In just a few days, Dallas, Texas, will welcome choral musicians from across the country for the NationalACDAConference!IamthrilledtoattendandrepresenttheSouthwesternRegion TheACDA leadership and planning team have worked tirelessly to create an outstanding experience for all who attend
One of the highlights for me will be meeting with the SWACDA board during the conference Many boardmembersandIhaveneverhadthechancetomeetinperson,andIcan’twaittoconnectface-toface!Ifeelincrediblyfortunatetoworkwithsuchadedicatedandtalentedgroupofpeople.Ifyousee me or any SWACDA board members during the conference, please say hello! We’ll have Albuquerquethemedstickerstoshare,aswellasaspecialbookmarkthatentersyouintoanexcitingdrawing.
All SWACDA members attending the conference are invited to our SWACDA Reception a great opportunitytoconnectwithcolleaguesyoumaynotoftenseeinperson.Thereceptionwilltakeplace onThursday,March20,at10p.m.intheSheratonHotel-DallasBallroomD1.Besuretopickup an Albuquerque bookmark, as you’ll have the chance to fill it out at the reception and enter our drawingforFREEREGISTRATIONtothe2026SWACDAConferenceinAlbuquerque!Onelucky winnerwillreceivethisincredibleprize butremember,youmustbepresentatthereceptionwhen thedrawingtakesplacetowin
Finally, I know there are many of you I haven’t had the chance to meet yet If you see me at the conference,pleasestopmeandintroduceyourself I’dlovetoconnect! Safetravels,andIlookforwardtoseeingyouinDallas!
Best,
PastPresident’sCorner
TonyGonzalez
Conference-2018OklahomaCity LivesinNorman,OK
Tony Gonzalez is retired after serving eight years as Associate Director of Choral Activities at OCU. His University Singers performed at the 2018 and 2023 OkMEA State Conferences and the SWACDA Conference in 2020. He spent 17 years at Norman North High School where his choirs earned 17 consecutive State Sweepstakes, won festivals in 10 major cities, performed at OkMEA, OCDA, SWACDA and ACDA, and performed on NPR’s From the Top. He has been an adjudicator and guest conductor throughout the Southwest. He has been named Who’s Who Among American High School Teachers. NAfME named him as one of the country’s outstanding music educators. He is the 2007 NFHS National MusicEducatoroftheYear,2008OkMEAExemplaryTeacher,andthe2015OCDADirectorofDistinction Award Heearnedhisbachelor’sdegreefromTexasA&MUniversityatKingsvilleandhismastersfromthe UniversityofOklahoma HeisABDontheDMAfromtheUniversityofOklahoma HetaughtinAliceand Edinburg,Texas,wasDCAattheUniversityofScience&ArtsofOklahoma,wasconductoroftheNorman CommunityChoralSocietyandtheOklahomaVocalArtsEnsemble(SWACDA1988) Tonyhasservedas presidentofOCDAandSWACDA
ACDA enriched my career with countless artistic and leadership opportunities, and meeting and learning fromsomanyoutstandingleadersinourprofession.OneofthegreatesthonorswastoserveasSWACDA President Thankyou,ACDA!
Paula Martin has been an active choral director and music educator for more thanfortyyears.Shehastaughtgeneralmusic,alltypesofchoralensembles,and music education courses for students from preschool through graduate school, includingtwenty-threeyearsasDirectorofChoirsatOakvilleSeniorHighSchool, inSt.Louis,Missouri.DuringhertenureatOakvilleHighSchool,herchoirsperformedattheSouthwestern Regional Conference of ACDA, Kansas City in 2008. Martin's choirs were selected and performed for the MissouriMusicEducatorsAnnualWorkshopandConferencefivetimes.Mrs.Martinservedtwotermsfor the Missouri Choral Directors Association as the Chairperson for Treble Choirs, and served as Vocal Vice President for the Missouri Music Educators Association from 2015-2017. Paula Martin currently serves as DirectorofChoirsatJeffersonCollege,inHillsboro,Missouri.
