LMEA sponsors two All-State choirs – All-State Mixed Choir, which includes approximately 160 students, and All-State Treble Chorus, which includes approximately 60 students. Choir members are selected as a result of district (1st round) and state (2nd round) auditions.
2023 ALL-STATE MIXED CHOIR CLINICIAN: Dr. Andrew Minear, conductor, music educator, and choir leader
With appearances across the United States, Dr. Andrew Minear is an active conductor, music educator, and choir leader. Dr. Minear is the founding Artistic and Executive Director of Orlando Sings where he conducts the Orlando Sings Symphonic Chorus and the professional vocal ensemble Solaria. He also serves as Interim Director of Music Ministry at All Saints Episcopal Church of Winter Park.
Previously, Dr. Minear was the Director of Choral Activities at the University of Alabama where he conducted University Singers and University Chorus, oversaw the graduate choral conducting program, and taught courses in conducting and choral literature. The UA University Singers performed at the 2018 Alabama Music Educators Association conference, and performances of choral-orchestral works included Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms, Bach’s Missa Brevis in A, Mozart’s Requiem, and the southeastern premier of Jocelyn Hagen’s multi-media symphony, The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci.
All-State Program for the Mixed Choir: Music will be mailed to the choir director at each school that has a student in the ensemble.
“Sit Down, Servant” by Marques L.A. Garrett (SATB)
“The King Shall Rejoice” by G.F. Handel/ed. Andre Thomas (SAATB) “Suliko” arr. Brent Wells (SATB) “Voice On the Wind” by Sarah Quartel (SATB) “One Step” by Jocelyn Hagen (SATB) “Amazing Grace” arr. Skip Stradtman (SSAATTBB)
Rehearsal Tracks for the All-State Program: Rehearsal tracks are provided to assist students in learning their music. They are prepared by members of LMEA as a courtesy. All due diligence has been taken to ensure that notes, rhythms, and performance items are correct, however, we depend on teachers to make corrections if you think there is a mistake.
2023 ALL-STATE TREBLE CHORUS CLINICIAN: Dr. Cameron Weatherford, Assistant Professor of Choral Music at Lee University
The 2023 LMEA All-State Treble Choir will be conducted by Dr. Cameron Weatherford. Dr. Cameron Weatherford serves as Assistant Professor of Choral Music at Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee where he conducts the Ladies of Lee, Choral Union, and teaches courses in the undergraduate and graduate choral music curriculum.
Prior to coming to Lee, he served as the Chair of the Division of Fine Arts and Director of Choral Activities at Louisiana College in Pineville, Louisiana.
All-State Program for Treble Chorus: Music will be mailed to the choir director at each school that has a student in the ensemble.
“Caritas Abundat” by Michael John Trotta “Liebst du Um Schonheit” by Clara Schumann, arr. Drew Collins (in German) “True Colors” arr. Jesse Hempsch “Boxes” arr. Dan Forrest “Please Stay” by Jake Runesta “Child of Peace” by Elaine Hagenberg
Rehearsal Tracks for the All-State Program: Rehearsal tracks are provided to assist students in learning their music. They are prepared by members of LMEA as a courtesy. All due diligence has been taken to ensure that notes, rhythms, and performance items are correct, however, we depend on teachers to make corrections if you think there is a mistake.
INFORMATION ABOUT DISTRICT LEVEL (1st ROUND) AUDITIONS
Each of the nine LMEA Districts will hold a district level 1st round qualifying audition to determine the students who will qualify for the 2nd round state level audition. Students must audition in their school’s LMEA district for the 1st round audition.
Dates, fees, and locations for the 1st Round audition are set by each district. (Be aware of 2nd Round deadlines before setting this date.)
1st Round – District Directors will require students to submit either this form or their specific district’s form for 1st round auditions.
2nd Round – No student’s audition recording will be accepted for 2nd Round adjudication without the receipt of this form by the District’s recording date. Follow your District Director’s instructions for submitting the LMEA Student Information Release Form.
The ensemble director of students auditioning must be a current LMEA member.
Students auditioning must be enrolled in a Louisiana-accredited high school and must be an active member of that school’s choral music program. Click for a list of Nonpublic Accredited Approved Schools 2023-24.
