Note: ALL music is on vocal audition unless marked
High School Concert Choir 2014
Paul Rardin joined the faculty of Temple University as director of choral activities in 2011. He conducts the Concert Choir, teaches graduate conducting, and oversees the six-choir program at Temple’s Boyer College of Music and Dance. He previously taught at the University of Michigan and Towson University, where his choirs appeared with the Kirov Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, and Baltimore Choral Arts Society. Under his direction the University of Michigan Men’s Glee Club performed at the 2010 American Choral Directors Central Division Convention.
Rardin has served as a guest conductor for all-state choirs in twelve states, for divisional honor choirs for the ACDA and Music Educators National Conference, and for Manhattan Concert Productions at Lincoln Center. He has presented clinics for state, regional, and national conferences of the American Choral Directors Association. His engagements for 2012-2013 include the Delaware All-State Mixed Chorus, Illinois ACDA SATB Adult Honor Choir, Pennsylvania District 11 High School Chorus, ACDA Maryland/DC Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Choral Conference, and Texas Choral Directors Association Convention.
Rardin is a graduate of Williams College and the University of Michigan, where he received the M.M. in composition and the D.M.A. in conducting. He has studied conducting with Theodore Morrison, Jerry Blackstone, and Gustav Meier, and composition with Leslie Bassett, George Wilson, and Robert Suderburg. He has also participated in conducting master classes with Helmuth Rilling, Charles Bruffy, and Dale Warland. His arrangements of spirituals and folk songs are published by Santa Barbara Music Publishing, and his articles, many on the topic of contemporary music, have appeared in the ACDA publications Choral Journal, Troubadour, Resound, and Bel Canto.
Repertoire:
- “Gloria” from Mass No. 9 in C Major-Paukenmasse, Joseph Haydn
- “Agnus Dei” from Enigma Variations, Edward Elgar arr. Giardiniere, Walton HL3299128
- “Cedit, Hyems! (Be Gone Winter!)”, Abbie Betinis, G. Schirmer 50486492
- “Ring Out, Wild Bells” from the Passing of the Year, Jonathan Dove, Edition Peters PE.P07568G
- “The Homecoming”, David Conte, E.C. Schirmer 7348
- “Soon Ah Will Be Done/I Wanna Die Easy”, Craig Hella Johnson, Hal Leonard 50490469
- “I Got Shoes”, Shaw/Parker, Alfred AP.LG51116
- “Country Dances”, arr. Ward Swingle, Published by Swingle Music, Glen Gardner NJ
- Combined piece with Orchestra: “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing”, arr. Mack Wilberg, Oxford
- This piece will NOT be on the audition. Students selected for this choir must know it when they arrive in Tampa.
- Soprano 1 should learn the “ossia”, optional parts on pages 9-10.
High School Reading Choir 2014
Jose Rivera is coordinator of Music Education, Assistant Professor of Choral Music, and Conductor of the University Chorale at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. At UNCP he teaches conducting, rehearsal and vocal techniques, and supervises student teachers. Previously, he was on the faculty at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and served as a clinician for numerous workshops, honor choirs, and clinics around the country. Rivera received his Ph.D. and M.M.E. degrees in Music Education and Conducting from Florida State University. During his tenure in Florida, he was a successful public music teacher at the elementary, middle, and high school levels where his advanced choirs received various regional and national awards.
Rivera’s research interests include conducting and rehearsal techniques, teacher preparation, and analysis of twentieth-century Latin American choral music. His article “Roberto Sierra’s Misa Latina” was recently published in the Choral Journal. In addition, his research work has been presented at the MENC and ACDA regional conferences.
High School Women’s Choir 2014
Christopher Aspaas received his Ph.D. in Choral Music Education at The Florida State University in Tallahassee, his M.M. in Choral Conducting from Michigan State University in East Lansing, his B.M. in Voice Performance from St. Olaf. Christopher has served on the faculties of Central Washington University in Ellensburg, Washington and Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts.
At St. Olaf, Aspaas conducts the Viking Chorus, a 90-voice ensemble of first-year student men, and also leads the Saint Olaf Chapel Choir, a 100-voice ensemble specializing in the performance of oratorio and larger multi-movement works. In 2009, Aspaas led the Chapel Choir and St. Olaf Orchestra in a performance of Felix Mendelssohn’s monumental oratorio, Elijah, and recently conducted the Brahms Requiem in April 2011. In addition to conducting, he leads coursework in choral literature, choral conducting, and private applied voice. In 2008, Aspaas was appointed as the Music Director and Conductor for Magnum Chorum, a Twin Cities choral ensemble who is “Transforming Audiences through Artistry and Spirit.”
His travels as a guest conductor, clinician, and adjudicator have taken Christopher to Alaska, Florida, Illinois, Masschusetts, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin and twice to the Sultanate of Oman. He has conducted All-State Choruses in Kentucky, South Dakota, Virginia and Wisconsin, and recently led the 2009 Anacrusis Boys’ Honor Choir in Minnesota.
Aspaas is also active as a tenor soloist, performing Bach cantatas with Helmuth Rilling and the Oregon Bach Festival Orchestra, the Evangelist roles in the John and Matthew Passions of Bach with the Bach Collegium of Fort Wayne, Ind., and other solo roles with the Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra, the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra and the St. Petersburg Chamber Philharmonic in Russia. Most recently, Aspaas traveled to San Luis Obispo, California for a performance of Franz Josef Haydn’s Theresienmesse and Johann Michael Haydn’s Requiem with the Cuesta Master Chorale and Orchestra.
Repertoire:
- “Sing Creations Music On”, Stephen Paulus, Paulus Publications, SP385
- “Esurientes” from Vivaldi for Treble Voices (selections from Magnificat), Vivaldi/ed. Galvan, Lorenz 15/1474R
- “El vito”, arr. Joni Jensen, Walton 10304779
- “Ouvre Ton Coeur”, Bizet arr. Biddlecombe, Walton HL08501625 (Diction track)
- “Until Even the Angels”, #4 from Dorothy’s Poems, Craig Hella Johnson, Hal Leonard 50498609
- “Still I Rise”, Rosephanye Powell, Gentry, Fred Bock 3304157
- “Spirit of Life”, Chris Aspaas
- This piece will NOT be on the audition. Dr. Aspaas wrote this piece for the All-State Women’s Chorus which will be sent to students selected for this choir. Students are expected to know it when they arrive in Tampa.
- Combined piece with band: “Let There Be Peace on Earth”, Miller/Jackson, arr. Keith Christopher, Hal Leonard 08754420
- This piece will NOT be on the audition. Students are expected to know it when they arrive in Tampa.
High School Men’s Choir 2014
Tucker Biddlecombe, Associate Professor of Music, serves as Director of Choral Activities at Vanderbilt University’s Blair School of Music. His duties include conducting the Vanderbilt Symphonic Choir, conducting the Blair Chamber Choir, teaching choral conducting, and serving as Artistic Director for the Blair Children’s Chorus program.
Dr. Biddlecombe spent ten years teaching public school choral music in New York and Florida. He received National Board Teacher Certification in 2007, and was named ‘Teacher of the Year’ at Lawton Chiles High School (FL) in 2008. Ensembles under his direction have performed at state and division conventions of the American Choral Directors Association. He is a sought-after clinician and adjudicator, and will conduct the Florida All-State Men’s Chorus in 2014.
He is a published composer and arranger, with choral works printed by Alliance, Hinshaw, and Walton Music. Also a burgeoning researcher, Dr. Biddlecombe’s article on specificity of conductor feedback was recently published in the fourth volume of the International Journal of Research in Choral Singing.
Dr. Biddlecombe holds the PhD in Music Education and a Master of Music in Choral Conducting from Florida State University, and a Bachelor of Music degree, with majors in Vocal Performance and Music Education, from SUNY Potsdam. He is a native of Buffalo, New York.
Repertoire:
- “Somagwaza”, Tucker Biddlecombe, Hinshaw 2314
- “Der Herr segne euch”, duet from Cantata 196, J.S. Bach, arr. Talley, Hal Leonard 08745930 (Diction track)
- “Finlandia”, Sibelius, Galaxy Pub ECS 1.1845
- “Zihr”, A.R.Rahman, arr, Ethan Sperry, Earthsongs
- “Loch Lomond”, arr Hanawalt, Kjos 3266277
- “Chibola”, Jackson Berkey, SDG Press 06-402
- “Darkness on the Delta” arr. Hopkins
- FVA will purchase this piece after the choir is selected and will not be used for audition
Middle School Mixed Choir 2014
Dr. Gene Peterson is the Associate Director of Choral Activities and is the conductor of the UT Concert Choir and UT Men’s Chorale. He also teaches courses in undergraduate choral conducting and secondary choral methods.
Beyond his duties at the university, Peterson serves as the Director of Choirs at Cedar Springs Presbyterian Church in Knoxville.
Prior to his arrival to Tennessee, Dr. Peterson has held posts as music director and conductor for college, high school, church, and community choirs in California and Washington. Ensembles under his leadership have performed in venues throughout the United States, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand, including the Sistine Chapel, the Sydney (Australia) Opera House, and Chicago Symphony Hall.
Dr. Peterson regularly appears as a clinician and adjudicator for local, regional, and international choral festivals. He holds membership in many professional organizations including the American Choral Choral Directors Association, National Collegiate Choral Organization, and East Tennessee Vocal Association. He has served in professional leadership roles such as High School Standards and Repertoire Chair for the California American Choral Directors Association and as Bay Area Choral Representative for the California Music Educators Association.
Dr. Peterson has had the pleasure to be mentored by and to study with Geoffrey Boers, William Hall, Jane Hardester, and Weston Noble. He holds a Bachelor of Music in Choral Conducting and a Masters of Arts in Education from Chapman University in Orange, California and the Doctor of Musical Arts in Choral Conducting from the University of Washington, Seattle.
Repertoire:
- “We are One”, Brian Tate, Alliance AMP 0735
- “The Seal Lullaby”, Eric Whitacre, Shadow Water Music HL08749149
- “Festival Jubilate”, Giardiniere, Heritage 15/2802H
- “Lebenslust”, Franz Schubert, Hinshaw HMC425
- “A Trilogy of Knighthood”, Julie Gardner Bray, Heritage 15/ 1314H
- “Lakota Wiyanki” arr. Herrington/Woodside, Colla Voce 20-96600
Middle School Treble Choir 2014
Robyn Reeves Lana is the founder, managing artistic director and conductor of the award-winning Cincinnati Children’s Choir, ensemble-in-residence at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. At CCM, Lana sponsors undergraduate interns with the children’s choir and mentors graduate choral conducting students. Level III Orff-Schulwerk-certified, she also teaches general music for grades 1-8 at the Montessori Academy of Cincinnati.
Lana is a regular guest conductor for international, state and regional honor and festival choirs, most recently in Kentucky, Indiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Ohio. She looks forward to conducting the ACDA Southern Division Honor Choir in 2012. In demand as a clinician, she has presented workshops on choral artistry and vocal development for workshops at Music Educators National Conference regional conventions, for the Music Educators Association of Ohio, Indiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Ohio, and for the Northeast Ohio Educatiion Association. She has presented techniques for educating and performing chamber music for young children at the Chamber Music America National Convention.
Lana regularly prepares choirs for performances with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the Cincinnati Pops, the Vocal Arts Ensemble, the Cincinnati May Festival, and for international festivals and CCM choirs and orchestras. She has prepared singers to perform with a Broadway touring company and regularly prepares her choirs for performance with the CCM Opera Division. She prepared CCM for CD releases, and has prepared the group for two Telarc label recordings with the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, as well as two national recordings for Earthsongs Publications.
Articles by Lana have been published in the Choral Journal, Choristers Guild’s The Chorister, and Chamber Music America’s CMA Matters. She serves as ACDA representative for the 2012 World Choir Games Music Advisory Committee and as national chair for ACDA’s Children’s and Community YouthChoir Repertoire and Standards. She is a member of Chorus America, MENC, AOSA and IFCM.
Lana has bachelor and master’s degrees in Music from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. She has a cognate in Voice and has done postgraduate work with Henry Leck at Butler University.
Repertoire:
- “Beati in domo Domini”, James G. Kantor, Santa Barbara SBMP 1112
- “Der Herr Segne Euch Music”, Bach ed. Robb, Colla Voce 20-96140
- “The Water is Wide” arr. Jason Webb, Santa Barbara, SBMP 1111
- “Isn’t that Something?”, Brunner, Boosey & Hawkes 48019151
- “Beneath the African Sky”, Caldwell/Ivory, Caldwell and Ivory
- “Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around” arr. Rollo Dilworth, Hal Leonard 00114508