My esteemed colleague and friend, Jonathan Owen approached me and asked if I would be willing to write a short article about some of my very favorite choral pieces and why they are special to me. Of course, that soundedlikealotoffun!So,offIwent,onlytorealizethatIneededtodosomeseriousnarrowingofthefield!
What follows are some thoughts about pieces that affected my singers and me in impactful ways. I have limited myself to pieces that were written or arranged for Treble Choir. Whether made up of Children's voices, middleschoolagedsingers,highschoolagedsingers,collegeagedsingers,oradultsingers,Ihaveaspecialplace inmyheartforTrebleChoirs.Enjoy!
MyOakvilleWomen'sChoralesangthispiecefortheMissouriMusicEducatorsConferenceinJanuaryof 20113. The performance of this piece will always be my favorite moment as a music educator! I can not describe it, except to say that my singers and I were IN IT! The Chorale that year was a group of 18 top notchhighschooltreblesingers.Butthebestpartwasn'ttheperformance.Thebestpartwastheprocessof learning this exquisite piece! The way that Daniel J. Hall set this traditional hymn text is astonishing! While studying the text our singers shared their feelings about loss and the importance of friends and family while working through grief If you have singers with mature voices who can be vulnerable with oneanotherinamatureandsupportiveway,pleasetakealookatthisamazingpiece
WhydoIlovethispiece?It'saRomp!It'safantasticopenerforaconcertorconferenceprogram!It'sshort, fast, and fun! The possibilities for exploring timbre and vocal placement abound! A recording to get your singersacclimated-givealistentotheCantemusChoralInstitute'srecordingonYoutube.
IfyoudonotknowthemusicofJoanSzymko,youmuststartstudyingherwork!Szymko'smusicisdeeply emotional, yet cerebral and theoretically complex. If you often find yourself looking for treble choir literature that is challenging, calls for truly advanced musicianship, and is emotionally mature, look into themusicofJoanSzymko.VivosVocosisaterrificopenerorcloser.It'slengthy,butsoworthit!.Thepiece begins in Latin and tells of dangerous destruction. There follows a section in Latin that tells of the communitycomingtogetherinordertoaddresstheimmediatesituation.
Be Our Guest Repertoire
The third and final section of the piece transitions into English and is a simple layering of the text "All Shall Be Well" The handbells and piano accompaniment are integral to the story The bells literally are used the use of church bells in early times to warn of danger, such as intruders or fire The bells in Vivos Vocosfunctiontocallthecommunitytogether Thesettingofthetextandtheinstrumentationandpiano accompanimentaremagical WhenmyOakvilleWomen'sChoralestudiedthispieceinpreparationforour conference performance of the Missouri Music Educators Association, Symko's Vivos Vocos was our openerandbecameourfavoritepieceontheprogram.Tothisday,somanyyearslater,"AllshallbeWell" continues to be an affirmation of hope for me and for those of us who first performed this work back in 2011.IamproudtosaythattheOHSWomen'sChorale,underthedirectionofChelseaAyres,isperforming this piece as part of their program for the January 2025 Conference of the Missouri Music Educators Association.Icannotwaittoheartheirperformance!
Congratulations to Janice Vlachos, Colorado Choral Directors Association President, for receiving the ColoradoMusicEducatorsAssociation2025HallofFameAward
Congratulations to Jonean Ratliff, Missouri Choral Directors Association Past President (1987), on being inductedintotheMissouriMusicEducatorsAssociationHallofFame
Congratulations to Janice Bradshaw. Janice recently retired from being the Missouri All-State Choir Coordinator, a position she had held for 46 years. Janice was presented the Dr. John G. Patterson LeadershipAward
With Past MMEA President, Brian Hartman andCurrentPresident,ChrisSacco
MCDA recognition with President, Kevin McBeth andPastPresident,AmyKrinke