In a situation where there is no program in the school, the student must be enrolled in a Louisiana-accredited high school and certified by the eligible music teacher at that school or a private teacher who is an LMEA member.
Students selected to All-State Mixed Choir or Treble Chorus are eligible for membership in only one All-State ensemble. *Exception: A member of either choir may participate in Concert Band or Symphonic Band provided there is no conflict with any part of the registration window, a rehearsal, or the performance. Students must be present at all scheduled activities for both ensembles.
Scales will be included in both the 1st and the 2nd Round auditions.
The process and scale chart found here should be followed for both rounds.
Each student must sing all scales using the starting pitch indicated for their voice part below. Scales must be sung a cappella using solfege, numbers, or a neutral syllable. Recommended tempo for scales is quarter note = 66-80. Each singer must sing two scales, each one ascending and descending.
Bass 1: E below middle C; A below C3 (the C below middle C)
Bass 2: D below middle C; F below C3 (the C below middle C)
PREPARED SELECTION – 1st Round
For 2023, there will NOT be different audition selections for 1st and 2nd round auditions. The 1st round/2nd round selection comes from the list below.
(Omitting in Rotation) – “Richte Mich, Gott” by Mendelssohn, SSAATTBB, Warner Bros., LG70179. (Sing German) For 2019, use this CPDL version, as requested by Dr. Stephen A. Futrell, All-State Mixed Choir Director.
2025 – “Crucifixus” by Lotti, SSAATTBB (Latin), arr. Mason, Walton Music Corp., W6006 Note: The CPDL version previously used is no longer available. For consistency, all students must audition using the Walton version of “Crucifixus.”
Students will sight-read a short selection at 1st round using solfege, numbers, or neutral syllables. Ties are broken by the sight-reading score.
The sight-reading material will be emailed to the district director prior to the district’s audition date. It is the District Director’s responsibility to get the audition date to the Vocal Chairman or Audition Coordinator.
The sight-reading material will follow the following criteria:
There will only be skips within the Tonic (I) chord. All other movements will be step-wise.
It will be in common time (4/4).
The range will be no greater than the Sol (V) below the tonic (I) chord to the La (VI) above the tonic chord.
The rhythmic difficulty will consist of whole, half, quarter, dotted quarter followed by an eighth note. There will only be quarter note rests.
The example will be eight measures long.
It will begin on Do (I) and end on Do (I)
There will not be a pickup measure to begin with and will include no accidentals.
If you are using Sight Reading Factory, Level 3 is close to this level of difficulty.
All auditions are required to be blind auditions. Each district will determine whether the audition will be an All-State 1st round audition only or combined with a District Honor Choir audition.
ORDER OF AUDITION:
1. Scales If scales are included at 1st Round, the process and scale chart given below under “AUDITION REQUIREMENTS (2nd Round) – Scales” should be followed. Scales must be included in the 2nd Round audition.
2. Prepared Selection The prepared selection should be performed first and must be performed with the audition track.
For 2023, the same audition piece will be used for Round 1 and Round 2 Auditions.
1st Round – If the District Director or his/her designee wishes to shorten the piece for Round 1, they may audition on a section (cut) of “O Vos Omnes.”
2nd Round – The selection will be performed in its entirety for the Round 2 recorded audition.
The students’ auditions are evaluated on the following criteria:
Intonation
20 points
Tone Quality
20 points
Part Accuracy
20 points
Diction
10 points
Technique and Interpretation
10 points
Scales
10 points
Sight-Reading
10 points
Note: If scales are not included as part of the 1st Round audition, then “Technique” should receive 10 points and “Interpretation” should receive 10 points.
TIE BREAKER:
Ties will be broken by the sight-reading score. For example, when two students have the same final score, the one with the higher sight-reading score shall be ranked first.
If a tie remains, it will be broken by the score for scales.
If a tie remains, it will be broken by the score for tone quality.
Results will be posted or distributed by the district.
District Quota for 2nd Round. Based on the results of each district’s 1st round audition, students will be recommended for the 2nd round (state level) audition subject to the following quotas. All students being recommended for 2nd round must have scored at least 50% of the top score at 1st round.
10 – Soprano 1
10 – Tenor 1
10 – Soprano 2
10 – Tenor 2
10 – Alto 1
10 – Bass 1
10 – Alto 2
10 – Bass 2
Alternates: There will be no “alternates” submitted.
