Shawnee Honor Choir to Perform at OMEA Convention

The Shawnee Honor Choir will perform at the Oklahoma Music Educators' Association Convention at Holy Family Cathedral in Tulsa at 4:45 p.m., Jan. 30.

In its 21st year, Shawnee Honor Choir is an auditioned group under the direction of Conchita Hansford, director of Oklahoma Baptist University's music preparatory department. The fourth- through sixth-graders from the Shawnee area study and perform a range of music from simple unison songs to more challenging two- and three-part treble choral literature.

This is the third time that the choir has been selected to perform at OMEA and the second time under Hansford's direction. Recordings are submitted by interested groups in June and ranked by judges according to artistic merit. The judges make a decision based on such things as beauty of tone and tuning, quality of repertoire, artistic singing, beauty of expression, technical accuracy and diction.

"Being chosen to perform at the state convention is truly an honor for our students," Hansford said. "The children must demonstrate a tremendous work ethic and a high degree of self-discipline in order to achieve the level of accomplishment required to be selected for this musical distinction."

Accompanied by Erin Parker, the choir will perform Bless the Lord, O My Soul by Ruth Watson Henderson, Birdsong by Paul Read, Jonathan Willcocks' Can You Count the Stars?, Can You Hear Me by Bob Chillcott, Little Firefly by Larry E. Schultz, Jazz Man (from Friday Afternoon) by Benjamin Britten, and the spirituals Chatter with the Angels and Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho.

The students come from Dale Elementary, Epperly Heights Elementary, Grove School, Harrah Middle School, Jefferson Elementary, Meeker Elementary, North Rock Creek, Sequoyah Elementary, Shawnee Middle School, South Rock Creek and Will Rogers Elementary, as well as from home schools.

They are Hannah Anderson, Avarilla Anfuso, William Barnes, Catherine Blair, Kendra Boydston, Kenneth Branson, Cara Chunn, Bo Churchwell, Kristen Clingan, Felicia Clinkenbeard, Kelcy Collins-Keener, Amy Conrad, Logan Davis, Emily Day, Ashley Ernst, Graeson Griffin, Bethany Hall, Kayla Hamlin, Raven Hines, Hannah Jett, Jennifer Jett, Morgan Johnson, Bethany Keen, Trenton Keen, Mackenzie Kelly, Garrett McDonald, Jenna McDonald, Timothy McDonald, Bethany McWilliams, Motley Moomey, Hanna Mosman, Jennifer Newell, Alyssa Poe, Ashley Poe, Jenna Quantz, Bethany Ray, Raye Reeder, Collin Renner, Jorrell Richardson, Travis Ruud, Zachary Simmons, David Simons, Hayley Simpson, Brad Spillers, Hannah Stanley, Tyler Swadley, Caitlyn Swinney, Kitty Tiger, Sarah Trammell, Kara VanAntwerp, Heather Watts, Jesse White, Kora White, Ben Whitmore, Thomas Whitmore, Lorena Wilkinson, Amy Winn and Zachary Winters.