006.  Dr. Jerome L. Wright, Founder and Artistic Director, created a “junior conservatory” where talented young women of the Puget Sound Region gather after school for superior music education under the tutelage of world-class artist-teachers.   Our mission is the development of the young artist – in body, mind and spirit.   Seattle Girls’ Choir School maintains a deep commitment to musical and personal excellence, and provides musically literate and personally empowered young women to our communities.

Our Choir School has six choirs for students between the ages of 6 and 19.  Our curriculum includes vocal technique and pedagogy, music theory, solfege and musicianship, music history and composition.  The Seattle Girls’ Choir has sung across North American and tours internationally on the average of every two years.   Our girls have sung for three National ACDA Conventions, and numerous divisional and state conferences.  Visit our Website:  www.seattlegirlschoir.org.

Dr. Jerome L. Wright is a pioneer of the children’s choir movement in the Northwest.  His distinguished career spans forty-four years.   Jerry Wright received most of his music education at the University of Washington.  At the graduate level he studied symphonic conducting with the late Stanley Chapple and choral conducting with Rodney Eichenberger. 

Always fascinated with the inner, spiritual aspects of music making, he received a Ph.D. in Philosophy in 1983.  His research in this area literally transformed his art.  “The Seattle Girls’ Choir Sound” – unique in the area of treble choirs and touted around the world – is the result.  He teaches using the Socratic method, by asking questions designed to cause his students to discover answers within themselves, and thereby own the knowledge.   His philosophy links musicianship with life training, and involves the whole person – body, mind and spirit.  

Dr. Wright serves as a lecturer, guest conductor, clinician and adjudicator internationally.

Formed in 1991, the Alaska Chamber Chorale specializes in a cappella music from the sixteenth through the twenty-first centuries. In keeping with the Fairbanks tradition of collaboration between the university and community, the thirty-two experienced singers represent many occupations from throughout the borough, military bases and campus. Besides its regular concert schedule, the ensemble performs outreach concerts for the university, community and state. 

The chorale has been featured with the Arctic Chamber and the Fairbanks Symphony Orchestras, opened the International Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival with Just 4 Kicks, and performed at the 1998 Northwest and 2003 National ACDA conventions.

Since 1989, Marvilla Davis has been on the music faculty at the  
University of Alaska-Fairbanks, where she is the founding conductor of the Alaska Chamber Chorale and teaches voice. She received a B.A.  from Northern Montana College and an M.M. from the University of Alaska.

Davis also has a private voice studio and teaches at the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival. She is active as an adjudicator, clinician, and conductor for solo and ensemble competitions and honor choirs throughout Alaska.

Davis is also a frequent soprano soloist in local opera productions, orchestral concerts and recitals. She is currently president of the Board of Directors of the Fairbanks Concert Association, is a member of MENC, MTNA, NATS, ACDA and has twice served as president of Alaska ACDA.

The Albert McNeil Jubilee Singers, a traveling company of 12 to 15, a resident group of 29, have garnered international acclaim and focused worldwide attention on the vast body of folk music termed "African-American."

Thirty-six years ago (1968) the Singers undertook their first European tour. Today, after 18 sold-out European tours, 12 tours of the United States and Canada, tours of the Middle and Far East, Africa and South America, they are among the most honored singing ensembles in the world. They were selected three times to serve the U.S. State Department and USIS Cultural Exchange Program in areas of the world, known in those days as "behind the Iron Curtain," including East Germany, Hungary, Romania, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Iran, India, North and West Africa, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates.

Roberta Jackson

Debra Burgess

Donna Schultz

The Wenatchee High School Chamber Singers, founded in 1984, has performed at conventions of WMEA, ACDA-NW, and at the 1986 MENC national convention in Anaheim.

They have been selected numerous times as finalists at the Best in the Northwest Contest in Portland,  Oregon.

They were selected by Carnegie Hall as one of four U.S. choirs to perform at the Inaugural Carnegie Hall National High School Choral Festival in May, 2004. 

The choir has taken tours to Europe, and both Coasts, and will tour Eastern Europe this April. 

The Chamber Singers annually produce a Madrigal Feaste, alternating with a Broadway Musical- the latter playing to over 5000 people.

Dan  received his diploma from Wenatchee HS in 1965, his B.A. from Pepperdine University in 1969, and his M.M. in conducting at the University of Southern California, in 1976.  He taught HS music and drama in California for six years before returning to Wenatchee HS, where he has directed choral music since 1979. 

He has directed honor choirs in Washington and Alaska and served on the state arts guideline writing committee under Gina May.  He founded the NCWMEA bienniel Honor Festival and the Wenatchee S.D. Festival of the Arts. He directed the committee which founded the WMEA State Ensemble Contest.  