Quota Spreadsheet: Once a district has completed its 1st round audition and students have been selected to continue to 2nd round, the District Director or the district’s designated vocal chair will submit these names to the Vocal Division Chair on the All-State quota spreadsheet, ranked by parts. The quota sheet will be emailed to the District Directors (or Vocal Chair) by the Division Chair. Follow the Division Chair’s instructions and deadlines.
After the deadline, districts may not make changes to their 2nd round audition list. Should a district not have enough students to qualify in one of the voice parts, the Vocal Division Chair should be notified immediately so a student from another district may advance to 2nd round auditions.
INFORMATION ABOUT STATE LEVEL (2nd ROUND) AUDITIONS
The format of the Second Round audition is a Live Monitored Audition which will be recorded and submitted as an mp3 file.
There will no longer be a single state location for in-person 2nd round auditions.
District directors will verify that teachers of all students participating in these auditions are current members of LMEA.
All “2nd round” auditions will be audio recorded by the District Director or his/her designee(s) and submitted to the Vocal Division Chair.
All students will be required to sing major scales as part of the 2nd round audition.
All students auditioning will sight-read a short exercise, which will be sent to the District Director by the Vocal Division Chair. It is the District Director’s responsibility to send this date to the Vocal Division Chair as soon as it is available.
DEADLINES for 2023:
District Deadlines – District Directors will provide procedural information and set the deadline for receiving checks and student information from schools in their district. This deadline may be before the state deadline.
Saturday, September 30, 2023 – All 2nd Round auditions must be completed by this date. All student registrations and audition fees must be received by the district.
Monday, October 2, 2023 (by 11:59 pm) – Deadline for the District Director or his/her designee to submit all 2nd Round audition files (mp3) and student information via Google form. All links will be sent to District Directors by the State Audition Chair. District Directors must also confirm that they have received all audition fees and Release of Student Information forms by this date.
Wednesday, October 4, 2023 – Postmark deadline for District Directors to send a check (payable to LMEA) to the State Audition Chair. Send a separate check for each division’s auditions.
Monday, October 9, 2023 (by 11:59 pm) – Results for the All-State Choirs will be posted on this website. Check BOTH lists. Registration forms for students selected to an ensemble will opened once rosters are posted.
Tuesday, October 10, 2023 (9:00 am) – Hotel block will open for students and teachers at 9:00 am. No reservations in the Conference and All-State block can be accepted prior to this time. Check the “All-State Hotel Registration“ page for the latest information, prices, and contact information.
Monday, October 23, 2023 (by 11:59pm) – All-State registration for students selected to an ensemble must be completed. Academic Award forms (if eligible) are also due.
Student Release of Information Form – This form will need to be printed, signed, and must be turned in to your district. Follow your District Director’s instructions for submitting it. A student’s 2nd round audition will not be adjudicated without this form.
Registration – the information for all students who qualify for 2nd round must be submitted on the Allotments Sheets by the District Director or the District’s designee by Monday, October 2, 2023. Students and their directors must follow their districts instructions and deadlines for submitting this information and registration fee.
The District Director (or the District’s designee) is responsible for uploading all information and audition recordings on the Google form. (A link will be sent by the Division Chair.)
Students who qualify for 2nd Round and their directors must follow their District Director’s instructions and deadlines for submitting all information and registration fees.
Students auditioning for more than one ensemble must indicate their preference of ensembles when their audition registration information is submitted. This information will be used should he/she be selected to participate in more than one of this year’s LMEA All-State ensembles.
DATE and LOCATION: Each district director will schedule the date, time, and location for recording the 2nd round audition in his/her district. Allow enough time to comply with state deadlines.
AUDITION FEE and REGISTRATION:
$15 per audition
Ensemble directors must follow their District Director’s instructions and deadline for submitting school checks.
District Directors must confirm that they have received all audition fees and forms by the date the audition files are uploaded. An audition cannot be adjudicated if the audition fee has not been received.
All auditioner information will be submitted on the Google form by the District Director or his/her designee. This includes: Name, School, Grade, Instrument or Voice, All-State Ensemble preference, T-Shirt Size, Audio audition file, Verification of receipt of the “Release of Information” Form.
All second round audition recordings must also be submitted via the Google form by 11:59 pm on Monday, October 2, 2023. (Links will be sent to the District Director.)
