About

Choirs of Note™

The mission of Choirs of Note™ is to serve Minnesota high school choir programs, students who wish to pursue a college degree, and to promote artistic excellence. The goal of the organizers is that every high school choir in Minnesota has the opportunity to participate in and benefit from this endeavor. If your choir submits an audition recording, we are closer to that goal. Choirs of Note™ pursues its mission through this unique choral festival and the Dale Warland Choral Scholarship Fund™.

Dale Warland Choral Scholarship Fund™

The Dale Warland Choral Scholarship Fund™ exists to serve Minnesota high school choir students who wish to pursue a college degree. In 2008, choirs will compete for $24,000 in scholarships, with $10,000 in funds going to the high school whose choir is judged best at the competition. The second-place choir will receive scholarship funds of $5,000, third-place receives $4,000, fourth-place collects $3,000, and fifth-place is awarded $2,000.

View the winners from 2007

2008 Choirs of Note:
Minnesota Invitational Choral Festival and Competition™

The 2008 Choirs of Note™ festival is May 1-3, in Marshall, Minnesota. The venues for the festival are Southwest Minnesota State University and the Schwan Community Center for the Performing Arts.

It costs absolutely nothing for a Minnesota high school choir to audition for invitation to the 2008 Choirs of Note™. There is no participation fee for choirs that are selected. Each school that attends and participates will receive thousands of dollars in scholarship funds, and receive instruction from some of the most gifted educators in the field of choral music today, led by Maestro Dale Warland.

View the results from the 2007 Choirs of Note: Minnesota Invitational Choral Festival and Competition™

Dale Warland

Dale Warland, celebrated American musician, has made an indelible impression on the landscape of contemporary choral music both nationally and internationally. He is regarded by many as the unsurpassed authority for choral music in the world today.

In the late 1960s, reports of his exceptional choral conducting skills spread. In 1972, the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis asked him to assemble a group of singers to present a concert of new music. Dale Warland assembled a group of forty community singers to present a concert on June 11, 1972. As a result, the Dale Warland Singers, a professional mixed chorus, was born. The Dale Warland Singers commissioned 270 choral works, presented more than 400 concerts, and produced 27 highly acclaimed recordings in its 32-year existence. More than 150 notable composers have worked with the Dale Warland Singers, including several Grammy winners.

During his time with the Dale Warland Singers, he shaped a vocal ensemble known for its exquisite sound, technical finesse, and stylistic range. From that platform, Warland not only mastered the traditional repertoire, but also commissioned over 270 new choral works. The music world responded by bestowing its highest honors on Warland, including a Distinguished Master Artist Award from the University of South Florida, a Grammy nomination for best choral performance, the prestigious ASCAP Victor Herbert Award, and a special award from Chorus America and ASCAP for Warland’s “pioneering vision, leadership and commitment to commissioning and performing new choral works at the highest level of artistry.”

Dale Warland remains committed to sharing his knowledge about the choral arts. He is actively sought as a clinician, composer, and guest conductor. He brings energy, expertise, and enthusiasm to Choirs of Note™, and allows the organization to use his celebrated reputation with the Dale Warland Choral Scholarship Fund™.

The Adjudicators/Clinicians

Confirmed as joining Dale Warland, and acting as the adjudicators at this matchless event, are: