About The Anderson Area Children's Choir and Youth Chorale

The Anderson Area Children’s Choir and Youth Chorale was founded in the Fall of 1992. With an enrollment of more than 150 students in grades two through twelve, the choir is dedicated to the art of excellent choral singing for singers who reside within Anderson and Madison County. The organization offers a performance-based program which strongly emphasizes developing musical literacy and appreciation through choral literature, while utilizing Kodaly teaching techniques. The choir offers four levels of curriculum performance opportunities.

CHAMBER CHOIR: is our training choir made up of younger and less experienced singers. In addition to teaching beginning vocal skills the Kodaly based training in this group will include music reading, music writing, game songs and activities that will enhance the musical growth of young singers. The Chamber Choir will perform at the two major concerts of the year (Christmas and Spring) and will participate in a day long tour in Indiana.

CONCERT CHOIR: is the largest ensemble in the children’s choir program. It can include singers in grades 4-8. This group will work on vocal skills, music literacy, and learning and performing a wide variety of music from different cultures and styles. The Concert Choir will perform at the two major concerts of the year, other community performances as they are available and will participate in a day long tour of Indiana.

CHORALE: is made up of the most experienced singers in the children’s choir program. This group will continue to develop vocal skills, and will learn and perform the highest level of literature for children’s choirs. Singers in Chorale will be expected to exhibit excellent preparation, a strong work ethic, a high level of commitment to the program, including maintaining an excellent attendance record at both rehearsals and performances. The Chorale will travel on a Spring tour each year for 3-4 days.

YOUTH CHORALE: will be made up of singers grades 9-12 and boys with changed voices. This group will work on vocal technique, musical literacy, musicianship and perform the highest level of choral literature. Members of YC will be expected to exhibit excellent preparation, strong work ethic, a high level of commitment to the program and excellent attendance at rehearsals and performances. The Youth Chorale tours each Spring for 3-4 days.

Mission Statement

The Anderson Area Children’s Choir & Youth Chorale is filed with the State of Indiana as a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to the art of excellent choral signing, providing youth with social, educational, and skill development opportunities such that they experience the personal worth of others. The choir exists to artistically enrich the lives of these children, their families, and the surrounding community.

The Anderson Area Children’s Choir & Youth Chorale provides a unique opportunity for children of all racial, economic, and religious backgrounds. Singers from private, home school, as well as public schools can participate in this vocal music experience in a large group setting. The performance-based program emphasizes musical literacy and appreciation. Quality choral literature from all styles and periods forms the foundation for musical learning.

Goals

The major goals for the children provided by the organization are:

• To foster the personal and social growth of choir members and promote their sense of self-worth, self-esteem, accomplishment, and pride.
• To expose children to the values and beliefs of other societies and cultures.
• To teach children to read music at various ability levels.
• To maintain choir membership open to children of all racial, cultural, religious and economic backgrounds.
• To attain a high level of excellence in public musical performance.
• To contribute to the cultural life of Anderson, Indiana and Madison County areas, and
• To increase the quality of singing in area schools by providing an organization which can excel beyond the experiences possible in the average school music program.

Curriculum Content

1. The Anderson Area Children’s Choir & Youth Chorale is a special learning environment designed to provide a rich and rewarding experience for each child. The singers study and perform a variety of music from simple unison folk songs to more challenging choral literature.
2. Masterpieces of music from all styles and periods serve as the basis for the curriculum and form the foundation for musical learning. Since the best musical experiences for children are inherent in great music, the children’s choir repertoire includes music from representative composers such as Bach, Handel, Schubert, Kodaly, Britten and Rutter. In addition, the selection of music includes current arrangements and compositions by children’s choir specialists such as Betty Bertaux, Mary Goetze, Henry Leck, and Doreen Rao.
3. Concepts of music (rhythm, pitch, harmony, form, dynamics, and style) as well as vocal skills (singing, theory, sight-singing, and solfege) are taught sequentially throughout the rehearsals. Musical objectives are met through singing, listening, analysis, and some instrumental performance.
4. The children are taught the systematic use of their vocal instrument through correct posture, breath control, vocal exercise, and tone production. The essence of musical experience is based on pitch and rhythm, as it is sensed and heard in vocal expression.
5. Singing is the major means of musical experience in the Anderson Area Children’s Choir & Youth Chorale. Through vocal experiences relating directly to the literature and warm-ups, true musical literacy is achieved. Singing is a powerful personal means of musical expression. It is the hope of this organization that this experience will form the foundation for a life-long relationship with music for the singers and their families.

Eligibility, Schedule & Tuition

The choir is open to all singers currently in or entering grades two through twelve. The membership draws from all over central Indiana. Auditions are held each may for the upcoming fall season. Veteran singers need to re-audition for placement in the choirs. New singers, entering grades two through twelve in the fall are asked to complete a full audition for placement in one of the five levels of curriculum. Auditions may be held upon request for interested singers by calling the office. For further additional information, call the choirs office at (765) 778-4738.

All choirs meet once a week. The Chamber Choir rehearses Tuesday evenings from 5:00-6:10pm, the Concert Choir rehearses Tuesday evenings from 5:15-6:30pm, and the Chorale Choir rehearses Tuesday evenings from 6:30-8:30pm. The Youth Chorale rehearses alternate Tuesdays and Sundays, with Tuesday rehearsals from 6:15-8:30pm and Sunday rehearsals from 3:00-5:15pm.

Tuition for the instruction is charged by the year. A sibling rate of half tuition is offered for families with more than one singer in the choirs. For current fee information, please call the choirs home office at (765) 649-4763. For those eligible students, a scholarship program is available to defray tuition and uniform costs. Guardians should ask for a scholarship application during the time of audition to determine eligibility.