New Executive Assistant Named
Kristin Kivell
The ACDA-MN leadership team is pleased to announce that Kristin Kivell has accepted the appointment as new Executive Assistant. Kristin will begin immediately to transition into the position effective July 1. Kivell most recently has been choral director at Faribault Middle School and has served ACDA-MN as Southeast District Chair.
Honoring Barb Geier
Barb Ceier
ACDA-MN plans to honor the retirement of Executive Assistant Barb Geier at the Summer Dialogue Award and Recognition Banquet on Thursday, August 10, at St. John’s University. More about Barb’s work in Bruce’s The Last Word column.
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It’s here! After over a year of planning and development, the new ACDA-MN website is up and running. Developed by our competent and creative Web Editor, Dariush Akhavan, the goals of the new website are to provide ease of navigation and expanded opportunities for interactive dialogue between members. As the weeks and months move forward, we will announce further enhancements to the site as they become available.
If you have any questions, comments, feature requests or glitch reports please contact Dariush at webeditor@acda-mn.org
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With the development of the new ACDA-MN website comes the re-development of our membership messaging program. The Weekly Pulse will now be sent out each Tuesday and will feature paid announcements, along with important messages/deadlines related to the organization. The Weekly Pulse EXTRA will be sent out on Fridays if additional urgent messaging and/or time sensitive paid announcements warrant.
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The ACDA-MN leadership team is pleased to announce the results of the annual state-wide elections held this past March. All elected leaders will assume their positions on July 1, 2017.
State President-Elect
Diane Heaney
Albert Lea High School
Six Year Term
Central District Chair
Michael Sellheim
Annandale High School
Three Year Term
Southeast District Chair
Maria Wilson
Ellis Middle School, Austin
Three Year Term
While we are excited to welcome these new leaders to our organization, we also wish to acknowledge the incredible leadership offered by these ACDA-MN who have served our growing organization with superb distinction and service:
State Vice President
Brian Stubbs
Brainerd High School
2007-2013 & 2015-2017
Special extended term service of eight years!
Central District Chair
Nate Raabe
Dassel-Cokato Public Schools
2014-2017
Southeast District Chair
Kristin Kivell
Faribault Middle School
2014-2017
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SUMMER DIALOGUE 2017
The 32nd annual Summer Dialogue will be held August 8-11 at St. John’s University in Collegeville MN. Conference Chair Susan Zemlin has programmed a stellar line-up of state clinicians and interest session topics around the personally renewing theme of: Elevating Personal Well Being to Empower Our Choirs.
In addition, thirteen new music reading sessions will be organized by our state R&R Committee Chairs, featuring over 140 hand-selected titles.
Early discount registration deadline is: June 15
Registration rates include:
- Morning continental breakfasts
- Picnic lunch
- Thursday evening award banquet
More information and on-line registration available at: summerdialoguemn.info
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Conference Chair Paula Holmberg has already confirmed and programmed over twenty interest sessions for the 2017 State Conference scheduled for Friday-Saturday, November 17-18 at St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church in Mahtomedi.
Mack Wilberg
Our conference headliner is Mack Wilberg, artistic director and conductor of the world famous Mormon Tabernacle Choir in Salt Lake City UT. Dr. Wilberg will be featured in two major choral festival events throughout the weekend.
The Friday festival will feature six auditioned high school mixed choirs appearing in An Americana Portrait with Mack Wilberg, culminating in a grand finale concert at 8:00 pm. Selected high school choirs are:
- Angelica Cantanti Concert Choir – Philip Brown, conductor
- Centennial HS Concert Choir – Julie Enwright, conductor
- Chanhassen HS Concert Choir – Sarah Gilbertson, conductor
- Duluth East HS A Cappella Choir – Jerome Upton, conductor
- Northfield HS Concert Choir – Kyle Eastman, conductor
- St. Michael-Albertville HS Concert Choir – Joseph Osowski and Brandon Berger, conductors
The Saturday 1:30 PM festival concert will showcase six outstanding community choirs featured in A Christmas Portrait with Mack Wilberg. Choirs participating in this event are:
- Fargo-Moorhead Choral Artists – Michael Culloton, conductor
- Minnesota Mormon Chorale – Erin Gray, conductor
- Minnesota Valley Men’s Chorale – Steven Boehlke, conductor
- Minnesota Valley Women’s Chorale – Judy Sagen, conductor
- Northern Lights Chorale – Bruce Phelps, conductor
- Two Rivers Chorale – Timothy Sawyer, conductor
Reserve these dates on your calendar for November, 2017!
Don’t miss it!