1. SCALES – 2nd Round Scales will be required as part of both the 1st and the 2nd round auditions.
Each student must sing all scales using the starting pitch indicated for their voice part below. Scales must be sung a cappella using solfege, numbers, or a neutral syllable. Recommended tempo for scales is quarter note = 66-80. Each singer must sing two scales, each one ascending and descending.
Bass 1: E below middle C; A below C3 (the C below middle C)
Bass 2: D below middle C; F below C3 (the C below middle C)
2. PREPARED SELECTION – 2nd Round. For 2023, the 2nd Round prepared selection will be the same as the 1st Round selection.
2023 Prepared Selection – same as 1st round audition “O Vos Omnes” by Pablo Casals, SSAATTBB, Tetra Music, TC128 (Sing Latin).
Learning Tracks – Students are expected to learn and perform the entire piece.
Audition Tracks – These tracks must be used in the audition recording. They include the scale, audition selection, and sight-reading instructions.
3. SIGHT-SINGING PROCESS – 2nd Round – Important information for District Directors:
The sight-reading material will be emailed to the district director by the Vocal Chair prior to the district’s audition date. It is the District Director’s responsibility to get the audition date to the Vocal Chairman or Audition Coordinator asap.
District directors should keep these files in strict confidentiality throughout the audition process.
District directors should print and catalog the sight-reading as needed for distribution to auditioners (during the audition only), judges and monitors.
Monitors will return all sight-reading copies to the district director at the conclusion of the audition recording. These copies will be discarded by the district director once he/she has verified that all copies have been returned.
SIGHT-SINGING – Information for Students and Teachers – 2nd Round
Students will sight-read a short selection using solfege, numbers, or neutral syllables. Ties are broken by the sight-reading score.
The sight-reading material will follow the following criteria:
There will only be skips within the Tonic (I) chord. All other movements will be step-wise.
It will be in common time (4/4).
The range will be no greater than the Sol (V) below the tonic (I) chord to the La (VI) above the tonic chord.
The rhythmic difficulty will consist of whole, half, quarter, dotted quarter followed by an eighth note. There will only be quarter note rests.
The example will be eight measures long.
It will begin on Do (I) and end on Do (I)
There will not be a pickup measure to begin with and will include no accidentals.
If you are using Sight Reading Factory, Level 3 is close to this level of difficulty.
COMPOSITE AUDITION TRACKS These tracks must be used in the audition recording. They include the scale tracks, audition selection, and sight-reading instructions.
All 2nd round auditions will be audio recorded (.mp3 file).
Each District Director will assign one or more monitors to record the 2nd round audition and certify that each auditioner performed the material without any restarts.
Monitors should be carefully selected by the district director to ensure procedural continuity of the audition. It is recommended that monitors are choir directors within each district.
An audio test of the recorder and room should be done before any auditions begin to ensure a proper balance between student and the accompaniment track. Be sure the student will be clearly heard.
The monitor will read the following script at the beginning of the audition/recording to announce and identify each auditioner: “On (Insert Voice Part), this is Audition Number (Insert Audition Number).”
Be sure that the voice part and audition number announced on the recording are accurately entered on the track sheet.
Monitors should verify that the recording is on the recorder before the auditioner leaves the room (if possible). (This can be done by playing a few seconds of the recording and checking the length of the file on the recorder.)
Audition restarts will only be allowed if there is a technical issue with the recorder.
TRACK SHEET
A track sheet will be shared via Google Sheets to enter the audition information at the “room” level. This includes: Room Number, Recorder Number, File Name, File Duration, Last Name, First Name, Instrument/Voice Part, Audition Number.
The Room Number, Recorder Number, File Name and Audition Number are to be determined by the District Director or his/her designee.
There should be one track sheet for each room used at the second round audition.
RECORDING EQUIPMENT
The recommended recorder is a typical “voice recorder” like those used for adjudicators at large ensemble assessment. District Directors have received information about these recorders.
2nd ROUND AUDITION FILE SUBMISSION PROCEDURE:
Each district director (or designee) will be responsible for submitting auditioners’ information and uploading all audio audition recordings into the Google form shared by the audition coordinator.
