WSU Choral Festival
Save the Date: This year’s Choral Festival is Saturday, October 21, 2023.
REGISTRATION OPEN! CLICK HERE!
Each year, the WSU School of Music welcomes high school students throughout the region for an educational choral festival. The goal of this event is to excite, encourage, and educate students while developing a spirit of camaraderie and commitment to choral arts. We offer the opportunity to receive feedback from respected clinicians who will help your choir to improve technique, maximize artistic expression, and set goals for the year. We are eager to welcome you to enjoy the fall season on the beautiful Pullman campus for this year’s festival on Saturday, October 21.
CliniciansWSU’s choral faculty, Dr. Dean Luethi and Dr. Matthew Myers, will provide clinics to the choirs throughout the day. To learn more about the clinicians, visit their biography pages.
Festival FormatEach participating choir will have 35 minutes on stage to perform and receive feedback from one of our guest clinicians. This will enable the audience to take part, listen in, and learn from comments given by the clinician to each of the participating choirs. A 5-minute break between each choir will allow for getting on and off risers.
Opportunities for Solo SingersOur voice professors, Dr. Julie Wieck and Alisa Toy, are offering private lessons to students who are interested in auditioning for WSU, preparing for solo/ensemble contests, and/or developing their solo vocal technique. Students should prepare a solo work from classical or musical theatre repertoire. No accompanist is necessary. Be prepared to enter names and song selections for these soloists on the ensemble registration form. If you’re not sure of repertoire yet, no problem — just leave that area blank.
Video RecordingsEach director will receive a quality video recording of both the performance from the audience and a recording of the interaction between the director and the clinician from the stage.
Goal SettingEnsemble directors may request to schedule a post-festival Zoom meeting with their clinician to help in interpreting the feedback from the festival and setting goals for their ensembles for the academic year.
Festival ScheduleThis year’s WSU Choral Festival will take place on Saturday, October 21, 2023.
Provisional schedule: Performances/clinics will begin at 9 AM and continue throughout the day. Before lunch break, WSU’s opera workshop and Chamber Singers will perform. The final concert featuring WSU’s choirs as well as selected high school ensembles will be held in Bryan Hall Theatre at 5 PM. The concert will conclude by 6:30 PM at the latest.
We will provide a finalized schedule of performing groups and times in early October, after festival registration closes.
RegistrationRegistration for each ensemble is $250, and a $50 discount will apply for additional ensembles from the same school. Should your choir need a pianist, you may request one for an additional $50.
Registration is open now! Click here to register.
Registration forms are due by September 30. Please register your ensemble as soon as you are able, as participation is first-come, first-served.
Cancellation Policy
If a registered choir must cancel their participation in the festival, they will receive a full refund if this is communicated by October 10. Cancellations after October 10 will not be refunded.
If WSU must cancel the event for any reason, all payments will be refunded in full.