He received the WMEA/WIAA Music Educator of the Year award in 1998,  the NCWMEA Music Educator of the year award in 1999, the NCESD award of Excellence in 2000, and the  Living Treasure Award from the Wenatchee Museum and Cultural Center in 2004.

Summers Dan directs the Lake Chelan Bach Festival Chorus.  He and his wife Sally have four children. 

The Unitarian Chamber Choir is composed of some of the most accomplished musicians in the church’s music program.  Now in its fourth year,  the ensemble presents occasional special concerts for the church community and sings two Sunday mornings per month at Sunday morning worship services.  In 2004 Chamber Choir presented a joint concert with Viriditas, conducted by Joan Szymko.

Mark Slegers has been Music Director at First Unitarian Church for 28 years. The church’s music program includes some 300-member musicians of all ages participating in ten singing and handbell choirs.

Mr. Slegers received his undergraduate degree from Pacific University in Forest Grove, Oregon. He attended Union Theological Seminary, School of Sacred Music in New York City where he received the Master of Sacred Music degree. While in New York he sang and conducted in various large churches. He has completed further study in conducting with Rodney Eichenburger. He has also taught music in all levels of music education, including a tenure at both Pacific University and Reed College in Portland, Oregon.

Mr. Slegers was a commissioner for the Unitarian hymnbook, Singing the Living Tradition, published by Beacon Press, and for the past fifteen years has served as church music consultant to Unitarian Universalist congregations continent-wide.

He has led choirs from the Unitarian Church on tours in Eastern Europe, Canada and the Pacific Northwest.  Durning March of 2003 he led fifty singers on an unprecedented tour of Cuba, sharing music with four professional choirs there and concertizing at the Basilica of San Francisco de Assisi. 

TACOMA YOUTH CHORUS, founded in 1991 by Judith Herrington, is a select, auditioned choir of musically gifted young people serving the south Puget Sound region in Washington State.  The program consists of seven auditioned choirs for girls and boys, ages seven through high school.  The choirs provide members with outstanding performance experiences and a training program that emphasizes vocal pedagogy, ear-training and sight-singing skills, with a focus on performance. The Young Women’s Choir (formerly Chamber Choir) has performed for conventions of the Music Educators National Conference, the Northwestern American Choral Directors Association and Orff-Schulwerk Association.  They are honored to perform at the 2006 ACDA Northwestern Division Convention.

Judith Harrington is the Founder and Artistic Director of the highly acclaimed Tacoma Youth Chorus, a select auditioned choir serving more than 225 children in the south Puget Sound area. She brings more than thirty years of teaching and conducting experience to her work at Charles Wright Academy in Tacoma, Washington, where she has received the Inspirational Faculty Award and the Murray Foundation Chair for Teaching Excellence. A graduate of the University of Oregon, Ms. Herrington earned her Master of Education degree from Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon. She has furthered her conducting studies through master classes with Rodney Eichenberger and Henry Leck. Ms. Herrington is highly regarded as a guest conductor, workshop and choral clinician and currently serves as a Past-President of the Washington-American Choral Directors Association. Through Pavane Publishing and Colla Voce Publishing, she has published choral compositions, arrangements and co-authored choral teaching texts and edits a choral series for Pavane Publishing.

The Northwest Repertory Singers were founded in the fall of 2001 and have quickly become one of the Puget Sound region's most revered choral ensembles. They sponsored the Rolling Requiem in 2002 to commemorate the anniversary of September 11, 2001. This performance of Mozart's Requiem was presented at 8:46 a.m. on September 11, 2002 to a capacity audience at Mason United Methodist Church in Tacoma. The choir has presented collaborations with the Coats, Tacoma School of the Arts Dance Company, and the Lake Union Civic Orchestra. NWRS was a featured ensemble at the Tall Ships Festival this past July. This season will bring collaborations with Tacoma Youth Chorus in May, 2006, and two performances of Mozart's Requiem in March with Northwest Sinfonietta under the direction of Christopher Chagnard.

The PSU Chamber Choir was founded in 1975. Since that time the choir has distinguished itself performing on many prestigious venues. They have sung by invitation at national conventions of the Music Educators National Conference, the American Choral Directors Association and The Society of International Music Educators.

The choir has been the sole American representative at International Choral Festivals in Tallinn, Keffalonia, Greece, Mallorca, Spain, and Prague, Czechoslovakia. In 1985 and 1997,   the Choir appeared that the National convention of American Choral Directors in  Salt Lake City and San Diego respsctively. Most recently, in February 2003,. the Choir sang to standing ovations  at the National Convention at Carnegie Hall in New York City. In the Summer of 2003, the Choir toured to the Baltics and Finland, and worked with both Veljo Tormis and Tonu Kaljuste. In the past, the group has also worked with such leading  Conductors as  Frieder Bernius, Andrew Parrot, Robert Shaw, James DePreist, and Eric Ericson.

