SMU Meadows Chorale Takes to the Road with 2014 Spring Concert Tour

The Meadows School Division of Music is proud to present the SMU Meadows Chorale 2014 Spring Concert Tour, April 3-7. The Meadows Chorale will travel to Houston and San Antonio to perform at several high schools and present a formal concert at a local church. Associate Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities Pamela Elrod Huffman will conduct, while pianist Desta Hailu will serve as the accompanist throughout the tour.

While concerts held on campus generally center on a particular theme or focus, the 2014 Spring Concert Tour will showcase many of the musical selections the Chorale has performed throughout the academic year. “It's a representation of what we do here in the choral program at Meadows,” says Huffman. “Since recruiting is the main impetus behind this tour, letting potential students see what is done during a regular performance season is helpful.”

An important part of any choral department, concert tours prove to be a major and effective recruiting tool – not only for SMU Meadows, but also for universities and colleges in general. “The students who come to a school are, of course, interested in the vocal performance aspect of a program – but because most of them come from very strong high school choral programs, they’re also interested in attending a school where the choirs are good,” Huffman says. “Being able to take the choir directly to these students is so much more effective than sending out CDs or posting things on YouTube.”

While the majority in Meadows Chorale identify as vocal music majors, Huffman encourages students of all backgrounds and majors to become involved in the program. All students – regardless of major, area of study, or minor – are welcome to audition for any of the three choral ensembles at SMU Meadows: Meadows Chorale, Concert Choir and Diva Dolce, the latter of which is all-female.

“The choral program is enormously valuable to SMU Meadows School of the Arts,” Huffman says. “It's the art of the human voice and the art of human collaboration. If that's not valuable, I don't know what is.”

Recognizing all that SMU Meadows has to offer, Meadows Chorale anticipates the opportunity to shine, vocally, during the spring concert tour and to provide a glimpse of what the future could look like for prospective students. “Through these performances we hope to share the high quality of music-making that goes on in the choral program here, and as a result, bring talented young musicians to this school,” Huffman says.

Learn more about the SMU Meadows Chorale, check out SMU Meadows on Facebook and follow SMU Meadows on Twitter.