All student registration information and audition recordings must be submitted by 11:59 pm on Monday, October 2, 2023. District Directors will communicate to their district regarding how they want to receive student information – name, school, grade, instrument, All-State ensemble preference, t-shirt size, audio audition file, verification of receipt of the “Student Release of Information Form.”
Google Drive is one of the easiest and most accessible platforms to use for file sharing. However, some school districts restrict the sharing of files from their school google drives. Files must be accessible to the chairperson to be judged for inclusion in an All-State ensemble. Discussions with your school district’s IT department may be necessary to ensure required access to the All-State audition.
The students’ auditions are evaluated on the following criteria:
Intonation
20 points
Tone Quality
20 points
Part Accuracy
20 points
Diction
10 points
Technique and Interpretation
10 points
Scales
10 points
Sight-Reading
10 points
Note: If scales are not included as part of the 1st Round audition, then “Technique” should receive 10 points and “Interpretation” should receive 10 points.
TIE BREAKER:
Ties will be broken by the sight-reading score. For example, when two students have the same final score, the one with the higher sight-reading score shall be ranked first.
If the score remains tied, the scale score shall be used to break the tie.
If the score remains tied, the tie will be broken by the students’ score for tone quality.
AUDITION RESULTS:
Audition Results: Results will be posted on this website by Monday, October 9, 2023 (11:59 pm) or as soon as possible once they are finalized for all ensembles.
Check results for Mixed Choir and Treble Chorus.
INFORMATION FOR STUDENTS SELECTED TO AN ALL-STATE ENSEMBLE
Student Forms: Important information (including the rehearsal schedule), required forms with instructions, and optional forms can be found under the All-State: Student Forms tab in the menu. Scroll down to the appropriate ensemble’s section.
Academic Award Form (OPTIONAL) – A student who has a verified cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher should upload the verified academic award form when completing the online All-State Student Registration Form. (9th graders are not eligible for this award.) The deadline is the same as the “registration due” deadline.
Hotel Information: Information can be found under the All-State: Hotel Information tab in the menu.
All-State Rules and Regulations are part of the All-State Entry form and are to be signed by each student, parent, director and principal involved.
Rules and Regulations for LMEA All-State:
Teachers are required to screen students who are discipline problems and not allow them to audition.
Students are expected to follow their school’s rules while at LMEA All-State.
Students must be present and on time for registration, all rehearsals, and any other scheduled All-State events.
Students failing to adhere to their LMEA All-State schedules or the rules and regulations are subject to dismissal.
Students are responsible for their personal equipment and instruments, including any school instruments or other items checked out to them. LMEA will not assume responsibility for lost, damaged or stolen equipment or instruments.
Any student who participates in any type of vandalism will be subject to immediate dismissal. The student and the school will be held responsible for damages.
Any student in possession of prescription drugs without a doctor’s prescription, any illegal drugs or other illegal substances, including alcoholic beverages, or who consumes any of these will be subject to immediate dismissal. The parent, director, and administrator will be notified.
Students’ teachers are required to be current LMEA members and to register for and be present at the All-State event and Professional Development Conference to ensure students are supervised/chaperoned when not in rehearsals or another scheduled All-State activity.
Students and parents are hereby notified that LMEA’s authority and responsibility extends until a student is released to return home.
Consequences and procedures related to the violation of any rules:
The student’s principal, director and parents will be immediately notified of any rule violation.
A disciplinary committee consisting of the Executive Director, the LMEA President, and the Band, Orchestra, Vocal, Guitar or Jazz Ensemble Chairperson (as pertinent) shall review any disciplinary problems before dismissal from the All-State group is recommended.
Any student dismissed (sent home) from an All-State event will be prohibited from participating in any LMEA event for one (1) full year starting from the time of the dismissal.
Any school organization whose student (or students) must be dismissed from an LMEA All-State event will be placed on a one-year probation. If a student is dismissed within the probation period, that school organization will be prohibited from participating in LMEA All-State events the following year.
Any infraction and subsequent dismissal will be referred to the LMEA Executive Board for resolution and clarification.
2023 ALL-STATE MIXED CHOIR CLINICIAN: Dr. Andrew Minear, conductor, music educator, and choir leader
2023 ALL-STATE TREBLE CHORUS CLINICIAN: Dr. Cameron Weatherford, Assistant Professor of Choral Music at Lee University