In 1999,. the Chamber Choir won four  medals at  competitions in Martkoberdorf and in other competitions in Germany. In 2005, the Chamber Choir completed a tour of Germany, winning gold and silver medals at the International Chamber Choir Festivals of Marktoberdorf and "Harmonie Festival"

The Chamber Choir has recorded on the Albany Label, and in November 2003,  recorded on the Hildegard Label the choral music of Margaret Garwood. In the winter of 2006, the Choir is recording the choral music of Veljo Tormis in a premiere recording in English, at the request of the composer.

Dr. Browne is Professor of Music and Chair of the Vocal and Choral Area at PSU. He is also Conductor Emeritus of the Portland Symphonic Choir and Founder and Director of the professional choir, Choral Cross-Ties.  Browne has been named Teacher of the Year at his University,and is former President of the Northwest Division of ACDA.. In October, 2000, Browne was named one of the outstanding Music Educators in Higher Ed. by the MENC. He has been awarded sabbaticals to teach in Guadalajara and London, and has been Visiting Professor at the University of Iowa. He has been jurist,  clinician or guest conductor in many  regions of the country, and in Germany,Spain, Estonia, England and Mexico.

He has served on panels for the National Endowment of the Arts.
Browne has been guest conductor for the Edmonton, Canada Pro Coro, and the Phoenix Bach Choir of Arizona.

Browne has recorded on the labels of Freshwater, Albany and Koch.

Seattle Pro Musica, winner of the Margaret Hillis Achievement Award for Choral Excellence and the ASCAP/Chorus America Award for Adventurous Programming of Contemporary Music, is a critically acclaimed choral ensemble, performing under the direction of conductor and artistic director Karen P. Thomas. 

Seattle Pro Musica is widely considered to be one of the finest ensembles in the Pacific Northwest – American Record Guide ranks it “among America’s very best choirs.”  Seattle Pro Musica has received international recognition and acclaim for its CD recordings and live performances. Of the CD Alnight by the Rose, Choir and Organ magazine (Great Britain) writes: “…there is great depth and purity in this performance… Seattle Pro Musica presents a cappella singing at its best…”   Fanfare Record Magazine writes: “The Seattle Pro Musica’s intonation is razor sharp…” and “the tone and blend are exquisite.” Of Seattle Pro Musica’s recording of Rachmaninov’s Vespers, American Record Guide says: “They sing with incredible smoothness, rich sonic textures, impeccable technique, and truly heartfelt emotionality. It is fully on a par with (Robert) Shaw’s account in terms of choral accomplishment, but Thomas and company do an even better job of plumbing the piece’s deep spirituality and credibly evoking the Slavic pathos… this is a masterly and utterly gorgeous reading that illuminates many of the work’s profoundest passages with subtle clarity, while delivering plenty of power and punch where called for.” The Seattle Post-Intelligencer has praised the group’s “crystalline textures and precise musicality” and “technical finesse” as well as its “provocative and evocative” programming.

Seattle Pro Musica has appeared as a featured ensemble on the NPR radio show Saint Paul Sunday, and has performed by invitation for the World Festival of Women’s Singing, Festival Vancouver in Canada, the American Guild of Organists National Convention and the American Choral Directors Association Regional Convention. In July 2006 Seattle Pro Musica will be a featured international choir at the World Voices Festival in Brugge, Belgium.

Karen P. Thomas, composer and conductor, is the Artistic Director and Conductor of Seattle Pro Musica. With Seattle Pro Musica she has produced four CD recordings, and has received the Margaret Hillis Award for Choral Excellence and the ASCAP-Chorus America Award for Adventuresome Programming of Contemporary Music. Ms. Thomas has guest conducted at international festivals in Europe and North America, and has presented interest and reading sessions for the American Choral Director’s Association Washington State and the Alliance International Festival of Women’s Singing. She has served on the boards of the American Choral Director’s Association for Washington State, the Conductor’s Guild, the League-ISCM and the International Alliance for Women in Music. Ms. Thomas is a recipient of grants and awards from the NEA, American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, and ASCAP, among others. Her compositions have been awarded prizes in various competitions, and her commissions include works for the Grand Jubilee 2000 in Rome, the American Guild of Organists, and the Goodwill Arts Festival. Her compositions are regularly performed internationally, by groups such as The Hilliard Ensemble, and have been praised as “…superb work of the utmost sensitivity and beauty.” Her conducting has received critical praise for its “integrity and high purpose...delivered with taste and impeccable musicianship…”

ACDA Top of Page

Home Page