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CHORALE ARTS FINALE 2017
After twelve momentous years that featured sixty Minnesota high schools and twelve nationally renowned clinicians, the annual Choral Arts Finale has bid their farewell. Over the years, concert sponsors and Concordia University-St. Paul benefactors David and Sandra Frauenshuh have faithfully supported the premier choral festival. We thank them for faithfully promoting our choral art during this time. Finale Coordinator David Mennicke of Concordia-St. Paul has also been instrumental in positively encouraging and supporting high school choirs and their directors during these years. Mission Accomplished!
Choirs that appeared in the final festival on Sunday, March 26 were:
- Albert Lea High School Concert Choir – Diane Heaney, conductor
- Champlin Park High School Concert Choir – Laura Tempel, conductor
- Duluth East High School A Cappella Choir – Jerome Upton, conductor
- Hastings High School Select Chorale – Lin Warren, conductor
- Roseville Area High School The Good ‘Pellas Chamber Choir – Kellen McMillen, conductor
- Wayzata High School Concert Choir – Rebecca Wyffels, conductor
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[toggle expand=0 title=’STATE HONOR CHOIR UPDATE’]
Honor Choirs 2016-17 Statistics
State 7-8 TTB
Guest Conductor: Steven Albaugh, Rosemount High School
Tenor 1: 116
Tenor 2: 62
Baritone: 66
Total: 244
Selected: 150
State 7-8 SSA
Guest Conductor: Gilian Teoh-Berbee, Lake Middle School, Woodbury
Soprano 1: 137
Soprano 2: 199
Alto: 155
Total: 491
Selected: 150
State 9-10 SSAA
Guest Conductor: Therees Hibbard, St. Olaf College
State 9-10 SATB
Guest Conductor: Lee Nelson, Wartburg College
Soprano: 264
Alto: 403
Tenor: 70
Bass: 198
Total: 935
Selected: 130 SSAA; 130 SATB
State 4-5-6 Boys
Guest Conductor: Ruth Dwyer, Indianapolis Children’s Choir
High: 83
Low: 123
Total: 206
Selected: 115
State 4-5-6 Girls
Guest Conductor: Charlette Moe, North Dakota State University
High: 128
Low: 195
Either: 105
Total: 428
Selected: 150
2016-17 Grand Totals
Auditioned Students: 2304
Selected Students: 825
2017-18 State Honor Choir Schedule
7-8
Auditions Due: Friday, September 29
Guest Conductors:
Boys – Steven Hoemberg
Girls – Andrea Ramsey
Honor Choir Day: Saturday, November 18, 2017
Location: Mahtomedi High School & St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church
9-10
Auditions Due: Friday, November 3
Guest Conductors:
SSAA – Jennaya Robison
SATB – Jonathan Talberg
Honor Choir Day: Thursday, February 22, 2018
Location: TBD
4-5-6
Auditions Due: Friday, February 23
Guest Conductors:
Boys – Fernando Malvar-Ruiz
Girls – Barbara Sletto
Honor Choir Day: Saturday, May 5, 2018
Location: St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church
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Thanks to the generosity of ACDA-MN members and donors to the FMC Endowment Fund, the FMC scholarship subcommittee awarded these recent scholarships to these ACDA-MN members:
2017 ACDA National Conference Scholarships
Jaclyn Anderson – North Central University
Nicholas Hager – Concordia College-Moorhead
Victoria Janasz – St. Cloud Apollo High School
Emma Jirele – University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
Jeremiah Krueger – St. Cloud State University
Andrea Peterson – University of Northwestern-St. Paul
Laura Potratz – University Baptist Church-St. Paul
Jonathan Rydberg – St. Cloud State University
Megan Shipley – St. Cloud State University
Mikayla Vetter – North Central University
Cory Westgard – Minnesota State University-Mankato
2017 Graduate Study Scholarships
Paige Armstrong – University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
Katelyn Larson – University of St. Thomas
Jami Lercher – University of Miami, Frost School of Music
Brandon Nordhues – University of St. Thomas
Nicole Thietje – University of St. Thomas
Amanda Weber* – University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
*Alice T. Larsen Memorial Scholarship Award
2017 World Choral Symposium Scholarship
Michelle Hayes
Anoka High School
2016-17 Needs-Based Honor Choir Scholarships
7-8 Honor Choir Recipients: 5
9-10 Honor Choir Recipients: 2
4-5-6 Honor Choir Recipients: 7
Since its inception in 1997, the FMC Endowment Fund Committee has awarded a grand total of 324 Minnesota choral directors and students receiving scholarship awards totaling $209,295. More details are available in the 2016 FMC Annual Report to be posted by the end of May, 2017.
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